The SECURE Act 2.0 RMD rules require most non-spouse beneficiaries to empty an inherited IRA within 10 years, with annual RMDs in years 1 through 9 only when the original owner died on or after their required beginning date.
Key Takeaways
- The SECURE Act ended the stretch IRA for most non-spouse beneficiaries who inherited after December 31, 2019.
- IRS final regulations issued July 18, 2024 are fully in force for 2026 distributions.
- The missed-RMD penalty is 25% of the shortfall, reduced to 10% if corrected within a two-year window and Form 5329 is filed.
- Five categories of Eligible Designated Beneficiaries, including a surviving spouse and a minor child until age 21, remain exempt from the 10-year rule.
- An inherited Roth IRA follows the 10-year rule but never carries annual year-1-to-9 RMDs, with qualified distributions tax-free after the 5-year holding period.
- The required beginning date is April 1 of the year after the owner turns 73, rising to age 75 for those born in 1960 or later.
- IRS Notices 2022-53, 2023-54, and 2024-35 waived the penalty for missed annual RMDs from 2021 through 2024 without moving the 10-year deadline.
Inherited IRA RMD Rules at a Glance (2026)
Figures reflect the 2026 federal rules cited in this article.
The SECURE Act 2.0 RMD rules replaced the stretch IRA with a 10-year distribution window for most non-spouse beneficiaries who inherited after December 31, 2019. IRS final regulations issued July 18, 2024 are fully in force in 2026, and whether you owe annual required minimum distributions in years 1 through 9 turns on one fact: whether the original owner died before or on/after their required beginning date.
Under the SECURE Act 2.0 RMD rules, most non-spouse beneficiaries must empty an inherited IRA within 10 years. Annual RMDs apply in years 1 to 9 only if the original owner died on or after their required beginning date; if they died before it, no annual RMD is required, only the year-10 payout. The missed-RMD penalty is now 25%, reduced to 10% if corrected within two years. The year-by-year math is shown in how to calculate RMD for an inherited IRA.
What changed under the SECURE Act and SECURE 2.0 for inherited IRAs?
The SECURE Act of 2019 eliminated the stretch IRA for most non-spouse beneficiaries and imposed a 10-year payout. SECURE 2.0, enacted December 2022, refined the details, and the IRS issued final regulations on July 18, 2024, effective for 2025 distributions. In 2026 those rules are fully in force, with the first mandatory annual-RMD year (2025) already behind beneficiaries.
Before 2020, most non-spouse beneficiaries could stretch required minimum distributions from an inherited IRA over their own life expectancy for decades. The SECURE Act ended that structure for deaths after December 31, 2019. One planning response is naming a charitable remainder trust as the IRA beneficiary.
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In its place came the 10-year rule: the inherited IRA must be fully distributed by December 31 of the tenth year after the owner’s death. SECURE 2.0 then clarified how annual RMDs interact with that window. After three rounds of penalty relief (IRS Notices 2022-53, 2023-54, and 2024-35), the Treasury issued final regulations on July 18, 2024, applicable to distribution calendar years beginning in 2025. Beneficiaries who paused distributions during the relief period are now on the clock.
What is the 10-year rule and who does it apply to?
The 10-year rule requires most non-spouse beneficiaries who inherited an IRA after December 31, 2019 to withdraw the entire balance by December 31 of the tenth year after the owner’s death. It covers adult children, grandchildren, siblings, and non-person entities that do not qualify as Eligible Designated Beneficiaries. Inheritances before 2020 stay grandfathered under the old stretch rules.
The outer deadline is fixed by the year of death, not by when distributions start. A beneficiary who inherited from a parent who died in 2020 must empty the account by December 31, 2030, regardless of any waived annual RMD years in between. The clock runs from the year after death and covers both traditional and Roth inherited IRAs.
Beneficiaries who inherited on or before December 31, 2019 are not affected; they remain under pre-SECURE stretch rules. If you are the account owner rather than a beneficiary, the timing of your own withdrawals matters too; our guide to required minimum distributions in 2026 covers the owner-side schedule.
Do you have to take annual RMDs within the 10-year window?
It depends on the owner’s required beginning date (RBD), which is April 1 of the year after they turn 73. If the owner died before their RBD, no annual RMD is required; you may withdraw any amount in any year as long as the account is empty by year 10. If the owner died on or after their RBD, you must take annual RMDs in years 1 through 9, then empty the account in year 10.
The July 2024 final regulations settled this split, the most misunderstood part of the SECURE Act 2.0 RMD rules. The table shows how each scenario plays out for a non-spouse beneficiary subject to the 10-year rule.
| Scenario | Annual RMD in years 1 to 9? | Year-10 requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Owner died before required beginning date (traditional IRA) | No annual minimum; withdraw any amount, any year | Account must be empty by Dec 31 of year 10 |
| Owner died on or after required beginning date (traditional IRA) | Yes: annual RMD based on beneficiary’s single life expectancy | Remaining balance distributed by Dec 31 of year 10 |
| Inherited Roth IRA (any owner death) | No annual RMD (Roth owner deemed to die before RBD) | Account must be empty by Dec 31 of year 10 |
| Eligible Designated Beneficiary | Life-expectancy distributions instead of the 10-year rule | 10-year rule generally does not apply |
There is also a separate year-of-death rule. If the owner had begun RMDs but died before taking the full distribution for the year of death, the beneficiary must complete that final year-of-death RMD, generally by December 31 of the year of death (the final regulations grant a limited automatic extension). Beneficiaries who skipped waived annual RMDs from 2021 through 2024 do not have to make them up.
Who is exempt from the 10-year rule?
Five categories of Eligible Designated Beneficiaries (EDBs) are exempt from the 10-year rule and may still take life-expectancy distributions: a surviving spouse, a minor child of the owner (until age 21), a disabled individual, a chronically ill individual, and a beneficiary not more than 10 years younger than the owner. EDB status is fixed as of the owner’s date of death.
- Surviving spouse: May roll the inherited IRA into their own IRA, elect to be treated as the owner, or use the single life expectancy table. A spousal rollover restarts standard owner RMD timing at the surviving spouse’s own age 73.
- Minor child of the owner: A minor child (not a grandchild) uses life-expectancy distributions until age 21, the age of majority the final regulations set for this purpose. At 21, the 10-year clock begins and the account must be emptied by that beneficiary’s age 31.
- Disabled individual: A beneficiary who is disabled under Section 72(m)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code may take life-expectancy distributions.
- Chronically ill individual: A chronically ill beneficiary, as certified under the tax code, may stretch distributions over life expectancy.
- Beneficiary not more than 10 years younger: A sibling, partner, or friend close in age to the owner qualifies for life-expectancy treatment.
When an EDB dies, or when a minor child reaches 21, the 10-year rule takes over for the remaining balance. For a full walk-through of every beneficiary category and its options, see our companion guide on understanding inherited IRA rules and tax strategies. If you inherited an employer plan rather than an IRA, the parallel rules are covered in inherited 401(k) rules.
How do the RMD rules differ for an inherited Roth IRA?
An inherited Roth IRA follows the 10-year rule but never carries annual year-1-to-9 RMDs. Because a Roth owner is always treated as dying before their required beginning date, the on-or-after-RBD annual-RMD trigger cannot apply. Non-spouse beneficiaries simply empty the account by December 31 of year 10, and qualified distributions are tax-free once the 5-year holding period is met.
This is a clean differentiator many summaries get muddy. Roth IRAs have no lifetime RMDs for the original owner, so the owner is always deemed to have died before any required beginning date, removing the annual-RMD question entirely. Only the single 10-year empty-out deadline remains.
The one variable is the 5-year holding period, measured from January 1 of the year of the owner’s first Roth contribution or conversion. If five years had passed before the owner’s death, every distribution from the inherited Roth IRA is tax-free, even in year 10. If not, contributed and converted principal still comes out tax-free at any time, but earnings are taxable as ordinary income until the period completes. Because there is no tax cost to waiting, many beneficiaries let an inherited Roth grow untouched and take a single tax-free distribution in year 10.
For original IRA owners: why the 10-year rule strengthens the case for multi-year Roth conversions
For owners with large pre-tax IRAs, the 10-year rule is the strongest case for multi-year Roth conversions during their lifetime. Heirs usually inherit in peak earning years at a 32% or 35% marginal rate, and compressing a large balance into 10 years amplifies that bracket problem. Converting to a Roth at the owner’s lower rate passes the account to heirs tax-free, subject only to the 10-year empty-out.
Three points drive the math. First, most beneficiaries are mid-career when they inherit; a retired parent taxed at 22% or 24% can effectively prepay the tax at a lower rate than the heir would face. Second, a large traditional IRA that might never have raised a beneficiary’s bracket under the old stretch almost always does when squeezed into 10 years. Third, an inherited Roth removes the income-tax question entirely, since qualified distributions are not taxable.
A conversion is uncapped, taxable as ordinary income in the year it is done, irreversible, and must be completed by December 31; you cannot convert an RMD. Sizing the conversion so it does not spill into the next bracket or trigger the 3.8% net investment income tax is where planning earns its keep. Our resources on how much to convert to Roth, the Roth conversion break-even point, and the 2026 Roth conversion deadline walk through the trade-offs. A structured Roth conversion strategy can spread the tax across several lower-bracket years.
Did the 2021 to 2024 penalty waivers extend the deadline?
No. IRS Notices 2022-53, 2023-54, and 2024-35 waived the penalty for missed annual RMDs from 2021 through 2024, but they never moved the outer 10-year deadline. The account must still be empty by December 31 of the tenth year after death. A beneficiary who inherited from a 2020 death must empty the account by December 31, 2030, regardless of the waived years.
The waivers addressed a timing gap: the proposed annual-RMD rules were not yet final, so the IRS excused the penalty rather than force beneficiaries to guess. Those excused distributions never have to be made up. What changed in 2025 is that annual RMDs resumed for beneficiaries in the on-or-after-RBD category.
What is the penalty for missing an inherited IRA RMD?
Missing a required minimum distribution triggers a 25% excise tax on the shortfall, down from 50% before SECURE 2.0. The penalty drops to 10% if you withdraw the missed amount and file IRS Form 5329 within a two-year correction window. The IRS may waive the tax entirely for reasonable cause when a corrective distribution is taken.
The reduction from 50% to 25% took effect with SECURE 2.0 in 2023. To capture the further reduction to 10%, take the corrective distribution and file Form 5329 within the two-year window. The 2021 through 2024 relief no longer applies for 2025 and later, so any skipped annual RMD in the on-or-after-RBD category is now a live exposure.
How can beneficiaries reduce the tax hit on inherited IRA distributions?
Because the 10-year rule compresses a lifetime of distributions into a decade, spreading withdrawals evenly, accelerating them in low-income years, and coordinating with bracket and IRMAA thresholds can materially lower the total tax. Many beneficiaries also use qualified charitable distributions once eligible. These are educational options; the right mix depends on your income, age, and other assets.
- Spread distributions evenly. Taking roughly equal amounts across all 10 years often keeps taxable income out of higher brackets. In 2026 the 24% bracket runs to $201,775 single and $403,550 married filing jointly, so leveling withdrawals below those thresholds can matter.
- Accelerate in low-income years. If the owner died before their RBD, no annual minimum applies, so beneficiaries can front-load distributions in gap years such as early retirement before Social Security begins.
- Coordinate with your marginal rate. A working beneficiary in the 32% ($201,775 single) or 35% bracket may prefer to defer, where the 10-year rule allows, to years when earned income falls.
- Watch IRMAA and NIIT. Distributions raise MAGI and can trigger Medicare IRMAA surcharges above $109,000 single or $218,000 joint (a two-year lookback), and the 3.8% net investment income tax over $200,000 single or $250,000 joint. IRA distributions are ordinary income, not themselves NII, but they push you toward both thresholds.
- Use QCDs when eligible. A qualified charitable distribution, available from an IRA at age 70.5 or older, lets charitably inclined beneficiaries direct funds to charity without adding to taxable income.
Frequently asked questions
What is the 10-year rule for inherited IRAs?
The 10-year rule requires most non-spouse beneficiaries who inherited an IRA after December 31, 2019 to withdraw the full balance by December 31 of the tenth year after the owner’s death. It replaced the stretch IRA under the SECURE Act. Eligible Designated Beneficiaries are exempt, and inheritances before 2020 remain grandfathered under the old life-expectancy rules.
Do you have to take RMDs every year under the SECURE Act 2.0?
Only in one case. If the original owner died on or after their required beginning date (April 1 after age 73), a non-spouse beneficiary must take annual RMDs in years 1 through 9, then empty the account in year 10. If the owner died before that date, no annual RMD is required; you only need the account empty by year 10.
What are the new inherited IRA RMD rules for 2025?
Starting in 2025, the IRS final regulations from July 18, 2024 are in force, and the 2021 to 2024 penalty waivers no longer apply. Non-spouse beneficiaries in the on-or-after-RBD category must resume annual RMDs in years 1 through 9. In 2026 these rules continue unchanged, with the first mandatory annual-RMD year already completed.
Does the SECURE Act 2.0 apply to inherited Roth IRAs?
Yes, the 10-year rule applies to inherited Roth IRAs, but they never carry annual year-1-to-9 RMDs. Because a Roth owner is always treated as dying before any required beginning date, only the single 10-year empty-out deadline applies. Qualified distributions are tax-free once the account’s 5-year holding period is satisfied, so timing within the window carries no tax cost.
At what age do RMDs start under SECURE Act 2.0?
Under SECURE 2.0, RMDs for original account owners begin at age 73. The required beginning date is April 1 of the year after you turn 73. The age rises to 75 for those born in 1960 or later, whose first required distribution year is 2035. These owner ages also determine the required-beginning-date test that drives inherited IRA annual RMDs.
What is the penalty for missing an inherited IRA RMD?
The penalty is a 25% excise tax on the amount you failed to distribute, reduced from 50% under SECURE 2.0. It falls to 10% if you take the missed distribution and file IRS Form 5329 within a two-year correction window. The IRS may waive the tax for reasonable cause when a timely corrective distribution is made.
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Q3 Advisors is a registered investment adviser focused on retirement tax planning. This page is educational and is not advice; consult a qualified professional.
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Inherited IRA rules are among the most technical in retirement tax planning, and a mistimed distribution can add avoidable tax. Q3 Advisors, led by Craig Wear, CFP®, works with both IRA owners planning a legacy and beneficiaries managing a 10-year distribution schedule. Many families pair beneficiary planning with an owner-side Roth conversion strategy to coordinate taxes across generations.
