Summary of SECURE Act Changes Impacting IRAs – Effective January 1, 2020

• Traditional IRA contributions at any age. Taxpayers with earned income can make Traditional IRA contributions at any age, not just for years before reaching age 70½, as under current law. (Effective for 2020 and later taxable years.)
• Graduate student IRA contributions. Certain stipend, fellowship, and similar payments to graduate and postdoctoral students will be treated as earned income for IRA contribution purposes. (Effective for 2020 and later taxable years.)
• Delayed age for beginning RMDs. The age when required minimum distributions (RMDs) from Traditional IRAs generally begin is increased from age 70½ to age 72. (Effective for IRA owners born July 1, 1949 or later.)
• More rapid payouts to non-spouse (and other) beneficiaries. Most non-spouse beneficiaries of IRAs will generally be required to distribute inherited amounts within 10 years. (Effective for IRA owner deaths in 2020 or later years)
  Exceptions include those who, at the time of the account owner’s death, are
  • disabled individuals,
  • certain chronically ill individuals,
  • beneficiaries whose age is within 10 years of the decedent’s age,
  • minors (they would begin a 10-year payout period upon reaching the age of majority), and
  • recipients of certain annuitized payments begun before enactment of the SECURE Act.
• Birth/adoption excise tax exception. The birth of a child or adoption of a child (or individual who is incapable of self-support) qualifies both as a plan distribution event and as an amount that is exempt from the 10 percent early distribution penalty tax (if applicable) for distributions of up to $5,000 in aggregate from IRAs and defined contribution qualified plans, 403(b) plans, and governmental 457(b) plans. These amounts may be repaid. (Effective for distributions in 2020 and later years.)
• “Difficulty of care” payments treated as eligible compensation for retirement plan funding. Because many home healthcare workers receive payment that is not taxable income, they haven’t been able to contribute to a retirement plan. Now such “difficulty of care” payments will qualify as eligible compensation for IRA and other plan contributions.

Disaster Relief Provisions
To provide relief for certain natural disasters that occurred during the last couple of years, the FCAA contains a bill entitled the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2019. Among other things, this bill provides disaster relief to individuals in presidentially declared disaster areas who have taken IRA and retirement plan distributions between January 1, 2018, and 180 days after enactment of this legislation. (Applicable to plans that are amended on or before the last day of the first plan year beginning on or after January 1, 2020, or later, if the IRS allows.)

• Qualified disaster distributions. Qualifying distributions of up to $100,000 from employer-sponsored retirement plans and IRAs are exempt from the 10 percent early distribution penalty tax and the normal withholding requirements. Individuals affected by more than one disaster may distribute up to $100,000 per disaster.
•  Repayment options. Individuals may repay qualifying distributions within a three-year period. Distributions not repaid generally will be taxed ratably over a three-year period, unless individuals elect otherwise. Individuals may also repay distributions taken for cancelled home purchases.