Until recently, Roth IRAs weren’t available to wealthy investors. As of January 1, the income limit was waived for transfers from traditional IRAs and 401Ks.While a Roth IRA conversion will require you to pay taxes on the money you transfer (since Roth IRAs contributions are made with after tax dollars), Roth IRAs allow tax free distributions and don’t require forced distributions after age 70.5.

So if you have the money to pay the taxes now, and think that your tax rate when you retire will be substantially higher or that you won’t need the money early in your retirement years, Roth IRAs can be a great tool. It’s also a good tool for preserving capital for your heirs, since it compounds tax free (vs. tax deferred for traditional IRAs) and allows you to preserve more after taxes for your estate.