Subject: Re: Inherited IRA
I thought the rule was that I had until 10 years after his death to withdraw the money and pay taxes on it. And I could withdraw any/all of the money at any point during the 10 years. I'm nearing retirement and my original plan was to wait a few years and then start withdrawing money in my mid 60s prior to us collecting social security. Probably in the 62-65 range.

I've seen other people say you can't wait to withdraw but instead have to take some kind of RMDs (which leads to what amount those have to be) each year.

I have done a little reading on this, since I'm my Mom's executor and she'll be 90 in a coupla months. I am definitely no expert. But my understanding is that there are differences between the rules for an inherited IRA's and Roths regarding the 10 year redemption requirement. Both types of inherited IRAs have to be liquidated in 10 years. I believe that for inherited Roths, the money can be left in until the last day of the 10th year, but for "regular" IRAs, i.e. those that were funded with pre-tax dollars, there is an RMD requirement.

From the Schwab site: [for] Traditional IRA* [where] death of IRA owner [is] on/after required beginning date (*Also applies to SEP and SIMPLE IRAs)

The beneficiary must withdraw a minimum amount each year beginning in the calendar year following the year of the IRA owner’s death. The annual distribution is generally based on the beneficiary’s single life expectancy, nonrecalculated.

As a Non-Eligible Designated Beneficiary, in addition to taking minimum annual withdrawals, the entire Inherited IRA must be depleted no later than December 31 of the tenth year following the IRA owner’s year of death.

Note: A distribution in the year of the IRA owner’s death must be withdrawn by the beneficiary if the IRA owner did not withdraw the RMD before death.

I take that to mean you look at your own single life expectancy table, and determine the RMD each year, and if there is any money still in the inherited IRA, it needs to be withdrawn prior to December 31st of the 10th year. That means you would have a big tax hit in the 10th year if you only took out the RMD amount in years 1-9.

The Schwab site goes on to talk about Roth IRAs:
The beneficiary is subject to the 10-Year Rule. Under these circumstances, with the 10-Year Rule, a beneficiary may take withdrawals as slowly or as quickly as they wish provided all funds are withdrawn by the end of the tenth year following the year of the IRA owner’s death. There is no schedule for how payments must come out, but the entire IRA must be depleted by December 31 of the tenth year.

https://content.schwab.com/ira...

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