(MONEY Magazine) – Q. One of my two jobs provides a Keogh plan, but only my employer can make contributions--and he doesn't often do so. Should I become an independent contractor and set up my own retirement plan? --Hoa Luu, dental hygienist, Milpitas, Calif.

A. Becoming an independent contractor means jumping through hoops for the IRS. You must prove you have more than one client and must supply your own equipment, for starters. (See irs.gov/businesses/small.) Is it worth it? Depends on what you can afford to save, says John Henry McDonald, a planner in Austin. Independent contractors can stash 20% of income, or up to $40,000 a year in pretax dollars, whichever is less, in a simplified employee pension (SEP) IRA. Can't save more than the $3,000 allowed in a regular IRA? Then stay put. --JUDY FELDMAN