President Signs in New 2009 RMD Rules

December 24, 2008

On December 23, 2008, President Bush signed into law the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act (the Act) that gives economic relief to help employers and employees deal with the market downturn.

Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) Relief

Qualified retirement plans and individual retirement accounts (IRAs) require certain employees and individuals to receive a minimum distribution by April 1st following attainment of age 70½ and each December 31st thereafter. Under the Act, no minimum distribution is required for calendar year 2009 from IRAs and defined contribution (DC) qualified plans (i.e. 401(k), money purchase, 403(b), and governmental 457(b) plans). This relief from required minimum distributions does not apply to defined benefit (DB) plans.

Required minimum distributions are not eligible for rollover. Since minimum distributions are not required in 2009, distributions from IRA and DC qualified plans may be rolled over.

Note: The RMD form for 2009 has been removed from our site as a result of the above. For distributions during 2009, use our regular distribution form (PDF: 91 KB).

To request a distribution for 2010, please complete the appropriate RMD Form (PDF: 111 KB).

More Information (PDF: 93 KB).