A designated Roth account is a separate account under a 

401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b) plan:

‧to which designated Roth contributions are made, and

‧for which separate accounting of contributions, gains and losses is 

maintained.

Designated Roth Accounts

under a 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b) plan

An advantage of a designated Roth account is that you pay tax on your 

contributions now, but later, when you receive a qualified distribution from 

the account, it’s tax-free. Less tax on your plan distributions could mean 

more money in your pocket during your retirement.

Similar to a Roth IRA, qualified distributions from a designated Roth 

account, including all earnings, are tax-free. Unlike a Roth IRA, distributions 

from a designated Roth account must begin when you turn age 72 (701⁄2 if 

you turned 701⁄2 before January 1, 2020), unless you are still working and 

not a 5% owner of the company sponsoring the plan.

Designated Roth contributions are elective contributions that, unlike pretax elective contributions, are currently includible in gross income — you 

pay tax on these contributions now. If a 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 

457(b) plan permits designated Roth contributions, it must also offer pretax elective contributions. You can contribute to a designated Roth account 

even if your income is too high to be able to contribute to a Roth IRA.

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EMPLOYEE PLANS

Tax Exempt & Government Entities
PLAN FEATURE DESIGNATED ROTH 

ACCOUNT

ROTH IRA PRE-TAX ELECTIVE 

CONTRIBUTION 

ACCOUNT

Contributions Designated Roth employee 

elective contributions are made 

with after-tax dollars

Roth IRA contributions are 

made with after-tax dollars

Traditional pre-tax 

employee elective 

contributions are made with 

pre-tax dollars

Income Limits No income limitation to 

participate

Income limits1:

‧ Married $208,000

‧ Single $140,000

No income limitation to 

participate

Maximum 

Elective

Contributions

Combined2 employee elective 

contributions limited to lesser of:

‧ $19,500 ($26,000 for 

individuals age 50 or over), or

‧ 100% of compensation

Contribution limited to:

‧ $6,000 ($7,000 for 

individuals age 50 or 

over)

Same combined limit as 

designated Roth account

Taxation of

Withdrawals

A withdrawal of contributions 

and earnings is not taxed if it 

is a qualified distribution — the 

account is held for at least 5 

years and made:

‧ because of disability,

‧ after death, or

‧ after attainment of age 591⁄2

Same as designated Roth 

account and can have a 

qualified distribution for a 

first-time home purchase

Withdrawals of 

contributions and earnings 

are subject to federal and 

most state income taxes

Required

Distributions

Distributions must begin no later 

than age 72 (701⁄2 if turned 701⁄2 

before January 1, 2020), unless 

still working and not a 5% owner

No requirement to start 

taking distributions while 

owner is alive

Same as designated Roth 

account

1

All dollar limitations are for 2021. Visit www.irs.gov/retirementcola for annual updates in dollar limitations.

2

This limitation is by individual, rather than by plan. Although you can split the annual employee elective contribution between designated Roth 

contributions and pre-tax elective contributions, the combination cannot exceed the deferral limit for the year.

Review the following chart to compare contribution types, income limits, taxation of withdrawals and more for 

designated Roth accounts, Roth IRAs and pre-tax elective contribution accounts.

Q. Can I make both pre-tax elective and designated Roth contributions in the same year?

A. Yes. If your plan allows, you can contribute to both a designated Roth account and a pre-tax elective contribution 

account in the same year in any proportion you choose. However, the combined amount of all elective contributions you 

make in 2021 is limited to $19,500. An additional $6,500 in catch-up contributions, for those age 50 or older, can also 

be allocated between the pre-tax and designated Roth accounts. 403(b) and governmental 457(b) plans have special 

catch-ups.

Q. Can my employer match my designated Roth contributions?

A. Yes. Your employer can make matching contributions on your designated Roth contributions. However, only your 

designated Roth contributions can be allocated to the designated Roth account. The matching contributions must be 

allocated to a pre-tax account.

Q. Can I change my mind and have designated Roth contributions treated as pre-tax elective contributions?

A. No. Once you designate contributions as Roth contributions, you cannot later change them to pre-tax elective 

contributions.

What are general concerns about designated Roth contributions?

Which types of retirement accounts are right for you?
What should you know about designated Roth account distributions?

What should you know about in-plan Roth rollovers?

Q. Does my employer need to establish a new account under my 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b) plan to 

receive my designated Roth contributions?

A. Yes. Designated Roth contributions must be kept completely separate from previous and current 401(k), 403(b) or 

governmental 457(b) pre-tax elective contributions. Your employer must establish a separate account for each participant 

making designated Roth contributions.

Q. What is a qualified distribution from a designated Roth account?

A. A qualified distribution is generally a distribution made after a 5-taxable-year period of participation, and is:

‧ made on or after the date you attain age 591⁄2,

‧ made on or after your death, or

‧ attributable to your being disabled.

A qualified distribution from a designated Roth account is not includible in your gross income.

Q. What happens if I take a distribution from my designated Roth account before the end of the 5-taxable-year 

period?

A. If you take a distribution from your designated Roth account before the end of the 5-taxable-year period, it is a 

nonqualified distribution. (The 5-taxable-year period of participation begins on the first day of your taxable year for which 

you first made designated Roth contributions to your plan. It ends when 5 consecutive taxable years have passed.) 

You must include the income portion of the nonqualified distribution in gross income and it may be subject to the early 

distribution tax. However, the basis (or contributions) portion of the nonqualified distribution is not included in gross 

income. The basis portion of the distribution is determined by multiplying the amount of the nonqualified distribution by 

the ratio of designated Roth contributions to the total designated Roth account balance.

Q. Because I make designated Roth contributions from after-tax income (already taxed income), can I make tax-free 

withdrawals from my designated Roth account at any time?

A. No. The same restrictions on withdrawals that apply to pre-tax elective contributions also apply to designated Roth 

contributions. If your plan permits distributions from accounts because of hardship, you may choose to receive a 

hardship distribution from your designated Roth account. The hardship distribution will consist of a pro-rata share of 

earnings and basis. The earnings portion will be included in gross income unless you have had the designated Roth 

account for 5 years and are either disabled or over age 591⁄2.

Q. Is a distribution from my designated Roth account for reasons beyond my control (for example, plan termination 

or severance from employment) a qualified distribution even though it does not meet the criteria for a qualified 

distribution?

A. No. If you have not held the account for more than 5 years or if the distribution is not made after death, disability 

or age 591⁄2, then the distribution is not a qualified distribution. However, you could roll the distribution over into a 

designated Roth account in another plan or into your Roth IRA. A transfer to another designated Roth account must be 

made through a direct rollover.

Example: If a nonqualified distribution of $5,000 is made from your designated Roth account 

when the account consists of $9,400 of designated Roth contributions and $600 of earnings, the 

distribution consists of $4,700 of designated Roth contributions (that are not includible in your 

gross income) and $300 of earnings (that are includible in your gross income).

Q. What is an “in-plan Roth rollover”?

A. An in-plan Roth rollover is a distribution or transfer from one or more of your retirement accounts (that don’t hold 

designated Roth contributions) that you roll over to your designated Roth account within the same plan.

Q. Which retirement plans may offer in-plan Roth rollovers?

A. Any plan that permits designated Roth contributions can offer in-plan Roth rollovers.
Publication 4530 (Rev. 7-2021) Catalog Number 48550X Department of the Treasury Internal Revenue Service www.irs.gov

Retirement Plan Information Resources

IRS Publications

‧ Publication 560, Retirement Plans for Small Business (SEP, SIMPLE, and Qualified Plans)

‧ Publication 571, Tax-Sheltered Annuity Plans (403(b) Plans) For Employees of Public Schools and Certain 

Tax-Exempt Organizations

‧ Publication 575, Pension and Annuity Income

‧ Publication 590-A, Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)

‧ Publication 590-B, Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)

‧ Publication 4222, 401(k) Plans for Small Businesses

‧ Publication 4674, Automatic Enrollment 401(k) Plans for Small Businesses

‧ Publication 4531, 401(k) Plan Checklist

‧ Publication 4482, 403(b) Tax-Sheltered Annuities for Participants

‧ Publication 4483, 403(b) Tax-Sheltered Annuities for Sponsors

‧ Publication 4546, 403(b) Plan Checklist

Employee Plans Assistance

‧ www.irs.gov/retirement

‧ Customer Account Services at 877-829-5500

Newsletter

‧ Subscribe online to Employee Plans News

Q. Who is eligible to make an in-plan Roth rollover?

A. Participants, surviving spouse beneficiaries and alternate payees (who are current or former spouses) are eligible to 

make an in-plan Roth rollover in a plan offering these rollovers.

Q. How can I make an in-plan Roth rollover?

A. If your plan allows in-plan Roth rollovers, you can make: 

‧ a direct rollover — by asking the plan trustee to transfer an amount from your non-Roth account or accounts in the 

plan to your designated Roth account in the same plan; or

‧ a 60-day rollover — by having the plan distribute an eligible rollover distribution to you from your non-Roth account 

or accounts in the plan and then depositing all or part of that distribution to your designated Roth account in the 

same plan within 60 days. Because designated Roth accounts hold only after-tax contributions (and earnings on 

those contributions), any untaxed amount rolled into a designated Roth account from a non-Roth account must be 

included in your gross income.

Make better decisions about your retirement 

today, and you’ll thank yourself tomorrow!