Special Rules for Certain Military Personnel

Current or former members of the U.S. Armed Forces may qualify for additional retirement benefits. Under the Heroes Earned Retirement Opportunities (HERO) Act, taxpayers can count tax-free combat pay when determining whether they qualify to contribute to either a Roth or traditional IRA. Before this change, members of the Armed Forces whose earnings came entirely from tax-free combat pay were generally barred from using IRAs to save for retirement.