The Japanese prime minister has come up with a new estate tax rate proposal that is far different than current United States estate tax law. Ed Slott and Company IRA Technical Consultant Jeffrey Levine looks at the Japanese proposal and how it compares to U.S. law (along with some helpful information on the United States' estate tax benefits) in the IRAtv video found at this link or embedded below.
The general rule for making IRA contributions after an individual dies is that you can’t. However, as is the case with many of the IRA rules, there is an exception. We explain below.
While many of us know that you can convert an IRA to a Roth IRA, a process that’s not as well understood is a Roth 401(k) conversion. If you participate in a 401(k) at work, you can convert your existing plan assets to a Roth account inside the 401(k) plan. This option is known as an “in-plan conversion.” But check with your employer first because although the law allows an in-plan conversion, your plan may not have this option.
“How is my annuity going to be taxed?” It’s a question that's asked frequently, but one that can have several different answers. That's because an annuity can be taxed differently depending on the type of annuity you are receiving distributions from, as well as the type of the account it's in.
A recent court case highlights how risky it is when a married couple attempts to use a post-nuptial agreement when trying to waive spousal benefits to an employer retirement plan. In the case of Mid-American Pension v. Michael Cox, the court ruled that a surviving wife’s promise to waive her rights to her husband’s 401(k) funds by signing a post-nuptial agreement was invalid because the agreement wasn’t drafted correctly.
The Kay Bailey Hutchison Spousal IRA: what a mouthful! We now have this thanks to a bill that was signed into law on July 25, 2013 that renamed the section of the tax code that specifies the spousal IRA contribution limit. Learn more about this type of IRA below.
A taxpayer we will call "Greg" asserted that his failure to accomplish a prompt rollover of his distributed IRA funds within the prescribed 60-day IRA rollover window was due to the medical condition and death of his mother. Get the full story below.
When it comes to moving retirement account money from one IRA (or other eligible retirement account) to another, Congress has given you a couple of options. On one hand, you can have the money sent right from one institution to another. This is known as a trustee-to-trustee transfer, or a direct rollover, and is the preferred way to move money, as it avoids a lot of problems. On the other hand, Congress also allows you to move money indirectly. Click for more information.
Now that we are in the middle of the summer of 2013, have you ever thought about contributing to an IRA for your child or grandchild this year? It’s possible as long as certain rules are followed. We explain these rules below.
On June 26, 2013 the United States Supreme Court struck down part of the Defense of Marriage Act, commonly known as DOMA, as unconstitutional. In particular, the Supreme Court decided that if same-sex marriages are recognized under state law, the federal government must recognize those marriages as valid too. This has obvious implications for a virtually infinite list of financial items including federal tax issues, Social Security benefits, healthcare benefits and various rights with regard to retirement assets afforded under ERISA.
