By Kevin Luu, Co-Founder and Chief Learning Officer. Reviewed on 2026-09-30.
No. A Roth IRA has no required minimum distributions (RMDs) while the owner is alive, and the same is true for the Roth side of a 401(k) or 403(b). RMDs start only after the owner dies, when the people who inherit the account must generally empty it within 10 years. Traditional IRA and 401(k) owners reaching that age today generally must start RMDs at 73; Roth owners never have to.
The IRS states it directly: “Withdrawals from Roth IRAs and Designated Roth accounts (401(k) or 403(b)) are not required until after the death of the account owner” (IRS RMD FAQs).
Why this matters for a $750k+ W-2 household in its 30s and 40s
If you earn this much, you are not allowed to contribute to a Roth IRA directly. For 2026 the direct-contribution phase-out for married couples filing jointly is $242,000 to $252,000 of modified AGI. Most families we work with build Roth money three other ways: the backdoor Roth IRA ($7,500 per spouse for 2026), Roth deferrals inside the 401(k), and the mega backdoor Roth, which uses after-tax 401(k) room up to the $72,000 total-additions limit for 2026 when the plan allows it.
The RMD rule is the reason this money is worth so much later. A traditional IRA or 401(k) forces taxable withdrawals once your RMD age arrives (generally 73 for people reaching it today), whether you need the cash or not. Roth money can sit and compound for your whole life, and then pass to your children as an account they can withdraw from without federal income tax, provided the five-year rule below is met. For most of these families, the Roth bucket is effectively money for the next generation.
Roth IRA vs Roth 401(k) vs traditional: who has to take RMDs
| Account | Owner RMDs during life | After the owner dies |
|---|---|---|
| Roth IRA | None | Beneficiary rules apply (10-year rule for most heirs) |
| Roth 401(k) or 403(b) (designated Roth account) | None | Beneficiary rules apply |
| Traditional IRA, 401(k), 403(b) | Yes, generally from age 73 under current rules | Beneficiary rules apply; withdrawals are taxable |
Two related questions come up often. You cannot use a Roth IRA to satisfy the RMD on a traditional IRA, and you cannot use traditional IRA withdrawals to satisfy RMDs on an inherited Roth IRA (IRS Publication 590-B). If a traditional RMD is missed, the shortfall may be subject to a 25% excise tax, 10% if it is timely corrected within two years (IRS RMD FAQs).
Are inherited Roth IRAs subject to RMDs?
Yes. Once the owner dies, the minimum distribution rules for traditional IRAs apply to the Roth “as though the Roth IRA owner died before their required beginning date” (Publication 590-B). In practice that means:
- Surviving spouse. A spouse who is the sole beneficiary can treat the Roth IRA as their own. Then there are still no lifetime RMDs.
- Adult children and most other heirs. The 10-year rule applies: the whole account must be out by the end of the 10th calendar year after the year of death. Because a Roth owner is treated as dying before the required beginning date, “no distribution is required for any year before the 10th year.” An heir can let the account grow for nine years and withdraw it in year ten.
- Minor children of the owner. A child who has not reached the age of majority is an eligible designated beneficiary and takes life-expectancy distributions until majority. After that the 10-year clock starts.
Taxes for the heir. A distribution to a beneficiary is a qualified, tax-free distribution if it is made after the five-year period that began with the first tax year the owner contributed to any Roth IRA. If the owner opened their first Roth recently, contributions still come out first and tax-free, but earnings withdrawn inside that window can be taxable. More on the clock in when you can withdraw from a Roth IRA.
Worked example: a $1.1M Bay Area household and what the kids inherit
Assumptions, for illustration only: Priya and Dan live in Palo Alto. Both are W-2 employees, one at a biotech and one at a large tech company, with combined income of $1.1M and two children, ages 4 and 7. Each spouse does a $7,500 backdoor Roth for 2026, and Dan’s plan allows mega backdoor contributions. Decades from now, assume they have $2,000,000 in Roth accounts and $3,000,000 in traditional 401(k) and IRA money, and both accounts go to the two children equally.
- During retirement. Once their RMD age arrives (73 for people reaching it today), the $3,000,000 traditional balance requires taxable RMDs every year. The $2,000,000 Roth requires nothing, so they can spend the traditional money first and leave the Roth untouched.
- The Roth inheritance. Each child inherits $1,000,000 of Roth. Under the 10-year rule they owe no withdrawals until year ten, and qualified withdrawals carry no federal income tax.
- The traditional inheritance. Each child inherits $1,500,000 of traditional money that must be emptied within 10 years. Spread evenly, that is $150,000 a year added to their own salary (derived: $1,500,000 / 10). If the children are themselves high earners in California, the top slice of that income can be taxed at 37% federal (2026 top rate) plus up to 13.3% California (2025 top rate), about 50.3% combined (derived). Each $150,000 withdrawal taxed entirely at that rate would cost about $75,450 (derived: $150,000 x 50.3%).
The same $1 of balance is worth very different amounts to your children depending on which bucket it sits in. That is why families at this income level often prioritize the backdoor and mega backdoor Roth now, and why some later consider Roth conversions in lower-income years. See how the backdoor Roth works step by step and mega backdoor Roth withdrawal rules.
California and Washington: how state tax treats the Roth
California conforms to federal law on Roth IRAs: “All Roth IRA transactions must be treated the same way for California purposes as they are for federal purposes” (FTB Publication 1005). Qualified Roth withdrawals are free of California tax as well. Inherited traditional IRA withdrawals, by contrast, are taxable income in California at the same rates as wages.
Washington has no individual income tax for 2026, and retirement accounts are exempt from its capital gains tax. Washington has enacted a 9.9% income tax for individuals and joint filers with adjusted gross income over $1,000,000, starting January 1, 2028, with details still pending from the Department of Revenue (WA DOR). A large inherited traditional IRA withdrawal could matter there in future years; a Roth withdrawal is the cleaner asset to leave.
The decision that actually matters while your kids are young
The RMD rules are settled. What families with children under 12 usually have not settled is who receives the Roth if both parents die while the children are minors. A 7-year-old cannot own and manage a $1,000,000 account. If the beneficiary form names the children directly, someone must still be appointed to manage the money, and it is typically handed over in full once the child reaches adulthood.
A short checklist:
- Check who is named as primary beneficiary on every Roth IRA and Roth 401(k) (for most married couples, the spouse), and confirm it in writing with the custodian and the plan.
- Decide whether the contingent beneficiary is the children directly, a UTMA custodian, or a trust drafted to receive retirement accounts. Your estate attorney should match the trust language to the 10-year rule.
- Write down the year of your first Roth IRA contribution. Your heirs need it for the five-year test, and it is often the hardest fact to reconstruct.
- Review beneficiary forms after every job change. A new 401(k) with mega backdoor money has its own beneficiary form, separate from your old plan’s.
Our estate planning and retirement and employee benefits work covers both halves of this: building Roth money and making sure it lands well.
What to document for the kids
An inherited Roth is the easiest money to waste because there is no tax bill to slow anyone down. A one-page note explaining why you built it, what you would hope it pays for, and why waiting until year ten can be worth it gives your children something the account statement never will. As Kevin puts it: “Your kids will inherit your money. Will they inherit your judgment?”
Common questions
Are Roth 401(k)s subject to RMDs?
Not for the owner. The IRS RMD FAQ groups designated Roth accounts in 401(k) and 403(b) plans with Roth IRAs: no withdrawals are required until after the owner’s death. Some families still roll a Roth 401(k) into a Roth IRA after leaving a job for simpler beneficiary management and wider investment choices, which also starts or continues the Roth IRA five-year clock.
Can my children stretch an inherited Roth over their lifetime?
Generally no, for owners dying after 2019. Adult children fall under the 10-year rule. A minor child of the owner gets life-expectancy payments only until the age of majority, then the 10-year rule applies to what remains. A surviving spouse is the main heir who can treat the Roth as their own and avoid RMDs entirely.
Next step
Pull the beneficiary designations for every Roth IRA and Roth 401(k) in your household this month and check the contingent beneficiary line. If it names minor children directly or is blank, that is the first item to fix. If you want a second set of eyes on how your Roth, traditional and taxable accounts will pass to your children, our Tax & Wealth Assessment starts there.
This is general education, and the right move depends on your family’s full picture.
Kevin has advised high-income W-2 tech and biotech families since 2015, and leads the education-first Age Five Family Office from Brea, California.
Connect on LinkedIn → · About KevinThis is part of how we approach Retirement & Employee Benefits for high-income W-2 families at Bright Advisers.
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