Roth 401k to Roth IRA

[BlueLesPaul]

I rolled over my wife's Roth 401k into a traditional and a Roth IRA (Her contributions were post tax, employer's contribution were pre-tax).  I know that you can treat income rolled over from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA as a contribution after 5 years, but is there any rule of treating money rolled over from a Roth 401k into a Roth IRA as a contribution?  Please cite IRS regs if possible.

P.S. I'm not sure if it matters, but my wife did not have a Roth IRA prior to rolling over the Roth 401k

[TN_Steve]

Here is a good overview on the five year rules, which appears to the area that you are concerned with.  I am not sure which of the five year rules you are referring to in your question (and things differ according to your wife's age), but Kitces covers both in a fairly understandable manner, and cites relevant regs and code provisions. 

http://www.kitces.com/blog/understanding-the-two-5-year-rules-for-roth-ira-contributions-and-conversions/

[boarder42]

i believe a Roth 401k is just like a Roth IRA ... so after you roll it over any contributions that were made at least 5 years ago are removable tax free.  Maybe Cheddar will weigh in. 

[TN_Steve]

i believe a Roth 401k is just like a Roth IRA ... so after you roll it over any contributions that were made at least 5 years ago are removable tax free.  Maybe Cheddar will weigh in.

Boarder, that would make sense (and was my assumption before researching it a couple years ago), but unfortunately, we are talking about US tax laws.....

From the Kitces blog link:

In the case of rollovers from a Roth 401(k), any years in the Roth 401(k) are not added to the years for the Roth IRA; thus, if the individual did not otherwise have a Roth IRA already, the rollover from a Roth 401(k) begins a new 5-year period, even if the Roth 401(k) itself had already satisfied the 5-year requirement (per Treasury Regulation 1.408A-10, Q&A-4(a)).

[BlueLesPaul]

That is what I need.  Thanks TN_Steve!

[boarder42]

well isnt that dumb.  leave it to the govt to throw common sense out the window when making laws.