Cyclin-dependent kinase 6 (CDK6) represents a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of certain subtypes of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). CDK4/6 kinase inhibitors have been widely studied in many cancer types and their effects may be limited by primary and secondary resistance mechanisms. CDK4/6 degraders, which eliminate kinase dependent and kinase independent effects, have been suggested as alternative therapeutic option. We show that efficacy of the CDK6 specific protein degrader BSJ-03-123 varies among AML subtypes and depends on low expression of the INK4 proteins p16INK4A and p18INK4C. INK4 protein levels are significantly elevated in MLL-AF9+ compared to AML1-ETO+ cells, contributing to the different CDK6 degradation efficacy. We demonstrate that CDK6 complexes containing p16INK4A or p18INK4C are protected from BSJ-mediated degradation and that INK4 levels define the proliferative response to CDK6 degradation. These findings define INK4 proteins as predictive marker for CDK6 degradation – targeted therapies in AML.