Estate Planning for IRAs and Qualified Plan Balances explains how estate tax, income tax, and excise tax are applied to IRAs and qualified retirement plans. This course explains how to identify mandatory distribution rules for deductible IRAs and qualified plans. It covers how a trust can qualify as a designated beneficiary of an IRA or qualified plan. This course also describes the payout requirements if the participant dies after or before RBD. This course explains the beneficiary options available and ways to distribute benefits for qualified plans and IRAs. It outlines the requirements for qualifying for the marital deduction when the spouse is the outright beneficiary of a qualified plan or IRA, and how to fund a credit shelter trust with proceeds from a qualified plan or IRA. This course also mentions how pecuniary bequests to charities should be funded. It discusses the use of charitable remainder trusts as the designated beneficiary of a qualified plan or IRA.

Audience: Trust officers with at least three years of personal trust experience who need a deeper understanding of technical trust concepts and how solutions work when applied to client needs.

Learning Objectives: After completing this course, students will be able to:

• Analyze the tax consequences and distribution options when 
• retirement plan benefits are payable to a trust
• Explain how retirement benefits are coordinated with the estate plan
• Examine the issues concerning making retirement plan benefits 
• payable to a credit shelter or marital trust
• Describe charitable gift opportunities for retirement plan balances