Start here: inherited IRA rules changed, and the details matter
Inheriting an IRA can feel like one more unfamiliar responsibility at a time when you are already handling a great deal. The account may represent a loved one’s careful saving and a meaningful part of their legacy. It also comes with deadlines that can be easy to miss if you assume the simple phrase “10-year rule” tells the whole story.
This guide explains the general U.S. federal rules for inherited IRAs after deaths in 2020 or later. It is educational information, not tax, legal, or investment advice. Before taking a distribution, moving the account, or choosing a payout schedule, confirm the facts with the IRA custodian and speak with a CPA, enrolled agent, or fee-only financial advisor. A trust, an estate, a minor, a disability or chronic-illness claim, and a nonstandard beneficiary form each deserve individualized review.
The central point is straightforward: the 10-year rule is an end deadline, not always a permission slip to do nothing for nine years. For many non-eligible designated beneficiaries, the account must be fully distributed by December 31 of the year containing the 10th anniversary of the owner’s death. If the owner had already reached the required beginning date for RMDs, annual beneficiary RMDs may also be required in years one through nine.
Before you withdraw: gather the facts
Taking a little time to organize the record can prevent an irreversible mistake. Ask the custodian to explain its beneficiary-claim and inherited-account process, but remember that a custodian usually cannot give personalized tax or legal advice.
- The most recent account statement and the account type: traditional IRA or Roth IRA.
- A certified death certificate and the custodian’s beneficiary claim form.
- The original owner’s date of birth and date of death.
- Whether the owner had started RMDs and whether an RMD for the year of death remains unpaid.
- The beneficiary designation on file, plus any trust or estate documents that may affect the claim.
- The decedent’s recent tax returns, including Form 8606 if nondeductible IRA contributions may be involved.
- The name of a CPA or fee-only advisor who can model the tax impact before money leaves the account.
Do not confuse this account process with the rest of the estate. An IRA with a valid beneficiary designation generally transfers under that designation, rather than under a will. Still, reviewing estate documents can help the family understand the larger picture; see how to write a will for a plain-language overview of what a will can and cannot direct.
Key terms that make inherited IRA rules easier to follow
Original owner, beneficiary, and inherited IRA
The original owner is the person who held the IRA and died. The beneficiary is the person or entity named to receive it. The custodian is the financial institution that holds the account and administers the transfer. A non-spouse individual beneficiary generally receives an inherited IRA, sometimes called a beneficiary IRA, titled to show both the deceased owner and the beneficiary.
A non-spouse beneficiary generally cannot treat the inherited IRA as personal IRA money, add new contributions to it, or roll it into their own IRA. That distinction matters even if the beneficiary already has an IRA at the same firm. Moving money the wrong way can create a taxable distribution, so get the custodian’s instructions and professional advice first.
Required minimum distribution and required beginning date
A required minimum distribution, or RMD, is the minimum amount tax rules require to come out of an account in a particular year. For traditional IRA owners, the applicable RMD age is generally 73 under current IRS guidance. The date that RMD rules begin to apply to an owner is often called the required beginning date, or RBD.
For an inherited IRA, the key question is not just the owner’s age. It is whether the owner died before or on/after the RBD. That answer can determine whether a beneficiary subject to the 10-year rule has annual RMDs before the final deadline. There may also be an RMD for the owner’s year of death that has not yet been taken; the custodian and a CPA can help confirm it.
Designated beneficiary and eligible designated beneficiary
A designated beneficiary is generally an individual named on the beneficiary form. An eligible designated beneficiary, often shortened to EDB, is a narrower group created by the SECURE Act. EDB status can allow life-expectancy distributions rather than the standard 10-year framework, provided the legal requirements and account facts are met.
Not every named beneficiary is a designated beneficiary for these purposes. A trust, an estate, a charity, or an account with no valid individual beneficiary can follow different rules. Do not try to solve a trust issue from a general article or an online calculator; the trust language, custodian documents, and timing all matter.
The 10-year rule, in plain English
The deadline
For many individual beneficiaries who are not eligible designated beneficiaries, the inherited IRA must be fully distributed by December 31 of the calendar year that includes the 10th anniversary of the original owner’s death. If the owner died in 2025, for example, the deadline is December 31, 2035. This rule generally applies to designated beneficiaries of owners who died in 2020 or later.
The deadline does not mean the account has to be withdrawn in ten equal installments. A beneficiary may be able to take more in some years and less in others, subject to any annual RMD requirement. That flexibility can be useful, but it can also lead to a large final-year distribution from a traditional IRA, potentially adding substantially to taxable income. “No required withdrawal yet” is not the same as “wait is the best tax choice.”
When annual RMDs can apply before year 10
Here is the distinction that causes the most confusion. If the original owner died on or after the RBD and the beneficiary is a designated beneficiary who is not an EDB, the final IRS regulations require annual RMDs after the year of death while the account is also subject to the 10-year deadline. In practical terms, the beneficiary may need to take an RMD in each of years one through nine and still distribute the remaining balance by the end of year 10.
The final regulations, issued in July 2024 and effective September 17, 2024, generally apply in determining RMDs for calendar years beginning on or after January 1, 2025. Earlier years involved temporary relief and good-faith-interpretation rules because the annual-RMD issue was unsettled for many families. If you inherited an account before 2025, do not assume a headline about prior relief resolves your current obligations. Ask a CPA and the custodian which years and deadlines apply to your situation.
When no annual distributions may be required before the deadline
If the owner died before the RBD and the 10-year rule applies, IRS Publication 590-B says no distribution is required for years before the 10th year. The account must still be empty by the deadline. This applies to a typical non-EDB designated beneficiary under the 10-year rule and can also apply when an EDB elects the 10-year rule in the situations allowed by the rules.
Even then, a planned schedule may be wiser than one final withdrawal. A CPA can compare expected income, deductions, state taxes, withholding, Medicare-related effects where relevant, and other factors. A fee-only advisor can then help align the investment and withdrawal plan with the family’s needs after the tax implications are understood.
| Owner’s status at death | Typical result for a designated beneficiary who is not an EDB | What to confirm |
|---|---|---|
| Died before the RBD | Account generally must be empty by the 10th-year deadline; no annual distribution is generally required before then. | Date of death, beneficiary category, and final deadline. |
| Died on or after the RBD | Annual RMDs generally apply after the year of death, and the account must also be empty by the 10th-year deadline. | Owner’s RMD status, unpaid year-of-death RMD, and annual calculation. |
| Beneficiary may be an EDB or is a trust/estate | Different life-expectancy, 10-year, or five-year rules may apply. | Exact beneficiary status, plan documents, and professional advice. |
This table is a starting point, not an RMD calculation. The IRS rules can turn on details such as the owner’s date of death, the beneficiary’s relationship and status, a successor beneficiary, or the terms of a see-through trust.
Who can qualify as an eligible designated beneficiary?
The SECURE Act recognizes five major EDB categories. An eligible designated beneficiary may generally use life-expectancy distributions rather than the standard 10-year rule, subject to the detailed statutory and regulatory requirements.
- A surviving spouse. A spouse has special choices discussed below and should not rush a rollover or retitling decision.
- A minor child of the original owner. This is the owner’s child, not simply any minor beneficiary such as a grandchild. The special treatment changes when the child reaches the applicable age of majority.
- A disabled individual. The tax-law definition, supporting documentation, and applicable timing rules matter; a family should obtain professional guidance.
- A chronically ill individual. This is also a tax-law category with specific requirements, not just a general description of health needs.
- An individual who is not more than 10 years younger than the original owner. A sibling or close-in-age friend may fall here, but the dates must be confirmed.
The minor-child transition
A minor child of the original owner can use EDB treatment while the child is a minor, but the 10-year rule generally begins after the child reaches the applicable age of majority. This is not a simple “all minors are the same” rule. The regulations and facts can affect the result, and families should have a CPA and estate attorney review any account for a minor before distributions begin.
What happens after an EDB dies
When an EDB who was using life-expectancy payments dies, the next beneficiary can face a 10-year distribution period for the remaining account. That is one reason inherited IRA beneficiary designations should be revisited as part of a broader estate plan, rather than left unchanged for decades.
Special rules for a surviving spouse
A spouse may have choices other beneficiaries do not
A surviving spouse may have options unavailable to children, siblings, and other non-spouse beneficiaries. Depending on the account and facts, the spouse may be able to treat the IRA as their own, roll it into their own IRA, remain a beneficiary and use spouse-beneficiary distribution rules, or in some cases use the 10-year rule. SECURE 2.0 also introduced an election that can affect spouse-beneficiary RMD treatment. The exact option is not just a paperwork choice; age, access to cash, RMD timing, tax treatment, creditor protection, and the spouse’s own beneficiaries can all matter.
For example, a younger surviving spouse who may need money before age 59½ could have different priorities from a spouse who does not need distributions for many years. Once a spouse treats an inherited account as their own, the result may be difficult or impossible to undo. Before making an election or accepting a distribution, a surviving spouse should consult a CPA and a fee-only advisor or other fiduciary professional.
Do not confuse spouse beneficiary status with account ownership
Being named as a spouse beneficiary is not automatically the same as becoming the account owner. The beneficiary form, the custodian’s procedure, whether the spouse is the sole beneficiary, and the timing of RMDs affect the available choices. A spouse who is the sole beneficiary may have more flexibility to treat an inherited IRA as their own; the custodian should provide written instructions for the specific account.
As with other assets, account titling and beneficiary forms deserve attention after a death. A transfer-on-death account follows a different kind of beneficiary designation, but it is another reminder that account paperwork can control how property passes.
Traditional inherited IRAs and inherited Roth IRAs
Traditional inherited IRAs
Distributions from a traditional inherited IRA are generally taxable as ordinary income to the beneficiary to the extent they would have been taxable to the owner. The 10% additional tax that can apply to some early withdrawals from an owner’s IRA generally does not apply to distributions from an inherited IRA, but that does not make the distribution tax-free. A large withdrawal can still affect the beneficiary’s income-tax bracket and related tax items.
If the owner made nondeductible contributions, part of the account may be basis rather than fully taxable pre-tax money. Form 8606 and past tax records can be important. Do not guess from the account balance or rely on a verbal family recollection; give the records to a CPA before filing or taking a large distribution.
Inherited Roth IRAs
Roth IRA owners do not have lifetime RMDs. After the owner’s death, however, a beneficiary can still face inherited-account distribution rules, including the 10-year deadline for many non-EDB beneficiaries. Because a Roth owner is treated as having died before the RBD for this purpose, the ordinary annual-RMD issue that applies after an owner’s RBD generally does not apply to a beneficiary subject to the Roth IRA’s 10-year rule. The account still must be emptied by its applicable deadline.
Qualified Roth distributions are generally tax-free, but the five-year holding rule and the account’s history can matter. Do not assume every dollar is tax-free without confirming when the original Roth IRA began and whether conversions are involved. A CPA can review the facts and help the beneficiary preserve the documentation.
What if the beneficiary is a trust, estate, charity, or there is no valid beneficiary?
These situations are materially different from a straightforward individual beneficiary claim. An estate, charity, or other non-individual beneficiary is not a designated beneficiary. If an owner died before the RBD without a designated beneficiary, a five-year rule can apply. If the owner died on or after the RBD, the “at least as rapidly” framework may apply instead. Trusts require an especially careful analysis because certain properly structured trusts may be treated differently from other trusts, and the terms of the trust matter.
An executor or trustee should pause before requesting distributions simply to move money quickly. Work with an estate attorney and a CPA who regularly handle retirement-account beneficiaries. The person serving the estate also has duties to safeguard property and follow the governing documents; our overview of executor duties explains the broader role.
A practical inherited IRA checklist
In the first 30 days
- Notify the custodian, submit the death certificate as requested, and ask about the beneficiary-claim process.
- Ask how the inherited IRA will be titled and whether the custodian can provide the relevant RMD information or calculation support.
- Confirm the account type, beneficiary on file, date of death, original owner’s date of birth, and whether a year-of-death RMD remains unpaid.
- Secure account statements, beneficiary forms, and the decedent’s recent tax returns. Keep a dated record of every call and document sent.
- Do not take a distribution or commingle the money with a personal IRA until the beneficiary category and consequences have been reviewed.
Before the first distribution
- Identify the beneficiary category: spouse, other EDB, non-EDB designated beneficiary, trust, estate, charity, or no valid beneficiary.
- Determine whether the owner died before or on/after the RBD and write down the governing deadline.
- Ask a CPA whether an annual RMD is required and how a proposed withdrawal affects federal and state taxes, withholding, and estimated-tax payments.
- For a Roth IRA, verify the five-year history and any conversion information.
- For a spouse, compare beneficiary treatment and ownership/rollover choices before completing any election.
Each year until the account is empty
Review the annual RMD requirement, deadline, current balance, withholding choice, beneficiary records, and copies of Forms 1099-R. Revisit the distribution plan after a job change, large bonus, retirement, marriage, divorce, move, or another beneficiary’s death. A tidy record can make the final tax return and other after-death administration easier; see our guide to a final tax return for a deceased person for related preparation steps.
Common inherited IRA mistakes
- Assuming every beneficiary has the same 10-year treatment. Spouses, EDBs, trusts, estates, and non-EDB individuals can face different rules.
- Waiting until year 10 without checking the owner’s RMD status. If the owner died on or after the RBD, annual RMDs may be required before the final year.
- Trying to make a non-spouse inherited IRA into a personal IRA. Non-spouse beneficiaries generally cannot do this or make new contributions to the inherited account.
- Overlooking the owner’s final-year RMD. A required amount for the year of death may still need to be distributed.
- Taking a large distribution without considering the year’s total income. Traditional IRA distributions can change the tax result far beyond the account itself.
- Ignoring a trust or estate as named beneficiary. Those designations require tailored legal and tax analysis.
- Letting general guidance replace individual advice. An online explanation cannot determine your RMD or election.
It can also help to organize other accounts as you work through the estate. Our guide to closing bank accounts after death covers a separate task with its own authority and documentation requirements.
When to call a CPA, estate attorney, or financial professional
Call a CPA or enrolled agent before the first distribution if you need an RMD calculation, tax-withholding guidance, estimated-tax advice, help with Roth qualification, or a review of possible basis. Call an estate attorney promptly when a trust, estate, minor beneficiary, disability or chronic-illness claim, disputed designation, divorce issue, or family conflict is involved. A qualified fee-only financial advisor can help with the investment and distribution strategy after the tax rules are clear.
The IRA custodian is an important operational resource: it can explain the forms, account registration, and statements. But it may not tell you which distribution choice is best for your tax situation. You do not have to solve every question immediately, but you should not let uncertainty turn into a missed deadline. A short, well-prepared meeting with the right professional can protect both the account and the legacy behind it.
Frequently asked questions about inherited IRA rules
What is the 10-year rule for an inherited IRA?
For many designated beneficiaries who are not eligible designated beneficiaries, the entire inherited IRA must be distributed by December 31 of the calendar year containing the 10th anniversary of the original owner’s death. A 2025 death, for example, generally produces a December 31, 2035 deadline. The beneficiary’s category and the owner’s RMD status can change the details.
Do I have to take annual RMDs from an inherited IRA?
Possibly. If the 10-year rule applies and the owner died on or after the RBD, a non-EDB designated beneficiary generally must take annual RMDs after the year of death as well as finish distributing the account by the end of year 10. If the owner died before the RBD, there is generally no annual distribution requirement before year 10 for a beneficiary subject to the 10-year rule. Confirm your facts with a CPA and the custodian.
Can a surviving spouse roll an inherited IRA into their own IRA?
A surviving spouse may be able to treat the IRA as their own or roll it into their own IRA, subject to the applicable rules and custodian process. This can change future RMD timing and other tax consequences, so it is a decision to review with a CPA and fee-only advisor rather than an automatic step.
Do inherited Roth IRAs have RMDs?
The original Roth IRA owner has no lifetime RMDs, but beneficiaries can have inherited-account distribution deadlines. Many non-EDB beneficiaries must fully distribute an inherited Roth IRA by the end of the 10th year after the owner’s death. Confirm the five-year holding history and tax treatment with a CPA.
Sources:
Internal Revenue Service, Publication 590-B (2025), Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) — https://www.irs.gov/publications/p590b
Internal Revenue Service, Treasury and IRS issue updated guidance on required minimum distributions — https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/treasury-irs-issue-updated-guidance-on-required-minimum-distributions-from-iras-other-retirement-plans-generally-retains-proposed-rules
Internal Revenue Service, Bulletin No. 2024-33, T.D. 10001, Required Minimum Distributions — https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/irb24-33.pdf
Congress.gov, Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, Public Law 116-94 (SECURE Act, Division O) — https://www.congress.gov/116/plaws/publ94/PLAW-116publ94.pdf
GovInfo, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Public Law 117-328 (SECURE 2.0 Act, Division T) — https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/PLAW-117publ328
Fidelity, SECURE Act: Taxes and inherited IRA rules — https://www.fidelity.com/learning-center/personal-finance/retirement/secure-act-inherited-iras
Charles Schwab, Inherited IRA Rules & SECURE Act 2.0 Changes — https://www.schwab.com/learn/story/inherited-ira-rules-secure-act-20-changes