For years, the advice went something like this: "Convert now while tax rates are low, because they're going up in 2026."
That advice made sense. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 was set to expire at the end of 2025, and rates were scheduled to jump back automatically. The clock was ticking. Advisors drew timelines. Spreadsheets were built. The conversion window was closing.
Then Congress made the tax cuts permanent. The window did not close. The urgency argument evaporated. A lot of people quietly shelved their Roth conversion plans, figuring the reason to do it was gone.
Here's what I want to tell you: that reason was never the best reason anyway. The better reason to do a Roth conversion has nothing to do with what Congress might do next. It has everything to do with the gap.
Let Me Tell You About the Gap
If you've ever wondered whether a Roth conversion still makes sense now that TCJA rates are locked in, the answer has everything to do with a window of time that most retirees don't even realize they have.
Meet Tom. He retired at 63. He and his wife have $1.2 million in his 401(k), $180,000 in a brokerage account, and a $40,000 annual pension. When he retired, his taxable income dropped to roughly $40,000 per year. For the first time in decades, he was in a low tax bracket.
Then he turned 73.
That year, the IRS told him he had to start taking Required Minimum Distributions from his 401(k). His first RMD came to just over $50,000. Added to his pension, investment income, and Social Security, his taxable income jumped above $100,000. His Medicare premiums increased because of IRMAA. More of his wife's Social Security became taxable. He stepped into a higher bracket.
Tom's financial life got more complicated the moment the IRS required him to take money he did not need.
Those ten years between 63 and 73, when his income was low and his bracket space was wide open, were the single best tax planning opportunity of his retirement. He did not use them.
How the Window Actually Works
Between the year you retire and the year your Required Minimum Distributions begin, your taxable income is often lower than it has been in decades. Earned income is gone. Social Security may still be deferred. RMDs have not started. For many people, this creates a window of 5 to 15 years where you are sitting in the 12% or 22% bracket by default. That is the window.
A Roth conversion means you take money out of your traditional IRA or 401(k), pay the ordinary income tax on it now, and move it to a Roth account where it grows tax-free indefinitely. No future RMDs. No forced distributions at age 73. No tax bill passed on to your heirs.
The goal is not to convert everything at once. The goal is to convert strategically: enough each year to fill the lower brackets without crossing into the next one. Without triggering IRMAA surcharges on your Medicare premiums, which in 2026 kick in for individuals with income above $109,000. Without pushing more of your Social Security into taxable territory.
Done well, this is probably the most valuable tax planning opportunity available to someone in their 60s. Done carelessly, it creates a bigger tax bill now without the long-term benefit.
Why 2026 Is Still a Good Year to Have This Conversation
Yes, TCJA is now permanent. The "convert before rates go up" narrative is, for practical purposes, retired. But that was always a secondary argument. The real case for Roth conversions was never about what Congress might do. It was about the arithmetic of your own retirement income.
Here is why this matters more than ever in 2026. Over the past decade, 401(k) balances have grown significantly, which means RMDs are getting larger. A retiree with $2 million in pre-tax accounts could face annual RMDs of $75,000 or more at age 73, whether they need that income or not. That income stacks on top of everything else. Pensions. Dividends. Social Security. Rental income. The compounding effect on tax brackets, Medicare premiums, and Social Security taxation can be significant.
Systematic Roth conversions during the low-income years reduce that future pile. Every dollar converted today is a dollar that will not generate a forced distribution at 73. A dollar that does not count toward IRMAA income. A dollar that your spouse can inherit without any tax obligation at all, since inherited Roth IRAs remain tax-free for beneficiaries.
Warren Buffett once observed that someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree long ago. Roth conversions are tree planting. The benefit shows up in year 12, not year one.
A Few Things Worth Knowing
First, conversions count as ordinary income in the year you do them. This is not a reason to avoid converting. It is a reason to be precise about how much you convert in any given year.
Second, the most effective conversion strategy usually pairs with Social Security deferral. If you retire at 62 or 63 and defer Social Security to 70, you have a wide, low-income window to convert aggressively before both RMDs and Social Security hit simultaneously.
Third, if you have a Roth 401(k) at work, it no longer has RMDs. Congress eliminated that requirement starting in 2024. But if the bulk of your retirement savings is still in pre-tax accounts, the conversion math is worth revisiting regardless of bracket outlook.
Fourth, not everyone should convert. If you are already in the 32% bracket in retirement, or if you expect to be in a lower bracket later due to health or spending changes, the case is weaker. This is not a universal prescription.
What to Do
If you are somewhere between 55 and 73 right now, this conversation is worth having. Not because of what Congress might do with tax rates, but because of what your retirement income picture could look like without a plan.
The gap is real. The window is open. And it does not stay open forever.
If you'd like to talk through how any of this applies to your situation, I'd love to help. Call me at 281-974-1965, email me at BryonT@wranderson.com, or visit wranderson.com to schedule a complimentary review.
1.) Converting from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA is a taxable event. A Roth IRA offers tax free withdrawals on taxable contributions. To qualify for the tax-free and penalty-free withdrawal or earnings, a Roth IRA must be in place for at least five tax years, and the distribution must take place after age 59½ or due to death, disability, or a first-time home purchase (up to a $10,000 lifetime maximum). Depending on state law, Roth IRA distributions may be subject to state taxes.
2.) Cetera Advisors LLC exclusively provides investment products and services through its representatives. Although Cetera does not provide tax or legal advice, or supervise tax, accounting or legal services, Cetera representatives may offer these services through their independent outside business. This information is not intended as tax or legal advice.