A "backdoor Roth IRA" is a type of conversion that allows people with high incomes to fund a Roth despite IRS income limits. Basically, you put money you've already paid taxes on in a traditional IRA, then convert your contributed funds into a Roth IRA and you're done.
As of March 2022, the Backdoor Roth IRA is still alive. Therefore, any taxpayer making more than $214,000 in income and is married and filing jointly can make an after-tax Traditional IRA contribution and then potentially do a tax-free Roth IRA conversion.
The backdoor Roth IRA strategy is still currently viable, but that may change at any time in 2022. Under the provisions of the Build Back Better bill, which passed the House of Representatives in 2021, high-income taxpayers would be prevented from making Roth conversions.
If you're wondering what that means, here's what it is. A backdoor Roth IRA is a completely legitimate way to get past the income limits that the IRS sets. This method involves converting a traditional IRA into a Roth IRA, and allows you to still deposit your $6,000 once a year.
The backdoor Roth IRA strategy is still currently viable, but that may change at any time in 2022. Under the provisions of the Build Back Better bill, which passed the House of Representatives in 2021, high-income taxpayers would be prevented from making Roth conversions.
Roth IRA contributions are done with after-tax funds, meaning the income taxes were likely withheld from your paycheck. But if you're completing a backdoor Roth IRA, you'll pay income taxes on the funds at the time of the conversion.
On April 5, you could convert your traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. However, the conversion can't be reported on your 2021 taxes. Because IRA conversions are only reported during the calendar year, you should report it in 2022.
Disadvantages of a Roth IRA Conversion
Of course, when you do a Roth IRA conversion, you risk paying that big tax bill now when you might be in a lower tax bracket later. While you can make some educated guesses, there's no way to know for sure what tax rates (and your income) will be in the future.
If you haven't filed your taxes for 2019 yet, you have until April 15, 2020, to complete a backdoor Roth IRA conversion. You can start making contributions for each new tax year beginning on January 1.
Backdoor and mega backdoor Roth
In a backdoor Roth, investors make a non-deductible contribution to a traditional IRA and then quickly convert to a Roth IRA. Once the money is in a Roth IRA, it's tax-free when taken out (if you meet the holding period and age requirements).
If you're approaching retirement or need your IRA money to live on, it's unwise to convert to a Roth. Because you are paying taxes on your funds, converting to a Roth costs money. It takes a certain number of years before the money you pay upfront is justified by the tax savings.
The year you do a Roth conversion, your taxable income will rise, which could cause a portion of your Social Security benefit to be taxed or push you into a situation where more of your benefit is taxed.
But even when you're close to retirement or already in retirement, opening this special retirement savings vehicle can still make sense under some circumstances. There is no age limit to open a Roth IRA, but there are income and contribution limits that investors should be aware of before funding one.
Is there a deadline to convert? Yes, the deadline is December 31 of the current year. A conversion of after-tax amounts is not included in gross income. Any before-tax portion converted will be included in your gross income for the conversion tax year.
Backdoor Roth IRA Pitfall #2: The 5-Year Rule
There's just one limit on this feature: You have to wait five years after making your first contribution to avoid taxes when taking withdrawals from the account. The five-year clock starts ticking on January 1 of the year you made your first contribution.
Can You Have More than One Roth IRA? You can have more than one Roth IRA, and you can open more than one Roth IRA at any time. There is no limit to the number of Roth IRA accounts you can have. However, no matter how many Roth IRAs you have, your total contributions cannot exceed the limits set by the government.
A mega backdoor Roth 401(k) conversion is a tax-shelter strategy available to employees whose employer-sponsored 401(k) retirement plans allow them to make substantial after-tax contributions in addition to their pretax deferrals and to transfer their contributions to an employer-designated Roth 401(k).
For taxpayers who anticipate a higher tax rate post-retirement, converting a regular IRA to a Roth IRA after age 60 can help to lower their total tax burden over time. Roth IRA conversions allow earnings to grow tax-free and avoid the need to make required withdrawals that increase post-retirement tax costs.
Whether you are 80—or 20, or 50, or 90—your age should not dictate whether or not you make a Roth conversion.
Who Can Benefit from a Backdoor Roth? High earners who don't qualify to contribute under current Roth IRA rules. Those who can afford the taxes for a Roth conversion and want to take advantage of future tax-free growth. Investors who hope to avoid required minimum distributions (RMDs) when they reach age 72.
There's no age limit or income requirement to be able to convert a traditional IRA to a Roth. You must pay taxes on the amount converted, although part of the conversion will be tax-free if you have made nondeductible contributions to your traditional IRA.
The Roth IRA five-year rule says you cannot withdraw earnings tax free until it's been at least five years since you first contributed to a Roth IRA account. 1 This rule applies to everyone who contributes to a Roth IRA, whether they're 59½ or 105 years old.
A Roth Conversion is when you convert money that you have in a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. This is sometimes called a backdoor Roth IRA because instead of investing money in a Roth, you are converting money. With a conversion, you can get around both the income and contribution limits.