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Inheriting an individual retirement account is a windfall for many investors.
However, a lesser-known change for 2025 could trigger a costly surprise penalty, financial experts say.
Starting in 2025, certain heirs with inherited IRAs must take yearly required withdrawals while emptying accounts over 10 years, known as the “10-year rule.”
“The big change [for 2025] is the IRS is enforcing penalties for missed required distributions,” said certified financial planner Judson Meinhart, director of financial planning at Modera Wealth Management in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
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There’s a 25% penalty for missing a required minimum distribution, or RMD, from an inherited IRA. But it’s possible to reduce the fee if your RMD is “timely corrected” within two years, according to the IRS.
Here are the key things to know about the inherited IRA change.
Which heirs could face a penalty
Before the Secure Act of 2019, heirs could withdraw funds from inherited IRAs over their lifetime, which helped reduce yearly income taxes.
Since 2020, certain inherited accounts have been subject to the “10-year rule,” meaning heirs must deplete inherited IRAs by the 10th year after the original account owner’s death.
After years of waived penalties for missed RMDs from inherited IRAs, the IRS in July finalized guidance. Starting in 2025, certain beneficiaries must take yearly withdrawals during the 10-year window or they’ll face a penalty for missed RMDs.
The rule applies to heirs who are not a spouse, minor child, disabled, chronically ill or certain trusts — and the yearly withdrawals apply if the original IRA owner had reached their RMD age before death.
One group who could be impacted are adult children who inherited IRAs from their parents, according to CFP Edward Jastrem, chief planning officer at Heritage Financial Services in Westwood, Massachusetts.
But the rules have become a “spiderweb mess of decision-making,” he said.
Avoid the ’10-year tax squeeze’
For 2025, there’s a enforced penalty for missed RMDs. But heirs also need to manage withdrawals to avoid the “10-year tax squeeze,” said Jastrem.
Over the past few years, some heirs have skipped yearly withdrawals from inherited IRAs, which could mean larger required withdrawals before the 10-year window closes, he said.
For example, boosting adjusted gross income can impact things like Medicare Part B and Part D premiums, eligibility for the premium tax credit for Marketplace health insurance and more.
Of course, timing inherited IRA withdrawals depends on your complete tax situation, including multi-year projections of your adjusted gross income, Meinhart said.