If you want to make a Trust the beneficiary of your Individual Retirement Account (IRA) you'll want to make certain that it is a qualified trust so the trust can take advantage of the life expectancy option. There are four principal requirements that insure the validity of a trust. - It must be a valid trust under state law. - The trust must become irrevocable upon the death of the owner of the retirement account (you). - The beneficiaries of the trust must be clearly identifiable. - The IRA trustee or custodian of the trust must have a complete copy of the trust agreement, along with any amendments that may have been made. If all of these conditions have been met, then the life expectancy option, based on the life expectancy of the oldest beneficiary of the trust, can be used in making distributions to all of the trust beneficiaries.

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