Employer Plans and The 5-Year Rule: Today’s Slott Report Mailbag

Thursday, March 23, 2023

By Sarah Brenner, JD
Director of Retirement Education
Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreport

Question:

My daughter had two employers during 2022. The first employer offered a matching 401(k) plan in which she enrolled. The second employer (her current employer) offers no retirement plan benefit. In preparing my daughter’s 2022 federal tax return on TurboTax, she is unable to take advantage of a deduction for an IRA contribution, because the 2022 W-2 from her first employer in 2022 indicates that she is covered by a retirement plan. The 2022 W-2 from her current employer does not. Is there any way my daughter can get an IRA deduction on her 2022 tax return? Thank you for taking my inquiry.

Tom

Answer:

If an individual participates in an employer plan like a 401(k), even for a very short period of time during the year, they are considered an active participant in a retirement plan for the whole year. This means that if their income is above certain levels they are not allowed to deduct their traditional IRA contribution. For 2022 for single filers, the ability to deduct a traditional IRA contribution phases out when modified adjusted income is between $68,000 and $78,000. For those who are married, filing jointly, it phases out between $109,000 and $129,000. (Since TurboTax said she could not take a deduction, I am assuming she is over one of these levels.)

If your daughter (and her spouse if married) do not participate in a plan for 2023, she will be able to deduct her IRA contribution. There are no income limits for those who do not participate in a plan at all during the year.

Question:

I am 62 years old and retired. If I initiate a Roth IRA conversion from my employer’s 401(k) retirement savings plan in 2023 and make an additional Roth IRA conversion every year for the next 10 years, is the 5-year rule for tax-free withdrawals satisfied beginning in 2028 for all withdrawals, or does each Roth IRA conversion have its own 5-year rule?  Thank you.

Answer:

The 5-year holding period for tax-free distributions of earnings from a Roth IRA begins with the first Roth contribution or conversion. It does not restart with subsequent contributions or conversion. Since you are over 59 ½ and will have owned a Roth IRA for 5 years or more by 2028, any distribution of earnings taken in 2028 or later would be tax-free.

New Episodes of the Great Retirement Debate Podcast with Ed Slott and Jeffrey Levine, Airing Every Thursday!

In this week’s episode of the Great Retirement Debate, Ed and Jeffrey continue the discussion on whether you should convert or not convert your IRA to a Roth IRA. 

You can stream The Great Retirement Debate at greatretirementdebate.com or on all major streaming platforms.

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