College savings for every future
Understanding 529 plans and their benefits
Give the gift of knowledge and a life-changing opportunity to a loved one by saving with a 529 account that provides tax advantages and flexibility.
What is a 529 plan?
A 529 plan is a state sponsored, tax-advantaged investment account used to help families save for higher education.
A tax-advantaged way to save for college and other educational expenses
Can be used for expenses like tuition, fees, computers, textbooks, and housing and food1
A lower impact on financial aid qualification than many other investment options2
Open with any dollar amount
What can Bright Start 529 do for me?
Tax-advantaged growth potential
With a Bright Start 529 account, you could save more with tax-deferred growth and 100% tax-free withdrawals for qualified expenses.
Illinois taxpayers who are married, filing jointly, can reduce their state taxable income up to $20,000 per year, and Illinois taxpayers who are filing individually may deduct up to $10,000 per year.3
When you pay less taxes, you can potentially earn more and grow your college savings account faster, giving your beneficiary an even bigger head start!
Flexible spending
A Bright Start 529 account can be used to pay for a wide range of qualifying higher education expenses. Funds can be used for:
- Colleges, universities, technical and community colleges, graduate, postgraduate or professional schools, apprenticeships and more.4
- Eligible institutions across the country and in dozens of countries abroad.
- Tuition, fees, computers, textbooks, room and board (housing and food), and other required expenses.
- Special needs services for a special needs beneficiary.
- Student loan repayment subject to a lifetime limit of $10,000 per individual.4
Low fees and expenses
Saving for your child's college education shouldn't break the bank. That’s why investment expenses for the Bright Start 529 College Savings Plan are less than half the average 529 plan and less than one-third of what you’d pay for an advisor-sold plan.5
When you open an account, you can enjoy a variety of no-cost perks like:
- NO application fees
- NO cancellation fees
- NO change-in-beneficiary fees
- NO change-in-investment-portfolio fees
- NO loads or sales charges
- NO commissions
- NO transfer fees
Investment portfolios
The Bright Start 529 College Savings Plan offers a variety of professionally managed investment portfolios for all types of investors with different risk tolerance and college savings goals. So, whether you’re a new or experienced investor, prefer to be hands-on or would rather “set it and forget it,” there’s a plan for you!
Investment portfolios