Can I do Roth conversions in same year I start Social Security benefits?

Yes, you can absolutely do Roth conversions in the same year you start Social Security! There's no rule against it. However, you need to understand the tax implications. When you do a Roth conversion, that amount gets added to your taxable income for the year. So if you're also getting SS benefits, part of those benefits might become taxable depending on your total income. For single filers, if your combined income (adjusted gross income + nontaxable interest + half of SS benefits) exceeds $25,000, up to 50% of your SS benefits become taxable. Above $34,000, up to 85% becomes taxable. So you might want to consider doing smaller Roth conversions spread out over more years to keep your income in lower tax brackets.

yep did this last yr... converted bout 32k while on SS... just know ur tax brackets and stay in the lower ones if u can... my accountant helped me figure out exactly how much i could convert without jumping up

I tried doing this and it was a NIGHTMARE!!! My taxes were so complicated and I ended up owing WAY more than I expected. The amount of my Social Security that became taxable shot up because of the conversion and I had to take money out of savings just to pay the IRS. Plus Medicare premiums went up two years later because of the IRMAA surcharge!!! Be VERY careful about this!!

As others have mentioned, yes, you can do Roth conversions in the same year you start receiving Social Security benefits. There's no prohibition against it. The real issue is managing the tax consequences carefully. A few points to consider: 1) The provisional income formula for determining Social Security taxation is: AGI + Tax-exempt interest + 1/2 of SS benefits 2) Roth conversions increase your AGI, which can cause more of your SS benefits to become taxable 3) If you're close to Medicare age, large conversions can trigger IRMAA surcharges on your Part B and D premiums two years later 4) Consider your tax bracket now versus what you expect in retirement Many financial planners recommend doing Roth conversions before starting SS if possible. If that's not an option, you might want to spread smaller conversions over multiple years. With $240,000 to convert, you could do $30-40K per year over 6-8 years, carefully managed to minimize tax impact. I'd strongly recommend working with a tax professional who specializes in retirement planning to develop a year-by-year conversion strategy.

My brother did this last year and he said the key is to stay under the income thresholds. He converted like $15,000 and it worked out fine. But everyone's situation is different I guess.

I just wanted to mention - if you're having trouble getting through to the SSA to ask them questions about your benefits and how they might be affected by your Roth conversion plans, check out a service called Claimyr. I was on hold forever trying to speak with someone at Social Security about my retirement benefits, and a friend recommended Claimyr. They got me through to a real person at SSA in about 20 minutes instead of waiting for hours. They have a video that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The website is claimyr.com - it was really helpful for me when I needed to straighten out some questions about my benefits. Might be useful if you need to talk to someone at SSA about your specific situation!

This is a really important question and I'm surprised it doesn't get discussed more! I'm in a very similar situation (starting SS this year and wanting to do Roth conversions). One thing to consider that hasn't been mentioned yet: if you're married, the income thresholds for SS taxation are higher. For married couples filing jointly, SS benefits start becoming taxable at $32,000 and reach the 85% taxable level at $44,000 of combined income. Also, if you're just starting SS in 2025, you'll only receive benefits for part of the year, which means less SS income being potentially taxed in 2025 compared to future full years. This might actually make 2025 a BETTER year for a larger conversion. Another strategy some people use is to convert just enough to "fill up" their current tax bracket without spilling into the next higher bracket.

dont forget bout medicare IRMAA surcharges if ur over 65... big roth conversion could bump ur medicare costs up 2 yrs later

To follow up on my earlier comment, here's one more consideration: if you're planning to delay taking Required Minimum Distributions as long as possible (now age 73), remember that those RMDs could force your income into higher brackets later AND potentially increase the taxation of your Social Security benefits. So even though Roth conversions now might increase taxes temporarily, they could save you more in the long run by reducing your future RMDs. It's always a balancing act.

I'm in a similar situation and have been researching this extensively. One thing I learned from my CPA is that you can actually do "test conversions" - convert a small amount first (maybe $10-15k) and see exactly how it impacts your tax situation before committing to larger amounts. Also, consider the timing within the year. If you start SS benefits in early 2025 like you mentioned, you might want to wait until later in the year to do any conversions so you have a clearer picture of your actual SS income for the year. This helps you calculate your provisional income more accurately. Another strategy is to use tax software or work with a professional to model different conversion amounts before you actually do them. This way you can see exactly how much additional tax each conversion level would trigger. Given that you have $240k to convert and want to avoid RMDs, spreading it over 8-10 years might be more tax-efficient than trying to do larger chunks. Good luck!

One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet is the state tax implications if you live in a state that taxes Social Security benefits. Some states like Colorado, Connecticut, and others have their own rules for taxing SS benefits that might be different from federal rules. Also, if you're doing conversions, make sure you have cash available to pay the taxes from sources OTHER than the IRA you're converting. If you have to withdraw extra money from the IRA just to pay the conversion taxes, that defeats part of the purpose. Since you mentioned your financial advisor brought up concerns, I'd really encourage getting a second opinion from a fee-only financial planner who specializes in retirement tax planning. Sometimes advisors who work on commission might have different motivations than what's best for your specific tax situation. The fact that you're thinking about this strategically before age 73 puts you way ahead of most people. Just take your time and model out a few different scenarios before jumping in!

I'm also approaching this situation (turning 65 next year and considering when to start SS and do Roth conversions) and this thread has been incredibly helpful! One additional consideration I've been researching is the "tax torpedo" effect that can happen when Social Security benefits first become taxable. Basically, when you cross those provisional income thresholds ($25k single/$32k married), each additional dollar of income doesn't just get taxed at your marginal rate - it ALSO causes more of your SS benefits to become taxable. This can create an effective marginal tax rate that's much higher than your actual tax bracket. For example, if you're in the 22% bracket and cross the threshold where SS becomes taxable, you might effectively pay tax on $1.85 for every additional dollar of conversion income (the $1 conversion + $0.85 of newly taxable SS benefits). This reinforces what others have said about doing smaller, carefully planned conversions rather than large ones. The math gets pretty complex, which is why working with a tax professional who understands this stuff is probably worth the cost. Has anyone else run into this "tax torpedo" situation with their conversions?