Inherited IRA Rules: Spouse vs Non-Spouse Options
By Hans Goldstein, EA, founder, Retirement Literacy Foundation · Updated
Admitted to practice before the IRS.
Updated October 18, 2026 · Retirement Literacy Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
The SECURE Act ended what used to be called the "stretch IRA," where a beneficiary could spread withdrawals across their own lifetime. What replaced it is far less forgiving, and the rules differ sharply depending on your relationship to the person who died.
What are your options as an inherited IRA beneficiary?
| Option | Spouse | Non-spouse |
|---|---|---|
| Treat it as your own IRA (spousal rollover) | Yes | No |
| Keep it as an inherited (beneficiary) IRA | Yes, and RMDs can wait until the year your spouse would have reached RMD age | Yes, usually under the 10-year rule |
| Yearly withdrawals in years 1 to 9 | No 10-year clock; life-expectancy RMDs apply only if you keep it as an inherited IRA | Required if the owner had already started RMDs |
| Stretch withdrawals over your lifetime | Yes | Only eligible designated beneficiaries (minor child of the owner, disabled, chronically ill, or not more than 10 years younger) |
| Take it all as a lump sum | Allowed; fully taxable that year | Allowed; fully taxable that year |
| Disclaim it (pass to the next beneficiary) | Yes, within 9 months | Yes, within 9 months |
See the yearly amounts for your own account with the free inherited IRA RMD calculator, or read what a beneficiary IRA is.
What can a surviving spouse do with an inherited IRA?
You have three choices, and they are genuinely different:
- Treat it as your own. Roll it into your own IRA. It stops being an inherited account. Required distributions begin at your own RMD age, based on your life expectancy. No 10-year clock.
- Remain a beneficiary. Keep it as an inherited IRA. Useful if you are under 59½ and need access without the early-withdrawal penalty.
- Disclaim it so it passes to the contingent beneficiary. Rare, but occasionally the right estate decision.
For most surviving spouses, treating it as their own defers the most tax. But it is not automatic. If you are under 59½ and need the money, it is often the wrong choice, because withdrawals would then carry the 10% early penalty that an inherited account does not.
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What must a non-spouse beneficiary do with an inherited IRA?
Most adult children, siblings, nieces, nephews and friends fall here. The default rule:
The account must be fully emptied by December 31 of the tenth year after the year of death.
If the person who died had already begun required distributions, you must also take an annual withdrawal in years one through nine. You cannot simply wait and take it all in year ten.
That second condition caught a great many people off guard. The rules were clarified in final regulations, and the practical result is that most non-spouse heirs of someone who had already started RMDs face both an annual requirement and a hard ten-year deadline.
Who is an eligible designated beneficiary exempt from the 10-year rule?
A narrow group can still use life expectancy instead of the 10-year rule:
| Who qualifies | What they get |
|---|---|
| Surviving spouse | Full spousal options, including treating it as their own |
| Minor child of the deceased | Life expectancy until age 21, then 10 years begins |
| Disabled beneficiary | Life expectancy |
| Chronically ill beneficiary | Life expectancy |
| Someone within 10 years of the deceased's age | Life expectancy |
Note the minor-child rule applies to a child of the person who died, not a grandchild and not just any minor. And it converts to the 10-year clock once they turn 21.
Why the timing decides the tax
Every dollar out of an inherited traditional IRA is ordinary income to you, stacked on top of what you already earn. A 55-year-old inheriting $400,000 in their peak earning years has a genuine problem: taking it evenly over ten years adds roughly $40,000 a year to their income, potentially pushing them into a higher bracket for a decade.
The common mistake is waiting. Letting it sit for nine years and taking $400,000 in year ten can push a single year's income into the highest brackets. Spreading it out deliberately, and taking more in the years your income happens to be lower, is almost always cheaper than either extreme.
An inherited Roth IRA is still subject to the 10-year rule, but the withdrawals are generally tax-free. So the right strategy is usually the opposite: leave it untouched for the full ten years and let it grow, then take it all at the end.
What to check first
- Confirm your category. Are you a spouse, an eligible designated beneficiary, or an ordinary beneficiary? Everything follows from this.
- Find out whether the deceased had started RMDs. It determines whether annual withdrawals are required during the ten years.
- Do not roll it into your own IRA if you are not the spouse. Non-spouse beneficiaries cannot, and doing it by mistake can be treated as a full taxable distribution.
- Watch the Medicare interaction. Large withdrawals raise your MAGI, which sets your Medicare premium two years later.
What does the 10-year rule cost you in tax?
Two inputs. It compares spreading withdrawals evenly against waiting until year ten, which is the mistake that costs the most.
| Your income while spreading | $0 |
| Your income if you wait for year 10 | $0 |
| Top bracket you would hit by spreading it out | n/a |
| Top bracket you would hit by waiting | n/a |
Rough guide. Uses the 2026 single-filer bracket lines (IRS 2026 inflation adjustments) on your total income, before the standard deduction. Your real bracket may be lower.
We will email you a written breakdown showing what to withdraw each year, when the annual requirement applies, and how to use your lower-income years. Free, and yours to forward to whoever does your taxes.
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Common questions
What is the difference between spouse and non-spouse inherited IRA rules?
A surviving spouse can treat the inherited IRA as their own, roll it into their existing IRA, and take distributions based on their own life expectancy with no 10-year deadline. Almost every non-spouse beneficiary must empty the account within 10 years, and if the original owner had already begun required minimum distributions, must also take annual withdrawals in years one through nine.
Do I have to take money out every year, or can I wait until year 10?
It depends on whether the person who died had already started required minimum distributions. If they had, you must take an annual withdrawal in years one through nine as well as emptying the account by year ten. If they had not yet started RMDs, you generally only need to meet the ten-year deadline.
Who is an eligible designated beneficiary?
A surviving spouse, a minor child of the person who died, a disabled beneficiary, a chronically ill beneficiary, or someone not more than ten years younger than the deceased. These beneficiaries can generally use life expectancy rather than the 10-year rule. A minor child moves to the 10-year clock once they turn 21.
Is an inherited Roth IRA also subject to the 10-year rule?
Yes, the 10-year deadline still applies, but qualified withdrawals are generally tax-free. Because of that, the usual strategy is the reverse of a traditional inherited IRA: leave it invested for the full ten years and withdraw at the end, rather than spreading withdrawals out.
What happens if I miss the deadline?
Missed required distributions carry a 25% excise tax on the amount that should have been withdrawn. It drops to 10% if you take the missed amount and fix it within the correction window, but it is entirely avoidable with a schedule set at the start.
These numbers change every year
The IRMAA brackets, the standard deduction and the senior deduction are all adjusted annually, and the 2027 figures are published late in 2026. The one exception is the Social Security taxation thresholds, which have not moved since 1983 and are not expected to.
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See what the 10-year rule costs you
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Run the free calculatorRelated guides
What Is a Beneficiary IRA?Same thing as an inherited IRA.The Inherited IRA 10-Year RuleWhat the deadline costs, and when RMDs still apply.How to Reduce Taxes on Your RMDsQCDs, Roth timing and the years that matter.The Retirement Literacy Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit. This guide is general financial education, not individualized investment, tax, or insurance advice. Tax rules change and depend on your personal situation. Consider speaking with a licensed professional before making decisions.
Hans Goldstein, EA
Founder & Executive Director · Retirement Literacy Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit
Admitted to practice before the IRS
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People also ask
Can a spouse withdraw from an inherited IRA without penalty?
Yes, if the spouse keeps it as an inherited IRA: beneficiary distributions are never hit by the 10% early-withdrawal tax. If the spouse instead rolls it into their own IRA and is under 59½, later withdrawals can be penalized. Some younger spouses keep it inherited until 59½ for that reason.
What are the rules for a non-spouse beneficiary IRA?
Most non-spouse beneficiaries must empty the account by the end of the tenth year after the year of death. If the owner had started RMDs, a yearly minimum is also required in years one through nine. Withdrawals from a traditional inherited IRA are taxed as ordinary income, with no 10% penalty.
What happens if I inherit an inherited IRA?
A successor beneficiary generally steps into the original heir's schedule. If the first beneficiary was on the 10-year rule, you finish that same 10-year deadline; if they were stretching over life expectancy, you get 10 years from their death. Yearly RMDs continue if they were already required.
Related
Sources: IRS Publication 590-B; IRS RMD FAQs; IRS, RMDs for IRA beneficiaries. Checked October 10, 2026.
See also: Work out your yearly minimum with the inherited IRA RMD calculator.