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• Tweet ^[1]
• Email ^[2]

It’s April 15th, it’s getting late, and chances are you’re done with your taxes or getting ready to send it in. Here’s the best last minute tax tip you could possible get and you have until midnight tonight to get it done.

The law on contributions is that electronic transfers would have to be received by April 15th but checks only need to be post-marked by the 15th. So, you have enough time to open an account and mail the check at one of the post offices with extended hours ^[3]. Here’s the full scoop on Roth IRA contribution limits ^[4].

Update: Chuck makes an excellent point in the comments, the best place to open a Roth IRA at the last minute is at a broker you already have accounts at. Since they’ve verified your identity, opening the account should be a cinch and you can probably transfer funds the same day. Call your broker to be sure but this is definitely better than trying to open an account and hoping they approve you.

I talked to a TradeKing ^[5] rep and an E*Trade Brokerage ^[6] rep and both said that online applications are often instantly approved thought some can take as many as one business day. My recommendation is that you try TradeKing (only $4.95 a trade) and then E*Trade ($12.99 a trade) if you don’t have a Roth IRA anywhere yet. From what I can gather, neither have account minimums or account fees but they do charge IRA termination and transfer out fees (if you move brokers, but that’s standard for all brokers).