Earning on Income

• You can contribute to a Roth IRA as long as you meet the criteria for earning an income. That is, as long as you are being compensated for something, you can contribute to a Roth IRA. Examples of compensation would be alimony, salaries, bonuses, fees from a practicing profession, and tips.
  
  

Married

• If you're married and your spouse earns a small compensation or no compensation, as long as you file your income tax return jointly, your spouse can contribute to a Roth IRA.
  
  

Under 50

• If you are younger than 50 at the close of 2010, the most that you can contribute to a Roth IRA is $5,000. You can have both a traditional and a Roth IRA in the same year, but their combined total cannot exceed $5,000. In 2010, if you file your taxes jointly and your gross income adjusted is more than $177,000, you cannot contribute to a Roth IRA.
  
  

50 and Older

• If you're 50 or older before the last day of 2011, your contribution can be as much as $6,000. The combined total of a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA cannot exceed $6,000.
  
  

Phase-Out

• If a taxpayer's income goes above a certain amount, his ability to contribute to a Roth IRA is phased out or eliminated.
  
  Single people: If your modified adjusted gross income, or MAGI, is more than $101,000, the amount you can contribute to your Roth IRA is reduced. If your income reaches $116,000, then your ability to contribute to a Roth is phased out or eliminated.
  
  Married people who file jointly: When your joint MAGI exceeds $159,00, your contribution is reduced, and reaching $169,000 phases out your contribution.
  
  Married people who file separately and you don't live together: Your phase-out is the same as that for those who are single.
  
  Married people who live together, or who have lived together at any time during the filing year: Filing separately will see your contribution reduced to zero.
  
  Also, if your adjusted gross income is more than $10,000 and you are married but filing separately, you are not eligible to contribute to a Roth IRA.