What are the rules if I inherit a Traditional IRA from a spouse?
If your deceased husband or wife named you as the beneficiary of their Traditional IRA, you have several choices. If you are the only named beneficiary, you can treat the IRA as your own, and designate yourself as the account owner. This will allow you to make additional IRA contributions each year, and you will be taxed on the money in the account only when you withdraw it. As a spouse, you also have the choice, even if you are not the sole beneficiary, of treating yourself as the beneficiary of the IRA, or rolling the inherited IRA money into your own IRA or into retirement plan sponsored by an employer that accepts rollover IRA contributions. To avoid paying income taxes you must roll the contribution into your own IRA or another retirement plan within 60 days. What if I inherit a Traditional IRA from someone other than a spouse? If you inherit a Traditional IRA from someone other than your spouse, you cannot treat the IRA as your own and you must request distributions from the IRA
