This Is Exactly How the IRS Determines Your RMD

Ian Cooper

Tue, May 19, 2026 at 10:32 AM EDT 7 min read

Once you reach the age of 73, you’re legally required to take your Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs), ensuring the government can collect taxes on your money.

If you’re already above 73, or are nearing that age, it’s very important to know how to calculate your required minimum distribution – which you should also review with a financial advisor.

Key Points

• Required Minimum Distributions begin at age 73 (increasing to 75 by 2033) and are calculated by dividing your total retirement account balance by your IRS life expectancy factor, with penalties of up to 25% for missed deadlines (reducible to 10% if corrected within two years).

• Roth IRAs don’t require distributions while the original owner is alive, surviving spouses can delay distributions until their deceased spouse’s 73rd year using the Uniform Lifetime Table, and individuals age 70½ or older can use Qualified Charitable Distributions up to $111,000 annually to satisfy RMDs while excluding the amount from taxable income.

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To calculate your RMD, the IRS will use a formula that includes your total account balances, your age, your life expectancy, and your beneficiary life expectancies.

The IRS then divides the total balance by your life expectancy factor. That's the age to which you’re expected to live until. For an example of how that works, here’s a link to the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table.

Let’s say you’re 73 years old. You would have a Life Expectancy Factor of 26.5. If you have an account balance of $250,000 as of December 31 of last year, you would divide $250,000 by 26.5, which would give you an RMD distribution amount of $9,433.96.

🚨 Brand New: The IRS Delays RMD Final Rules Again

If you are managing an inherited retirement account alongside your own RMDs, the rules have been notoriously muddy. The IRS issued Announcement 2026-7, which pushes back the enforcement of strict new final regulations for certain beneficiaries until at least 2027 (specifically, no earlier than six months after the final regulations are formally published). For the remainder of the year, the IRS specifies that taxpayers are permitted to use a "reasonable, good-faith interpretation" of the rules. If you are navigating the complex 10-year distribution window for inherited IRAs, you have an extended grace period to adjust your withdrawal strategies.

There are Different Rules for RMDs Depending on Your Retirement Account 

According to the IRS, “The RMD rules apply to all employer-sponsored retirement plans, including profit-sharing plans, 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, and 457(b) plans. The RMD rules also apply to traditional IRAs and IRA-based plans such as SEPs, SARSEPs, and SIMPLE IRAs. The RMD rules do not apply to Roth IRAs or Designated Roth accounts while the owner is alive. However, RMD rules do apply to the beneficiaries of Roth IRA and Designated Roth accounts.”