Valim’s tax strategists are licensed CPAs who plan taxes for high earners all year.

Yes. A backdoor Roth works at any income, because neither a nondeductible traditional IRA contribution nor a Roth conversion has an income limit. You contribute to a traditional IRA, then convert it to a Roth. A direct Roth IRA contribution is closed at $500,000. For 2026 it phases out between $153,000 and $168,000 for single filers, or $242,000 and $252,000 joint. The pro-rata rule can make part of the conversion taxable if you hold other pre-tax IRA money at year end.

The federal estate tax exemption is $15,000,000 per person for deaths in 2026. Taxable gifts you make during life use up the same exemption. At death, the estate pays 40% only on what exceeds the exemption you have left. Bequests to a US citizen spouse or to charity are deducted first. Our guide to the estate tax exemption covers portability and the states with their own estate tax.

The federal deduction for state and local taxes (SALT) is capped at $40,400 for 2026, or $20,200 if married filing separately. Above $505,000 of modified AGI, the cap shrinks by 30 cents for each extra dollar, but never below $10,000. For separate filers, those figures are $252,500 and $5,000. It rises 1% a year through 2029, then drops back to $10,000 in 2030.

At Valim, proactive tax planning comes under the Tax advisory plan, with your federal and state returns included, for a fee fixed before work starts. It rises with your income and with events such as RSUs or a move. The instant quote sets it from your answers, or passes a complex case to a CPA to price. A CPA can also review last year’s return first and show you what it missed, with no obligation.

A tax strategist is usually worth it when this year’s decisions, like an option exercise or a move, will set your tax. Most of those choices close when the year ends, so a return filed in April can only record them. Exercising ISOs, for example, can bring the alternative minimum tax in a year when you sell nothing. At Valim, the tax strategist is a licensed CPA.

A high W-2 earner reduces taxable income mainly with pre-tax accounts. They are the usual tax shelters for high income earners on a salary. For 2026 you can defer $24,500 of your pay into a 401(k). Itemized deductions for high income earners are worth less from 2026, since each dollar saves at most 35 cents in the 37% bracket. An executive can generally defer part of a bonus through an employer plan, by electing before the year it is earned. At Valim, a licensed CPA plans tax strategies for high income W-2 earners under the Tax advisory plan.

Wealthy people often hold assets instead of selling them, because a gain is usually taxed only when the asset is sold. When the owner dies, heirs get a step-up in basis on most assets, to their value at death. The gain built up during life then escapes income tax. Traditional IRAs, 401(k)s and deferred pay get no step-up. To pay living costs without selling, many borrow against the assets. A loan is not income, because it has to be repaid.