SPOUSE BENEFICARY: DEEMED ELECTION TO BE TREATED
01.Core Concepts
AS EMPLOYEE – RULES* 1. RMDs to the spouse are delayed until the deceased employee would have started RMDs.** 2. The amount of the RMD is recalculated each year based on the spouse's age and the Uniform Lifetime Table. 3. The spouse remains a beneficiary for purposes of determining the account balance at the end of each year in calculating the RMD amount (i.e., the balance includes both pretax and Roth accounts within the DC plan) 4. The spouse remains a beneficiary for purposes of the 10% penalty exception for distributions prior to age 59½ (distributions are treated as a result of the death of the participant).** 5. If the spouse dies before distributions begin, the spouse is treated as the employee who died before their RBD (an eligible successor beneficiary can stretch distributions over lifetime).*** 6. If the spouse dies after RMDs begin, the spouse's beneficiary must continue distributions based on the spouse's single life expectancy in year of death (minus one each year) and take full distribution by the 10th year. NO DESIGNATED BENEFICARY - DEATH AFTER 2019 BEFORE RBD • The rules for no designated beneficiary have remained as they were prior to SECURE Act. • No beneficiary listed by September 30 of the year following the year of owner’s death (or beneficiary is the decedent’s estate or a charity) • Account must be depleted by December 31 of the fifth year following the owner’s death. • Account can be depleted any time prior to the end of the fifth year but may not extend beyond.