Required minimum distribution rules changed under Secure 2.0. See new age thresholds, Roth 401(k) exemptions, and lower penalties for 2026.
A required minimum distribution is the mandatory annual withdrawal that owners of traditional 401(k) plans and traditional IRAs must take once they reach a certain age, and heading into 2026 several rule changes from recent legislation are still reshaping how those withdrawals work.
Why the Withdrawal Age Keeps Shifting
The age at which required minimum distributions begin has moved several times over the past few years because of two federal laws: the Secure Act, passed in 2019, and Secure 2.0, passed in 2022. Both pushed back the starting age, giving savers more time before the IRS forces withdrawals from tax deferred accounts. The exact age depends entirely on birth year.
| Account Holder's Birth Date | Age When RMDs Begin |
|---|---|
| Before July 1, 1949 | 70 and a half |
| July 1, 1949 to Dec. 31, 1950 | 72 |
| Jan. 1, 1951 to Dec. 31, 1959 | 73 |
| After Dec. 31, 1959 | 75 |
These withdrawals apply to traditional 401(k) plans and traditional IRAs, including SEP and SIMPLE IRAs, no matter whether the account holder is still working. The deadline for each year's distribution is generally Dec. 31, though the very first one can be pushed to April 1 of the following year. After that first withdrawal, every later one has to be finished by year end. Someone turning 73 in 2026, for example, could wait until April 1, 2027 to take that initial distribution, but the second withdrawal would still be due by Dec. 31, 2027.
Roth 401(k) Accounts Get a Break
Before Secure 2.0 took effect, there was an odd mismatch in the rules: Roth IRAs never required withdrawals during the owner's life, but Roth 401(k) plans did. That gap has closed. Roth 401(k) accounts are now exempt from required distributions while the original owner is alive, bringing them in line with Roth IRAs. Once a beneficiary inherits the account, though, distribution rules kick back in.
Spouses who inherit an account before the original owner started taking RMDs have two paths. They can leave the money in the inherited account and wait until distributions would have started for the deceased owner, or they can roll the funds into their own account and delay withdrawals until they themselves reach the required age.
Non-spouse beneficiaries face a stricter rule. Anyone at least 10 years younger than the original account holder generally has to empty the inherited account within 10 years of the death. That's a real change from the old system, which let non-spouse heirs stretch withdrawals across their own life expectancy. That option disappeared with the Secure Act, unless the original owner died before the law took effect in 2020.
Penalties for Missing a Deadline Just Got Lighter
Falling behind on a required minimum distribution used to be expensive. The IRS could impose an excise tax as steep as 50% of the amount that should have been withdrawn. Secure 2.0 cut that penalty to 25%, and it drops further, to 10%, if the mistake gets corrected within two years. Anyone who misses a deadline needs to file IRS Form 5329 along with their federal tax return.
There's also a way to avoid the penalty altogether. If the account owner fixes the shortfall quickly and attaches a letter to Form 5329 explaining that the missed distribution resulted from a reasonable error, the IRS can waive the tax entirely.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is required minimum distribution?
Yes, a required minimum distribution is a mandatory withdrawal the IRS requires from tax deferred retirement accounts like traditional 401(k) plans and traditional IRAs once the owner reaches a certain age.
Why required minimum distribution?
The IRS requires these withdrawals so that income tax eventually gets paid on money and investment gains that grew tax deferred for years inside retirement accounts.
What required minimum distribution?
It's the minimum amount an account owner must withdraw each year from accounts such as traditional IRAs, SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs and traditional 401(k) plans, based on IRS life expectancy tables and account balances.
When required minimum distribution?
Withdrawals must generally start at age 73 for people born between 1951 and 1959, and at age 75 for anyone born after 1959, with the first one due by April 1 of the year after that age is reached and all later ones due by Dec. 31 each year.
Is ira minimum distribution taxable?
Withdrawals from traditional IRAs count as ordinary taxable income in the year they're taken, while qualified withdrawals from Roth IRAs are not taxed since Roth accounts are funded with after tax money.