Why is my Roth contribution not deductible? (filing married jointly). Became a contractor (no company 401k), But Turbotax says $3k in Roth account is not eligible.

[leeanntrang]

I lost my job mid 2017. I became a contractor so i contributed $3000 to my own Roth IRA account I opened. Why is it not eligible for deduction?

[Critter]

Now if the program says you have an excess contribution that is because you made too much income so you are not allowed to contribute to the ROTH ... you can make a non deductible IRA contribution instead so you would recharacterize it as mentioned in the other answer.

[DoninGA]

Roth IRA contributions are never deductible on a federal tax return.  Only IRA contributions to a Traditional IRA are eligible for a tax deduction.

Go to this IRS website for Roth IRA's - https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/roth-iras

You cannot deduct contributions to a Roth IRA.

[Hal_Al]

You can re characterize your Roth contribution to a traditional IRA, before 4-15-18, and deduct it on your 2017 return. Contact the financial institution that has your account

[dmertz]

Whether or not a traditional IRA contribution would be deductible will depend on your modified AGI, whether you were covered by a retirement plan at any job you had in 2017 and whether your spouse is covered by a retirement plan at work.

[fanfare]

you have $3,000 that will grow forever tax-free. Why would you give that up?

[Hal_Al]

Good question. See <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://money.cnn.com/retirement/guide/IRA_Roth.moneymag/index7.htm">http://money.cnn.com/retirement/...>