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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →You cannot tell from a $200,000 balance—or from being 62—whether you may take nothing in the first year. First check whether your parent left an unpaid required minimum distribution (RMD) for the year of death. Then determine your own beneficiary schedule. If your parent died on or after their required beginning date, an adult child who is not an eligible designated beneficiary generally has annual beneficiary RMDs during the 10-year period and must empty the account by its deadline. The federal excise tax is based on the shortfall, not a fixed $2,000: generally 25%, potentially reduced to 10% if you correct it within two years.
Two separate distribution questions determine whether you can take nothing
An inherited IRA can involve both an RMD left over from the year your parent died and distributions you must take as the beneficiary in later years. Those are separate obligations, so an answer about one does not settle the other.
The RMD your parent owed for the year of death
If your parent was required to take an RMD for the calendar year they died and had not taken the full amount, the unpaid balance is generally still due. Subtract any amount your parent already withdrew that year from the RMD they owed; the remaining amount is generally the beneficiary’s responsibility. The fact that you inherited the account late in the year does not by itself erase this requirement.
Your beneficiary distributions after the year of death
Your own schedule depends on your parent’s date of death and whether they had reached their required beginning date (the date by which lifetime RMDs must begin). Under IRS Publication 590-B (2025), an adult designated beneficiary who is not an eligible designated beneficiary and whose parent died on or after that date generally takes annual beneficiary RMDs using the longer of the beneficiary’s single life expectancy or the owner’s life expectancy. The 10-year rule also applies: the account must be emptied by the end of the tenth year after the owner’s death.
So the 10-year rule is an account-emptying deadline; in this situation, it is not automatically permission to skip every interim distribution. If the owner died before the required beginning date, the schedule can differ. Some beneficiaries qualify for special treatment as eligible designated beneficiaries, but being an adult child does not alone establish that status. Your age of 62 and the account balance are not enough to determine the applicable schedule.
Why $200,000 does not reveal the RMD or the penalty
An RMD is calculated under the rules that apply to the account and beneficiary; the account balance alone is not the required distribution. A specific calculation can depend on the year-end balance used for the applicable calculation, your parent’s age and date of death, whether the parent had reached the required beginning date, distributions already taken in the year of death, and your beneficiary category. Without those facts, there is no reliable way to say how much must be withdrawn or whether any particular shortfall would produce a $2,000 tax.
The $2,000 figure can illustrate the percentage, but it is not a standard penalty. For example, 25% of an $8,000 shortfall is $2,000. That example does not estimate the RMD or tax in your case.
How the missed-RMD excise tax works
The general excise-tax rate for an RMD shortfall is 25% of the amount not distributed on time. The rate can be 10% if you correct the shortfall within the two-year correction window described by the IRS. Thus, the tax is calculated on the missed amount—not on the inherited IRA’s entire balance.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsYou may request relief if the failure resulted from reasonable error and you have taken reasonable steps to remedy it. IRS Instructions for Form 5329 (2025) describe requesting a waiver by filing Form 5329 and attaching an explanation. Relief is not automatic: explain the circumstances, describe the corrective steps, and address the shortfall. If you missed a distribution, consult the current Form 5329 instructions and consider qualified tax advice about both correcting it and reporting it.
Traditional and Roth inherited IRAs do not have identical tax treatment
Distribution deadlines and income-tax consequences are different questions. Taxable distributions from a traditional inherited IRA are generally included in income. Inherited Roth IRAs are still subject to beneficiary distribution rules; earnings may have tax implications if the Roth has not met the five-year holding period. Confirm the account type and relevant Roth holding period before treating a withdrawal as tax-free.
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What to verify before deciding to take nothing
- Identify the year of death and any unpaid final-year RMD. Ask the IRA custodian for the amount your parent was required to take for that year and the distributions already made.
- Confirm your parent’s RMD status. Establish their age and whether they had reached the required beginning date. This affects your post-death schedule.
- Confirm your beneficiary category. Review the beneficiary designation and whether an eligible-designated-beneficiary exception applies; your relationship and age alone may not answer that.
- Get the calculation inputs. Obtain the applicable year-end balance and the details needed to determine the life-expectancy calculation and any beneficiary RMD.
- Check the account type and the deadline. Determine whether it is traditional or Roth, then confirm both any annual distribution due and the date by which the inherited account must be emptied.
- If a distribution was missed, act promptly. Determine and correct the shortfall, review the current Form 5329 instructions, and document why it happened and what you did to fix it.
The IRS’s current online guidance on required minimum distributions and beneficiaries, together with Publication 590-B (2025) and the current Form 5329 instructions, provides the applicable federal rules. A tax professional familiar with inherited IRA RMDs can help apply them to the account records and your specific beneficiary status.
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