Aggregating RMDS from 2 Inherited IRAs
Hello,
Is it possible to aggregate the RMD amounts from 2 Inherited IRA accounts (inherited from DIFFERENT decedents) and take the aggregated RMD from just 1 of the Inherited IRAs?
Background:
* Dad passed away in 2019. I inherited his 401(k) and mom inherited his Traditional IRA.
* Mom passed away in 2024. I inherited her Traditional IRA (which at this point included dad’s Traditional IRA). I am aware of the 10-year rule to empty this account.
* Both my parents already started taking RMDs prior to their passing.
Assuming the RMD for the Inherited IRA from my dad is $20,000, and the RMD for the Inherited IRA from my mom is $10,000, can I take out $30,000 from the Inherited IRA from my mom, and consider both RMDs to have been taken?
I think the answer is NO, because the Inherited IRAs are from 2 different decedents, and Publication 590-B states:
“More than one IRA. If you are the owner of more than one traditional IRA, you must determine a separate required minimum distribution for each IRA. However, you can total these minimum amounts and take the total from any one or more of the IRAs. The same rule applies if you are a designated beneficiary of more than one IRA that was owned by a single decedent.”
(Side note: Since I need to withdraw the entire balance of mom’s IRA by December 31 of the year of the 10th anniversary of her passing, my plan was to follow a recommendation previously given in this forum and withdraw 1/10th the first year, 1/9th the second, 1/8th the third, and so forth, to avoid a large tax liability in year 10. Hence my desire to aggregate RMDs.)
Thank you in advance for your help.
Alice
Permalink Submitted by Alan - IRA critic on Sat, 2025-10-04 10:52
Your impression is correct, RMDs from these two accounts cannot be aggregated.
The RMD from your Dad’s account can be stretched over your single life expectancy because he passed prior to the Secure Act.
It sounds like Mom did the spousal rollover of the IRA she inherited from Dad into her own IRA which already existed. That makes you a designated beneficiary rather than a successor beneficiary and your beneficiary RMDs are based on your single life expectancy starting in 2024 which will result in the divisor being different for this account, a little higher (lower RMD %) because the annual reductions of 1.0 started 5 years earlier for the IRA inherited directly from Dad. You are correct about the 10 year rule also applying to the IRA inherited from Mom.
Therefore, you cannot combine the accounts and must also complete the RMDs separately from each account.
Finally, note that if Mom did not complete her 2024 RMD before passing, you must complete that RMD no later than the end of 2025.
Permalink Submitted by Alice Severson on Mon, 2025-10-06 16:57
Thank you, Alan. Your explanation is very helpful.
Yes, I forgot to note that Mom did, indeed, do a spousal rollover of the IRA she inherited from dad.
Question regarding Single Life Expectancy:
I used my age at the end of 2025 (the year following my mom’s passing) to look up the Single Life Expectancy value in publication 590-B, not my age at the end of 2024. Did I understand this correctly?
Good point about mom’s 2024 RMD. I confirmed that it was done shortly before her passing.
Thank you,
Alice
Permalink Submitted by Alan - IRA critic on Mon, 2025-10-06 19:01
That’s correct. Use your age as of the end of 2025 to determine your first beneficiary single life table RMD for the funds emanating from Mom’s IRA.
Permalink Submitted by Alice Severson on Mon, 2025-10-06 22:55
Thank you for all your help, Alan. Much appreciated.