Question:
Looking for your help. Husband has an inherited IRA (from his dad prior to the SECURE Act) and was taking RMDs using the single life table. Husband passes away in 2020 and leaves the inherited IRA to his wife who is age 65. What are the wife’s options for distribution?
Thanks,
Travis
Answer:
Travis,
Under the SECURE Act, if a beneficiary owner of an inherited IRA dies in 2020 (or later), the next beneficiary in line (the successor beneficiary) is bound by the 10-year payout rule. Even if the successor beneficiary would otherwise be allowed to stretch payments as an eligible designated beneficiary (i.e., spouse, disabled individual, etc.), that person is still saddled with the 10-year rule.
Question:
According to the IRS website: Beginning in 2015, you can make only one rollover from an IRA to another (or the same) IRA in any 12-month period, regardless of the number of IRAs you own (Announcement 2014-15 and Announcement 2014-32). The limit will apply by aggregating all of an individual’s IRAs. Trustee-to-trustee transfers between IRAs are not limited. Rollovers from traditional to Roth IRAs ("conversions") are not limited.
If I am reading this correctly, we can "roll over" (hand carry checks) for multiple IRA accounts, as long as we are rolling over funds to a Roth IRA. Is that correct?
Thank you,
Shirley
Answer:
Hi Shirley,
The once-per-year rollover rule causes a lot of confusion. You can only do one 60-day rollover between IRAs of the same type in a 365-day period. This rule applies to your traditional and Roth IRAs in the aggregate.
As of the writing of this Slott Report submission, it is Monday, December 23, 2019. T-minus 8 days before the end of the year, which means IRA owners have a tight window to complete any year-end transactions. Once the calendar turns, if not finalized in time, some items will be forever lost. Here are six transactions that absolutely must be completed within the next 8 days to avoid penalty and/or a lost opportunity:
Over 70 ½ RMDs. While the first RMD for the year a person turns 70 ½ can be delayed until April 1 of the next year, all future RMDs must be taken before the end of the calendar year. There is no wiggle room.
Question:
As year-end approaches, I have just exceeded my 2019 RMD, combining total QCD's during the year and my regular monthly IRA withdrawals.
If I make additional charitable contributions from my IRA this month, are they still considered tax-advantaged QCD's, or has my QCD opportunity ended because I've already exceeded the annual RMD?
Answer:
This is an area where there is a lot of confusion! While you can use a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) to count toward your required minimum distribution (RMD), your QCDs for the year are not limited to the amount of your RMD.
Question:
Could you please direct me to information that tells me how any conversions I make from my regular IRA to a Roth will be taxed. My belief was that the amount of any conversion will be taxed at whatever my tax bracket is for the year in which I make the conversion. Is that correct? Therefore, all other things being equal, it is preferable to make the conversion in years where my tax bracket is lower.
Thanks for your help.
Joann
Answer:
Joann,
You are 100% correct. Any conversion from a traditional to a Roth IRA will be taxed at your tax bracket for the year in which you make the conversion. (One is not allowed to make a “prior year conversion.”) As for your second comment – also yes.
Did you inherit an IRA from someone who is NOT your spouse? This is not uncommon. Maybe you inherited from a sibling or a parent or a friend. If this is your situation, you will want to proceed with caution. For nonspouse beneficiaries a wrong move can result in disastrous consequences. So, take your time and do it right.
Step one is to carefully explore your options. What are a nonspouse beneficiary’s options when it comes to the inherited IRA?
Under the tax code, nonspouse beneficiaries can take advantage of the “stretch” IRA. This means you can set up a properly titled inherited IRA and then take required minimum distributions (RMD)s based on your life expectancy.
Prior to 2002, a default option for paying out required minimum distributions from an inherited IRA to a beneficiary was the 5-year rule. If the IRA owner died before their required beginning date and an election was not made in a timely manner, the account had to be closed by December 31 of the 5th year following the year of death. In 2002, new regulations issued by the IRS changed the default payout to the life expectancy of the designated beneficiary. The 5-year requirement for most beneficiaries was eliminated.
One of the greatest benefits of an IRA is its ability to provide tax-favored wealth for heirs. An IRA left to a beneficiary can be "stretched" to provide pre-tax compound investment returns for the rest of the beneficiary's life -- or even longer. And these can be distributed totally tax free if it is a Roth IRA.
This week's Q&A Mailbag answers reader questions on SEP contributions, RMDs, and Inherited IRAs.
This week's Slott Report Mailbag examines inherited IRAs and retirees taking RMDs for the first time.
