Both individual taxpayers and professional tax preparers screw upIRS Form 8606 all the time. Line 14 $12,000 $12,000 = $0 Note that when you do this form for 2022, line 2 will be $0. Remember that IRA stands for INDIVIDUAL Retirement Arrangement. If the pre-tax investment is 8%, then after 30 years, you have $672,902 in the Roth and, assuming a 23.8% LTCG/Dividend rate, $507,259, a difference of $165,643, or about $5521 per year for the hassle of 5 minutes of work, plus maybe screwing around for an hour or two doing the initial rollover of the SEP. Im not sure how much you make per hour, but I dont make that much, so I find the hassle quite worth it. Ok, so when you contribute 5500 on Jan 2nd of a given year, then convert the next day is it for that given year or for the previous? Going forward, based on my understanding it would be easier to open individual 401k and max it out for 2019, open a traditional IRA max it out for 2019 and do backdoor roth conversion. I dont know of an individual 401(k) provider that doesnt require an EIN. Id call HR and ask exactly what will be taken out under your current settings. It really is just a little bit of hassle to do each year, although there may be some additional hassle the first year if you need to take care of another IRA first to avoid the pro-rata rule. Currently the value of the trad IRA is less than the sum of my nondeductible contributions plus 401k rollover(due to market losses). If it comes out after your AGI is calculated, it is a below-the-line deduction. Did I F something up on my taxes last year (never filled out an 8606 last year, I did do a backdoor Roth for the first time in 2012), F something up in the timing of my conversion to the Roth, or is this a non issue that gets worked out with the 8606 form? If you can work up a pulmonary embolus appropriately, you can do this. Get an EIN from the IRS and tell Fidelity you own a business and open up that individual 401(k). Vangurad put my Rollover money into a TIRA and I was clueless what the difference was and Vanguard did not tell me either when accepting my $$. The IRS considers you to only have one ROTH IRA, even if you have accounts at tem places. How about doing a similar tutorial on form 5500 for individual 401k accounts with assets over $250k? More, you report it on your 8606 and pay taxes on it. So do you contribute in the traditional ira 5000 or the max of 19500? I wish you can do a similar detailed post about rebalancing portfolios at the end of the year and how to harvest tax losses. A MAGI is just a slight tweak to your AGI. If i contribute 5500 in December 2015, then make another contribution in 1/2016, do I just indicate that I made a single contribution for my taxes in 4/2016 and put the second contribution on the tax return in 4/2017? Just an hour ago, I called Fidelity and they will take the Vanguard TIRA back into my ex-Rollover account will initiate the move after this long weekend is over. Yes, that is correct. Good luck with your decision. I have an IRA through a former (and rather nasty!) You could put it into Prime, but I dont see any reason to. Dont have enough info to say. The SEP IRA, after 5 years of tax-deferred contributions of $25,000, $45,000, $45,000, $49,000, and $49,000 had grown to $242,000. employer, who sent out paperwork as a 1099 on it so I had to pay taxes on it already. How to Report a Backdoor Roth IRA on TurboTax. Many white coat investors do the IRA contribution step and the Roth conversion step the first week of January each year. In most cases, your IRA trustee or custodian figures the amount of the related earnings you must transfer. 22.6K subscribers 817 views 6 months ago Retirement Accounts, Asset Allocation, Asset Location, Backdoor Roth, & More! You cant put $19,500 into an IRA, thats a 401(k). Very helpful. This basically makes it as though you never contributed to a Roth IRA but contributed to a traditional IRA instead. If your MAGI is below the first number, you can just contribute to a Roth IRA directly. and says you wont owe taxes on the $5,500 you roll over, which I know! In fact, many parents match their teens income, so all of it goes into a Roth IRA, but they still get to spend it all thanks to the Bank of Mom and Dad. 4) Tax-deferred accounts of any type (401K, 403B, 457, DBP etc) Thanks. That's it. What Is Mega Backdoor Roth Ira - Investment & Finance News If you do a Roth conversion at age 57, you still get access to that principal (and earnings) tax and penalty-free at age 59 1/2. Youre about to learn all about the pro-rata rule. So you can put in your $17,500 that is either tax-deferred or Roth, then contribute another $34,500 to the plan in after-tax dollars, similar to a non-deductible traditional IRA. White Coat I know this thread is old, I was researching another topic and saw this. It could be either or both. No taxes should be owed. . An error that commonly occurs with a first Backdoor Roth IRA is that people simply don't realize that their income is too high to do a direct Roth IRA contribution. Sometimes the form was filled out wrong, but mostly this is just a lot of anxiety. If you do it yourself, you'll need to make sure you report this correctly. A harder solution that may save you some taxes involves isolating the basis in that IRA by rolling the rest of the account into a 401(k) and then convert just the basis to a Roth IRA. So I can contribute 5500/ yr? If I prefer to invest my SEP with vanguard funds I dont want to place my money with a different firm. Or do only those belonging to the individual doing the backdoor Roth count? IRA stands for INDIVIDUAL Retirement Arrangement. So if you did an IRA contribution in January of 2021 for the 2021 tax year, you have until October 15, 2022 to do a recharacterization. If you did a backdoor Roth in 2012, you should have done a 2012 8606 9 months ago. When you fill out your taxes, you do own up to that 1099 but it gets negated by the 8606? So I have missed out on the 2017 backdoor IRA, but I will do it for 2018 (your #3) early enough in 2018 to take the advantage of the entire year. Dont want to pay too much pro rata. Yes, I learnt the hard way! A "Roth" investment is a post-tax investment that grows tax-free and will never be taxed again. We otherwise max out our retirement accounts and invest the rest in a taxable account as of now. You said I should have 0 balance by Dec 31 of the year I make the roth conversion from a traditional IRA. Just makes your 8606 a little more complicated. Get rid of anySEP-IRA,SIMPLE IRA,traditional IRA, or rollover IRA money. ), Hi I am an academic MD and have a W2 income. The notification(s) must include all of the following information: In most cases, the net income you must transfer is determined by your IRA trustee or custodian. Done properly, there is NO tax on a Backdoor Roth IRA conversion. Just get the money invested ASAP to stop the cash drag. How to Do a Backdoor Roth IRA - The White Coat Investor Fees are low there too. Thanks! Low earner is defined as a Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) under a phaseout range in 2022 of $129,000-$144,000 ($204,000-$214,000 Married Filing Jointly). There is a tax bill associated with that because most of your conversion was of tax-deferred money rather than post-tax money like it was supposed to be. Late Contributions to the Backdoor Roth IRA has more details about doing this but hasn't been updated in a while, so let's do it now. Many white coat investors do the IRA contribution step and the Roth conversion step the first week of January each year. First, you've got to do all of Part I plus Part II for this year because you did the conversion step, unlike last year (2020). If you had a loss in the account between contribution and recharacterization, no big deal. Should I hold current amount in traditional IRA then add the additional $5500 for this new year in a few months and convert everything to a Roth IRA later in the year? Merrill Edge is their self-directed area. Well, it's going to vary by the person and how much disposable cash they have. This actually happens most of the time, so I wrote an entire post on it calledPennies and the Backdoor Roth IRA. So instead of doing it indirectly (i.e., going through the Backdoor), which is no big deal even if you're under the limit, they contribute directly to a Roth IRA. At least thats what my CPA told me today. Just remember to report last year's contribution on last year's Form 8606 and this year's contribution and the conversion on this year's Form 8606. Line 1 is your non-deductible contribution. Wont that defeat the whole idea? Enjoyed it!. You are right JIm. In this video The White Coat Investor does a Deep Dive into the. can I have one at Scottrade (that allows option trading within the Roth) and in a year open a backdoor through Vanguard (for low ER funds)? I dont see such an advantage for $5500/yr to cause me to essentially forgo my SEP when I get 51k tax advantaged space. Physicians and pharmacists, Register with Incrowd for the opportunity to earn easy money with quick "microsurveys" tailored to your specialty. What confuses people, however, is the pro-rata rule. Easy peasy. As you can see, a Roth conversion of a non-deductible traditional IRA contribution without any gains is a taxable event, it's just that the tax bill is zero for it. The minimum amount to open vanguard prime money market account is $3000. In that case, your ability to contribute directly to a Roth IRA phases out between a MAGI of $125,000-$140,000 in 2021. Convert the entire sum to aRoth IRA. I now have the option to rollover pre-tax funds to a new employer 401k. Youre confusing a standard Roth conversion with a Backdoor Roth IRA. My accountant confirmed that I already deducted the amount for 2019 on my tax return. I have gained some money from it. Some day they will appreciate never having to pay taxes on the compounded earning. There is either a traditional IRA or a Roth IRA, not both. Since it is all cream, I pay no taxes. That's simply not the case. The Travel Rewards CC by BofA gets you 2.625% cash back on everything with no limits if you have $100k combined between BofA checking/savings and/or ME. Keeping old tax-deferred IRA at Brokerage One; open new non-deductible IRA and just convert it at Brokerage Two. The next part of the Backdoor Roth IRA is done months later when you (or your accountant) fill out your IRS Form 8606 on your taxes. And if you have enough money with them its the best deal in the business. Its just going to make your 2013 taxes more complicated. Most of the time, that's April 15th of the next year. I havent checked the timeline for the other companies though. The non-deductible dollars in the IRA are the cream. If all IRAs are included in the pro rata calculation, and I move money into a Roth IRA, will I have to figure out where to stash it next year, so I can backdoor again? In fact setting up a Roth IRA account for your kids is a great way to pass money down to them that will never be taxed again. Hmmm..Thats a great idea. This eliminated the Roth IRA Conversion Horserace technique for tax reduction. No big deal, it just makes your paperwork more complicated. Im graduating residency this year and have been reading a lot! What happens if you LOSE money in between the contribution and conversion step? 5) Backdoor Roth IRAs The pro-rata rule isn't applied until the year of the conversion, i.e., December 31st, 2021. Am i missing the ball? I am working as a locum tenen now and will receive a 1099. If I contributed to a traditional IRA TODAY and converted it next week would it be for the 13 or 14 tax year? So youre not choosing between tax-deferred and tax-free. Understanding The Mega Backdoor Roth IRA - The College Investor Via the Backdoor Roth IRA process, you can continue to contribute to a Roth IRA even after your earnings rise above the income limit for direct Roth IRA contributions. This is what I generally recommend for small IRAs where the tax bill on the conversion would not be too onerous. Yes, you can do a 2015 contribution between Jan 1 2015 and April 15 2016 and a 2016 contribution between Jan 1 2016 and April 15 2017. What do you mean you dont own a business? If the 401K accepts transfers and only accepts pre-tax money, then roll all the pre-tax money into it, and then convert whats left. So your #2 makes sense now. I am hoping to roll over my post tax dollars from my ROTH 401k to a ROTH IRA. So imagine you did the following during the calendar year 2021: Note that all this serves to do is report basis for the next year. ?typo on step 3. You've now fixed your mistake in the eyes of the IRS, going from an illegal Roth IRA contribution to a legal traditional IRA contribution (that is probably not deductible for you). You may be able to put in more if you write a check. Perhaps at some point in the future you'll do a Roth conversion of tax-deferred money and this carry forward basis will reduce the tax on that event. See what I mean? You can easily walk through these Backdoor Roth IRA steps at Vanguard,complete a Backdoor Roth at Fidelity, or knock out a Backdoor Roth IRA at Schwab, three of the most popular brokerage/mutual fund companies. The Mega Backdoor Roth allows individuals to contribute up to $37,500 per year, which is significantly more than the $6,000 limit for traditional Roth IRAs. I can only contribute to a SEP or 401K in a single tax year. The reason i ask this is that a lot of websites say , this conversion might not be right for you if you are going to be in a lower tax bracket at retirement, but i think that since I am funding this trad ira with POST tax dollars, why to leave that money in trad ira (only to be taxed again on withdrawal) . So the deadline for a 2012 contribution was April 15, 2013. Step 6 Report the transactions correctly on your taxes by filling out Form 8606. You must get rid of the old IRA. If the recharacterization occurred in 2019, include the amount transferred from the Roth IRA on Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 4a; or Form 1040-NR, line 16a. Diversity is the spice of life and investing. SO my questions are : 1. Seriously though, if you make enough money that you have to contribute to your Roth IRA(s) through the Backdoor Roth IRA process, you make enough to do it in one fell swoop each year. Jan 21, 2022 The backdoor Roth maneuver has become part of Tax Planning 101 for higher-income investors, enabling them to indirectly make Roth IRA and even Roth 401 (k) contributions.. It just seems a little confusing. If preparing your own taxes using tax software, it can be tricky to ensure the software reports the process correctly. The Mega Backdoor Roth IRA - Mom and Dad Money Do they allow rollover from IRA to individual 401k account. Then he can backdoor the remaining 5k at no tax liability. The market drops considerably so my cost basis would (hopefully) be close to zero when I convert (rather than about 15K as it is now) such that my tax liability would also be near zero. The 2023 Backdoor Roth FAQ - Physician on FIRE But you could do it that way if you want. However, instead of having no tax cost for either the contribution or the conversion, your deduction on the contribution will precisely equal the tax cost on the conversion, resulting in that same $0 tax bill for the entire process. Line 4 Remember this is asking about 2022, not 2021 and since you won't make the mistake of doing your contribution late again, this will be zero. I dont think there is any fee. Only traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs. Thank you again! Using the Mega Backdoor Roth IRA process, one might be able to put as much as $58,000 ($64,500 if 50+) [2021] per year into a Roth 401(k) (or possibly a Roth IRA in addition to your usual $6,000-$7,000 contribution). I understand that it will take a few years until I can really start investing meaningfully in the Vanguard account anyway because of minimum requirements (3k). Thus, their best IRA option is the Backdoor Roth IRA process, i.e., an indirect Roth IRA contribution. I am assuming doing these back door Roths are mostly for W2 situations, correct? Can I have my teenagers work in my office doing filing and making copies and get them some earned income? WCI is right. I am not very tax savvy and may have gotten penalized without even knowing. But consider $5500 per year contributed to a Roth IRA for 30 years vs $5500 per year invested in a taxable account. I invested that money into VFIAX. Any further ideas on how to handle my wifes non-deductible IRA contributions since her current deductible IRAs present a conversion problem vis-a-vis the pro-rata rule? Due to the pro-rata rule (see below), the Backdoor Roth IRA process requires you to either convert or rollover into a 401(k) any traditional IRAs, SEP-IRAs, and SIMPLE IRAs you may have. Can he do a back door Roth even if we file taxes jointly? Your list isnt bad. Some companies will let you do it the same day. For 2017 I was initially thinking of doing a backdoor ira but have not rolled over my prior 40k traditional by December 31, 2017. Notice how there is no place on the form to put the date when you made the contribution or the date when you made the conversion. I did the previous year in January of the previous year. Why or why not? In between, it's a personal decision as to which would be better for you. Then you have 12 contributions and 12 conversions to keep track of each year. If you put it into a traditional IRA it is going to cause any future Backdoor Roths to be pro-rated. This year I made the traditional IRA contribution very late and the fund wasnt available to convert to a Roth IRA until today which is the first of the new year. See below for more details. Step 1 Contribute to traditional IRA ($6K, $7K if 50+ for 2021). So I have about 20K in a traditional IRA from before I qualified to contribute to my groups 401k. If the recharacterization occurred in 2020, report the amount transferred only in the attached statement, and not on your 2019 or 2020 tax return. Many white coat . Accountants charge $500 a return. Please let me know if am thinking wrong ? One factor that may push you to do a Backdoor Roth IRA earlier is the 5-year rule. thanks. That includes a defined benefit plan. Id probably be willing to do the extra work to do the 2018 Roth but Im not quiet maxing out my SEP 2018 Im close. This can be done in a minute or two online at Vanguardand is essentially the same process as opening the traditional IRA. Id like to roll this over to a Roth, and would expect, since its already been taxed, it would be considered a non-qualified IRA, and as such, the conversion would be taxfree, as you outlined above. Later in this article, I'll describe the exact options you have of what to do with this money. If youre reading this deeply into the blog you should have a pretty good understanding on the investment process and likely do better than the vast majority of Merrill advisors. 127: Understanding the Mega Backdoor Roth IRA from White Coat Investor I definitely see how it can be beneficial, but you are omitting the fact that it costs money to setup youre own 401k as a corporation, followed by the ongoing accounting costs of filing returns for the 401k. Its pretty tough to pass up on that tax break, even with the credit risk. Remember how tax form 1040 works. You really don't want to have any gains (or especially any losses) between the contribution and conversion step because it makes the paperwork more complicated. Whoever you talked to at Vanguard is apparently not familiar with the pro-rata calculation demanded by line 6 of Form 8606. My wife is joining school this fall and we may all join the student health insurance, which is not so good. If you are rolling the SEP over to a 401k-type qualified plan, be sure to rollover only the pre-tax money, not the after-tax money as a result of applying the pro-rata rule for 2013. Mega-backdoor Roth - Bogleheads If you find you have a few pennies left in the account and are worried you'll get pro-rated, take a look at this post: Pennies and the Backdoor Roth IRA.