When an IRA owner dies, the assets are distributed to beneficiaries, whether named by the IRA owner or determined by IRA document defaults. This can sometimes be a complicated process for financial organizations. And further complications may arise when the original beneficiary dies, leaving the inherited IRA to a successor beneficiary.

Every year industry professionals gather with Ascensus trainers at the Ascend conference. Not only do they get to continue their education and refine their expertise in retirement, health, and education savings plans, but they get to submit questions to our highly-qualified trainers. Here are the top questions asked and answered over the week.

In 2019, the SECURE Act made several changes to the rules for retirement plans and IRAs, including raising the applicable RMD age from 70½ to 72. In 2022, the IRS released proposed regulations that revised long-standing RMD rules and provided guidance on certain SECURE Act provisions. Congress also passed the SECURE 2.0 Act, which increased the applicable RMD age again from age 72 to age 73 in 2023, and then to age 75 in 2033 (or the year of retirement, if later, for certain plan participants who are not five percent owners).

The new RMD regulations are not without at least one limitation for spouse beneficiaries, in the form of the “hypothetical RMD.” This could affect a spouse beneficiary who inherits an IRA or qualified retirement plan account before the deceased’s RMDs are required to begin—generally age 73—and who elects the new 10-year beneficiary payout rule in order to delay the onset of required distributions.

It is not turning age 65 that makes people ineligible to contribute to HSAs, but rather enrollment in Medicare that prevents HSA owners from making further contributions. And while most people do enroll in Medicare when they turn 65, it is not necessarily required.

You may have noticed an increase in clients making late IRA transactions because they live or work in a federally declared disaster zone. This disaster relief can affect your financial organization and how you report certain IRA transactions.

The IRS has issued Revenue Procedure 2024-25, providing inflation-adjusted amounts for health savings accounts (HSAs) for calendar year 2025.

To assist Ascensus clients during the busy contribution and tax season, the 800 Consulting telephone lines will be open for extended hours.

To assist Ascensus clients during the busy contribution and tax season, the 800 Consulting telephone lines will be open for extended hours.

It's a brand-new year filled with fresh reporting deadlines, and perhaps a good time to take note on whether your financial organization is on track to meet these obligations—or to refresh your memory on when specific deadlines occur. First quarter is always a busy reporting season.

If it’s been a while since you’ve worked with Coverdell ESAs, here’s a refresher on the rules and your responsibilities when processing ESA distributions.

Here are answers to some of the common Coverdell ESA questions we receive from financial organizations.

In 2019, the SECURE Act made several changes to the rules for retirement plans and IRAs, including raising the applicable RMD age from 70½ to 72. In 2022, the IRS released proposed regulations that revised long-standing RMD rules and provided guidance on certain SECURE Act provisions. Congress also passed the SECURE 2.0 Act, which increased the applicable RMD age again from age 72 to age 73 in 2023, and then to age 75 in 2033 (or the year of retirement, if later, for certain plan participants who are not five percent owners).

The new RMD regulations are not without at least one limitation for spouse beneficiaries, in the form of the “hypothetical RMD.” This could affect a spouse beneficiary who inherits an IRA or qualified retirement plan account before the deceased’s RMDs are required to begin—generally age 73—and who elects the new 10-year beneficiary payout rule in order to delay the onset of required distributions.

Automatic enrollment features are attractive to employers that wish to increase the plan participation rate and encourage employees to begin saving for their own retirement. Automatic enrollment is designed to improve retirement preparedness and improve overall financial wellness.

Unlike breaks-in-eligibility service that can delay an employee’s ability to participate in an employer’s retirement plan, breaks-in-vesting service can delay or even prevent a participant’s ability to fully vest and become entitled to employer contributions if she is subject to a vesting schedule.