By Elliot Raphaelson
Q: My dad passed away in April 2020. He left me his traditional IRA. He was 80 and was taking required minimum distributions. I understand from your columns and others that I am required to take required minimum distributions each year because of the SECURE Act. I was under the impression that, although I had to withdraw all of the assets by the end of the 10th year, I was under no obligation to make any withdrawals in years 1-9. I have made no withdrawals yet. What are my options? Naturally, I want to avoid any penalties.
A: I ran your question by IRA expert Ed Slott’s group to determine what your options were. They indicated that you should take a required minimum distribution (RMD) this year based on your IRA balance at the end of 2021 and your single life expectancy. They indicated that the IRS has not yet indicated what inheritors of IRAs should do in order to satisfy RMD requirements for 2021; they expect that the IRS will provide guidance by the end of this year regarding this issue….