SECURE Act 2.0 RMD Age Checker
Determine your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) start age under the SECURE Act 2.0 of 2022. RMD age depends on your birth year: 73 for 1951-1959 births, 75 for 1960+ births. This tool returns your Required Beginning Date and first RMD year for traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, and other tax-deferred accounts. Free — runs in your browser.
How SECURE Act 2.0 Changed RMD Ages
The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2019 raised the RMD start age from 70.5 to 72 for individuals reaching 70.5 after 2019. The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 raised it again — to 73 for those reaching 72 after December 31, 2022, and to 75 for those reaching 74 after December 31, 2032. The practical breakdown: born before 1951 (already 72 or older by 2022), age 72 applied — those individuals have been taking RMDs for years. Born 1951-1959, RMD age is 73. Born 1960 or later, RMD age is 75. This staggered approach was designed to give pre-retirees more flexibility for Roth conversions in their early 70s. Source: IRS Required Minimum Distributions for IRAs.
The Required Beginning Date (RBD)
Your Required Beginning Date is April 1 of the year following the year you reach your RMD age. If you reach RMD age (73 or 75) in 2026, your first RMD year is 2026 and the RBD is April 1, 2027. You may delay only the FIRST RMD to April 1 of the following year — but doing so means taking TWO RMDs in that calendar year (the delayed prior-year RMD by April 1, plus the current-year RMD by December 31). For most retirees, taking the first RMD by December 31 of the RMD-age year is more tax-efficient because it avoids the double-up. Source: IRS Retirement Topics — RMDs.
Penalty for Missing an RMD
SECURE Act 2.0 reduced the excise tax on missed RMDs from 50% (pre-2023) to 25%. The penalty drops further to 10% if you correct the shortfall and file Form 5329 within a two-year window. Despite the reduction, missing an RMD is expensive — a missed $40,000 RMD costs at minimum $4,000 if corrected promptly, or $10,000 if uncorrected. Most plan administrators will distribute the RMD automatically if you do not take it manually. If you have multiple IRAs, you can aggregate the RMD calculation across IRAs and take the entire amount from one account — but 401(k) RMDs must be taken separately from each 401(k). Inherited IRAs subject to the 10-year rule have separate distribution requirements (final regulations issued July 2024 require annual distributions during years 1-9 when the original owner died on/after RBD). Source: IRS Form 5329.
RMD Strategy Window Before Age 73 or 75
The years between retirement and RMD age are the optimal window for Roth conversions and tax-loss harvesting. Once RMDs begin, the forced distribution often pushes you into higher brackets, increases Medicare IRMAA surcharges, and reduces Social Security taxability planning flexibility. A retiree born in 1962 (RMD age 75) has up to 12 retirement years (age 62-74) to convert traditional IRA money to Roth at the 22% and 24% brackets before RMD-driven income pushes them into 32%+ brackets in their late 70s. See our Roth Conversion Ladder Calculator for a multi-year projection. Last updated May 2026.