Required Minimum Distribution Rules: Age, Deadlines, Penalties

Required minimum distributions force you to withdraw — and pay income tax on — a percentage of your tax-deferred retirement accounts each year, starting at age 73 or 75 depending on your birth year. The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 raised the starting age, cut the penalty for missed distributions from 50% to 25%, and eliminated RMDs from Roth 401(k) accounts entirely. Most online RMD content still references the old starting age of 70½ or 72 and the old 50% penalty. This is the current ruleset as of 2026 — and the strategies that reduce how much the IRS takes from your tax-deferred accounts.

When Required Minimum Distributions Start

Your RMD start age depends on when you were born. Under SECURE 2.0 (Section 107), RMDs begin at age 73 if you were born between 1951 and 1959, and at age 75 if you were born in 1960 or later. These ages replaced the previous threshold of 72 set by the original SECURE Act in 2019, which itself replaced the longstanding 70½ rule. If you turned 72 before 2023, your RMDs already started under the prior law.

The shift from 70½ to 75 across three pieces of legislation created a 4.5-year expansion of the pre-RMD window. For someone born in 1965, RMDs don't begin until 2040 — a potential 15-to-20-year gap between early retirement and the first forced distribution. That gap is the single most valuable tax-planning window available to most retirees.

Rule	Before 2020	SECURE Act (2020–2022)	SECURE 2.0 (2023+)
RMD start age	70½	72	73 (born 1951–59) / 75 (born 1960+)
Missed RMD penalty	50%	50%	25% (10% if corrected)
Roth 401(k) RMDs	Required	Required	Eliminated (2024+)
QCD annual limit	$100,000 (fixed)	$100,000 (fixed)	Indexed to inflation

How Your RMD Is Calculated

Your RMD equals your account balance as of December 31 of the prior year, divided by the Uniform Lifetime Table factor for your current age. The formula applies to each tax-deferred account individually: Traditional IRAs, SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s, and 457(b) plans. For a full factor table and step-by-step walkthrough, see RMD Calculator: Required Minimum Distributions Explained.

The Uniform Lifetime Table (Table III, IRS Publication 590-B) was updated in 2022 with longer life expectancy assumptions, producing smaller RMDs at every age compared to the pre-2022 table.

Age	Factor	RMD %	Age	Factor	RMD %
73	26.5	3.77%	80	20.2	4.95%
74	25.5	3.92%	85	16.0	6.25%
75	24.6	4.07%	90	12.2	8.20%
77	22.9	4.37%	95	8.9	11.24%

The Joint Life Table exception: If your sole beneficiary is your spouse and they are more than 10 years younger than you, you use Table II (Joint Life and Last Survivor Expectancy) instead of the Uniform Lifetime Table. This produces a larger divisor and a smaller RMD. An 80-year-old with a 68-year-old spouse uses a Joint Life Table factor of approximately 23.1 instead of the Uniform Lifetime Table's 20.2 — reducing the RMD by about 12%.

Worked Example

David, age 75, has a Traditional IRA worth $800,000 as of December 31, 2025. His wife, also 75, is the sole beneficiary.

• Prior-year balance: $800,000
• Uniform Lifetime Table factor at age 75: 24.6
• RMD: $800,000 ÷ 24.6 = $32,520

David must withdraw at least $32,520 by December 31, 2026. The full amount is taxed as ordinary income. He can withdraw more, but not less. If David had other Traditional IRAs, he would calculate each IRA's RMD separately but could satisfy the total by withdrawing from any one or combination of his IRAs. If he also had a 401(k), that plan's RMD must come from the 401(k) itself — no cross-plan aggregation.

The April 1 First-Year Trap

Your first RMD can be delayed until April 1 of the year after you reach your RMD age — not December 31 like every subsequent year. This sounds like a benefit. It is a trap for most people.

Consider Maria, born in 1953, who turns 73 in 2026. Her Traditional IRA balance is $1,000,000.

Option A — First RMD by December 31, 2026:

• 2026 RMD: $1,000,000 ÷ 26.5 = $37,736
• 2027 RMD: Calculated on the 2026 year-end balance, due December 31, 2027
• One RMD per tax year

Option B — Delay first RMD to April 1, 2027:

• First RMD (for 2026): $37,736, taken by April 1, 2027
• Second RMD (for 2027): ~$37,700, due by December 31, 2027
• 2027 RMD income: ~$75,400

At $75,400 in RMD income alone — before Social Security or other sources — Maria has consumed her entire standard deduction ($16,550 single, age 65+, 2025) plus the full 10% bracket ($11,925) and a large portion of the 12% bracket. Add Social Security benefits, and the RMDs push provisional income past the thresholds where 50–85% of benefits become taxable. The cascading tax cost of doubling up typically exceeds any benefit from the three-month deferral.

The April 1 delay makes sense only in narrow circumstances: if your income was unusually high in the year you reached RMD age and you expect significantly lower income the following year.

RMD Rules by Account Type

Different retirement accounts follow different RMD rules. The account type determines when distributions start, whether you can aggregate RMDs, and whether the still-working exception applies.

Account Type	Subject to RMDs	Can Aggregate	Still-Working Exception
Traditional IRA	Yes, at 73/75	Yes — across all IRAs	No
SEP IRA	Yes, at 73/75	Yes — with Traditional IRAs	No
SIMPLE IRA	Yes, at 73/75	Yes — with Traditional IRAs	No
401(k)	Yes, at 73/75	No — each plan separately	Yes
403(b)	Yes, at 73/75	Yes — across 403(b)s only	Yes
Roth IRA	No	N/A	N/A
Roth 401(k)	No (since 2024)	N/A	N/A

The still-working exception applies to your current employer's plan if you're still employed there and own less than 5% of the company. A 74-year-old still working at a company with a $600,000 401(k) balance can delay RMDs from that plan until retirement. Their Traditional IRA RMDs still begin on schedule — the exception does not extend to IRAs or plans from former employers.

Roth 401(k)s were the odd case: despite holding after-tax Roth contributions, they followed the same RMD rules as Traditional 401(k)s. SECURE 2.0 Section 325 eliminated Roth 401(k) RMDs starting in 2024, aligning them with Roth IRA treatment. If you previously rolled a Roth 401(k) to a Roth IRA to avoid RMDs, that rollover is no longer necessary — though it caused no harm.

For inherited IRA distribution rules — including the 10-year rule and eligible designated beneficiary exceptions — the requirements diverge significantly from lifetime RMD rules.

Penalties for Missing an RMD

SECURE 2.0 Section 302 reduced the excise tax on missed RMDs from 50% to 25% of the shortfall — the amount you should have withdrawn but didn't. You report and pay this penalty through IRS Form 5329, filed with your tax return for the year the RMD was due.

The penalty drops further to 10% if you correct the error during the correction window: take the missed distribution and file Form 5329 within two tax years. On a $30,000 missed RMD, the difference is $7,500 (25% standard penalty) versus $3,000 (10% corrected penalty).

The IRS does not send RMD reminders. Your custodian (Fidelity, Schwab, Vanguard) will typically calculate your annual RMD and send a notice, but the legal obligation is yours. Set a calendar reminder for October or November — this gives you time to take the distribution and correct any errors before the December 31 deadline.

Strategies to Reduce RMD Tax Impact

RMDs are a compliance requirement, but the tax burden they create is not fixed. The gap between retirement and your RMD start age is the window to shrink the tax-deferred balance that drives future forced distributions. Once RMDs begin, your options narrow — but effective strategies remain.

Roth Conversions During the Gap Years

Every dollar converted from a Traditional IRA to a Roth before age 73 reduces the balance that generates future RMDs. Roth IRAs have no lifetime RMDs, so converted dollars grow tax-free with no forced withdrawals. A married couple filing jointly with no other income in 2025 can convert up to $126,950 while staying within the 10% and 12% federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2024-40), paying an effective federal rate of approximately 8.8%. The same dollars withdrawn as RMDs years later — stacked on top of Social Security — would face the 22% bracket or higher.

The Roth conversion ladder strategy is particularly effective for early retirees who have a 10-to-20-year gap before RMDs begin. Each $100,000 converted eliminates $3,774 in annual forced taxable income at age 73 ($100,000 ÷ 26.5). Over 20+ years of RMDs, that single conversion prevents $75,000–$100,000 in forced taxable withdrawals — plus the cascading effect on Social Security taxation. CoastIQ's RMD Projection tool models how different annual conversion amounts change your RMD trajectory and lifetime tax bill across the full distribution period.

Qualified Charitable Distributions

After age 70½, you can direct up to $105,000 per year (2024 limit; indexed annually under SECURE 2.0 Section 307) from your Traditional IRA to a qualified charity. A QCD satisfies your RMD obligation dollar-for-dollar without the distribution appearing in your adjusted gross income. For someone who donates to charity regardless, this eliminates income tax on the donated amount entirely — more valuable than a separate charitable deduction, particularly for taxpayers who take the standard deduction.

Timing Income Sources Around RMDs

Delaying Social Security to age 70 while drawing down tax-deferred accounts reduces the income stack in your early RMD years. Once Social Security begins, RMDs push provisional income past the thresholds where 50–85% of benefits become taxable (single: $25,000/$34,000; MFJ: $32,000/$44,000 per IRC §86). Starting Social Security at 62 while also taking RMDs at 73 creates maximum taxable income overlap. Delaying Social Security to 70 and using the gap years for Roth conversions creates the opposite: lower combined income during the years when it matters most.

RMDs Signal Missed Optimization

A large RMD is not just a tax compliance event — it means the tax-deferred balance grew unchecked during years when low-bracket Roth conversions were available. Every $100,000 left in a Traditional IRA at age 73 generates $3,774 in forced taxable income that year, rising annually as the Uniform Lifetime Table factor shrinks. For retirees with $1 million or more in tax-deferred accounts, the cumulative cost of skipping gap-year conversions can exceed $100,000 in additional lifetime taxes. The RMD rules didn't have to produce that outcome. Proactive tax planning during the gap years is what prevents it.

Frequently Asked Questions

At what age do required minimum distributions start?

Under SECURE 2.0, RMDs begin at age 73 for anyone born between 1951 and 1959, and at age 75 for anyone born in 1960 or later. Your first RMD is due by April 1 of the year after you reach the applicable age — but taking that first RMD by December 31 instead avoids a double-distribution year. Before SECURE 2.0, the starting age was 72 (SECURE Act, 2020–2022) and before that, 70½. If you're still working and don't own more than 5% of your employer, you can delay 401(k) RMDs from that employer's plan until retirement.

What is the required minimum distribution table for 2026?

The 2026 RMD uses the Uniform Lifetime Table (Table III) from IRS Publication 590-B, updated in 2022. Key distribution periods by age: 73 = 26.5 (3.77%), 75 = 24.6 (4.07%), 77 = 22.9 (4.37%), 80 = 20.2 (4.95%), 85 = 16.0 (6.25%), 90 = 12.2 (8.20%). Divide your December 31 prior-year balance by the distribution period for your age. If your spouse is the sole beneficiary and more than 10 years younger, use the Joint Life Table instead — it produces a smaller RMD.

Do required minimum distributions apply to 401(k) plans?

Yes. Traditional 401(k), 403(b), 457(b), and TSP accounts are all subject to RMDs at age 73 or 75. Roth 401(k) accounts were subject to RMDs until 2024, when SECURE 2.0 eliminated the requirement — Roth 401(k) funds are now RMD-free like Roth IRAs. If you're still working at the company sponsoring the 401(k) and own less than 5% of the business, you can delay RMDs from that specific plan until you retire. This exception does not apply to IRAs or plans from former employers.

What is the penalty for not taking a required minimum distribution?

SECURE 2.0 reduced the penalty from 50% to 25% of the amount you should have withdrawn but didn't. If you correct the shortfall within the IRS correction window (generally within two tax years), the penalty drops further to 10%. On a missed $20,000 RMD, that's $5,000 at the standard rate or $2,000 if corrected promptly. Use IRS Form 5329 to report the missed RMD and request a penalty waiver if you have reasonable cause.

Do Roth IRAs have required minimum distributions?

No. Roth IRAs are completely exempt from RMDs during the original owner's lifetime — one of their most significant advantages for estate planning and tax management. Inherited Roth IRAs are subject to the SECURE Act's 10-year distribution rule for most non-spouse beneficiaries. Roth 401(k) accounts were subject to RMDs until 2024; SECURE 2.0 eliminated Roth 401(k) RMDs starting that year, aligning them with Roth IRAs.

What strategies can minimize the tax impact of required minimum distributions?

The top strategies: (1) Roth conversions during the gap years between retirement and age 73, reducing the Traditional IRA balance before RMDs begin. (2) Qualified Charitable Distributions after age 70½, which satisfy RMDs without counting as taxable income — up to $105,000 per year (2024 limit, indexed annually). (3) Timing income sources around RMDs — delaying Social Security reduces combined taxable income in early RMD years. (4) Taking the first RMD by December 31 instead of deferring to April 1, avoiding a double-distribution year that compounds bracket creep.