Understand the legal tax hack the IRS actually wants you to use. The Concierge CPA With Jackie Meyer For CPA Trendlines In a recent edition of the Concierge CPA podcast, host Dr. Jackie Meyer and guest Acen Hansen delivered a detailed, no-nonsense exploration of using the Backdoor Roth IRA and the Mega Backdoor Roth to harness tax-free growth — particularly for high-income earners and those focused on legacy planning. More Jackie Meyer Catch Jackie Meyer and other thought leaders on Dec. 10 at Tax Season Readiness: Practical Steps for a Smoother Busy Season |1.5 CPE A Backdoor Roth IRA isn’t a special new account — it’s a workaround. As Dr. Meyer, founder of TaxPlanIQ, and Hansen, a wealth advisor for Legacy Wealth Management, explain, it allows people who earn too much to contribute directly to a Roth IRA to still access the benefits of a Roth by first contributing to a traditional IRA (on a non-deductible basis) and then converting it to a Roth IRA. Once the funds are inside a Roth IRA, they grow tax-free and — assuming account and timing requirements are met — distributions in retirement are tax-free. For high earners with incomes above IRS thresholds for direct Roth contributions — which, for 2025, prohibit single filers with MAGI above roughly $165,000 and married couples filing jointly above about $246,000 — the Backdoor Roth remains a viable path. “It’s kind of surprising how many people don’t know about the ability to do a backdoor Roth,” Hansen says. “Most of the time, it’s, ‘Oh, I don’t qualify for Roths so I’ve got to figure something else out.’"
