Leaving a long career, by choice or not, is a big change, and the weeks before your last day are when many decisions with lasting money effects get made. The emotional side is real too. People who lose a job they held for decades often describe something close to grief, so it helps to make the largest decisions from a written list rather than in the moment. These are seven things to check before you leave AT&T.

1. Have You Mapped Out Your Finances, With Your Partner If You Have One?

List your monthly spending, your emergency savings and every source of income you expect after the last paycheck. If you have a spouse or partner, do this together. Knowing how many months your cash can cover tells you how much pressure you are under to take the next job quickly or to tap retirement accounts early. If you expect to need a home equity line of credit, keep in mind that lenders generally look at current income, so applying while you are still employed may be easier than applying afterward.

2. How Will You Keep Health Coverage?

COBRA generally lets you keep AT&T's group health plan for up to 18 months after your job ends, at up to 102% of the premium. Losing job-based coverage also opens a 60-day window to pick a plan on HealthCare.gov or your state's own Marketplace. For 2026, Marketplace premium tax credits stop at 400% of the federal poverty level, $62,600 for one person in the continental U.S., because the temporary enhancements ended with 2025. If you are close to 65, note that Medicare's initial sign-up window lasts 7 months and that COBRA does not count as group health coverage for delaying Part B.

3. What Will You Do About Your 401(k) and Pension?

For the paychecks you have left, decide whether to keep contributing. The 2026 limit is $24,500, plus an $8,000 catch-up at 50 or older, or $11,250 if you turn 60 to 63 this year. If you have a 401(k) loan, ask how long AT&T's plan gives you to repay it after you leave, because an unpaid balance can become a taxable distribution. Leaving in or after the year you turn 55 means withdrawals from AT&T's 401(k) are not subject to the 10% early-withdrawal tax, if the plan allows withdrawals after you leave, but rolling the money to an IRA ends that exception. Pension participants can ask for a benefit estimate as of the last day, including any lump-sum option.

4. Do You Know How Your Severance Will Be Paid and Taxed?

Severance is taxed as wages, and for 2026 an employer using the flat supplemental rate withholds 22% federal income tax (37% above $1 million). That rate can be lower than your real bracket, so set aside extra for April if needed. Ask whether the money comes in one check or in installments, when payments start, and whether the package extends any benefits. If you are 40 or older and asked to sign a release of age claims, federal law gives you at least 21 days to review it, 45 days in a group layoff, and 7 days to revoke after signing.

5. Have You Checked Your State's Unemployment Rules?

Each state sets its own rules on who qualifies, how severance affects benefits, and how soon you must file. Unemployment benefits are generally taxable federal income, and you can choose to have federal tax withheld from them. Some people consider when a claim starts because of the tax year the benefits land in, but filing late can cost benefits in some states, so check your state agency's deadlines before deciding to wait.

6. Should You Talk to an Employment Attorney?

If you think the layoff was unfair, or you are asked to sign a release, a short consultation with an employment attorney before you sign is often worth the cost. Keep copies of your offer letter, performance reviews and any severance documents. Venting at managers or posting about AT&T online may feel good for a day, but it can hurt references you may need later.

7. What Will You Say Next, at Work and on Your Resume?

Decide how to describe your departure to colleagues, and practice a short answer so you can give it calmly. Update your resume and LinkedIn profile before your last day. Contract or consulting work, possibly even for AT&T, can fill a gap while you look for the next permanent role. If retirement is part of the plan, check your Social Security timing: claiming at 62 reduces the benefit by about 30% for someone whose full retirement age is 67. Many of these choices turn on plan rules specific to AT&T.

How Do AT&T's 401(k) and Pension Rules Apply When You Go?

Your 401(k) is the place to begin, followed by the AT&T pension program and severance plan. AT&T's main 401(k), the Retirement Savings Plan (ARSP), covers management employees and many bargained groups; 2025-2026 bargaining is moving members of the AT&T Savings and Security Plan into the ARSP by October 1, 2026.

A 2018 plan summary says contributions stay fully vested, the match generally vests after three years, and an unpaid loan at termination is reamortized monthly, offset against any early payout, or taxed if it defaults. Before your last day, ask HR if your account has moved into the ARSP, and get your vested percentage and loan balance.

AT&T's pension still covers most nonmanagement employees under a flat-dollar or cash-balance formula, and most participants can choose a lump sum or an annuity. Management pension programs are closed to new entrants; the Management Cash Balance Program was frozen to new hire managers on January 1, 2015, and since October 1, 2016 lets any leaving participant take a lump sum. Ask HR which program covers your job and if it still offers a lump sum.

Do You Qualify for AT&T Severance or Retiree Coverage?

AT&T has had a severance plan in effect since 1994; for 2025 it reported 57,015 participants, including 53,708 active employees. Its 2025 annual report says that year's restructuring expenses primarily relate to severance charges, and separately says it offers medical, dental and life coverage to certain retirees, without stating who qualifies. HR can tell you if either applies to you and how each is paid.