April 15 is one of the more important financial dates to mark on your calendar because it's Tax Day (unless it falls on a weekend or holiday, in which case it's the next business day). Although many people will be focused on how much they're receiving back or how much they owe, there are IRA implications also worth noting.

If you don't currently have an IRA, now is a great time to open one. Opening an IRA is fast, easy, and free. Check out our list of the best IRA brokers to get started before Tax Day.

Whether you already have an IRA or just opened one, you still have time to do a few key things.

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Don't forget your contributions for 2025

You can begin contributing to an IRA for a given tax year on Jan. 1, but you have until April 15 of the following year to make your contributions.

For example, contributions to an IRA for tax year 2025 could be made starting on Jan. 1, 2025, but you have until April 15 of this year to make them. For tax year 2026, you'll have until April 15, 2027, to make your contributions.

If you're making IRA contributions for a previous tax year after the new year, you must select that year when making your contributions, or they'll likely default to the current year. You don't want to accidentally contribute to 2026's limit instead of 2025's because that'll reduce how much you could potentially save in total.

Note: Although you can file a tax extension to get your filing deadline pushed back six months to Oct. 15, your IRA contributions must still be made by the original April 15 deadline.

Double-check how much you've contributed

The most you can contribute to your IRA for tax year 2025 is $7,000 if you're younger than 50 and $8,000 if you're 50 and older. For tax year 2026, those contribution limits jumped up to $7,500 and $8,600, respectively, but you have until April 15 of next year to make those contributions.

If, for whatever reason, you contributed more than the limit to your IRA, you have until April 15 to withdraw the excess amount and the earnings it has potentially made. If you don't, you'll face a 6% excise tax penalty on the excess amount. The 6% excise tax penalty isn't a one-time fee, either. If you keep the excess money in your IRA, you'll pay the tax every year.

If the excess amount has made money while in the account, you'll owe taxes on the earnings you withdraw.