ROTH: Conversion Considerations for Physicians

Posted on April 11, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Why would a doctor consider a Roth IRA conversion?

By Staff Reporters

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A Roth conversion involves transferring funds from a traditional retirement account—such as a 401(k), 403(b), or individual retirement account (IRA) funded with pre-tax dollars—into a Roth IRA.

The biggest benefit lies in the tax treatment of the converted funds. Once the funds are in the Roth IRA, future growth of those assets is tax-free. Withdrawals in retirement are also tax-free, assuming they meet certain criteria. As with any strategy, there are important considerations to keep in mind.

When you convert funds to a Roth IRA, the amount converted is taxable income in that tax year. For example, if you convert $100,000 from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, that $100,000 will be added to your taxable income in the conversion year.

Converting large amounts can result in a significant tax bill and may push you into a higher tax bracket. Even so, using retirement funds to pay taxes may make sense for those looking to convert large IRAs to reduce their future required minimum distributions (RMDs).

The timing of your Roth conversion matters too. Generally, it’s a good idea to convert when your income is lower—for example, after you’ve retired and before you begin drawing Social Security. You may also choose to convert over the course of several years to spread out the tax impacts. But if you can get comfortable with these considerations, a Roth conversion can provide you with benefits beyond tax-free growth and withdrawals.

Some of these benefits are:

  • Tax diversification. Having both traditional and Roth accounts allows you to manage your tax liability in retirement. For example, if your income in a given year is higher than expected, you can withdraw from the Roth IRA without increasing your taxable income.
  • No RMDs. Traditional IRAs and 401(k)s require you to begin taking RMDs at age 73. Roth IRAs have no RMD requirement during your lifetime. With a Roth account, you have more control over your retirement withdrawals and can leave the funds to grow for your heirs.
  • Benefits for heirs. Roth IRAs can be passed on to beneficiaries, who can inherit the account income tax-free. This means your heirs can enjoy the tax-free growth and withdrawals if the Roth IRA has been held for five years or more—a significant advantage, especially if your beneficiaries are in a higher tax bracket.

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On “Forced” Required Minimum Distributions

Posted on November 8, 2017 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Mandatory RMDs

By Rick Kahler CFP®

Planning is important for all things financial, including retirement, which is inevitable no matter how far into the future it may seem. The financial decisions you make in your 20s through your 60s will greatly impact the quality of your lifestyle during retirement. Social Security and family won’t be enough to get you through 30 years of retirement. If you haven’t worked for a branch of government, you will rely heavily on income you’ve stashed in 401(k)s and IRAs.

Traditional IRAs

One of the big advantages of a traditional IRA or 401(k) is being able to save pre-tax dollars and let them grow tax deferred until you need them. Hopefully, when you take the distributions in retirement, you will be in a lower tax bracket than when you made the contribution. The downside is that traditional IRA funds become 100% taxable when you withdraw them.

Deferrals

Deferring distributions from your IRA only works until age 70½, when you’ll be forced to take money out whether you want to or not. This is called a Required Minimum Distribution, or RMD. If, at age 70½, you don’t need to withdraw funds to live on but are faced with an annual RMD, there are several things you can do to minimize your tax hit.

The easiest is don’t stop earning an income if you have a substantial 401(k). Employees are not required to take RMDs when they are still working, even part-time. This only applies to your employer’s 401(k). You will need to take RMDs from personal IRAs or 401(k)s and IRAs from previous employer plans.

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However, if you plan ahead you may be able to bypass this. If you have IRAs that are rollovers from previous 401(k)s, your employer may allow you to roll them into your current plan. By consolidating previous qualified employer plans into your current plan, you can defer taking an RMD until you quit working.

If you give to charities, you can give any portion or all of your RMD to a charity and not pay any taxes on the distribution. This can really save you a lot of money if you are currently giving to charities out of taxable accounts. When you turn 70½, simply redirect your charitable giving from taxable accounts to your IRA. You can give up to $100,000 annually without paying taxes on those distributions.

Another strategy we use commonly with clients is converting traditional IRA funds to Roth IRAs. Money in a Roth is not subject to RMDs. Of course, the downside is that you must pay taxes on the funds converted from your traditional IRA to a Roth.

For a conversion to make financial sense, two important factors must apply. You generally want to do a Roth conversion when your current tax bracket is lower than you anticipate it will be in the future. The most obvious scenario here is when you delay Social Security until age 70 and you are currently in a 10% or 15% tax bracket. It’s highly possible that Social Security and RMDs all kicking in at the same time may put you into the 25% tax bracket. Moving as much money at the 15% bracket prior to age 70 can make a lot of sense. It’s also important that the money to pay the taxes needs to come from a taxable account.

Assessment

As with all financial strategies that are crammed into a 600-word article, there are variations and nuances I am not able to go into. If you think one of these strategies may apply to you, don’t try it on your own. First get advice from a competent tax advisor or financial professional.

Conclusion

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