2010 Roth Conversions
I’m interested in knowing if anyone has a definitive explanation for the income reporting alternatives when spouses, filing MFJ in 2010, both have traditional IRAs that are converted to Roths in 2010. Can one spouse report all the income in 2010 [for the IRA that they own and converted] and the other report equal amounts in 2011 and 2012 [for the IRA that they own and converted]? Would it make a difference if they filed MFS?
Thanks for reading this question.
Bob
Permalink Submitted by Alan Spross on Tue, 2009-11-24 17:36
Bob,
Yes, each spouse can make their own decision with their respective IRA accounts, although they must make the same decision for all conversions each individual completes. Each spouse can also recharacterize all or part of their conversions and the extended due date applies for both recharacterizations and opting out of the two year deferral of income. Different elections for spouses allow some of the marginal rate bracket for 2010 to be used, while it otherwise would be lost to those that defer the conversion income over the next two years.
This also applies to married/separate filers, as the filing limitations for them were also lifted along with the income limits for conversions.
Permalink Submitted by Robert Dyar on Tue, 2009-11-24 18:11
Alan,
Thx for the prompt reply.
Bob