If your child uses the money on anything other than qualified education expenses, they will incur a 10% penalty on the plan’s earnings. To avoid the penalty, you have several options. You can change the designated beneficiary of the 529 plan account to another member of the same family. For example, if you have another child, you can roll the funds from one sibling’s account into the other with no tax consequences. You could even change the beneficiary to yourself if you have any interest in continuing your education. The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2019 expanded the list of qualified education programs to include certain apprenticeship programs. This is useful if the beneficiary continues education on a nontraditional path. You also have the option to pay off student loan debt or use the funds toward K–12 education. Both are limited to $10,000. The student loan debt limit is a lifetime limit, while the K–12 education limit is an annual limit. For example, you can withdraw a maximum of $10,000 per beneficiary or eligible sibling to repay student loans. You can also withdraw up to $10,000 per year to pay for primary or secondary school education at private schools.