Under current federal rules, most people must begin pulling money out of traditional IRAs and workplace retirement plans in the year they turn 73, and a missed withdrawal can cost 25% of the amount that should have come out. Both figures come from the IRS’s required minimum distributions FAQ, reviewed in 2026. That penalty is lower than the 50% it used to be, but it is still one of the most expensive mistakes a retiree can make, and it is easy to avoid once you know the calendar.
Key ages and deadlines
| Situation | When RMDs start | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Born 1951 through 1959 | Year you turn 73 | First RMD by April 1 of the following year; later RMDs by December 31 |
| Born 1960 or later | Year you turn 75 (under SECURE 2.0) | Same pattern: April 1 for the first, December 31 after that |
| Still working, in your current employer’s plan, own less than 5% of the company | Year you retire, if the plan allows the delay | April 1 of the year after you retire |
| Traditional, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs | RMD age, even if still working | April 1 / December 31 as above |
| Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)/403(b) accounts | No RMDs during the owner’s lifetime | Not applicable |
| Missed RMD | 25% excise tax on the shortfall | Reduced to 10% if corrected within two years |
Which accounts are covered
RMDs apply to tax-deferred accounts: traditional IRAs, SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s, 457(b)s and profit-sharing plans. The government gave you a tax break when the money went in, and RMDs make sure it eventually gets taxed.
Roth IRAs have never required lifetime withdrawals. Since 2024, designated Roth accounts inside 401(k) and 403(b) plans are also exempt while the owner is alive, which removed the old reason to roll Roth 401(k) money into a Roth IRA before retirement.
How to calculate your RMD
The formula is simple: take the account balance on December 31 of the previous year and divide it by a life-expectancy factor from the IRS tables in Publication 590-B.
Most people use the Uniform Lifetime Table. The exception is an account owner whose spouse is the sole beneficiary and more than 10 years younger; that person uses the Joint and Last Survivor Table, which produces smaller withdrawals.
A hypothetical example
A retiree turns 73 in 2026. Her traditional IRA was worth $500,000 on December 31, 2025. The Uniform Lifetime Table factor at age 73 is 26.5.
$500,000 ÷ 26.5 = $18,868 due for 2026.
Each year the factor shrinks, so the percentage you must withdraw rises. At 80 the factor is 20.2, about 5% of the balance; by 90 it is 12.2, roughly 8%.
Your custodian will often calculate the figure for you, but the IRS holds you responsible if it is wrong.
Combining accounts: what you can and cannot do
- IRAs: calculate an RMD for each traditional IRA separately, then take the combined total from any one or more of them.
- 403(b) accounts: same idea; you can total them and take the sum from any of your 403(b)s.
- 401(k)s and 457(b)s: each plan’s RMD must come out of that plan. You cannot satisfy a 401(k) RMD with an IRA withdrawal, or vice versa.
Having several old 401(k)s means several separate withdrawals to track. Consolidating them before RMD age, as covered in our 401(k) rollover guide, can simplify things, though moving money out of a current employer’s plan may give up the still-working delay.
The April 1 trap
You are allowed to push your first RMD to April 1 of the year after you reach RMD age. It sounds like free breathing room. The catch: your second RMD is still due December 31 of that same year. Two distributions in one tax year can push you into a higher bracket, raise the taxable portion of your Social Security and increase Medicare premiums two years later through IRMAA surcharges.
Delaying makes sense mainly if your income in the first RMD year is unusually high, for example because you worked part of it, and will drop the next year.
If you miss an RMD
- Take the missed amount as soon as you notice.
- File Form 5329 with your return for the year the RMD was missed.
- If the shortfall was due to a reasonable error, attach a letter of explanation and request a waiver. The IRS can waive the excise tax entirely.
- If no waiver applies, correcting within the two-year window cuts the tax from 25% to 10%.
Note that withdrawing more than required in one year does not count toward the next year’s RMD.
Inherited accounts follow different rules
A surviving spouse can generally treat an inherited IRA as their own and follow their own RMD schedule. Most other beneficiaries who inherited after 2019 must empty the account by the end of the tenth year after the owner’s death. If the original owner had already started RMDs, those beneficiaries must also take annual withdrawals in years one through nine. The IRS waived penalties for missed annual amounts through 2024, but enforcement began in 2025.
Eligible designated beneficiaries, including minor children of the owner, disabled or chronically ill beneficiaries and people not more than 10 years younger than the owner, can still stretch withdrawals over their life expectancy.
Planning ahead
The best RMD strategies start years before the first withdrawal.
- Roth conversions in your 60s. Converting part of a traditional IRA to a Roth in lower-income years, often between retirement and Social Security, shrinks future RMDs. You pay tax on the converted amount now.
- Qualified charitable distributions. From age 70½, you can send up to $111,000 in 2026 directly from an IRA to a qualifying charity. The gift counts toward your RMD and is excluded from taxable income, which beats taking the withdrawal and then deducting the donation.
- Plan the cash. Many retirees take RMDs in monthly installments or automate a December withdrawal. If you don’t need the money, you can reinvest it in a taxable account; parking it in TIPS or a broad index fund keeps it working.
- Withhold taxes from the distribution. Asking the custodian to withhold federal tax from your RMD can replace quarterly estimated payments.
Frequently asked questions
Can I take my RMD in stock instead of cash?
Yes. You can transfer shares in kind from an IRA to a taxable account. The fair market value on the transfer date counts toward your RMD and is taxed as ordinary income.
Does a Roth conversion satisfy my RMD?
No. Once you reach RMD age, you must take that year’s RMD first. Only amounts above it can be converted.
Do RMDs apply to an inherited Roth IRA?
Beneficiaries other than a spouse are subject to the 10-year rule, but because the original owner had no lifetime RMDs, annual withdrawals in years one through nine are generally not required. Distributions are usually tax-free.
What if I’m still working at 73 and have an IRA and a 401(k)?
The still-working exception may apply to your current employer’s 401(k), but not to IRAs or old employers’ plans. Those require RMDs on the normal schedule.
