There are seven weeks left in 2026, and a handful of money deadlines land on December 31 with no extensions. Miss the April tax deadline and you can file for more time. Miss these and the chance is gone until next year.
You won't need all eight. Three or four will apply to you, and you can skip the rest without guilt. I've sorted them by who they're for and put a time estimate on each, so you know what you're signing up for.
For everyone
Top off your 403(b) or 401(k)
The 2026 limit is $24,500 from your paycheck. Add $8,000 if you're 50 or older, or $11,250 if you're 60 to 63. The money has to come out of a 2026 paycheck, and payroll changes can take a pay period to show up, so do this one first. At Cornell and Ithaca College you have two or three paychecks left.
While you're logged in, set next year's number. The 2027 limit goes up to $25,500, with catch-ups of $8,500 and $11,750. One new rule: if you earned more than $150,000 from your employer last year, your catch-up dollars now have to go in as Roth (taxed now, tax-free later). If you haven't looked at where the money is invested in a while, here's how I'd think about TIAA versus Fidelity.
Change the percentage this week. December's paychecks are the last ones that count.
Give to charity under the new rules
The rules changed this year. If you take the standard deduction, you can now deduct up to $1,000 of cash gifts, or $2,000 as a married couple. The gift has to go straight to the charity by December 31. Donor-advised funds don't count for this one.
If you itemize, only giving above 0.5% of your income is deductible now. On $200,000 of income, the first $1,000 you give doesn't count.
If you itemize and own a stock that's up a lot, give the shares instead of cash. The charity gets the full value and nobody pays the capital gains tax. Shares don't count toward the $1,000 deduction, though.
Keep the receipts. A deduction you can't document is worth nothing.
Check your beneficiaries
Log into every retirement account and life insurance policy and read the name on the beneficiary line. That form overrides your will. I've seen more than one that still named an ex.
Ten minutes, once a year.
If you're still drawing a paycheck
Spend your FSA. Leave your HSA alone.
A health care FSA is use-it-or-lose-it. Some plans let you carry a few hundred dollars into next year or give you until mid-March to spend it. Yours might not. Check the balance and the rule, then book the dentist, order the glasses, and refill the prescriptions. Dependent care FSA money you don't claim is gone.
An HSA is the opposite. It rolls over forever, and you have until April 15 to finish funding it for 2026 ($4,400 single, $8,750 family).
Look up your FSA balance today. Appointments in December fill up fast.
Put money in New York's 529
New York lets you deduct up to $5,000 a year of contributions to its 529 college savings plan from your state income, or $10,000 for a married couple filing jointly. It has to be New York's plan, and the money has to be in by December 31.
Grandparents can open one and take the deduction too.
If you're saving for college anyway, do it through the account that pays you back.
If you have investments outside a retirement account
Sell your losers, and maybe a few winners
If something in your taxable account is below what you paid, selling it locks in a loss you can use against gains, plus up to $3,000 against regular income. This is called tax-loss harvesting. You can buy something similar right away, but not the same thing within 30 days before or after, or the IRS throws out the loss.
The reverse gets less attention. If your taxable income is under $49,450 single or $98,900 married, long-term gains are taxed at 0% federally. In a low-income year you can sell winners, buy them right back, and reset your cost for free. New York will still want its share.
Don't sell a good company to save on taxes. Do clean out the ones you wouldn't buy again.
If you're retired or close to it
Convert to Roth if your income is low this year
A Roth conversion moves money from a pre-tax account into a Roth. You pay income tax on it this year and never again. It has to be done by December 31, and it can't be undone.
It's worth a look in any year your income dips: a sabbatical at half pay, a gap between jobs, or the first years of retirement before Social Security and required withdrawals start. Say Anne retires from Cornell in June and her income drops by half. She can convert enough to fill the 12% or 22% bracket now, instead of paying 24% or more on forced withdrawals at 73.
One caution. A conversion raises your income on paper, which can raise Medicare premiums two years later. Run the numbers with your tax preparer before you move anything.
You're paying taxes upfront to never pay taxes again.
Take your required withdrawal
Once you're 73, the IRS makes you take money out of pre-tax retirement accounts every year. It's called a required minimum distribution, or RMD. The deadline is December 31, and the penalty is 25% of whatever you didn't take. TIAA and Fidelity will calculate the amount, but they won't always send it unless you ask. If your money is in TIAA Traditional, the payout rules have their own clock.
If you give to charity and you're 70½ or older, send the gift straight from your IRA. That's a qualified charitable distribution. It counts toward your RMD and never shows up as income, up to $111,000 for 2026.
If you inherited an IRA since 2020, you may owe a withdrawal this year too. Start here.
Call and confirm the withdrawal is scheduled. Don't assume.
What can wait until April
Two things feel like year-end chores and aren't. You have until April 15, 2027 to put money into a traditional or Roth IRA for 2026 ($7,500, or $8,600 if you're 50 or older), and the same date to finish funding an HSA. Cross them off December's list.
Before December 31, 2026
- 403(b) or 401(k): $24,500 limit, plus $8,000 at 50 or $11,250 at 60 to 63. Change it before your last paycheck.
- Charity: up to $1,000 single or $2,000 married is now deductible without itemizing. Cash, straight to the charity.
- Beneficiaries: read the name on every account.
- FSA: spend it. HSA: leave it.
- NY 529: $5,000 single or $10,000 married comes off your state income.
- Taxable account: harvest losses, and gains if your income is low. Mind the 30-day rule.
- Roth conversion: only in a low-income year, and only after running the numbers.
- RMD: 73 or older, take it. Give from your IRA if you're 70½.
- Can wait until April 15: IRA and HSA contributions.
Pick the ones that apply, block an hour on the calendar this week, and then go enjoy December.
Quick answers
What should I do with my money before the end of 2026?
Eight things have a December 31, 2026 deadline: top off your 403(b) or 401(k), make charitable gifts, check your beneficiaries, spend your health FSA, contribute to New York's 529 plan, harvest investment losses or gains, do a Roth conversion if your income is low this year, and take your required minimum distribution if you're 73 or older. Few households need all eight.
What is the 403(b) and 401(k) contribution limit for 2026?
The 2026 limit is $24,500 from your paycheck. You can add $8,000 if you're 50 or older, or $11,250 if you're 60 to 63. Contributions have to come out of a 2026 paycheck. For 2027 the limit rises to $25,500, with catch-ups of $8,500 and $11,750.
Can I deduct charitable donations in 2026 if I don't itemize?
Yes. Starting with the 2026 tax year, if you take the standard deduction you can deduct up to $1,000 of cash gifts to charity, or $2,000 for a married couple filing jointly. The gift has to go directly to the charity by December 31. Gifts to donor-advised funds don't count.
What is the deadline for a Roth conversion in 2026?
December 31, 2026. Unlike IRA contributions, a Roth conversion can't be made in the following spring and counted for the prior year, and it can't be undone once it's complete.
When do I have to take my required minimum distribution?
If you're 73 or older, by December 31 each year. The penalty for missing it is 25% of the amount you didn't take, reduced to 10% if you fix it quickly. In the first year only, you can wait until April 1 of the following year, but then you'll take two withdrawals in one tax year.
What is the deadline for the New York 529 tax deduction?
December 31. New York lets you deduct up to $5,000 of contributions to its own 529 plan from state income each year, or $10,000 for a married couple filing jointly. Contributions to other states' plans don't qualify.
Which year-end money moves can wait until April?
IRA contributions and HSA contributions. You have until April 15, 2027 to fund a traditional or Roth IRA for 2026 ($7,500, or $8,600 if you're 50 or older) and to finish funding an HSA ($4,400 single, $8,750 family).
Can a financial advisor in Ithaca help with year-end planning?
Yes. I'm a fee-only fiduciary in Ithaca, and a 20-minute call is usually enough to sort out which of these apply to you. Bring a recent pay stub and your account statements. There's nothing for me to sell you.
Not sure which of the eight apply to you?
A 20-minute call. Bring a recent pay stub and your account statements. I'll tell you which ones to do and which to skip.
Book a conversation