Missouri 529 tax deduction in 2026
Missouri is generous on the way in and strict on the way out, where even a scholarship withdrawal brings the deduction back.
Missouri tax saved on this contribution
$282
4.7 % of what you put in comes back on your 2026 return.
| Subtracted from state income | $6,000 |
| Your state marginal rate | 4.70 % |
| Cap that applies this year | $16,000 |
| Back per $1,000 contributed | $47 |
Missouri: Subtraction from federal AGI for contributions to MOST or any other qualified 529 plan, up to $8,000 for single individuals or $16,000 for married couples filing a combined return; documentation must be in the name of the person claiming it. Read on 2026-10-19. No federal deduction exists for 529 contributions.
| Taxable income | Marginal rate | Tax saved |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | 4.70 % | $282 |
| $100,000 | 4.70 % | $282 |
| $200,000 | 4.70 % | $282 |
| $400,000 | 4.70 % | $282 |
Worked out by Radif Partners · How we calculate · Missouri rule read on October 19, 2026, brackets of tax year 2026 · not tax advice
Missouri subtracts contributions to MOST, its own 529, or to any other qualified 529 plan, up to $8,000 for a single filer and $16,000 for a married couple on a combined return. With parity on that scale, the plan's home state does not change the answer: a single aunt at $70,000 who funds a niece's account in another state's plan with $5,000 saves $235, and a couple at $140,000 who reach $16,000 save $752. Almost every household pays the top rate of 4.7 %, which starts at $9,436 of Missouri taxable income for every filing status. The State Treasurer treats K-12 expenses up to the $20,000 federal limit as qualified, along with apprenticeships and loan repayments. On the way out the rule is tighter than federal law: withdrawals after death, disability, a scholarship or military academy attendance are added back, while a rollover to another state's 529 is not.
| Benefit for contributions | Deduction |
|---|---|
| Cap | $8,000 single, $16,000 joint per taxpayer |
| Another state’s plan counts | Yes (tax parity) |
| State plans (official names, no recommendation) | MOST - Missouri's 529 Education Plan |
| Account balance limit | $550,000 |
| K-12 withdrawals qualified for state tax | Yes |
| 529 to Roth IRA rollover qualified | Not stated by the state |
| Student loan payments qualified | Yes |
| Add-back on a rollover to another state’s plan | No |
Any plan, a large cap
Missouri is one of 8 states in this site's table that give the same benefit whatever state runs the plan. The 2025 MO-1040 instructions place the subtraction on line 12: contributions to MOST or any other qualified 529 plan, up to $8,000 single or $16,000 for a married couple filing a combined return. Among parity states, that is a high ceiling.
The instructions add a paperwork condition: the documentation has to be in the name of the person claiming the subtraction. Whether one spouse alone can use the full $16,000 was not confirmed, since the statute itself was not read.
Missouri subtraction, another state's plan
Missouri tax saved on this contribution
$235
| Subtracted from state income | $5,000 |
| Your state marginal rate | 4.70 % |
| Cap that applies this year | $8,000 |
| Back per $1,000 contributed | $47 |
The bracket ladder ends early
Missouri's 2026 rate chart, the same for every filing status, climbs through several small steps and reaches 4.7 % at $9,436 of taxable income. For a working family, the full deduction is therefore taken at the top rate: a couple at $96,000 who deposits $4,500 saves $212, exactly 4.7 % of the deposit. Kansas City and St. Louis also levy a local earnings tax, which this page does not model.
What Missouri treats as qualified in 2026
The MOST supplements of September 2025 and March 2026 say the State Treasurer has determined that K-12 expenses, including the expanded list of the 2025 federal law, are qualified for Missouri up to the $20,000 yearly federal limit from 2026. Apprenticeship costs and student loan repayments are qualified too. Credential programs are the exception: a withdrawal for postsecondary credentialing triggers Missouri tax and recapture unless the expense is part of attendance at an eligible educational institution.
On 529 to Roth IRA rollovers, MOST says the Department of Revenue has not yet issued guidance on recapture. This page does not settle that point.
Recapture without the federal exceptions
Federal law waives the 10 % additional tax when money comes out after the beneficiary's death or disability, or up to a tax-free scholarship. Missouri does not follow that softer path. The program description says any withdrawal that is neither a qualified withdrawal nor a rollover to another state's 529 is added back to Missouri income, previously deducted contributions and earnings alike, including withdrawals on death, disability, scholarship or military academy attendance. The sample below takes out a $12,000 scholarship refund from an account with $12,000 of past Missouri deductions.
A scholarship withdrawal in Missouri
Tax on this withdrawal
$1,365
| Earnings part | $3,000 |
| Federal income tax at 22 % | $660 |
| 10 % additional tax | $0 |
| Missouri tax and add-back | $705 |
Moving the account to another state
A rollover from MOST to another state's 529 is not subject to recapture. Families who later leave Missouri can move the account without giving back what they deducted. MOST accepts contributions until a beneficiary's accounts reach $550,000, a figure from the October 2022 program description that the supplements read here do not change.