Date: Wed, 6 Dec 2006 09:54:13 -0600
From: BreadWithSpam@fractious.net
Newsgroups: misc.invest.financial-plan
Subject: Re: Eligiblity of Roth IRA, regular IRA and spousal IRA
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linq936@hotmail.com writes:

>   My friend told me in my case, if I open IRA account, I can not deduct
> that from income because for a given year, $4000 is a total of ROTH and
> regular IRA.

If you put $4000 into a Roth IRA, not only can you not deduct any
IRA contribution, but you cannot *make* any other IRA contribution.
As you said, $4000 is the total IRA contributions you are permitted
to make - Roth and Traditional (deductible or not) combined.

>   How about my wife? We put $4000 into her ROTH, then she can not
> deduct anything from regular IRA?

If you put $4000 into her Roth, you cannot put *anything* more into
her IRA.  Deductions aren't even a question on the table.

>   I was told a retirement account called spousal IRA, it is for the
> homemakers. Is it same restriction of regular IRA, meaning we can not
> deduct any?

The only thing which makes a particular contribution *spousal* (not
the account itself!) is the fact that one may only contribute to
an IRA up to the amount one has earned.  A spouse who has no earnings,
however, is permitted to make a contribution - that's what that's
about.  It has no impact whatsoever on the account contribution
limits, deductibility, etc.


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