RMD for surviving spouse

[Jesse]

Husband age 74
Wife age 73

Husband died in September and Wife is sole beneficiary of an IRA.

The Financial Advisor then issued a check for the husbands RMD and rolled the remaining account into an IRA in Wife's name.

Does Wife now need to take a RMD for 2008 from the IRA because she is over age 70 1/2 and the IRA is now in her name?

[fliszt]

Rmd

begins by 4/01 of yr following later of the yr employee turns 70-1/2 or yr employee retires.
See page 13.24 TTB. So if she turned 70 1/2 in 2008 her RMD will begin in 2009.

[Jesse]

The way I'm looking at this is - it is one IRA account that has two seperate required minimum distributions.

One for the husband's RMD who has died, and the RMD cannot be rolled over, but since the remainder of the account has rolled over into the Wife's name she now has to take a required minimum distribution - from the same IRA but now in her name - because she is 73?

[Lion]

Maybe

Just talking off the top of my head, so you still have to look it up. But, her RMD for 2008 is based on her accounts total as of 31 December 2007. She didn't have the new deposit until after September 2008. It will come into play as of 31 December 2008 in calculating her 2009 RMD. Right?

[fliszt]

Lion,

I think you're correct. The husband had been issued his rmd before he passed and the wife will then take her rmd in 2009.

[Jesse]

I believe you both to be correct.

She called and said her Financial advisor wanted her to send them the statement with the value as of 12/31/2007 so they could calculate her RMD and issue a check before 12/31/2008. I told her they should have that information as they had his original and rolled the funds over into her name.

As you have both said, her IRA value as of 12/31/07 was zero and his RMD was issued before the rollover of the funds, so they shouldn't be required to withdraw any more.

Maybe they were asking for any other IRA accounts she might have. Thanks for the help.