Required minimum distributions (RMDs) are amounts the IRS generally requires from many tax-deferred retirement accounts once you reach a certain age. The required beginning date (RBD) is the calendar deadline tied to your first RMD year. Miss it and excise taxes can apply. This page translates the start-date rules; amount math and account lists live in Understanding required minimum distributions.
Tax character of withdrawals still depends on account type: Roth vs traditional IRA taxes. Filing season paperwork: Filing taxes for beginners.
Age rules people actually hit
Congress has shifted the RMD age more than once (SECURE and SECURE 2.0). In plain terms:
- Your first RMD year is the year you reach the age currently in force for your birth year (confirm the IRS table for your birth date; do not rely on a blog memory of “70½”).
- For many people, the deadline for the first RMD can extend to April 1 of the following year.
- If you delay that first withdrawal to April 1, you may take two RMDs in the same calendar year (the delayed first-year amount plus the current year’s amount), which can stack taxable income.
Employer plans sometimes allow delay while you still work there if you are not a 5% owner; IRAs generally do not get that “still working” delay. Custodians such as Fidelity, Vanguard, Schwab, and TIAA calculate and can auto-distribute, but you own the deadline.
Worked example
Alex turns the applicable RMD age in 2026 and holds a traditional IRA at Vanguard plus an old 401(k) at Fidelity. Alex is retired (no still-working delay).
- Tax year 2026 is Alex’s first RMD year.
- Alex may take the 2026 IRA RMD by December 31, 2026, or delay that first IRA RMD until April 1, 2027.
- If Alex delays, the 2027 calendar year can include both the delayed 2026 RMD and the regular 2027 RMD, which may push Alex into a higher bracket and higher Medicare IRMAA brackets.
Alex confirms ages and tables in the current IRS RMD publication, asks each custodian whether auto-RMD is on, and sketches withholding with a tax preparer before choosing the April 1 option.
Roth, inherited, and “still working” cues
| Situation | Typical RMD start cue |
|---|---|
| Traditional IRA / many pre-tax 401(k)/403(b) | Age-based RBD rules above |
| Designated Roth 401(k) / Roth 403(b) | Rules have been changing; confirm current IRS treatment for your plan year |
| Roth IRA (owner) | Generally no lifetime RMDs for the owner |
| Inherited accounts | Different schedules (Inherited IRA 10-year rule and exceptions); not the owner RBD |
| Still working at the plan sponsor | Possible delay for that employer plan only; IRAs still follow age rules |
Building balances before RMD years with catch-up contributions and careful Roth conversions is planning some households use; conversions create tax bills in the conversion year.
Spending design around RMDs belongs with a broader cash plan such as Bucket strategy for retirement, not with a last-minute December wire. Charitable transfers that can count toward an RMD: Qualified charitable distributions.
Checklist
- Confirm the RMD age that applies to your birth year in current IRS materials.
- List every tax-deferred account and whether a still-working delay could apply.
- Decide whether to take the first RMD in the birthday year or by the following April 1.
- Model the two-RMD calendar year risk before delaying.
- Set withholding or estimated taxes; keep 1099-R forms.
- Turn on or verify custodian auto-RMD only after the amount and account aggregation rules are clear.
After the RBD, how IRA RMDs aggregate vs per-plan 401(k) RMDs: RMD aggregation basics.
Educational only. Not tax, legal, or investment advice. RMD ages, Roth employer-plan rules, penalties, and tables change; confirm with current IRS publications, your plan documents, and a qualified tax professional.