The Roth IRA withdrawal rules is a set of rules put down by congress to govern the withdrawal process of an Roth IRA. The Roth IRA was designed with an attractive tax structure and with no age requirements to encourage people to prepare for retirement while young. Individuals can withdraw their funds anytime but there are certain conditions they must meet upon withdrawal before it can be determined that their withdrawal will have no imposed Roth IRA Withdrawal Penalty.
Roth IRA withdrawal rules dictate that while users can withdraw their contributions to a Roth IRA anytime without incurring any penalties or taxes, withdrawing earnings will only be tax free and penalty free provided the individual meets certain guidelines. Withdrawing your earnings tax and penalty free requires that you must first meet the qualifying reasons for disbursement and then meet the prescribed 5 year rule for your contributions. Not meeting any of the two requirements will mean your withdrawn earnings will not be free from taxes and penalties. The list of qualifying reasons include but are not limited to having and age of at least 59 and one half years, having a disability recognized by the state and as part of the assets given to your heirs on the event of your death. Even if an individual has a qualified reason, they still have to satisfy the 5 year rule for their contributions in order to have their withdrawal declared tax free and penalty free. If they don’t meet the 5 year rule, their withdrawal will be treated as a taxable income even if they have a qualified reason. Not having a qualified reason at all will automatically make their withdrawal a taxable income and if they do not meet the penalty exemption requirements, their withdrawal will be subject to a 10% Roth IRA Withdrawal Penalty on top of the income tax.