rule of 55

THE RULE-OF-55 AND RMD CONVERSIONS: TODAY’S SLOTT REPORT MAILBAG

Question: Hi, I am age 50 and am targeting retirement at age 55. My current employer is selling the division I work for, and I see the potential that I could be laid off at, say, 52. If this were to happen, could I join a new employer with a 401(k) plan, roll my old 401(k) over to the new plan, and then take a distribution (both the rolled-over funds and the new 401(k) funds) under the rule of 55? The statute suggests that I could do this, but I have seen comments that the rollover funds wouldn't count.

Build Back Better and The Rule of 55: Today’s Slott Report Mailbag

Question: Ed, Since the Build Back Better bill is still in legislative limbo, does that mean that backdoor Roth IRA contributions are still available for 2022? If so, what do you suggest if someone makes a backdoor Roth contribution early in 2022 and then the legislature retroactively disallows it when the bill is finally passed?

The Rule of 55 – An Exception to the Early Withdrawal Rules

If you have a 401(k) account or other employer sponsored retirement plan, you probably already know that a distribution before you reach age 59½ is going to be subject to a 10% penalty. One exception to the 10% early withdrawal penalty allows participants in a qualified plan to take a distribution from the plan after leaving the job as long as they are age 55 or older. This rule, sometimes called “The Rule of 55,” is an exception to the early withdrawal rules that generally levy a 10% penalty on amounts withdrawn before age 59 ½. This exception does not apply to IRA distributions.

Content Citation Guidelines

Below is the required verbiage that must be added to any re-branded piece from Ed Slott and Company, LLC or IRA Help, LLC. The verbiage must be used any time you take text from a piece and put it onto your own letterhead, within your newsletter, on your website, etc. Verbiage varies based on where you’re taking the content from.

Please be advised that prior to distributing re-branded content, you must send a proof to [email protected] for approval.

For white papers/other outflow pieces:

Copyright © [year of publication], [Ed Slott and Company, LLC or IRA Help, LLC – depending on what it says on the original piece] Reprinted with permission [Ed Slott and Company, LLC or IRA Help, LLC – depending on what it says on the original piece] takes no responsibility for the current accuracy of this information.

For charts:

Copyright © [year of publication], Ed Slott and Company, LLC Reprinted with permission Ed Slott and Company, LLC takes no responsibility for the current accuracy of this information.

For Slott Report articles:

Copyright © [year of article], Ed Slott and Company, LLC Reprinted from The Slott Report, [insert date of article], with permission. [Insert article URL] Ed Slott and Company, LLC takes no responsibility for the current accuracy of this article.

Please contact Matt Smith at [email protected] or (516) 536-8282 with any questions.