I have a 401k account that I want to convert to a Roth Ira. I had the check sent to sent to my new account holder and it didn't get there until after the first of the year. Can I still put this conversion on my year 2000 taxes? And if I can, can I still make contributions for 2000 and 2001 because I have not contributed to the 401k for a few years now.

I can't quite figure out what's going on, but maybe I can clarify a couple of things. First, rollovers and conversions have no effect on contributions. If you didn't make any Roth or traditional IRA contributions for year 2000, you can make them through 4/16/2001. You can make year 2001 contributions from now through 4/15/2002.

You cannot roll a 401(k) directly into a Roth IRA, so I'm at a loss as to what's going on with this check. Could you please elaborate on what the source of the check is, including who the payor and payee are?

TMF ExRO
Phil Marti

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