If we open a Roth IRA and make contribution before April 18, can we use that for our deduction for 2022?

[Bsch4477]

Yes. You must be specific when you open your account that the contribution is for 2022. 

[Opus 17]

Roth IRAs are not tax deductible.  

[AnnetteB6]

The information provided by both Bsch4477 and Opus 17 is factual and correct.  This additional information may be helpful to better understand your options.

It is true that you can contribute to either a Traditional IRA or a Roth IRA before the due date of your tax return in order for that contribution to be considered to have been made for that current tax year.  This means you can contribute to an IRA before April 18, 2023, for your 2022 tax year and report that contribution as part of your 2022 tax return, if necessary.  When opening the IRA account and making the contribution, it is important to be sure that the custodian understands the contribution is for the tax year 2022, not 2023.

However, only Traditional IRA contributions may qualify as a tax deduction that would affect your bottom-line refund or balance due.  Roth IRA contributions are not deductible and will not affect your bottom-line refund or balance due unless a contribution is made when it is not allowed.

Additionally, there are income limitations and other factors to consider when determining whether you can make a Roth IRA contribution or a deductible Traditional IRA contribution.  

The best way to make sure you are eligible to make the contribution is to enter the contribution that you plan to make into TurboTax and pay close attention to any messages on the screen as you go through that section.  The program will let you know if you are eligible to make the Roth IRA contribution or if you can make a deductible Traditional IRA contribution.  Then, based on what you see, you can decide what is best for your situation and whether to open the IRA account before the due date of the return.

To get started, use the following steps:

• On the top row of the TurboTax online screen, click on Search (or for CD/downloaded TurboTax locate the search box in the upper right corner) 
• This opens a box where you can type in “IRA contributions” (be sure to enter exactly as shown here) and click the magnifying glass (or for CD/downloaded TurboTax, click Find)
• The search results will give you an option to “Jump to IRA contributions”
• Click on the blue “Jump to IRA contributions” link and enter your information

@suraz977