The easiest way is to enroll online. It only takes about 10 minutes. If you prefer to enroll by mail, complete the enrollment form. You can open more than one account, but each must be for a different beneficiary.

There are no investment minimums, so you can get started with whatever amount fits your budget. You can also establish recurring contributions from your bank account for any amount.¹ More than one person can contribute to the same account until total market value reaches $520,000. After that, the account may continue to grow through investment earnings only.

CollegeBound Saver has no commissions, loads, or sales charges. The total annual asset-based fee varies from 0.02% to 0.41%, depending on the Portfolio you choose and your Rhode Island residency status.

No. The beneficiary must have a Social Security number or taxpayer identification number, but you may name yourself as beneficiary and change the beneficiary to that child later on.

Yes. You may perform a federal income tax-free rollover from another 529 plan into your CollegeBound Saver account for the same beneficiary once every 12 months. You may also perform a federal income tax-free rollover from another 529 plan into your CollegeBound Saver 529 account at any time when you change the beneficiary to a qualifying family member of the current beneficiary.

Earnings grow tax deferred and are free from federal income tax when used for qualified higher education expenses.² Qualified higher education expenses include tuition, mandatory fees, books, supplies, computers, and equipment required for enrollment or attendance; certain room and board costs during any academic period the beneficiary is enrolled at least half-time; and certain expenses for a special-needs student.

Yes. Rhode Island taxpayers who are account owners are eligible for a deduction in computing state income tax of up to $1,000 for married couples filing jointly and $500 for individual filers for contributions to their CollegeBound Saver account. Subject to certain conditions and requirements, contributions in excess of the annual limit can be carried forward and deducted in future years. If an account owner makes a non-qualified distribution or certain transfers or rollovers to another state’s program, the amount of the deduction may be "recaptured" and included in the account owner’s Rhode Island income. In addition, the Rhode Island Department of Revenue has not yet determined whether a Roth IRA Rollover will be subject to recapture of previous deductions in computing Rhode Island state income tax. Please consult your tax advisor or financial professional regarding the applicability of Roth IRA Rollovers to your personal situation.

Individuals can invest up to $18,000 ($36,000 for married couples) per beneficiary without assuming any gift-tax consequences. You can also contribute up to $90,000 per beneficiary in a single year ($180,000 for married couples) and take advantage of five years' worth of tax-free gifts at one time.³ (Contributions are considered completed gifts and are removed from your estate, but you, as the account owner, retain control.) Upon the death of the account owner, money remaining in the account will not be included in the account owner's estate for federal estate tax purposes. For more information, consult your tax advisor or estate-planning attorney.

Yes. As account owner you choose the portfolios in which you invest, as well as the distribution of the funds.

Yes. You can change the direction of your future contributions at any time. Federal law permits you to move the assets in your CollegeBound Saver account to a different mix of investment options twice per calendar year.

Yes. You can transfer your account to a member of the family of the beneficiary without incurring federal income tax or penalties.⁴

• Electronic funds transfer from your checking or savings account
• Recurring contributions with scheduled contributions in set amounts from your checking or savings account³
• Payroll direct deposit³ through participating employers
• Check (made payable to CollegeBound Saver)
• Rollover from another 529 plan
• Rollover from an Education Savings Account or a qualified Series EE or Series I U.S. Savings Bond
• Transfer from an UGMA/UTMA account
• Ugift

Ugift is an easy, free-to-use service that lets 529 plan account owners encourage family and friends to celebrate children’s milestones with the gift of college savings, in lieu of traditional gifts. To learn more, visit Ugift529.com.

Ugift is a registered service mark.

Effective January 1, 2024, 529 account owners will be able to rollover savings from their 529 plan account into a Roth IRA without incurring any federal income tax or penalty. The Roth IRA must belong to the same beneficiary, and the lifetime rollover limit is $35,000. To be eligible, the 529 account must have been open for at least 15 years and the rollover amount must have been in the 529 account for 5 years.

529 to Roth IRA rollovers will also count toward annual Roth IRA contribution limits, but Roth IRA income limits do not apply for this type of contribution. For more information, please read the Program Description.

The Rhode Island Department of Revenue has not yet determined whether a Roth IRA Rollover will be subject to recapture of previous deductions in computing Rhode Island state income tax. Please consult your tax advisor or financial professional regarding the applicability of Roth IRA Rollovers to your personal situation.

Eligible expenses can include tuition, computers, mandatory fees, books, supplies, and equipment required for enrollment or attendance; certain room and board costs during any academic period the beneficiary is enrolled at least half-time; toolkits for apprenticeship or cosmetology school; and certain expenses for a special-needs student.

No. You can use the assets in your account toward the costs of nearly any public or private, 2-year or 4-year college nationwide, as long as the student is enrolled in a U.S.-accredited college, university, graduate school, or technical school that is eligible to participate in U.S. Department of Education student financial aid programs. In fact, many U.S. colleges and universities now have campuses or locations outside of the country, where money from your CollegeBound Saver account can be used.

If the beneficiary decides not to go to college, you have three options:

• Stay invested. You can leave the money in the account in case the beneficiary decides to attend school later. There is no age limit for using the money.
• Change the beneficiary. You can change the beneficiary on your account at any time provided that the new beneficiary is an eligible Member of the Family of the former beneficiary. Please see the Program Description for more information on who qualifies.)
• Withdraw the money for other uses. The earnings portion of a distribution not used for a beneficiary's qualified higher education expenses is subject to federal and state income taxes and may be subject to a 10% federal penalty tax. (For exceptions to this penalty, please see the Program Description.)

Additionally, any accumulated earnings that are withdrawn from your account must also be reported on the recipient's income tax return for the year in which they are withdrawn. Contact your tax advisor to determine how to report a non-qualified distribution.

529 plan assets are counted at different rates for the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) in the FAFSA formula. Federal guidelines are as follows:

• If the student is a dependent, a 529 plan account is considered as the parent's asset (if the account owner is the parent or the dependent student). As a result, it will generally be counted at a rate of only 3-6% of its value for the EFC.
• If the student is not a dependent and is the account owner, the 529 plan account is treated as the student's asset and is generally factored into the EFC at the higher rate of 20%.
• In other cases, such as a student who is neither a dependent nor the account owner, the account does not count as an asset for federal financial aid purposes. However, a student may have to report distributions received from the account as income for these purposes.
  • Beginning with FAFSA applications for the 2024-2025 academic year, as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, distributions from a non-parent-owned 529 account will no longer need to be reported as the student’s taxable income on the FAFSA.

Note: Financial aid programs offered by educational institutions and other non-federal sources may have their own guidelines for the treatment of 529 plan accounts. For complete information about financial aid eligibility, you should consult with a financial aid professional and/or the state or educational institution offering a particular financial aid program, since rules and regulations often change.