How Connecticut taxes retirement income

Some 2026 figures pending confirmation Tax year 2026 · research last updated October 2, 2026

Connecticut taxes some Social Security, depending on age or income.
Exclusions and subtractions for retirement income (details below):
- Pension and annuity subtraction: income limits apply.
- IRA distribution subtraction (CGS 12-701(a)(20)(B)(xxviii)-(xxix)); 100% for 2026+: income limits apply.
- Connecticut Teachers' Retirement System pay.
Rates for 2026: 2% to 6.99%, graduated.

At a glance

Income tax	Yes
Rates (2026)	2% to 6.99%, graduated
Starts from	Federal adjusted gross income (AGI)
Social Security	Partly taxed, depending on age or income
Retirement income exclusions	3 (see below)
Roth conversions	Taxable
Capital gains	Taxed like other income
Local income tax	None

Tax rates

Brackets apply to Connecticut taxable income. Other filing statuses are in the rules reference.

Rate	Single: taxable income	Married filing jointly: taxable income
2%	$0 to $10,000	$0 to $20,000
4.5%	$10,000 to $50,000	$20,000 to $100,000
5.5%	$50,000 to $100,000	$100,000 to $200,000
6%	$100,000 to $200,000	$200,000 to $400,000
6.5%	$200,000 to $250,000	$400,000 to $500,000
6.9%	$250,000 to $500,000	$500,000 to $1,000,000
6.99%	$500,000 and up	$1,000,000 and up

Connecticut taxes some Social Security, depending on age or income.

Fully exempt (subtract all federally taxable SS) if federal AGI < $75,000 (single or MFS) or < $100,000 (joint, qualifying surviving spouse, or head of household). At or above those thresholds, Connecticut taxes the lesser of (a) federally taxable SS or (b) 25% x the lesser of [total SS benefits (federal SS worksheet line 1)] or [provisional income minus the federal base amount $25,000/$32,000 (federal worksheet line 9)]. Subtraction = federal taxable SS - that amount (floor 0). Effect: never more than 25% of benefits taxed. Thresholds are statutory, not indexed; there is no phase-out band — it is a cliff at $75k/$100k.

Pensions, IRAs and 401(k)s

Pension and annuity subtraction (CGS 12-701(a)(20)(B)(xxi)-(xxii))

Applies to: pensions, annuities, 401(k) distributions, 403b, 457b

Subtract (taxable pensions and annuities on federal 1040 line 5b, minus military retirement, Tier 1/2 railroad retirement and CT Teachers' Retirement pay which have their own subtractions) x phase-out percentage. No age requirement and no dollar cap. Excludes disability pensions received before the employer's minimum retirement age and corrective distributions. Survivors/beneficiaries qualify like the participant.

Income limit: Federal AGI-based phase-out, per return (not per person). Single/MFS/HoH: 100% below $75,000; 85% $75,000-77,499; 70% 77,500-79,999; 55% 80,000-82,499; 40% 82,500-84,999; 25% 85,000-87,499; 10% 87,500-89,999; 5% 90,000-94,999; 2.5% 95,000-99,999; 0% at $100,000+. Joint: 100% below $100,000; 85% 100,000-104,999; 70% 105,000-109,999; 55% 110,000-114,999; 40% 115,000-119,999; 25% 120,000-124,999; 10% 125,000-129,999; 5% 130,000-139,999; 2.5% 140,000-149,999; 0% at $150,000+.

IRA distribution subtraction (CGS 12-701(a)(20)(B)(xxviii)-(xxix)); 100% for 2026+

Applies to: IRA distributions

Subtract [taxable traditional/SEP/SIMPLE IRA distributions on federal 1040 line 4b x IRA percentage] x phase-out percentage. IRA percentage: 25% (2023), 50% (2024), 75% (2025), 100% (2026 and later). Roth IRA distributions are excluded from the computation (they are not in federal AGI anyway).

Income limit: Same federal AGI phase-out table as the pension subtraction.

Connecticut Teachers' Retirement System pay

Applies to: pensions (CT TRS only)

Subtract 50% of TRS income regardless of income; or, if AGI is under the thresholds, use the pension/annuity subtraction instead (no double benefit).

Roth conversions

A Roth conversion counts as taxable income for Connecticut. Whether a retirement income exclusion can cover part of it depends on the rules above.

Capital gains

Taxed like other income, at the rates above.

Credits and relief for older residents

Property tax credit (Schedule 3). Up to $300 per return for property tax paid on a CT primary residence and/or motor vehicle(s), limited to the tax. Full credit if CT AGI <= $49,500 single / $70,500 joint / $35,250 MFS / $54,500 HoH; reduced 15 percentage points per $10,000 ($5,000 MFS) above that (e.g., joint: 15% reduction above $70,500 up to fully eliminated above $130,500; single fully eliminated above $109,500). [2025 table; unindexed.]
Personal tax credit (Table E). Built into the tax computation: the tax is reduced by a decimal (75% down to 1%) of tax, based on CT AGI; e.g., joint 10% for CT AGI $52,000-$96,000, 0% above $100,500; single 10% for $33,300-$60,000, 0% above $64,500.

More detail from our research notes

Starts from federal AGI; CT AGI = federal AGI + additions - subtractions (SS, pension/IRA, military, railroad, U.S. interest, etc.). There is NO standard deduction and NO itemized deductions; instead a personal exemption per return (phased out, Table A), then the rate schedule (Table B), plus two high-income recaptures computed on CT AGI: Table C '2% phase-out add-back' (single: $25 per $5,000 of CT AGI above $56,500, max $250; joint: $50 per $5,000 above $100,500, max $500; MFS $25 per $2,500 above $50,250, max $250; HoH $40 per $4,000 above $78,500, max $400) and Table D 'tax recapture' (single starts above $105,000, joint above $210,000, HoH above $168,000; see Tables for bands, max $3,400 / $6,800 / $5,320). Then tax is reduced by the Table E personal tax credit decimal. Implement Tables A-E exactly as published (they are statutory, not indexed, unchanged for 2026 absent legislation). IMPORTANT for Roth conversion modeling: the SS, pension and IRA subtractions are all tested on FEDERAL AGI, so a conversion that pushes AGI over $75k/$100k (SS cliff) or into the pension phase-out can create a large marginal tax effect. Military retirement pay and railroad retirement are 100% subtracted; 2026 adds a subtraction for U.S. Public Health Service commissioned corps retirement pay (PA 26-68). 2026 session made no rate, exemption or retirement-subtraction changes (per Shipman & Goodwin summary of PAs 26-35, 26-68, 26-130).

Pending confirmation

These points were still being confirmed against Connecticut's published 2026 forms when this page was built. Most are waiting on forms the state publishes around the turn of the year.

4 items

2026 Form CT-1040 instructions not yet published (expected Dec 2026/Jan 2027, https://portal.ct.gov/drs/forms); all tables are from the 2025 instructions (Rev. 12/25). Statutory and unindexed; the 2026 session (OLR 2026-R-0076) made no rate, exemption, pension or Social Security change.
Whether a Roth conversion (taxable traditional IRA distribution reported on 1040 line 4b) qualifies for the IRA subtraction: the worksheet uses line 4b 'other than a Roth IRA', which on its face includes conversion income; DRS has not addressed it explicitly.
Head-of-household threshold differs by provision: SS full exemption uses $100,000 for HoH, but the pension/IRA phase-out table groups HoH with single ($75,000-$100,000). Confirmed in 2025 instructions and OLR report; flagging because it is easy to mis-code.
Property tax credit: no age/dependent eligibility restriction appears in the 2025 instructions (credit available to all residents); confirm for 2026.

Sources

Every figure comes from these documents, mostly the state's own forms, instructions and statutes.

2025 Form CT-1040 instructions: Tax Calculation Schedule and Tables A-E, SS Benefit Adjustment Worksheet, Pension and Annuity Worksheet and Phase-Out Table (75% IRA for 2025), teachers' 50%, property tax credit tablehttps://portal.ct.gov/-/media/drs/forms/2025/income/2025-ct-1040-instructions_1225.pdf
OLR Report 2025-R-0152 Income Tax Exemptions for Retirement Income (IRA 100% from 2026; statutory cites)https://prdext2.cga.ct.gov/2025/rpt/pdf/2025-R-0152.pdf
Secondary: 2026 Connecticut tax developments (no rate/retirement changes; PHS retirement subtraction)https://www.shipmangoodwin.com/insights/2026-connecticut-tax-developments.html
CGS 12-701(a)(20)(B)(xxviii)-(xxix) (General Statutes, chapter 229, current text): IRA distributions (other than Roth) 100% 'for the taxable year commencing January 1, 2026, and each taxable year thereafter', with the $75,000-$100,000 (single/MFS/HOH) and…https://www.cga.ct.gov/current/pub/chap_229.htm
OLR 2026-R-0076 '2026 Acts Affecting Taxes' (June 16 2026): income tax changes are honor guard pay (2026), National Guard active service pay (2027), PHS commissioned corps retirement pay (2026, PA 26-68 s.277), lump-sum withholding suspension through 2027,…https://prdext3.cga.ct.gov/olr/Documents/year/AA/2026AA-0076_2026%20Acts%20Affecting%20Taxes.pdf
OLR 2025-R-0093 '2025 Acts Affecting Taxes' (July 31 2025): no rate or retirement-income change (EITC +$250 per child, family child care home credit, lump-sum withholding suspension)https://prdext3.cga.ct.gov/olr/Documents/year/AA/2025AA-0093_2025%20Acts%20Affecting%20Taxes.pdf

Taxtirement's Connecticut calculation is also checked against a second, independent implementation on 1,000 random households. How we check our numbers.

See your own years. Taxtirement applies these Connecticut rules, and the federal and Medicare rules, to your household for every year of retirement, and shows the calculation behind each number. Coming November 2026 for iPhone, iPad and Mac.

This page summarizes Connecticut's 2026 rules as Taxtirement applies them, for education and planning. It isn't tax advice, and it doesn't cover every situation (for example part-year residents, businesses or military-only provisions). Rules change; check the state's current instructions, or a tax professional, before you act. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.