Your two cheapest tax years may be the ones you are living in right now

The short version: For many women there is a stretch of years, after the paycheck stops and before Social Security and required distributions begin, when taxable income drops to the lowest level it will ever reach. That stretch is the best opportunity most people will ever have to move money out of a tax-deferred account at a low rate, and most people let it pass without noticing. A new deduction for taxpayers over 65 widens the window this year and next. And because conversions are counted in the calendar year they happen, the clock for 2026 runs out on December 31.

A woman we will call Carol retired last fall after a long career in nursing. Her pension is modest, she has not started Social Security, and she has a seven-figure balance in a tax-deferred retirement plan she has barely touched.

Her taxable income this year is lower than it has been since she was in her twenties. She considers that a relief. It is also an opening, and it is closing faster than she thinks.

The window, in plain terms

Money in a traditional IRA, 401(k), or TSP has never been taxed. The bill comes due when it comes out, and starting at 73 the government requires it to come out whether you need it or not.

A Roth conversion lets you take some of that money out early, pay the tax now, and move it into an account where it grows tax-free from then on. Whether that makes sense depends on one question: is your tax rate today lower than it will be later?

For Carol, the answer is plainly yes. Right now, with pension income only, she is in the 12% bracket with room to spare. When required distributions begin, they will land on top of pension and Social Security and push her into the 22% or 24% bracket, possibly with Medicare surcharges attached. The same dollars, taxed at roughly twice the rate, on a schedule she does not control.

What the new deduction does

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act added a $6,000 deduction for taxpayers 65 and older, available for tax years 2025 through 2028 whether or not you itemize. It stacks on top of the regular standard deduction and the existing age-65 add-on. For a single filer over 65 in 2026, that is $24,150 of income the IRS does not touch at all.

The deduction phases out above $75,000 of modified adjusted gross income for single filers and disappears entirely at $175,000, so it rewards people in exactly the position Carol is in: retired, over 65, living modestly, with a large deferred balance waiting.

In practical terms, it widens the bottom of the bracket. More room at the low end means more that can be converted at 12% before the next rate kicks in.

Why the window closes faster than people expect

Three things narrow it, and they tend to arrive together.

Social Security. Once benefits start, up to 85% of them count as taxable income, and they also make other income more taxable through a formula most people have never seen. Starting Social Security can eliminate half or more of your conversion room in a single year. This is a strong reason to model the claiming decision and the conversion decision together rather than separately.

Required distributions. At 73 for anyone born before 1960, the choice is taken away. The money comes out on the government's schedule, and conversions have to wait until the required amount is satisfied first.

The calendar. Conversions count in the year they are completed. A conversion processed in January is a 2027 decision, not a 2026 one. If this year's bracket room is unused on December 31, it is gone.

The bottom line

The years right after you stop working can feel like a pause. Financially, they are often the most consequential tax-planning years you will ever have, precisely because nothing seems to be happening.

The honest version of the advice is this: do not convert because an article told you to. Convert, if at all, because you have looked at your bracket, your Social Security timing, and the balance waiting in your deferred accounts, and the math says today's rate beats tomorrow's. For a surprising number of women in their first years of retirement, it does, and the window for this year closes in a few weeks.

Every story is different, and every plan worth its name reflects that. If you would like to talk through what is going on in your world, our strategy session is forty-five minutes, virtual, and meant for listening, not selling. Nothing is decided in the room.

— Anika

A note on a moving target: tax brackets, deductions, and distribution ages change by legislation and by year. The figures here reflect 2026 rules as published at the time of writing. The senior deduction is currently scheduled to expire after 2028. Confirm current numbers before acting. Last reviewed: November 2026.

Sources

CNBC Select, “The $6,000 senior tax deduction: Who qualifies and how to claim it” (updated August 2026): Deduction amount, phase-out thresholds, 2026 standard deduction figures.

Internal Revenue Service, “Retirement Plan and IRA Required Minimum Distributions FAQs”: RMD starting age under SECURE 2.0. Links verified live November 2026.

Disclosures:

Client examples are composite and illustrative, with details changed. Roth conversions have tax consequences that depend on your full situation and may affect Medicare premiums and the taxation of Social Security benefits. This content is general education, not personal tax advice; consult a qualified tax professional before converting. Rose Line Retirement is a women-led retirement planning practice operating under Theus Wealth Advisors, an independently owned and operated Registered Investment Adviser.