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Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012: 5 Key 2013 Retirement Planning Points

The House of Representatives passed a previously-passed Senate bill (H.R. 8), a 157-page bill called the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012. There are many retirement planning provisions included in the bill that kept the United States from plunging off the fiscal cliff (cue scary music, plus the equally-scary reality that another showdown over spending cuts and deficit reduction is looming on the horizon).


One key word struck us as we extensively combed through the piece of legislation: permanent. Many of the provisions we discuss in the video below were made permanent, meaning we may have some concrete planning guidance moving forward.

To help you begin to think about 2013 planning, we broke down the lengthy piece of legislation into 5 key 2013 retirement planning points. We list them and go into more detail in the video below. Also, make sure to subscribe to our YouTube page, IRAtv, for future alerts each time we post a new informative video.

One subject we don't touch on in the video (Qualified Charitable Distributions) was a popular topic found in our inbox at year end, and the Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 answers many of the questions involving QCDs. As a programming note, Beverly DeVeny will discuss QCDs at length in this space on Friday, so check back for that.

5 Key 2013 Retirement Planning Points

  • Income tax rates
  • Permanent estate tax exemption
  • Permanent capital gains rates
  • Index of inflation for AMT patch
  • In-plan Roth conversion CHANGE



-By Jeffrey Levine and Jared Trexler

14 comments:

There is also the additional 3.8% federal surtax for the higher income folks, which is on top of what's mentioned in the video.

Yes - for the high earners, there rate could be has high as 43.4% when counting in the surtax.

Ed Slott and Company

No mention of the extention of Qualified Charitable Distributions in your 5 points? Too short term to include?

Beverly DeVeny will cover QCDs separately as they relate to this law tomorrow on this site. Check back then! Thanks for reading.

Ed Slott and Company

Thanks - concise and helpful!

Does it mean anyone(NO INCOME LIMITATION) can convert their old 401k to rothira anytime?

Jeff & Jared,

Great job! Thanks to the video, I was able to blog on this yesterday and early today for clients. Feel free to use:

http://www.wealth-lifeguard.com/2013/01/another-band-aid-placed-on-american.html
http://www.wealth-lifeguard.com/2013/01/the-new-possible-roth-401k-conversion.html

Keep it coming!
Todd Schneider
Schneider Wealth Management
www.schneider-wealth.com

Wow! 98% of us get to keep our low tax rates? Just like President Obama has been saying will happen about 8,000 times over the past few years? You mean Ed Slott's scary predictions of most of us getting about a 40% tax increase didn't come true?

Mark -

98% do get to keep their INCOME TAX RATES. Not sure where you heard "scary predictions" but taxes did to go up for most Americans in some shape or form -- payroll tax holiday expired, tax earners' rates jumped to 39.6%, capital gains rates jumped to 20% for high earners, health care surtax came in this year. There are a lot of new tax law planning points to think about with clients and with your own retirement accounts in 2013. Happy New Year!

Great piece - very clear and concise and exceptionally well-delivered. All of what I've come to expect from Ed Slott and his staff. Thank you.

What are the new rules for Roth IRA conversions. I could not follow
from the video. Presently you have to first take your MRD (if you are over 70 and half) and then you convert as an addition. Has this rule being changed. Please clarify. Can you use your MRD to put in
Roth.

Thanks.

The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 didn't change anything to normal everyday Roth IRA conversions. It did tweak the eligibility for in-plan Roth conversions.

Ed Slott and Company

Todd - Great to hear. And thanks to all who have read this post and watched the video - nearly 10,000 of you. If you have any other questions on the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 as it relates to retirement planning, please send them to [email protected].

Those, who wants to thinking to take he retirement from their job or services must read this post. There are some good points of retirement planning.

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Consumers: Send in Your Questions to [email protected]

Q:
Can I transfer money from my IRA to my husband's Roth IRA? I am 35, and he is 36.

Thank you!

Gail Clements

A:
No. The only way your IRA funds can be transferred to your husband’s IRA is in a divorce or after your death. Even then, it would have to be transferred to a similar IRA, for example an IRA to IRA or a Roth IRA to another Roth IRA. In this case, you cannot transfer your IRA into your husband’s Roth IRA.