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Inheriting or Bequeathing an IRA
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| On my blog I recemtly wrote a post called "Taken a Breath" about how one should wait before doing anything in haste financially after the passing of a loved one. I paid specific attention to the inheriting of an IRA, and received some feedback prompting a longer discussion. First, there are different rules if you inherited the IRA from a spouse or non-spouse. If your spouse passed and left you an IRA, you are able to roll it into your own account, and treat it as your own. If you inherited the IRA from a parent (for example) or other non-spouse, the rules are a bit tricky, but not impossible, to understand. The IRA becomes retitled as “JoeTaxpayer, beneficiary, Charles Schwab Custodian”. It’s most important to note, the funds can NOT be mingled with any other funds you have. You must begin taking withdrawals by December 31 of the year following the person’s death, and you use the life expectancy table 1 in Appendix C of IRS Publication 590 to determine your required distributions. Note also, you refer to this table once only, for the initial distribution. In subsequent years, you reduce the divisor by 1, unlike withdrawals from your own IRA after 70-1/2 where you refer to the table each year to find your new withdrawal requirement. Another important point - If the original IRA had contingent beneficiaries, you may disclaim your inheritance and allow the next in line to inherit the IRA. Why would you do this? If you are a high earner, in a high tax bracket, you may not need the money at all, or if the next person listed as beneficiary is your child, their RMDs (required minimum distributions) may be so small, they avoid tax, or are minimally taxed. While on the topic of contingent beneficiaries, an IRA must have its beneficiaries noted on the account, they are not inherited through a will. If there is no beneficiary listed on the account or if the only beneficiary either pre-deceases or dies along with the account owner, the IRA funds must be withdrawn by the heirs within five years of the passing of the owner. Lastly, this is a complicated topic, it’s easy for even the so-called pros to make an error. Read up to understand the rules, and ask questions before you make a tragic mistake and are hit with a huge tax bill. I am happy to take questions here and use them to update this page to make this information crystal clear and unambiguous. My thanks to regular blog reader JAL for suggesting the details contained in this article. Joe |
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