Americans who have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic may now be able to access retirement accounts to help cover daily expenses, penalty-free.

Now, in addition to those who have lost their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic, you may access your retirement funds without being subject to the 10 percent penalty if your income was reduced, or who’ve had the start of a new job delayed.¹

The expanded guidelines also let people dip into their retirement accounts if they’ve lost a job offer, or if their spouse’s income was impacted as a result of the pandemic.²

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was designed to help Americans deal with the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.² Under the CARES Act, the Internal Revenue Service has recently released updated guidelines that will allow more Americans to access money in their retirement accounts without penalty.