When you inherit a retirement account, the distribution calendar is often different from the original owner’s rules. For many non-spouse beneficiaries, the SECURE Act replaced the old “stretch IRA” with a 10-year empty-by rule: the inherited IRA (or many inherited workplace plans) generally must be fully distributed by the end of the tenth year after the year of death. Owner lifetime RMDs are a separate map: Required minimum distributions and Required beginning date for RMDs.
Account wrappers beginners meet first: Roth IRA vs 401(k) starter. Tax character of traditional vs Roth withdrawals: Roth vs traditional IRA taxes. Filing season paperwork: Filing taxes for beginners.
Who the 10-year rule usually hits
| Beneficiary type (plain language) | Typical post-SECURE pattern |
|---|---|
| Most adult children, siblings, friends, estates/trusts that are not eligible designated beneficiaries | 10-year rule: account emptied by Dec 31 of year 10 after death year |
| Surviving spouse | Often special options (treat as own IRA, life expectancy, etc.). Not the same as a child’s 10-year clock |
| Eligible designated beneficiaries (examples often include minor child of the decedent until majority, disabled or chronically ill beneficiaries, and beneficiaries not more than 10 years younger) | May still use longer life-expectancy schedules. Confirm current IRS definitions |
| Non-person beneficiaries (estate, some charities, some trusts) | Can be worse than 10 years (sometimes 5-year rules). Trust drafting matters |
Exact labels (“designated beneficiary,” “eligible designated beneficiary,” “see-through trust”) are IRS and plan-document terms. Custodians such as Fidelity, Vanguard, Schwab, and TIAA will ask for death certificates and beneficiary paperwork; you still own the deadline and the tax bill.
Empty-by-year-10 is not “one check in year 10”
Educational pattern under current IRS guidance for many inherited IRAs:
- The account generally must be fully distributed by the end of year 10.
- Depending on whether the owner had already reached their RMD age and on account type, annual RMDs in years 1–9 may also apply for some inherited traditional accounts. Roth inherited IRAs often still face the 10-year empty-by without lifetime owner RMDs for the decedent.
- Waiting until December of year 10 to take everything can create a single large taxable year on a traditional inherited IRA.
This page stays conceptual so it does not publish a factor that ages out. Confirm the current IRS Publication 590-B (or successor) for the year of death and your beneficiary class.
Worked example: adult child inherits a traditional IRA
Jordan’s parent dies in 2025. Jordan is a healthy adult child (not an eligible designated beneficiary under the usual definitions) and inherits a $240,000 traditional IRA at Vanguard. The custodian titles it as an inherited IRA for Jordan’s benefit.
Educational timeline:
| Year | What Jordan tracks |
|---|---|
| 2025 | Death year. Beneficiary paperwork; decide whether to take any year-of-death RMD the parent still owed |
| 2026–2034 | Possible annual beneficiary RMDs if rules for this death year require them; Jordan calendars custodian notices |
| Dec 31, 2035 | End of year 10 after the death year. Balance must be $0. A $240,000 lump in 2035 alone could spike ordinary income |
Jordan models spreading withdrawals across several years (for example $24,000/year illustrative) versus one large year-10 check, estimates brackets with a tax preparer, and keeps 1099-R forms. Jordan does not treat a QCD as automatically available the same way an owner over the QCD age might (Qualified charitable distributions). Beneficiary QCD eligibility has its own age and account rules.
Spouse and Roth cues (high level)
- A surviving spouse often has options that look more like an owner IRA. Do not assume the child’s 10-year clock.
- A Roth IRA the decedent owned generally had no lifetime owner RMDs, but many non-spouse beneficiaries still face a 10-year empty-by. Distributions of basis/earnings follow Roth character rules (Roth vs traditional IRA taxes).
- Rolling an inherited workplace plan to an inherited IRA can change who calculates RMDs. Read the plan’s death-benefit packet before you click “cash out.”
Checklist
- Identify beneficiary class (spouse, eligible designated beneficiary, other individual, estate/trust).
- Confirm death year and calendar the year-10 December 31 empty-by date.
- Ask the custodian whether years 1–9 annual RMDs apply for this inherited account and death year.
- Model tax brackets if the account is traditional; avoid a surprise year-10 lump when possible.
- Keep death certificate, beneficiary forms, and 1099-R packets with your return.
- Re-read current IRS inherited-IRA guidance after any law change. Do not rely on pre-SECURE “stretch” blog math.
Inherited Roth IRA empty-by clocks, tax-free growth, and heir RMD cues: Inherited Roth IRA basics.
Decedent QCDs vs beneficiary inherited-IRA rules: QCDs in the year of death.
Educational only. Not tax, legal, or investment advice. SECURE Act beneficiary definitions, annual RMD requirements inside the 10-year window, Roth treatment, and penalties change; confirm with current IRS publications, the plan or IRA custodian, and a qualified tax professional.