Advisor Fees FY2018

In past years tax-deferred adviser fees paid from taxable account funds were IRS allowed itemized deductible expense. With new Tax Law, what is impact for reporting adviser fees?



No Misc Deductions subject to 2% of AGI on Sch A are allowed any longer.This means advisor fees, cost of tax prep, certain unreimbursed employee business expenses, etc.In reality, outside of a Roth, it’s a better tax advantage to deduct fees directly from IRAs as they are 100% paid with pretax money. For Roth still likely better paying out of non-qualified account despite the lack of ability to deduct as otherwise you’re using Roth money for fees. HTH 

I agree. Advisors should be breaking down their fees such that fees for the TIRA assets are directly deducted. But fees for other accounts including Roth IRAs cannot be deducted from a TIRA account, and should usually be paid from other funds or deducted from a taxable brokerage account. If advisor will not provide a breakdown, there is a risk that too much is deducted from the TIRA and that could result in a prohibited transaction.

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