The 10-year rule requires most non-spouse beneficiaries to fully distribute an inherited IRA by December 31 of the tenth year after the original owner's death. The rule came in with the SECURE Act of 2019 and replaced the lifetime stretch for most beneficiaries inheriting after 2019.
One nuance is the source of most modern inherited-IRA mistakes. The 10-year rule does not always mean "no annual withdrawals until year ten" — when the original owner died on or after their required beginning date, the beneficiary owes an annual Required Minimum Distribution in years one through nine on top of the year-ten cleanup.
Try the Free Inherited IRA RMD CalculatorWho falls under the 10-year rule
The 10-year rule applies to designated beneficiaries who are not eligible designated beneficiaries, when the original owner died after December 31, 2019. In practice that covers most adult children, most non-spouse relatives, and most named individuals who do not qualify as eligible designated beneficiaries.
Five categories of beneficiary are eligible designated beneficiaries and keep the lifetime stretch: a surviving spouse, a minor child of the original owner (until age 21, then a 10-year clock starts), a disabled person under IRS standards, a chronically ill person under IRS standards, and any beneficiary not more than 10 years younger than the deceased. Anyone outside those five categories is on the 10-year rule.
IRAs inherited from someone who died before 2020 keep the pre-SECURE rules. The original beneficiary's stretch schedule continues, and the 10-year rule is not retroactive.
When annual RMDs apply during the 10 years
IRS Final Regulations T.D. 10001, issued July 2024, settled the long-running ambiguity. Whether annual RMDs are required during the 10-year runway depends on whether the original IRA owner had reached their required beginning date at death.
If the owner died on or after their required beginning date, the beneficiary takes an annual RMD in years one through nine. The annual amount is calculated using the beneficiary's age in the year following the year of death from the IRS Single Life Table, with the factor reduced by one each subsequent year. The full balance still has to be out by December 31 of year ten.
If the owner died before their required beginning date, no annual RMD applies during the 10-year window. The beneficiary can take nothing in years one through nine and clean out the account in year ten, or take distributions on any schedule that ends the account by the deadline.
Inherited Roth IRAs always fall in the "no annual RMD" group, because Roth owners are never on a required beginning date. The year-ten deadline still applies.
The penalty for missing an RMD or the year-10 deadline
Missing an annual RMD or the year-10 cleanup triggers the IRS excise tax on the missed amount. SECURE 2.0 reduced the rate from 50% to 25%, effective for tax years 2023 and later. If the beneficiary takes the missed amount within roughly two years and files Form 5329, the rate drops further to 10%.
The IRS waived the annual RMD requirement during the 10-year window for tax years 2020 through 2024 while the final regulations were pending. Starting in 2025, the annual RMD is required when applicable. Beneficiaries who skipped annual RMDs during the waiver years do not have to make those years up, but the year-10 deadline runs from the original year of death regardless.
For the broader inherited-IRA framework see the inherited-IRA pillar hub. The main RMD hub covers RMD rules across all account types, How It Works walks through what SimpleRMD does at each step, and the related explainer at can you stretch an inherited IRA covers the EDB stretch alternative to the 10-year rule.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute tax, legal, or financial advice. IRS rules and tax laws are subject to change. Consult a qualified tax professional or financial advisor for guidance specific to your situation. SimpleRMD is a calculation and tracking tool — not a financial advisory service.
Sources: IRS Final Regulations T.D. 10001 (July 2024). IRS.gov (Publication 590-B, "Beneficiaries"). IRS Notices 2022-53, 2023-54, 2024-35. SECURE Act of 2019 (Pub. L. 116-94). SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (Pub. L. 117-328). Rules confirmed current as of May 2026.