RMD Rules 2026: Required Age, Formula, and the April 1 Trap

Once you reach a certain age, the IRS stops letting your traditional retirement account grow untouched. You're required to withdraw a minimum amount every year, whether you need the money or not. Missing it carries a real penalty, and the age you're required to start now depends on the year you were born.

When Do RMDs Start?

The SECURE 2.0 Act split the required beginning age by birth year:

• Born 1950 or earlier: RMDs already started at 72 (or 70½ under pre-2020 rules).
• Born 1951-1959: required beginning age is 73.
• Born 1960 or later: required beginning age is 75.

This applies to traditional (pre-tax) IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s, and similar employer plans. Roth IRAs have no RMDs for the original owner, and since 2024, Roth 401(k) and Roth 403(b) accounts no longer require RMDs during the original owner's lifetime either; SECURE 2.0 aligned their treatment with Roth IRAs.

The RMD Formula

Each year's RMD is calculated the same way:

The life expectancy factor comes from the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table (Publication 590-B, Appendix B, Table III), and it shrinks as you age. That means the required percentage of your balance you must withdraw creeps upward every year, even if your account value stays flat.

The April 1 Deadline Trap

Your very first RMD comes with a special option: you can delay it until April 1 of the year after you reach your required beginning age, instead of taking it by December 31 of that same year. It sounds like a benefit, and technically it is a choice, but it's also the single most common RMD mistake. Every RMD after the first one must still be taken by December 31. If you delay your first RMD to the following April 1, you now owe two RMDs in the same calendar year: the delayed one (due April 1) and the current year's one (due December 31). Two RMDs landing in one tax year can push you into a higher marginal tax bracket, and in some cases can affect Medicare premium surcharges (IRMAA) as well. For most people, taking the first RMD in the year they reach their required beginning age, rather than using the April 1 delay, avoids this stacking problem.

The "Still Working" Exception

If you're still working past your required beginning age and don't own more than 5% of the company sponsoring your plan, many employer 401(k) and 403(b) plans let you delay RMDs from that specific employer's plan until you actually retire, a long-standing IRS provision separate from the SECURE 2.0 age changes. It does not apply to IRAs, and it does not apply to a 401(k) from a previous employer; it only covers the active plan at the company where you currently work. Check with your plan administrator to confirm whether your specific plan offers this feature, since not all do.

Using a QCD to Satisfy an RMD Tax-Free

If you're charitably inclined, a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) lets you send money directly from your IRA to a qualifying charity, and that amount counts toward your RMD without being included in your taxable income, unlike a normal RMD, which is fully taxable even if you donate the cash afterward. QCD eligibility starts at age 70½, which is a separate (older) age threshold than the 73/75 required beginning age under SECURE 2.0, so you can actually start using QCDs before your RMDs even begin. The annual QCD limit is adjusted periodically by the IRS; confirm the current-year limit at irs.gov before relying on a specific number, since we don't have a source we're confident is current for 2026.

Common Mistakes

• Missing the deadline entirely. The IRS can assess a 25% excise tax on the shortfall between what you should have withdrawn and what you actually withdrew, reduced to 10% if corrected within two years.
• Not aggregating IRAs correctly. You can total your RMD across all your IRAs and take the combined amount from any one (or a combination) of them. 401(k)s and 403(b)s generally don't allow this; each plan's RMD usually has to come from that specific plan.
• Forgetting inherited accounts follow different rules. Inherited IRAs and inherited 401(k)s have their own, more complex distribution rules (often a 10-year full-distribution window under the SECURE Act, with some annual RMD requirements layered on depending on the beneficiary type); treat them as a separate calculation entirely.
• Assuming the still-working exception applies automatically. It only applies to your current employer's active plan, only if the plan itself offers it, and only if you own 5% or less of the company. Confirm with your plan administrator rather than assuming.

What This Doesn't Cover

This guide and the calculator linked below only address the standard RMD calculation for an account owner's own traditional IRA or employer plan. It doesn't cover inherited account rules, doesn't calculate the tax owed on the withdrawal, and doesn't account for multiple accounts beyond a single balance you enter. For your specific accounts, confirm the current Uniform Lifetime Table and any rule updates directly at irs.gov, and talk to a tax professional before your first RMD year.

Sources: IRS Publication 590-B, Appendix B, Uniform Lifetime Table (Table III); IRS Retirement Topics: Required Minimum Distributions (irs.gov); SECURE 2.0 Act required beginning age provisions.