Individuals with disabilities can now contribute their own earnings to ABLE accounts and possibly qualify for the retirement savings contribution credit (or the saver’s credit), ways the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Normally, contributions totaling up to the annual gift-tax exclusion amount, currently $15,000, may be made to an ABLE account each year for an eligible person with a disability, known as a designated beneficiary.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, enacted in December, modified the Achieving a Better Life Experience Act, which passed in 2014, to allow participants to rollover money from their 529 college savings account or someone else’s 529 into their ABLE account.

Starting this year under the new tax law, the IRS notes, working designated beneficiaries can contribute part or all of their work earnings to ABLE accounts. This change only applies to individuals whose employer isn’t already contributing to his or her retirement plan.

Contributed work earnings are limited to the poverty line amount for a one-person household, according to the IRS. In the mainland U.S. that would be $12,140, Hawaii would be $13,960 and Alaska, $15,180.

Contributions are not deductible, but individuals may qualify for the saver’s credit, which gives tax credits to middle- to low-income persons who are stowing away part of their earnings into a long-term savings vehicle like an individual retirement account. The IRS says beneficiaries can qualify based on their own contributions; the credit can be up to $2,000.

“This credit can reduce the amount of tax a person owes or increase their refund,” stated the IRS.

Another benefit is that distributions, including earnings, are tax-free for qualified disability-related expenses like housing, transportation and education. Non-qualified expenses are subject to a 10 percent tax.

ABLE accounts allow families and individuals with disabilities to pay for disability-related expenses through a tax-favored account. ABLEs also shelter an individual’s assets from Medicaid’s means calculations, which dictate that individuals with disabilities seeking its assistance cannot have more than $2,000 in assets. Individuals who do will lose out on benefits from Medicaid and the Supplemental Security Income program.