RMDs · 6 min read
Turning 73 in 2026? Your First RMD Has Two Deadlines — and One Is a Trap
Anyone turning 73 in 2026 owes their first required minimum distribution for tax year 2026 — but the law offers two deadlines: December 31, 2026, or a one-time delay to April 1, 2027. The delay looks like a gift and often is not: it pushes the first RMD into the same tax year as the second one, stacking two taxable distributions — roughly $38,000 on a $500,000 IRA — into 2027. That stack can cross bracket lines, trip the Medicare IRMAA cliff two years later, and raise the taxable share of Social Security. It can also help, when the two years' incomes are lopsided the right way. The arithmetic is below. This is an educational summary, not advice.
The first required minimum distribution is the only one that comes with a choice of deadlines. Under SECURE 2.0, RMDs begin at age 73 for anyone born 1951–1959 — which is exactly the cohort turning 73 in 2026 (born 1953). Every RMD after the first has one deadline: December 31 of its year. The first has two, and the second deadline is where households get surprised.
The Two Deadlines
| Distribution | Belongs to Tax Year | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| First RMD (the year you turn 73) | 2026 | December 31, 2026 — or a one-time delay to April 1, 2027 (the "required beginning date") |
| Second RMD | 2027 | December 31, 2027 — no delay option |
| Every later RMD | Its own year | December 31, each year |
The April 1 option applies once, to the first distribution only. It does not slide anything else: the second year's RMD stays anchored to December 31 of that second year. Take the delay, and both land in the same tax return.
The Trap, in Numbers
Each year's RMD is the prior December 31 balance divided by the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table factor. Take an IRA holding $500,000 on December 31, 2025, owned by someone turning 73 in 2026, and — to keep the arithmetic visible — assume the balance is again $500,000 on December 31, 2026:
- First RMD (2026, age 73): $500,000 ÷ 26.5 = $18,868
- Second RMD (2027, age 74): $500,000 ÷ 25.5 = $19,608 (factors from the Uniform Lifetime Table, IRS Publication 590-B)
Now compare the two calendars:
| Path | Ordinary Income in 2026 | Ordinary Income in 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Take the first RMD by Dec 31, 2026 | $18,868 | $19,608 |
| Delay the first RMD to early 2027 | $0 | $18,868 + $19,608 = $38,476 |
Same two distributions, same dollars out of the IRA — but the delayed path compresses roughly $38,000 of ordinary income into a single tax year. (In practice the December 31, 2026 balance would differ from $500,000; the stacking mechanics are unchanged.)
What the Stack Can Hit
Compressed income matters because three separate formulas read the same tax return:
- Brackets. For a married couple in 2026, the 12 percent bracket ends at $100,800 of taxable income and the next dollar is taxed at 22. A stack that pushes across that line converts the excess from a 12 percent cost to a 22 percent cost — the steepest early jump in the bracket table.
- Medicare IRMAA. Surcharges are assessed on modified adjusted gross income from two years prior, against cliff thresholds ($218,000 for joint filers at the 2026 line). A doubled-up 2027 lands on the 2029 premium determination — and crossing a threshold by $1 triggers the full tier.
- Social Security taxation. Provisional income above $32,000/$44,000 (joint) makes up to 50 then 85 percent of benefits taxable. Extra IRA income in one year can pull benefit dollars into the taxable column alongside it.
When the Delay Helps
The April 1 option exists because the two years are not always symmetric. The delay moves the first RMD out of a year and into the next one — which is useful precisely when the first year's income is unusually high and the second year's is low. The classic case: someone who retires mid-2026 with a final stretch of wages. Taking the first RMD in 2026 stacks it on top of those wages; delaying shifts it into 2027, where it may be taxed at a lower rate even sharing the year with the second RMD. The comparison is always the same: total tax under the split versus total tax under the stack, including the IRMAA and Social Security effects above — a modeling exercise, not a rule of thumb.
Mechanics That Ride Along
- The RMD comes out first. Once the required beginning date is reached, the year's RMD must be satisfied before any amount is converted to a Roth — an RMD itself can never be converted.
- IRAs aggregate; workplace plans do not. The RMD is calculated separately for each IRA but can be satisfied from any combination of them. A 401(k) or 403(b) RMD must come from that plan.
- The penalty for missing both deadlines is 25 percent of the shortfall — reduced to 10 percent if corrected within the two-year correction window, with waiver discretion for reasonable error via Form 5329.
- Roth IRAs are outside all of this — no lifetime RMD; and since 2024, Roth 401(k)s are exempt as well.
What This Does Not Mean
April 1 is not an extension of anything except the first distribution — the second RMD's December 31 deadline never moves. The delay is not automatically a mistake: it is a lever whose value depends entirely on the relative incomes of the two years, and households with a high-income final working year are the usual beneficiaries. Nor does the stack "double the tax" — brackets are marginal, so only the dollars pushed above a line pay the higher rate. The 26.5 and 25.5 divisors here are the current Uniform Lifetime Table factors for ages 73 and 74; a spouse more than 10 years younger as sole beneficiary uses a different table with smaller RMDs. And none of this applies yet to anyone born 1960 or later, whose RMDs begin at 75.
Go Deeper
- Roth & RMDs topic hub — distribution rules, conversions, and account mechanics in one place.
- Required Minimum Distributions: A Plain-English Guide for 2026 — the full long-form guide, including the calculation tables and QCDs.
- 2026 Tax Brackets tool — where a doubled-up distribution lands against this year's brackets.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: When is the first RMD due for someone turning 73 in 2026?
It belongs to tax year 2026 and can be taken any time that year — or delayed, once, to April 1, 2027. Every later RMD is due December 31 of its own year.
Q: What actually happens if I use the April 1 delay?
Two taxable distributions land in 2027: the delayed first RMD by April 1 and the second-year RMD by December 31 — roughly $38,000 combined on a $500,000 IRA in the worked example above.
Q: Is the delay ever the better path?
It can be, when the first year's income is unusually high — final wages, a property sale — and the second year's is low. The comparison is total tax under the split versus under the stack, including IRMAA and Social Security effects.
Q: Does delaying move the second RMD too?
No. The grace period applies only to the first distribution. That asymmetry is the entire trap.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of The Financial Sciences Company as of the publish date and are provided for informational and educational purposes only. They are not personalized investment, tax, or legal advice. The Financial Sciences Company, LLC is an investment adviser registered with the State of Texas. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Additional information is available in our Form ADV at adviserinfo.sec.gov.
General educational information, current as of 2026. Not personalized investment, tax, or legal advice — figures and rules change. For guidance specific to your situation, talk to a qualified professional.
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