2026 Guide Audit Summary
At fpPathfinder, we’re committed to creating clear, comprehensive checklists and flowcharts that help advisors prepare for client conversations, uncover planning opportunities, and avoid missing important details. That commitment also means making sure the guides advisors rely on continue to meet our standards.
Led by Guide Editor Chris Granger, CFP®, our team recently completed a comprehensive audit of our entire guide library, reviewing each resource for accuracy, clarity, consistency, and usefulness in real-world planning conversations.
The result is a stronger, more consistent library designed to help advisors spend less time researching and more time having meaningful conversations with their clients.
Batch 1 (Updated September 29, 2026)
- We updated the upper end of the SALT deduction phase-out range from $605,000 to $606,333.
- We changed “Mega Backdoor Roth IRA Contribution” to “Mega Backdoor Roth Contribution” to align the terminology with the referenced flowchart.
End Of The Year Planning Issues
- We removed a redundant “percent” following a percentage symbol when referencing the 24% marginal tax bracket.
Common Savings Strategies For Children
- We changed the guide title from “Common Savings Accounts For Children” to “Common Savings Strategies For Children” to better reflect the range of savings vehicles covered by the guide.
- We clarified that investment restrictions for Trump accounts apply until age 18.
- We added a footnote clarifying that the annual gift tax exclusion may apply to Trump accounts if applicable safe harbor requirements are met.
- We added a footnote clarifying that a UTMA/UGMA may be included in a parent’s gross estate if the parent dies before the child reaches the age of majority while serving as custodian of the account.
- We corrected the spelling of “subtract” when describing the subtract-one rule for the Single Life Expectancy Table.
- We clarified that the Single Life Expectancy Table applies to inherited IRAs if they are subject to annual RMDs, recognizing that not all inherited IRAs are required to take annual distributions under the post-SECURE Act rules.
Deductible IRA Contribution Rules
- We made several grammatical and stylistic updates throughout the flowchart, including adding missing colons and correcting capitalization to maintain consistency within the guide and across the guide library.
Inherited Traditional IRA & Inherited Roth IRA Issues
- We changed “minor child” to “minor child of the owner” to clarify the requirements for being treated as an eligible designated beneficiary.
- We replaced “age of majority” with “age 21” when describing when a minor child ceases to be an eligible designated beneficiary.
- We added a new question directing surviving spouses inheriting an IRA to the appropriate spousal inheritance flowchart, while clarifying that a different guide may be needed for Roth IRAs or twice-inherited IRAs.
- We changed “them” to “it” when referring to an emergency fund to correct the grammar of the question.
Common Charitable Giving Vehicles
- We added a footnote clarifying that the amount of the charitable tax deduction may be subject to additional limitations, including AGI limits and the type of property contributed.
- We corrected a spelling error in the Pooled Income Fund section.
Traditional 401(k) Rollover Decisions
- We increased the automatic distribution threshold from $5,000 to $7,000 to reflect the change made under SECURE Act 2.0.
Tax Return Document Preparation
- We added Form 1099-DA to the list of potential tax documents for taxable investment and interest-bearing accounts to account for digital asset transactions.
Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) Tax Rules
- We changed “purchase price” to “cost basis” when describing the calculation of a long-term capital loss to use the more technically accurate term.
Social Security Benefit Rules For Divorced Spouses
- We corrected a typo by changing “that greatest benefits” to “the greatest benefits.”
Social Security Benefit Reduction Rules
- We corrected the capitalization of “Social Security benefits.”
- We updated the delayed retirement credit example from an FRA of 66 and a maximum 32% increase to an FRA of 67 and a maximum 24% increase, making the example more relevant for individuals currently approaching retirement.
- We removed an outdated question addressing scams involving individuals posing as government agencies offering COVID-19 relief payments.
- We added examples of strategies that may help mitigate the impact of inherited IRA RMDs on heirs, including Roth conversions, accelerated IRA distributions, and QCDs.
- We removed SALT limitations from the examples of tax provisions that do not receive inflation adjustments, as the expanded SALT deduction is now subject to inflation adjustments under the OBBBA.
Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) And Required Beginning Date (RBD) Rules
- We changed “age” to “ages” when describing how to use the Joint Life and Last Survivor Expectancy Table, since both the IRA owner’s and spouse beneficiary’s ages are used.
Business Owner And 1099 Worker Issues
- We removed an outdated reference to planned depreciation sunsets/phase-outs following changes made under the OBBBA.
Step-Up In Basis Rules For Appreciated Property
- We changed “Half the value” to “Up to half of the value” when describing the step-up in basis for jointly owned property. This accounts for situations involving non-spouse joint owners where the allowable step-up may depend on the decedent’s contribution under the consideration furnished rules.
- We expanded the taxation language for non-qualified annuities to clarify that earnings are taxed as ordinary income and that the taxation of distributions may vary depending on the contract, including the use of an exclusion ratio or LIFO treatment.
- We changed “custodial parent” to “the parent who provides the most financial support for the student” when discussing FAFSA treatment to more accurately reflect the applicable financial aid rules.
529-To-Roth IRA Transfer Rules
- We corrected the capitalization of “transfer” in one box to maintain grammatical and stylistic consistency throughout the flowchart.
- We corrected the formatting of a footnote reference number to match the size and style of other footnote references throughout the guide.
- We replaced a reference to the “Should I Set Up A Traditional 401(k) For My Business?” flowchart with the “Common Retirement Plans For Small Business Owners” Summary Guide, which provides a broader comparison of retirement plan options.
- We added a new question addressing state-specific tax strategies and compliance considerations, including state business taxes, registration and filing requirements, and potential SALT workarounds.
- We changed “eligibility of certain benefits” to “eligibility for certain benefits” to correct the grammar of the question.
- We corrected “initial insurance mortgage premium” to “initial mortgage insurance premium.”
- We replaced the prescriptive order of operations for retirement savings with broader language encouraging individuals to consider the savings allocation strategy that best fits their personal situation and goals. We also added a reference to the “Where Should My Next Dollar Go?” flowchart for a more nuanced analysis.
- We updated “Qualifying Widow” to “Qualifying Surviving Spouse” to reflect the current name of the tax filing status.
Social Security Retirement Benefit Issues
- We removed a redundant “dollars” following a dollar amount when describing the Social Security earnings test.
- We corrected the spelling of “remarrying.”
- We removed an outdated reference to the pre-TCJA sunset when providing examples of low-income tax planning years.
Batch 2 (Updated October 1, 2026)
Social Security Disability Benefit Rules
- We corrected a grammatical error by changing “20 of which earned in the last ten years” to “20 of which were earned in the last ten years.”
- We removed an outdated reference to premium subsidies that may have been available following an involuntary termination.
- We revised the retirement plan loan language to direct individuals to confirm repayment requirements with their plan provider rather than implying that the tax return due date generally represents the loan repayment deadline.
- We added language noting that FSA carryover limits may apply when considering FSA use-it-or-lose-it rules.
- We changed “fully taxable” to “generally taxable” when describing disability benefits associated with employer-paid premiums to account for situations where an employee may have paid taxes on those premiums.
- We removed a duplicated “the” to correct a typo.
Qualified Business Income (QBI) Deduction Rules
- We replaced a broad reference to “investment income” with “long-term capital gains and qualified dividends” when calculating the applicable taxable income limitation for the QBI deduction. This more accurately reflects the net capital gain adjustment under Section 199A.
Net Unrealized Appreciation (NUA) Rules
- We changed “rolled over” to “distributed in-kind” when describing employer stock transferred to a taxable brokerage account to more accurately describe an NUA distribution.
- We clarified that the 3.8% Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT) only applies to “subsequent gains” beyond the threshold.
- We changed “possibly” to “potentially” when describing the 10% penalty that may apply to the cost basis of shares distributed from a retirement plan and clarified that the penalty does not apply if an exception is met.
Backdoor Roth IRA Contribution Rules
- We removed an outdated reference indicating that existing pre-tax Traditional, SEP, or SIMPLE IRAs are found on Form 8606.
- We standardized references throughout the flowchart by changing “Backdoor Roth Contribution” to “Backdoor Roth IRA Contribution” to align with the guide title.
Mega Backdoor Roth Contribution Rules
- We replaced the specific age 50+ catch-up contribution amount with “plus a catch-up if eligible” to better accommodate the increasingly varied catch-up contribution rules that may apply.
- We removed “sum” from “sum total of all contributions” to eliminate redundancy.
- We updated “Qualifying Widow” to “Qualifying Surviving Spouse” to reflect the current name of the tax filing status.
Roth 401(k) Contribution Decisions
- We removed “effective” from a reference to future tax rates. This provides a more general comparison of current and future tax rates without implying that the decision should be based specifically on a calculated effective tax rate.
Inherited Roth IRA Distribution Rules
- We updated the rules for a surviving spouse who inherits a Roth IRA to clarify that RMDs generally begin in the year the deceased spouse would have reached their required beginning date (RBD).
- We added a new question addressing charitable giving for taxpayers who itemize deductions, including the new 0.5% of AGI floor and potential strategies for maximizing deductions above the floor. This complements the existing question addressing charitable giving for taxpayers taking the standard deduction.
Purchasing Disability Insurance Issues
- We clarified that disability benefits attributable to employer-paid premiums may not be taxable if the employee paid taxes on those premiums.
Charitable Giving Strategy Review
- We corrected “Qualified Charitable Contribution” to “Qualified Charitable Distribution” (QCD).
Account Savings And Contributions Review
- We removed the Roth IRA reference from a question about deductible IRA contributions to eliminate confusion, since Roth IRA contributions are not deductible.
- We removed a reference to the “Should I Set Up A Traditional 401(k) For My Business?” flowchart to streamline the guide and remove a less relevant guide reference.
- We clarified that the combined federal estate and gift tax exclusions of both parents depend on electing portability rather than automatically combining upon the death of a spouse.
- We updated a guide reference to reflect the new title, “What Is My Basis For This Gifted Property I Received?”
- We moved the kiddie tax milestone from age 18 to a newly added age 19 milestone. The guide now clarifies that a child is generally no longer subject to the kiddie tax at age 19 unless they are a full-time student.
- We added “IRA” to a reference to an individual’s first Roth contribution to maintain terminology consistency throughout the flowchart.
- We simplified and restructured a lengthy question addressing exceptions to the Roth IRA early distribution penalty. The revised language presents the applicable exceptions more concisely and consistently, making the flowchart easier to read and navigate.
- We reworked the language in a couple of boxes and fixed (added) several connecting arrows throughout the flowchart to improve its overall logic, cohesiveness, and ease of use.
- We changed language stating that an unrealized loss could reduce “tax liability” to clarify that a realized loss may reduce taxable income by up to $3,000. This more accurately reflects the treatment of deductible capital losses.
- We removed an overly simplified parenthetical definition of taxable income that only referenced earned income and investment income.
- We added a missing “or” when listing taxable income thresholds to improve grammatical clarity.
Setting Up A Traditional 401(k) For A Business
- We added “plus catch-up contributions if eligible” when referencing the $72,000 contribution amount to account for additional contributions that may be available to eligible participants.
Common Retirement Plans For Small Business Owners
- We replaced specific catch-up contribution amounts throughout the guide with “plus catch-up contributions if eligible” to better account for the different catch-up contribution rules that may apply.
- We updated the additional SIMPLE IRA non-elective contribution amount from $5,000 to $5,300.
- We clarified that the $250,000 Solo 401(k) plan balance threshold for filing Form 5500 is measured at the end of the plan year.
Non-Qualified Portfolio Tax Issues
- We replaced “auto step-up in basis” with “increase basis” when describing the effect of automatically reinvesting dividends and capital gains distributions to use more technically accurate terminology.
- We added “contribution” when describing a lump-sum contribution to a donor-advised fund for grammatical clarity.
- We replaced references to unused charitable “donations” and “losses” with “deductions” when discussing charitable deduction carryforwards to more accurately describe the tax treatment.
Common Deductible Charitable Gifts
- We added a new footnote clarifying that only cash donations made directly to qualifying public charities qualify for the new non-itemized charitable deduction. Donations to donor-advised funds, pooled income funds, and charitable trusts do not qualify.
- We expanded the footnote addressing the 0.5% of AGI floor for itemized charitable donations to also note that the maximum value of itemized deductions is limited to 35% for taxpayers in the 37% tax bracket. We added references to this footnote throughout the guide where applicable.
- We added March 5 as the prior-year income distribution deadline for trusts making an election under Section 663(b).
- We corrected several Form 1120-S references by adding the missing hyphen and removed references to the obsolete Form 1065-B.
- We corrected capitalization issues involving references to corporations and S-Corporations throughout the guide.
- We added July 31 as the Form 5500 and Form 5500-EZ filing deadline for Solo 401(k) calendar-year plans.
Harvesting Capital Gains Vs. Roth Conversions Decisions
- We added a missing Oxford comma when listing the 32%, 35%, and 37% tax rates to maintain stylistic consistency.
- We changed a reference from “residency” to “domicile” when discussing ties maintained with a former state to more accurately reflect the issue being addressed.
- We added a new question addressing whether the new state imposes an estate and/or inheritance tax and highlighting potential exemptions, exclusions, credits, and planning strategies.
- We simplified the tax-motivated move question to make it more concise while retaining the importance of clearly establishing domicile and residency to avoid potential dual taxation.
- We updated the SALT deduction cap from $40,000 to $40,400.