The Pension Protection Act of 2006 first allowed taxpayers age 70½ and older to make tax-free charitable donations directly from their IRAs. By making a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) from an IRA directly to a qualified charitable organization, older IRA owners were allowed to exclude up to $100,000 annually from gross income. These gifts, also known as "charitable IRA rollovers," would otherwise be taxable IRA distributions.

Background Roth IRAs, created in 1997 as part of the Taxpayer Relief Act, represented an entirely new savings opportunity the ability to make after tax contributions that could, if certain conditions were met, grow entirely free of federal income taxes.

In general, a rollover is the movement of funds from one retirement savings vehicle to another. You may want, or need, to make a rollover for any number of reasons--your employment situation has changed, you want to switch investments, or you've received death benefits from your spouse's retirement plan. There are two possible ways that retirement funds can be rolled over--the 60-day rollover and the trustee-to-trustee transfer.

Required minimum distributions are the amounts that you must withdraw each year from your traditional IRA, employer sponsored retirement plan, or tax sheltered annuity. (Lifetime minimum distributions are not required from Roth IRAs, but your beneficiaries generally must begin taking

Yes, but the taxable portion of your distribution may be subject to a 10 percent penalty for early withdrawal if you're not yet age 59½. If you are 59½ or older and take money from your traditional IRA, you will

Can I take money from my IRA without any penalty?

If you don't want the money, you can always disclaim (refuse to accept) the inherited IRA or plan funds. But if you're like most people, you will want the money. Your first thought may be to take a lump-sum distribution, but that's usually not the best idea. Although a lump sum provides you with cash to meet expenses or invest elsewhere, it can also result in a huge income tax bill (in most cases, due all in one year). A lump-sum distribution also removes the funds from a tax-deferred environment. Fortunately, you probably have other alternatives.

If you've lost your job, or are changing jobs, you may be wondering what to do with your 401(k) plan account. It's important to understand your options.

The two major types of IRAs are traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs. Both allow you to contribute as much as $5,500 in 2016 (unchanged from 2015). You must have at least as much taxable compensation as the amount of your IRA contribution. But if you are married filing jointly, your spouse can also contribute to an IRA, even if he or she has little or no taxable compensation, as long as your combined compensation is at least equal to your total contributions. The law also allows taxpayers age 50 and older to make additional "catch-up" contributions. These folks can contribute up to $6,500 in 2016 (unchanged from 2015).

You're about to receive a distribution from your 401(k) plan, and you're considering a rollover to a traditional IRA. While these transactions are normally straightforward and trouble free, there are some pitfalls you'll want to avoid.

Here's the dilemma You have a traditional 401(k) that contains both after tax and pre tax dollars. You'd like to receive a distribution from the plan and convert only the after tax dollars to a Roth IRA. By rolling over

When you change jobs, you need to decide what to do with the money in your 401(k) plan. Should you leave it where it is, or take it with you? Should you roll the money over into an IRA or

August, 2014Recently, the IRS has announced a new rule that limits the number of individual retirement account (IRA) rollovers that an individual may complete during any 12 month period. One method used by individuals to transfer funds tax free between

As Canandaigua National Bank & Trust’s Certified IRA Specialist, I am constantly researching topics and reading articles and various blogs related to IRAs. One recent blog I read is an excellent summary of 10 different rules related to IRAs that you

If you’re entitled to a distribution from your 401(k) plan (for example, because you’ve left your job, or you’ve reached age 59½), and it’s rollover eligible, you may be faced with a choice. Should you take the distribution and roll