April 27, 2021
Do You Have IRA Customers?
If so, Form 5498 will be mailed to your customers on June 30.
Due to the extended filing deadline this year of May 17th, National Life is not required to mail Form 5498 to customers until June 30, 2021.
Items to Note:
- We mail the form to the client only if they have a contribution, rollover, re-characterization, or conversion for the tax year.
- This form is for Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, Simple IRA, and SEP IRA policies only.
- The form is for information purposes only. We are required to report to the IRS. The client does not need to send to the IRS; they need to file it with their tax records for the year.
- If the 5498 has the Fair Market Value in Box 5 only and no other box is completed, then the form was not mailed as this value was reported to the client in January on the FMV letter.
Frequently Asked Questions from Clients
The IRS requires National Life Group as an IRA custodian to report contributions, rollovers, conversions and recharacterizations received in a traditional, Roth, SEP or SIMPLE IRA. Form 5498 also reports the fair market value of your IRA account as of Dec. 31 to the IRS.
National Life Group sends out a Form 5498 only if one or more of the following activities occurred in your retirement account during the tax year:
- A traditional, Roth, SEP or SIMPLE IRA contribution
- A rollover
- A recharacterization
- A conversion
- The client passed away (in which case Form 5498 is mailed to the beneficiary)
If none of this activity occurred on the account, a Form 5498 is generated to the IRS reporting the Fair Market Value and whether a required minimum distribution (RMD) is required; however, the form will not be sent to the client as this information was reported to them in January.
Form 5498 is for informational purposes only. You are not required to file it with your tax return; however, you may want to review it for accuracy and provide a copy to your tax preparer.
As custodian for your retirement account, National Life Group is required to provide each year’s Form 5498 by May 31 of the following calendar year. This allows time to record any contributions from the previous year made to a traditional or Roth IRA up to the April 15 income tax return filing deadline.
Reporting IRA rollover contributions to you and the IRS on Form 5498 confirms the portion of the distribution from your previous IRA or qualified employer plan that you have invested in an IRA. If any portion of a distribution from a previous IRA or qualified employer plan is not rolled over into another IRA or qualified plan within 60 days from the date of the distribution, that portion of the distribution is considered taxable.
