Confirm you are eligible to contribute to a traditional IRA
Check whether you have any pre-tax traditional IRA, SEP IRA, or SIMPLE IRA balances that may affect taxes
Open a traditional IRA if you do not already have one
Open a Roth IRA if you do not already have one
Contribute after-tax money to the traditional IRA
Make sure the contribution does not exceed the annual IRA contribution limit
Wait briefly if needed for the contribution to settle
Convert the traditional IRA balance to the Roth IRA
Choose the Roth IRA as the destination for the conversion
Pay any taxes owed on earnings if the contribution was not converted immediately
File IRS Form 8606 with your tax return to report the nondeductible contribution and conversion
Keep records of the contribution, conversion, and any tax forms
Repeat the process each year you want to make a backdoor Roth IRA contribution