Understand RMD rules and their effects on retirement income and taxes.

For owners currently reaching RMD age, the general starting age is 73. Earlier birth cohorts began under earlier rules. The first IRA RMD can generally be delayed until April 1 of the following year; later annual RMDs are generally due December 31. Delaying the first withdrawal can put two RMDs in the same tax year.

Some current-employer plans allow a delay until retirement, subject to plan terms and ownership restrictions. That exception does not apply to traditional, SEP or SIMPLE IRAs. Inherited accounts follow different rules.

For many original-owner accounts, the annual RMD is the prior December 31 account balance divided by the applicable IRS distribution factor. The Uniform Lifetime Table commonly applies; a different table applies when a spouse more than ten years younger is the sole beneficiary. Inherited accounts and certain plan assets can require different methods.

RMDs are calculated separately for each account. Original-owner IRA RMDs can generally be totaled and withdrawn from one or more of those IRAs. Separate 401(k) plan RMDs generally must be taken from each plan. IRA withdrawals do not satisfy a 401(k) plan RMD.

RMD rules generally apply to traditional IRAs, SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs and tax-deferred employer plans such as 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b) plans. Designated Roth accounts have different lifetime treatment. Inherited-account rules depend on beneficiary status and other facts.

Roth IRA owners have no RMD requirement during their lifetime. Beginning in 2024, designated Roth accounts in employer plans also have no lifetime RMD requirement. Beneficiaries can still face distribution requirements after the owner dies; inherited Roth accounts are not automatically exempt.

Distributions of pre-tax retirement money are generally included in ordinary taxable income. Previously taxed contributions, qualified Roth distributions and qualifying charitable distributions can receive different treatment. State tax treatment can differ. An RMD is not necessarily fully taxable in every case.

Yes. An RMD is a minimum, rather than a maximum withdrawal. Amounts taken above one year’s RMD cannot be credited toward a future year’s requirement. Additional withdrawals can have tax and other financial consequences; this page does not recommend an amount.

A Roth conversion generally recognizes taxable income on the pre-tax amount converted. It can change future distribution requirements and tax treatment, but does not guarantee lower lifetime taxes or better results. Relevant concepts include tax rates, conversion taxes, other income, Medicare-related thresholds and qualified Roth withdrawal rules.

An RMD itself cannot be rolled over or converted to Roth. In an RMD year, the required amount must be satisfied before eligible remaining distributions are converted. Account aggregation and distribution-ordering rules matter.

A qualified charitable distribution (QCD) is generally an otherwise taxable distribution paid directly from an eligible IRA to an eligible charity by an owner age 70½ or older. A qualifying QCD can satisfy some or all of the year’s IRA RMD and can be excluded from income, subject to annual limits and other conditions.

QCDs do not apply directly to 401(k) distributions or ongoing SEP or SIMPLE IRAs. Not every charity or gift qualifies, and an amount excluded from income as a QCD cannot also be claimed as a charitable deduction. Verify the applicable year’s limits and procedures.