个人退休帐户罗斯后门可能要被砍了。这是你现在可以做的

本月可能是高收入储蓄者充分利用罗斯“后门”的最后机会。

如果众议院于 11 月通过并正在参议院审议的“重建更好”法案成为法律，它可能会限制高收入储蓄者将其储蓄转换为罗斯 IRA 和罗斯 401(k) 的选择，后者提供退休时免税提款。

除非立法者修改日期，否则最直接的限制将从 2022 年开始，届时您将不再被允许将税后供款（例如不可扣除的 IRA）转换为 Roth。

转换为罗斯不仅可以让您的资金免税增长，还可以让您免税提款。如果您希望在退休时处于更高的税级，或者如果您想要更大的灵活性来决定何时为不同目的在退休时或任何其他时间动用不同的钱，那么拥有该选项是有意义的。

高收入储蓄者现在可以做什么

由于法律尚未改变，高收入储蓄者仍然可以采取措施最大限度地提高他们在 2021 年的罗斯选择权。

您最多可以向传统或罗斯 IRA 供款 6,000 美元（如果您年满 50 岁，则为 7,000 美元）。但是，如果您修改后的调整后总收入为 140,000 美元或更多（如果已婚联合报税为 208,000 美元），则您不能在 2021 年直接向 Roth 供款。并且如果您在工作中享受退休计划并且您的收入为 76,000 美元或更多（125,000 美元）如果已婚）您也不得向传统的 IRA 供款。

但是，在这两种情况下，您都可以向传统的 IRA 缴纳税后捐款。然后您可以立即将这些捐款转换为罗斯 IRA。

加州表示，虽然从技术上讲，您可以在 2022 年 4 月 15 日之前完成 2021 年的捐款，但转换必须在 12 月 31 日之前完成——或至少正在进行中，以便在任何潜在限制生效之前计算在内- 注册会计师 Mary Kay Foss。

但通常可以在一两天内完成转换。 “它非常快，”福斯说。

税收问题

但是，直接的问题是，您可能至少要对转换的部分资金欠税——即使您转换的全部是税后捐款。

为了确定您的税后供款应缴纳多少税款，IRS 使用按比例计算的规则，该规则计算您转换的金额占您所有 IRA 余额的百分比。

它的工作原理如下：假设您今年 51 岁，今年为不可扣除的 IRA 缴纳了 7,000 美元的税后捐款，但您也有 63,000 美元的税前传统 IRA 储蓄。根据比例规则，税后部分（7,000 美元）占您 IRA 总储蓄（70,000 美元）的 10%。因此，当您将今年的捐款转换为 Roth 时，只有 700 美元可以免税；您将欠另外 6,300 美元的所得税。您必须在 2022 年 4 月 15 日之前缴纳该税。

虽然这听起来像是双重征税，但从技术上讲，这不会是因为您的税后供款的剩余部分最终会减少您在退休时进行应税提款时支付的税款。 “当您稍后提取 IRA 提款时，会考虑您不可扣除的 IRA 供款的剩余基础。它不会永远丢失，”福斯说。

当然，如果您还将税前 IRA 储蓄转换为 Roth，您也必须为这些储蓄缴纳所得税。

有一种方法可以避免按比例规则。如果您的雇主允许您将您的 IRA 储蓄转入您的 401(k)，并且您可以在 12 月 31 日之前这样做，那么实际上除了 2021 年的 7,000 美元税后供款外，您将没有任何其他 IRA 储蓄可以转换。因此，在这种情况下，今年您转换为罗斯 IRA 的 100% 将是免税的。

在行动之前获得好的建议

您的具体情况可能比上述示例更复杂。而 IRS 管理不同类型 IRA 的规则——尤其是 Roths——非常复杂，当你将资金从一个转移到另一个时，情况就更是如此了。

如果您的雇主提供自愿进行税后供款的选项，您正在考虑将合格的工作退休计划中的税后储蓄转换为 Roth 401(k)，情况也是如此。 Roth 401(ks) 相对于 Roth IRA 的优势在于没有收入资格规则，您每年可能会贡献更高的金额。与罗斯 IRA 一样，如果众议院通过的“重建更好”法案成为法律，对罗斯 401(k) 的限制最早将于明年生效。

因此，在采取任何行动之前，请咨询精明的税务和退休顾问，他们可以指导您做出选择，并帮助您考虑现在和退休后的税务后果。

The backdoor Roth IRA may be on the chopping block. Here's what you can do now

This month may be the last chance for high-income savers to take full advantage of the 'backdoor' Roth.

If the Build Back Better bill, passed by the House in November and now under consideration by the Senate, becomes law, it could limit high-income savers' options to convert their savings into Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s, which offer tax-free withdrawals in retirement.

The most immediate restriction, unless lawmakers amend the date, would start in 2022, when you would no longer be allowed to convert after-tax contributions -- say from a non-deductible IRA -- into a Roth.

Converting to a Roth would let your money not only grow tax-free but also would let you make tax-free withdrawals too. Having that option makes sense if you expect to be in a higher tax bracket in retirement or if you want greater flexibility to decide when to tap different pots of money for different purposes in retirement or at any other point.

What high-income savers can do now

Since the law has not yet changed, high-income savers can still take steps to maximize their 2021 Roth options.

You may contribute up to $6,000 (or $7,000 if you're at least 50) into a traditional or Roth IRA. But if your modified adjusted gross income is $140,000 or more ($208,000 if married filing jointly) you can't contribute directly to a Roth in 2021. And if you are covered by a retirement plan at work and your income is $76,000 or more ($125,000 if married) you're also not allowed to make deductible contributions to a traditional IRA either.

In both cases, however, you may make after-tax contributions to a traditional IRA. And you can then immediately convert those contributions into a Roth IRA.

While technically you can make your 2021 contributions as late as April 15, 2022, conversions must be done -- or at least be in process -- by December 31 in order to count for this year, before any potential restrictions take effect, said California-based certified public accountant Mary Kay Foss.

But typically a conversion can be made in a day or two. "It's very fast," Foss said.

The tax bite

The immediate rub, though, is that you likely will owe tax on at least a portion of the money you convert -- even if all you convert are your after-tax contributions.

To determine how much tax you'll owe on your after-tax contributions, the IRS uses a pro-rata rule, which calculates what you're converting as a percentage of all your IRA balances.

Here's how it works: Say you're 51 and make a $7,000 after-tax contribution this year to a non-deductible IRA, but you also have pre-tax traditional IRA savings of $63,000. Under the pro-rata rule, the after-tax portion ($7,000) represents 10% of your total IRA savings ($70,000). So when you convert this year's contribution to a Roth, only $700 will be converted tax-free; you will owe income tax on the other $6,300. And you'll have to pay that tax by April 15, 2022.

While that sounds like double taxation, technically it won't be because the remaining portion of your after-tax contributions will eventually reduce the taxes you pay when you make taxable withdrawals in retirement. "The remaining basis from your nondeductible IRA contribution is taken into account when you make later IRA withdrawals. It isn't lost forever," Foss said.

And of course, if you're also converting pre-tax IRA savings to a Roth, you will have to pay income tax on those as well.

There is one way to avoid the pro-rata rule. If your employer lets you roll over your IRA savings into your 401(k), and you can do so before December 31, then effectively you will not have any other IRA savings other than the $7,000 after-tax contribution for 2021 to convert. So in that instance, 100% of your conversion to a Roth IRA this year will be tax-free.

Get good advice before acting

The specifics of your situation may be more complex than the examples above. And the IRS rules governing different types of IRAs -- especially Roths -- are very complex, and never more so than when you're moving money from one to another.

This is also the case if you're thinking about converting after-tax savings in your qualified retirement plan at work into a Roth 401(k), should your employer offer the option of making voluntary after-tax contributions. The advantage of Roth 401(ks) over Roth IRAs is that there are no income eligibility rules and you may contribute much higher amounts annually. As with the Roth IRA, restrictions for Roth 401(k)s would kick in as early as next year under the House-passed Build Back Better bill should it become law.

So before making any moves, consult with a savvy tax and retirement adviser who can guide you through your options and help you think through the tax consequences both now and in retirement.