Hello and welcome to Moneygirls Quick and Dirty Tips for a richer life.

I'm your host Laura Adams. In this episode I'll share a listener email that asks

important questions about the rules for using IRAs to save for retirement.

And keeping with that theme, I also have an exciting announcement.

My first audio book, Money Girls Guide to Retirement Planning, goes on sale today. It's a must listen for anyone who wants to create a

financially secure retirement, whether you're a complete beginner or have

already started to save. It covers everything you need to know to be proactive and build the retirement of your dreams, even during market volatility.

It's available on iTunes and Audible.com for just 595. It's a great way to learn about retirement planning and to

support the show. It's great to get your listener emails, please keep them

coming. Knowing what's on your minds helps me prepare topics for the show.

I try to personally respond to as many questions and comments as I can.

Recently, there's been lots of mail about saving for retirement,

so I thought I'd share one from a listener named Robin

so everyone can benefit from the information.

Dear Money Girl I really enjoy listening to the podcast I'm currently working abroad

and am planning on filing a tax return in the U.S. for the income I made from January to June when I was working in the U.S.

I recently listened to episode 102 where you talked about some of the eligibility requirements for investing in an IRA.

In the episode you say, the annual maximum amount that you can contribute to a traditional IRA,

Roth IRA, or to both, is limited by your taxable income up to $5,000 for 2008.

So if you're a student and will only make $3,000 in 2008, for example, your IRA contributions cannot exceed $3,000.

I'm wondering if I plan to stay abroad for more than a year, at some point I will have very

little taxable income for the U.S. and thus will not be able to contribute to an

...