@JulieS
There was no 10 year rule in effect when this taxpayer inherited their IRA. Are you saying the 10 year rule retroactively applies to older Inherited IRAs? I did not know that.
However, even if the 10 year rule applies to older inherited IRAs, this taxpayer can still use the Life Expectancy method (see for example the 2018 version of IRS Pub 590-B, which was issued before the passage of the SECURE act.
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-prior/p590b--2018.pdf
@celestesings
The important question is what have you been doing for the past 10 years? If you have been taking withdrawals under the Life Expectancy method, you can keep doing that. The 10 year rule to close the account does not apply to you.
If you have taken no withdrawals at all, then you really need to see an accountant for help. You likely owe penalties for 2016-2019, because during those years you were supposed to be following either the Life Expectancy method or the old 5 year rule. You can't fix this problem by closing the account in 2022 and requesting a waiver of the penalty, because you have a much bigger problem than being 13 days late with a withdrawal.
