The IRA rollover is a distribution which is free of tax and that facilitates multiple retirement accounts.
So if over your lifetime you worked at different places that all offered some retirement contributes a rollover IRA will allow you to have all of these in one account.
You can also include contributions from a 401K, delayed reimbursement plans and an annual tax sheltered plan.
If you need to take money from one financial institution to another there is more than way to go about it.
You can either do a transfer or a rollover.
A rollover is easier to do.
Here are some IRA rollover rules.
The IRA rollover rules as it pertains to withdrawals for a rollover IRA are just the same as the rules for a regular IRA.
The contributions and earnings are taxed only when withdrawn after age 59 and withdrawals before this age are eligible to be taxed and are subject to a 10% tax penalty fee if taken before this age.
Be aware that any withdrawals from a rollover IRA must commence by the year after you reach 70.
Here are other general IRA Rollover Rules;

• The 60 Day Rollover Rule - this states that you will have 60 days to move the contribution after you have received the withdrawal from your IRA or from an employer's 401k plan or 403b plan.
   There is an exception if you are able to show that you are suffering from hardships that are not in your control.
  If during the deposit ever becomes frozen during this 60 day period you will qualify for an extension.
  There are 2 rules that are made just for this and they deal with deposits that are frozen and deposits held by bankrupt banks.
  These allow for the time that the money is inaccessible to to count toward the period of 60 days.
  
• Rollover Withholding - if you are paid directly for a qualified rollover, you may have to pay a 20% withholding fee on the distribution.
  This rule will apply if you are simply rolling over into a regular IRA.
    If you would like to avoid this tax penalty, you will have to move 100% of the cash withdrawn into another account.
  

A rollover IRA is best used when you have multiple sources for your pension contributions.
It allows you to easily have all the contributions in one account.
The general rules of a rollover IRA are pretty much the same as a regular IRA with the early distribution penalty of 10% if you withdraw before the age of 59.
There are other IRA rollover rules, however, that are specific to a rollover IRA and are not just geared towards withdrawal.
One such rule is the 60 day roll over rule that requires for you to make the payment within 60 days of receiving it form the employer or from a regular IRA.
There is an exception to this rule in that if the amount is frozen, the time that it is frozen for will not be included in the 60 day period.