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New Member
posted May 19, 2025 7:08:38 PM

If I want to roll over my 401-K to IRA account, should I roll over to my regular IRA account then to my backdoor Roth IRA?

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3 Replies
Level 8
May 20, 2025 5:42:04 PM

when you say "rollover my 401K to IRA account" is the goal to convert it all to Roth?

 

generally you can rollover the 401K to IRA without any tax; conversion from the IRA to Roth is then taxable.

 

what is the make-up of your 401 is it entirely pre-tax contributions/earnings, or do you have after-tax contributions, or any sort of Roth 401k balance etc?  If you have after-tax contributions in the 401K some plans/custodians allow that balance to be rolled over to Roth.

 

but if you are using your IRA for backdoor Roth conversions which relies on having zero balance/basis in the IRA to make the backdoor Roth conversion non-taxable, if you convert your 401K to IRA and then don't convert it to Roth and have a balance in the IRA then you won't get the same tax advantage on backdoor Roth conversions.

 

if you can explain a bit more about your situation and what you are looking to accomplish that may help 

Level 15
May 23, 2025 12:11:37 PM

A backdoor Roth IRA is not an account, it is a process.  You make a non-deductible contribution to a traditional IRA, then convert it to a Roth IRA.

 

This process does not work if you have any pre-tax money in any traditional IRA, because all IRA accounts are grouped together for the tax and rollover rules.  

 

If you currently have no pre-tax money in a traditional IRA, and you rollover your pre-tax 401k into a traditional IRA, you will not be able to do any more backdoor Roth IRA conversions unless you convert all your pre-tax IRA to a Roth IRA and pay the required income tax. 

Level 15
May 23, 2025 1:01:13 PM

Generally, a Rollover of 401k or similar plan to Traditional IRA severely compromises the tax-free aspect of Backdoor Roth contributions.

@dr-barahas