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Personal Finance and Savings

What is an IRA? Rules and Benefits

Find out about the different kinds of IRAs, their rules, and how they can help your retirement-saving plans.

Here’s what you need to know:

An IRA is an individual retirement arrangement that allows you to save money for retirement
Earnings on IRA contributions are not taxed as they accumulate
There are two types of IRAs – the Roth and the Traditional
The Traditional IRA allows you to deduct your contribution from your taxes now and pay taxes on your distributions later
The Roth IRA is a special IRA where you pay taxes on your contributions now and your distributions are tax-free

How can I open an IRA?

You may open an IRA through your bank, investment firm, or other financial advisor. You can discuss with them the best option for you, how much money you have to start your IRA, and other institutional requirements to maintain your IRA.

How long can I contribute to my IRA?

You must have been working, either for someone or as a self-employed taxpayer, and have earned income to make a contribution to any type of IRA. You can contribute to a Roth or traditional IRA as long as you are still working.

Traditional vs. Roth IRA – what’s the difference?

	Traditional	Roth
Max annual contribution?	$6,000; $7,000 if 50 or older	$6,000; $7,000 if 50 or older
Contributions taxed?	Can be either taxed or deducted	Taxed
Earnings Taxed?	Yes – on distribution	No
Distributions Taxed?	Some or all based on deductible contributions	No
When Can I Withdraw?	Any time, but if before age 59 ½ there is a penalty	Any time, but if before age 59 ½ there is a penalty
Must I Withdraw?	Yes, starting at age 72	No

You can take penalty-free distributions from your IRA at age 59 ½. Traditional IRA distributions must begin at age 72.

When can I start taking money out of my IRA?

You can withdraw money from your IRA at any time, however, there may be a penalty if you withdraw the money prior to age 59 ½. Once you reach age 59 ½, you can start taking distributions from your IRA without any penalty. If you have a traditional IRA you must start taking distributions by age 72. There is no required age to start taking distributions from a Roth IRA.

Are there penalties for withdrawing money early?

There is a 10% additional tax on withdrawals prior to age 59 ½ from either type of IRA and distributions from a Roth IRA prior to the fifth year of the account.

Can I combine my pension plan with my IRA?

You can rollover your retirement plan or your pension into an IRA once you leave the company providing the plan. This allows you to gain control over your own investments and for those in a pension plan, it allows you to control how much money you want to withdraw and when you’d like to do it.

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