I have a client who established a Roth IRA account in March 2016 (age 71) and made a $6,500 Roth IRA contribution for the 2015 tax year when the account was opened in March 2016 (2015 earned income was ~ $12,000). This was the first time he established and funded a Roth IRA account in his lifetime. To determine the start date of the five year requirement for qualified Roth IRA distributions for this client, I wanted to reconfirm that would begin on 1-1-2015 in this case (since the tax year for the first Roth IRA contribution was 2015) and not 1-1-2016 (the beginning of the year the account was established) or any other date. Therefore, is 1-1-2015 the start date and any Roth distribution made after 1-1-2020 would be a qualified Roth IRA distribution? Thanks in advance.