A Roth IRA withdrawal is a tax-free qualified distribution only when two things are both true. IRS Publication 590-B says it must be made ① after the 5-year period beginning with the first tax year for which a contribution was made to a Roth IRA set up for you, and ② on or after age 59½, because you are disabled, to a beneficiary or estate after death, or for a first home (up to a $10,000 lifetime limit). If it isn’t qualified, money comes out in a set order — regular contributions, then conversion and rollover contributions, then earnings — and each conversion has its own 5-year period, inside which a 10% additional tax may apply. Here are both five-year clocks, the ordering rules and a checker.
1. Qualified = 5 years from the first contribution year + 59½, disability, death or first home — both, and it’s tax-free.
2. Not qualified? Regular contributions come out first — within them, no tax and no 10%.
3. Each conversion has its own 5 years from 1 January of the conversion year; the taxed part withdrawn sooner can owe 10%.
Checker
Updates as you type. Assumes a calendar tax year, one conversion, and no first-home distribution. Age 59½ is your birth date plus 59 years and 6 months (month-end if that day doesn’t exist) — our count. Other 10% exceptions (medical, SEPP and so on) are not applied.
Qualified distributions — Pub 590-B
| Type | What the source says | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| Test 1 | After the 5-year period beginning with the first tax year for which a contribution was made to a Roth IRA set up for you | By tax year, not account-opening date |
| Test 2 — age | On or after the date you reach 59½ | Date count is ours (see below the checker) |
| Test 2 — disability | Made because you are disabled | Definition in chapter 1 |
| Test 2 — death | To a beneficiary or your estate after death | — |
| Test 2 — first home | Meets the First home exception, up to $10,000 lifetime | Not in the checker |
Two five-year clocks — Pub 590-B chapter 2
| Type | What the source says | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| Qualified-distribution clock | Begins with the first tax year of a contribution | For a calendar-year taxpayer, 1 January of that year; 2023 means met from 1 January 2028 (our count) |
| Conversion and rollover clock | Begins on the first day of the tax year of the conversion; separate for each | Not necessarily the same as the qualified clock |
| IRS example | A conversion on 25 February 2025 and a 2024 regular contribution the same day: conversion clock from 1 January 2025, contribution clock from 1 January 2024 | A prior-year contribution counts from the prior year |
| What owes 10% | Within the period, the part of the conversion you had to include in income (recapture amount), and earnings | Due in the year of the withdrawal even though income tax was paid earlier |
Ordering rules for distributions
| Order | What Pub 590-B says | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Regular contributions | No income tax, no 10% |
| 2 | Conversion and rollover contributions, first-in first-out; within each, the taxable portion first, then the nontaxable portion | Taxable portion within 5 years: 10% |
| 3 | Earnings on contributions | If not qualified, income tax and 10% unless an exception applies |
| Aggregation | Add all Roth IRA distributions in the year; add the year’s regular contributions (including those made before the return due date) to undistributed prior ones | Several accounts are treated as one |
| Left out | Withdrawn excess contributions and their earnings; rollovers from other Roth IRAs | — |
For the 10% on non-qualified withdrawals, Pub 590-B lists exceptions including age 59½, total and permanent disability, certified terminal illness, being a beneficiary of a deceased owner, a first home, substantially equal payments, medical expenses over 7.5% of AGI and health premiums while unemployed. The checker applies only age, disability and death.
Five worked cases — our examples
Each uses $30,000 of regular contributions, a 2024 conversion of $20,000 (all taxed) and $8,000 of earnings (the last case has no conversion).
| Case (our example) | 10% additional tax | Worth noting (our sum) |
|---|---|---|
| Born 15 March 1975, first contribution 2023, $45,000 out on 5 November 2026 | $1,500 | $30,000 contributions + $15,000 conversion; conversion clock 1 January 2029 → 10% of $15,000; $0 taxable |
| Same person, same day, $58,000 | $2,800 | $20,000 conversion + $8,000 earnings = 10% of $28,000; $8,000 taxable |
| Same person, 1 June 2029, $58,000 | $800 | Conversion clock passed; 10% on $8,000 earnings. Five years from 2023 also passed, but under 59½, so not qualified |
| Born 31 August 1966, first contribution 2020, out on 1 March 2026 | $0 | 59½ = 28 February 2026 (no 31 February, so month-end); clock 1 January 2025 → qualified |
| Born 31 August 1966, first contribution 2024, $35,000 out on 5 November 2026, no conversion | $0 | Over 59½, so no 10%, but before the clock (1 January 2029): $5,000 of earnings taxable |
These US additional taxes apply to US taxpayers (citizens, green-card holders and US tax residents). If you live in Korea with a US account, the Korea–US tax treaty and Korean tax law also come in, so don’t rely on this arithmetic alone (our note).
Roth IRA income limits are in Roth IRA phase-out; the 10% on traditional IRAs and 401(k)s is in the early withdrawal penalty calculator.
Checklist
- ☐ The tax year of your first Roth IRA contribution (not the opening date)
- ☐ The date you reach 59½
- ☐ For each conversion or rollover, 5 years from 1 January of that year
- ☐ Total regular contributions so far (Form 8606 and records)
- ☐ If not qualified: contributions → conversions → earnings
Questions that remain
When exactly is 59½?
Pub 590-B only says “on or after the date you reach age 59½”. The checker adds 59 years and 6 months to your birth date (our count). Near the line, confirm with IRS material or a professional.
What about several conversions?
They come out earliest year first, each with its own five years. The checker takes one; split by year if you have more.
Is a Roth 401(k) the same?
We only set out Pub 590-B on Roth IRAs. Designated Roth account rules in employer plans weren’t read this time.
Sources
- IRS — Publication 590-B (2025), Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) — source (Page Last Reviewed or Updated 30 April 2026; checked 5 November 2026). Chapter 2: qualified distributions, the 10% additional tax, the conversion and rollover five years and the IRS example, other early distributions and the exception list, ordering rules, aggregation.
- IRS — Topic no. 557 — source (Page Last Reviewed or Updated 26 October 2026; checked 5 November 2026). The 10% applies to the part included in gross income, for traditional and Roth IRAs.
- Not read. Chapter 1 definitions of disability and first home in detail, Figure 2-1 text, Worksheet 2-1, chapter 3 on disasters, designated Roth account (401(k)) rules.
- What we added. The “worth noting” column and the Korean everyday gloss.
Where to check further
- Form 8606 — records of Roth contributions and conversions.
- A US tax professional (CPA or EA).
Written on 5 November 2026. The content is from the source; the glosses are ours.
