How many roth iras can a married couple have

To take advantage of the spousal IRA rules, a married couple must file a joint tax return. When you or your spouse is covered by a retirement plan at work, the IRS sets income limits on the amount you can deduct for contributions to a traditional IRA. If neither of you are covered by an employer-provided retirement plan there are no income limits. Roth phase-out rules apply whether or not either spouse is covered by a retirement plan at work.

However, both spouses may continue to contribute to traditional IRAs. He writes about business, personal finance and careers. Adkins holds master's degrees in history and sociology from Georgia State University. Contributions to each account are capped by the individual annual IRA limits.

Jessie and Alex are both 40, and each of them opened and funded their own Roth IRAs before they got married. For married couples with only one working spouse, the amount that can be deducted from taxes depends on whether the spouse who works is covered by a retirement plan at work or not. Remember, Roth IRA contributions cannot be deducted from your taxes since they offer tax-free withdrawals in retirement.

Opening a spousal IRA is a simple process. Stick to a broker or company that you trust and that has a long, solid history. Emily Guy Birken is a former educator, lifelong money nerd, and a Plutus Award-winning freelance writer who specializes in the scientific research behind irrational money behaviors. Her background in education allows her to make complex financial topics relatable and easily understood by the layperson.

With two decades of business and finance journalism experience, Ben has covered breaking market news, written on equity markets for Investopedia, and edited personal finance content for Bankrate and LendingTree. Select Region. United States. United Kingdom. Emily Guy Birken, Benjamin Curry.

Contributor, Editor. Editorial Note: Forbes Advisor may earn a commission on sales made from partner links on this page, but that doesn't affect our editors' opinions or evaluations. When contributing to spousal IRAs, each spouse remains the named account owner of their IRA, independent of where the contributions come from.

Decisions about asset allocation, beneficiaries and withdrawals belong solely to the spouse who owns the IRA. Married couples must file a joint tax return to be eligible. Couples who file their taxes separately are not eligible for spousal IRA contributions.

Creating financial security is the fundamental building block for your retirement savings. This maximizes your total contributions and gives your money more compounding power.

However, you must have earned income in order to contribute to an IRA. So, what if one spouse earns little-to-no taxable compensation? What happens next? Because married couples can file taxes together, it stands to reason that you could open a Roth IRA together, right?

Unfortunately, the answer is no.