FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

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MrRE
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FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by MrRE »

Hi All :happy

How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

The IRS wants your input at this link:
https://www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/ho ... stem-sams/


Do you find the IRS documentation lacking regarding Roth IRA rules? :confused :oops: :shock:

- Has the IRS properly explained to taxpayers the allowed and disallowed Roth IRA rollovers and conversions? :(

- How about IRS explanations about backdoor Roth conversions or mega backdoor Roth conversions? :greedy :confused

- Do you have uncertainty about your rights and responsibilities as taxpayers regarding Roth IRAs? :confused


The IRS wants to know if you have concerns so it can improve! :sharebeer

And Bogleheads can help the IRS get better at providing needed Roth IRA generic information! :happy


If you find that IRS documents, notices, publications, Rollover Charts, etc. are not explaining generic Roth IRA things properly,

then you can raise generic issues affecting multiple taxpayers here:

https://www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/ho ... stem-sams/

At the link above, you can list your short (100 character max) topic followed by a detailed (2000 character max) issue description.

Only your email is required so they can get back to you if any follow-up questions.
Your name and telephone number are NOT requested as the link above incorrectly says.
In fact the input page says DO NOT provide your name or other personal information.

What happens after you submit your suggestion or concern?

The IRS Taxpayer Systemic Advocacy people will store, prioritize, and analyze your information. If the issue meets established criteria, they will open an advocacy project or incorporate it into an existing one. Some of these projects, including your ideas, may become part of the National Taxpayer Advocate's Annual Report to Congress!


Why bother? :confused

According to the IRS Taxpayer Bill of rights,
https://www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/ge ... er-rights/
you have the:

"The Right to Be Informed -
Taxpayers have the right to know what they need to do to comply with tax laws. They are entitled to clear explanations of the law and IRS procedures in all tax forms, instructions, publications, notices, and correspondence..."


So it's up to us Bogleheads to raise generic issues about Roth IRA documentation so the IRS has help understanding how it can serve the taxpayers better! :happy
Why us? Because we know more than the average person about Boglehead Roth topics, so we can better help the IRS improve! :sharebeer

Rhetorical question: What would you like to be informed better about by the IRS regarding Roth IRAs? :happy
Last edited by MrRE on Thu Jan 27, 2022 11:57 am, edited 1 time in total.
jebmke
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by jebmke »

The IRS publications are pretty comprehensive. I'm not sure what else I need.
Don't trust me, look it up. https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions-and-publications
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celia
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by celia »

I haven’t yet finished what they’ve already published. :oops:
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celia
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by celia »

Thanks!

I submitted a comment that Publications should be available at the beginning of the year, for which they apply. Maybe we'll then see new Pub 590-B (and the new RMD divisors) sometime this year.

I also found it interesting that this was included in the acknowledgement after you submit your suggestion:
What happens next?
Systemic Advocacy will store, prioritize, and analyze your information. If the issue meets established criteria [it impacts more people than just you], we will open an advocacy project or incorporate it into an existing one. Some of these projects, including your ideas, may become part of the National Taxpayer Advocate's Annual Report to Congress.
The brackets are mine.
Last edited by celia on Thu Jan 27, 2022 8:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
rkhusky
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by rkhusky »

celia wrote: Thu Jan 27, 2022 6:29 pm Thanks!

I submitted a comment that Publications should be available at the beginning of the year, for which they apply. Maybe we'll then see new Pub 590-B (and the new RMD divisors) sometime this year.
That’s probably difficult when Congress can make changes in tax law for the current year.
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celia
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by celia »

rkhusky wrote: Thu Jan 27, 2022 7:36 pm
celia wrote: Thu Jan 27, 2022 6:29 pm Thanks!

I submitted a comment that Publications should be available at the beginning of the year, for which they apply. Maybe we'll then see new Pub 590-B (and the new RMD divisors) sometime this year.
That’s probably difficult when Congress can make changes in tax law for the current year.
I also commented that releasing documentation late is like making a rule retroactive. It isn't fair to someone who researched what their RMD was, took it, then the rules are changed retroactively in December. But I know they did that in early 2020 after Congress decided to skip RMDs that year. Many people had to scramble to put the money back in that year.
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David Jay
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by David Jay »

MrRE wrote: Thu Jan 27, 2022 11:37 amHow to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.
I am not sure what you are reading, but Publication 590(a) and 590(b) are pretty complete. (a) covers contributions and (b) covers distributions.
Last edited by David Jay on Thu Jan 27, 2022 9:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
It's not an engineering problem - Hersh Shefrin | To get the "risk premium", you really do have to take the risk - nisiprius
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celia
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by celia »

David Jay wrote: Thu Jan 27, 2022 8:10 pm I am not sure what you are reading, but Publication 590(a) and 590(b) are pretty complete. (a) covers contributions and (b) covers distributions.
The new divisors in Table III (in Appendix B) are not updated yet. The latest version at IRS.gov is for 2020 and we are now in 2022.
A dollar in Roth is worth more than a dollar in a taxable account. A dollar in taxable is worth more than a dollar in a tax-deferred account.
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David Jay
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by David Jay »

celia wrote: Thu Jan 27, 2022 9:09 pm
David Jay wrote: Thu Jan 27, 2022 8:10 pm I am not sure what you are reading, but Publication 590(a) and 590(b) are pretty complete. (a) covers contributions and (b) covers distributions.
The new divisors in Table III (in Appendix B) are not updated yet. The latest version at IRS.gov is for 2020 and we are now in 2022.
I differentiate your issue from the OP's issue. Commenting to the IRS that consumers need "better generic Roth IRA information" is less than useful, as resources are required to process those comments and there is no specific issue to address. I added a quote from the original post in my post (above) to clarify who I was addressing.

Your comment (if you send one) has a specific request about a specific table in a specific appendix. I find that very appropriate.
It's not an engineering problem - Hersh Shefrin | To get the "risk premium", you really do have to take the risk - nisiprius
placeholder
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by placeholder »

My request would be something better on substantially identical but that's a pipe dream.
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celia
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Re: FYI - How to request the IRS provide better generic Roth IRA information.

Post by celia »

David Jay wrote: Thu Jan 27, 2022 9:32 pm
celia wrote: Thu Jan 27, 2022 9:09 pm The new divisors in Table III (in Appendix B) are not updated yet. The latest version at IRS.gov is for 2020 and we are now in 2022.
I differentiate your issue from the OP's issue. Commenting to the IRS that consumers need "better generic Roth IRA information" is less than useful, as resources are required to process those comments and there is no specific issue to address. I added a quote from the original post in my post (above) to clarify who I was addressing.

Your comment (if you send one) has a specific request about a specific table in a specific appendix. I find that very appropriate.
I'm fairly certain the OP gave a specific example of what he is looking for. He had many questions about rolling over and converting a 401K distribution in this recent thread. In there, we also discussed the documentation and how it may not cover everything. He had previously contacted the IRS for clarification and documentation improvements.

So, I applaud you, MrRE, for doing your best to get a more satisfactory outcome from the IRS. It is only because I recognize his username that I opened this thread.
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