Roth IRA year designation

[dwgee88]

In 2020, I opened up my first Roth IRA and I was told by the person opening the account for me that I still had time to max out my contribution for 2019 before the tax deadline. So during the early portion of 2020, I placed a deposit for the max amount for 2019. My question is, how does the government know, or how do I know whether this sum will be correctly attributed to 2019 as opposed to being counted as part of my 2020 contributions? I didn't think of this when I deposited the amount in early 2020, but now that I am doing my taxes and planning to max out my 2020 contributions before the tax deadline, I am wondering how I'd avoid over-contributing or whether there there is some way the IRS knows whether I've maxed out my 2019 contributions or am simply just contributing to my 2020. 

Thank you for any input!

[AnnetteB6]

When you make the deposit into your IRA, you designate the year for which the contribution is being made.  The IRA custodian is then required to report that information to the IRS each year by filing Form 5498.  This form will show the amount of contributions that were made to the account.  You will also receive a copy of the form, but it is not filed with your tax return.

You also need to report your IRA contribution in your tax return so that you receive any possible Saver's Credit or to verify that your income made you eligible to make the contribution.

To learn more, take a look at the following TurboTax article:  What Is IRS Form 5498: IRA Contributions Information?

[dwgee88]

Thank you for the prompt reply!