You can’t contribute to a Roth IRA if your income is above a certain amount.

However, you can backdoor into a Roth IRA even if you are above that limit by making a non deductible contribution to a traditional IRA. This is different from a typical pre-tax contribution to an IRA where you get a tax deduction. Because you didn’t get the deduction, you essentially have basis in your contribution and can do an immediate Roth conversion without paying taxes.

The problem for me is that I have a traditional IRA with pre-tax money that taints any Roth conversion I do, even if I make a nondeductible contribution (I.e., I can’t just convert the non deductible portion off the top). In order to isolate the non deductible portion, I need to get the pre-tax money out by either (1) converting everything to Roth (which I’m trying to avoid) or (2) move the pre-tax money to a 401k, which is ignored for purposes of these rules.

You typically don’t want to move IRA funds to a 401k because you lose control, but this is a rare scenario where it can make sense (as long as you aren’t sacrificing too much on your investment options). I was just wondering if there are any creative options I am overlooking, but it doesn’t appear so.