New York - When your spouse dies - you need to be concerned about what minimum distribution rule you originally selected.
Required distributions are based on two things: the joint life expectancy of the IRA owner and the beneficiary, and the payment method chosen by the IRA owner when he or she turned 70 1/2. There are two payment methods. The first is to recalculate your joint life expectancy every year (the recalculation method). If your spouse dies - the expectancy is, then calculated based on your life.
The second (the term certain) requires a joint life expectancy calculation only once. If your joint life expectancy is 20 years today, next year it is 19.
The term certain method provides no change in the payout schedule for the beneficiary. With the recalculation method, the surveyor must recalculate minimum distributions using a single life expectancy. the result is generally an accelerated distribution schedule.
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