You¡¯re covered by an employer retirement plan for a tax year if your employer (or your spouse¡¯s employer) has a:
- Defined contribution plan (profit-sharing, 401(k), stock bonus and money purchase pension plan) and any contributions or forfeitures were allocated to your account for the plan year ending with or within the tax year;
- IRA-based plan (SEP, SARSEP or SIMPLE IRA plan) and you had an amount contributed to your IRA for the plan year that ends with or within the tax year; or
- Defined benefit plan (pension plan that pays a retirement benefit spelled out in the plan) and you are eligible to participate for the plan year ending with or within the tax year.
Box 13 on the Form W-2 PDF you receive from your employer should contain a check in the ¡°Retirement plan¡± box if you are covered. If you are still not certain, check with your (or your spouse¡¯s) employer.
The limits on the amount you can deduct don¡¯t affect the amount you can contribute. obÌåÓýever, you can never deduct more than you actually contribute.