Execute a mega backdoor Roth through your employer’s 401(k)

  1. Obtain the Summary Plan Description or the plan’s written policies
    20 min

    This step produces a copy of your plan’s rules that you can search for the words “after-tax” and “conversion.” The Summary Plan Description (SPD) is the single document that governs your 401(k). Without it everything that follows is guesswork.

    Where to find it:

    1. Log into your 401(k) recordkeeper’s website — Fidelity, Vanguard, Schwab, Alight, Empower, Principal, or T. Rowe Price. Look under “Plan Information,” “Plan Documents,” or “Resources.” The SPD is usually a PDF named something like Summary Plan Description or Plan Document.
    2. If the portal offers a Summary of Material Modifications (SMM), download that too — it lists changes since the last SPD.
    3. Search your employer’s internal benefits site (often via HR or a link in your payroll system). Try keywords: “401(k) plan document,” “retirement plan summary,” or “SPD.”
    4. If neither portal has it, email HR or the benefits team: “Please provide the most current Summary Plan Description for the [Company Name] 401(k) Plan. A PDF is fine.”