Structuring your business as an S corporation becomes tax-advantageous once income surpasses $100-150k. This allows you to pay yourself a "reasonable salary" subject to payroll taxes, while the remaining profit can be taken as a distribution, which is not subject to Social Security taxes.

To preserve your ability to make tax-deductible retirement contributions for the current year, you only need to *open* the account before December 31. You can then wait until you know your final tax liability (up until the April tax deadline) to decide the exact amount to contribute.

If a 401(k) plan allows it, high earners can make after-tax contributions beyond standard limits and then convert those funds to a Roth account within the plan. This strategy bypasses typical Roth income limitations, creating a large, tax-free growth vehicle for retirement.

For business owners with high income and few or no employees, a defined benefit pension plan can offer significantly larger tax deductions than standard retirement plans like a 401(k), potentially allowing for write-offs exceeding half a million dollars.

When converting a pre-tax 401(k) to a Roth IRA, you owe income tax on the entire amount. To preserve your principal, pay this tax bill from a separate savings account. Using the retirement funds to pay the tax permanently reduces the base for future compounding.

Many investors focus on diversifying assets (stocks, bonds) but overlook diversifying their accounts by tax treatment (pre-tax 401k, after-tax brokerage, tax-free Roth). This 'tax diversification' provides crucial flexibility in retirement, preventing a situation where every withdrawn dollar is taxable.

Despite its 'shady' sounding name, the Mega Backdoor Roth is a fully legitimate retirement strategy. The primary obstacle for employees is not legality but whether their company's 401k plan has been designed to allow the necessary after-tax contributions and in-plan conversions, a decision that rests entirely with the employer.

Instead of viewing a year with low profits as a negative, business owners can use it to convert traditional IRA funds to a Roth IRA. This allows them to pay taxes on the conversion at their current low rate, ensuring all future growth and withdrawals are tax-free.

The efficiency of a Mega Backdoor Roth hinges on the 401k provider's technology. Some require manual, periodic conversions via paper forms, while others like Fidelity offer 'daily automatic Roth conversions.' This 'game changer' feature simplifies the process and maximizes tax-free growth by immediately converting funds without employee intervention.