Maryland ABLE Account: Rules, Limits, and How to Open One in 2026

What a Maryland ABLE Account Actually Does

Your child qualifies for SSI. They have a $2,000 resource limit. Every dollar above that line suspends their cash benefits.

A Maryland ABLE account changes that math. It lets a person with a qualifying disability save up to $100,000 without it counting against the SSI resource limit. The account is tax-advantaged, state-sponsored, and administered through Vestwell (the Maryland State Treasurer's selected platform). Contributions grow tax-free, and withdrawals for qualified disability expenses — housing, transportation, health care, education, employment training, assistive technology — are also tax-free.

The program exists because Congress recognized that a $2,000 savings ceiling makes it nearly impossible for people with disabilities to build any financial stability. ABLE accounts don't replace SSI or Medicaid; they work alongside those programs by sheltering savings from the resource test.

2026 Contribution Limits

The standard annual contribution limit for a Maryland ABLE account is $20,000 in 2026. That cap applies across all contributors — parents, grandparents, the account holder, anyone.

If the account holder works and does not participate in an employer-sponsored retirement plan, they can contribute additional earnings under the ABLE to Work Act. The extra allowance equals their gross wages, up to $15,650 in 2026. That brings the theoretical annual maximum to $35,650 for an employed beneficiary without an employer retirement plan.

The lifetime account balance can grow up to $500,000 before Maryland stops accepting new contributions. But there is a critical SSI interaction at a much lower threshold.

How ABLE Interacts with SSI

The first $100,000 in an ABLE account is completely excluded from the SSI $2,000 resource limit. If the balance crosses $100,000, SSI cash payments are suspended — but not terminated. The beneficiary keeps their Medicaid coverage regardless of the ABLE balance (up to the $500,000 cap), and SSI payments resume automatically once the balance drops back under $100,000.

This distinction matters. Suspension is not the same as termination. A suspended beneficiary doesn't need to reapply. They just need to spend down the ABLE balance below the threshold, and payments restart the following month.

Qualified withdrawals from the account also don't count as income for SSI purposes. Housing-related withdrawals (rent, mortgage, utilities) are treated differently — they can count as in-kind support and maintenance if they exceed the presumed maximum value — but most other qualified expenses are excluded cleanly.

The Age-46 Eligibility Expansion

Before January 1, 2026, only people whose qualifying disability began before age 26 could open an ABLE account. The ABLE Age Adjustment Act raised that threshold to age 46. This is a federal change that applies to all state ABLE programs, including Maryland's.

That means an adult who acquired a traumatic brain injury at age 30, or was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at 35, can now open an ABLE account for the first time — as long as the onset of disability occurred before their 46th birthday. The expansion opens access to millions of people who were previously locked out.

Maryland State Tax Deduction

Maryland offers a state income tax deduction of up to $2,500 per contributor for contributions to a Maryland ABLE account. If you contribute more than $2,500 in a single year, the excess carries forward for up to 10 years. Both the account holder and any third-party contributors can claim the deduction on their own Maryland return.

This is a deduction, not a credit — it reduces taxable income rather than directly reducing tax owed. But for families making regular contributions, the cumulative tax savings over a decade are meaningful.

How to Open a Maryland ABLE Account

Enrollment is online at marylandable.org. The account holder (or their authorized representative) needs to certify that they meet one of these criteria:

• They receive SSI or SSDI, which serves as automatic proof of a qualifying disability
• They receive a disability certification from a licensed physician confirming a condition that meets SSA's criteria for marked and severe functional limitations, with onset before age 46

There is no enrollment fee. Vestwell charges a small annual account maintenance fee and investment management fees that vary by the chosen portfolio. The account can be funded via bank transfer, payroll deduction, or check.

ABLE vs. Special Needs Trust

Both tools protect assets from the SSI resource limit, but they work differently. An ABLE account is self-managed — the beneficiary (or their representative) controls deposits and withdrawals without court involvement or trustee fees. A special needs trust requires a trustee, involves higher setup costs (typically $2,500–$5,000 for a third-party trust), and distributions must go directly to vendors rather than to the beneficiary.

The practical tradeoff: ABLE accounts are simpler and cheaper for ongoing savings up to $100,000. Special needs trusts handle larger sums — inheritances, personal injury settlements, life insurance proceeds — where the amounts exceed what ABLE can shelter. Many Maryland families use both: a trust for the large one-time transfers and an ABLE account for ongoing savings and employment income.

For families navigating the full landscape of SSI, Medicaid, and ABLE coordination, the Maryland SSI at 18 & Adult Disability Benefits Guide walks through the sequencing step by step — including how to time ABLE contributions around SSI redetermination and Medicaid transitions.

See more Maryland guides →