You can always withdraw contributions from a Roth IRA with no penalty at any age. At age 59½, you can withdraw both contributions and earnings with no penalty, provided that your Roth IRA has been open for at least five tax years. 1.
If you're under age 59½ and your Roth IRA has been open five years or more,1 your earnings will not be subject to taxes if you meet one of the following conditions: You use the withdrawal (up to a $10,000 lifetime maximum) to pay for a first-time home purchase.
The 5-year rule on Roth conversions requires you to wait five years before withdrawing any converted balances — contributions or earnings — regardless of your age. If you take money out before the five years is up, you'll have to pay a 10% penalty when you file your tax return.
In general, you can withdraw your Roth IRA contributions at any time. But you can only pull the earnings out of a Roth IRA after age 59 1/2 and after owning the account for at least five years. Withdrawing that money earlier can trigger taxes and an 10% early withdrawal penalty. However, there are many exceptions.
If you've had your Roth IRA for more than five years, you can withdraw your contributions and earnings without taxes or penalties at any time when you're over 59 ½.
The Roth IRA five-year rule says you cannot withdraw earnings tax-free until it's been at least five years since you first contributed to a Roth IRA account. This five-year rule applies to everyone who contributes to a Roth IRA, whether they're 59 ½ or 105 years old.
Key Takeaways
One key disadvantage: Roth IRA contributions are made with after-tax money, meaning that there's no tax deduction in the year of the contribution. Another drawback is that withdrawals of account earnings must not be made until at least five years have passed since the first contribution.
The five-year rule after your first contribution
The first five-year rule sounds simple enough: In order to avoid taxes on distributions from your Roth IRA, you must not take money out until five years after your first contribution.
To effectively borrow from your Roth IRA, you would need to have already contributed earlier in that year, withdrawn that contribution, and paid it back before tax time the following year. There is no formal “loan” program with a Roth IRA as there is with a 401(k) plan.
You may be able to use your Roth IRA to fund a home purchase. Here are the pros and cons. You can withdraw your direct contributions to a Roth IRA at any time for any reason. Additionally, if you meet certain requirements, up to $10,000 in earnings can be used toward the purchase of a home without taxes or penalties.
The 5-year rule applies to taking distributions from an inherited IRA. To withdraw earnings from an inherited IRA, the account must have been opened for a minimum of five years at the time of death of the original account holder.
Key Takeaways. If you leave your job, you can still maintain your Roth 401(k) account with your old employer. Under some circumstances, you can transfer your Roth 401(k) to a new one with your new employer. You can also choose to roll over your Roth 401(k) into a Roth IRA.
You can start making qualified distributions from a Roth 401(k) once you've satisfied two conditions: You're age 59 ½ or older and you've met the five-year rule. This rule states that you must have made your first contribution to the account at least five years before making your first withdrawal.
In general: Roth 401(k) rules allow you to make "qualified," or penalty-free, withdrawals of both contributions and gains any time after age 59 1/2 as long as your first contribution to your account was at least five tax years earlier.
A Roth IRA increases its value over time by compounding interest. Whenever investments earn interest or dividends, that amount gets added to the account balance. Account owners then earn interest on the additional interest and dividends, a process that continues over and over.
The Bottom Line
If you have earned income and meet the income limits, a Roth IRA can be an excellent tool for retirement savings. Once you put money into a Roth, you're done paying taxes on it, as long as you follow the withdrawal rules.
In many cases, a Roth IRA can be a better choice than a 401(k) retirement plan, as it offers a flexible investment vehicle with greater tax benefits—especially if you think you'll be in a higher tax bracket later on.
The IRS rules permit you to close out your Roth IRA any time, but it discourages early withdrawals with additional taxes and penalties.
Roth IRA Withdrawal Rules
“As long as your Roth IRA has been established for at least five years, you can use that money penalty-free for a home down payment as long as it qualifies as a first-time home purchase,” Levine says.
You can cash out your 401(k), but that may incur an early withdrawal penalty, and you will have to pay taxes on the full amount.
After you become 59 ½ years old, you can take your money out without needing to pay an early withdrawal penalty. You can choose a traditional or a Roth 401(k) plan. Traditional 401(k)s offer tax-deferred savings, but you'll still have to pay taxes when you take the money out.
The Five-Year Rule For Income Taxes
The first five-year rule determines whether a distribution of earnings passes one of the tests to be qualified and therefore free of income taxes. Since only after-tax money is contributed or rolled over to a Roth IRA, a withdrawal of the principal is free of income taxes.
If you withdraw contributions before the five-year period is over, you might have to pay a 10% Roth IRA early withdrawal penalty. This is a penalty on the entire distribution. You usually pay the 10% penalty on the amount you converted. A separate five-year period applies to each conversion.
You can put funds back into a Roth IRA after you have withdrawn them, but only if you follow very specific rules. These rules include returning the funds within 60 days, which would be considered a rollover. Rollovers are only permitted once per year.
If you open an IRA, you can take money out whenever you'd like, for any reason, as long as your funds last. Most employer-sponsored plans require you to demonstrate and immediate and heavy financial need to qualify for pre-retirement withdrawals.