Secure Act 2.0: RMD Start Age Pushed Back to 73 Starting in 2023
On December 23, 2022, Congress passed the Secure Act 2.0, which moved the required minimum distribution (RMD) age from the current age of 72 out to age 73 starting in 2023. They also went one step further and included in the new law bill an automatic increase in the RMD beginning in 2033, extending the RMD start age to 75.
This is the second time within the past 3 years that Congress has changed the start date for required minimum distributions from IRAs and employer-sponsored retirement plans. Here is the history and the future timeline of the RMD start dates:
1986 – 2019: Age 70½
2020 – 2022: Age 72
2023 – 2032: Age 73
2033+: Age 75
You can also determine your RMD start age based on your birth year:
1950 or Earlier: RMD starts at age 72
1951 – 1959: RMD starts at age 73
1960 or later: RMD starts at age 75
What Is An RMD?
An RMD is a required minimum distribution. Once you hit a certain age, the IRS requires you to start taking a distribution each year from your various retirement accounts (IRA, 401(K), 403(b), Simple IRA, etc.) because they want you to begin paying tax on a portion of your tax-deferred assets whether you need them or not.
What If You Turned Age 72 In 2022?
If you turned age 72 anytime in 2022, the new Secure Act 2.0 does not change the fact that you would have been required to take an RMD for 2022. This is true even if you decided to delay your first RMD until April 1, 2023, for the 2022 tax year.
If you are turning 72 in 2023, under the old rules, you would have been required to take an RMD for 2023; under the new rules, you will not have to take your first RMD until 2024, when you turn age 73.
Planning Opportunities
By pushing the RMD start date from age 72 out to 73, and eventually to 75 in 2033, it creates more tax planning opportunities for individuals that do need to take distributions out of their IRAs to supplement this income. Since these distributions from your retirement account represent taxable income, by delaying that mandatory income could allow individuals the opportunity to process larger Roth conversions during the retirement years, which can be an excellent tax and wealth-building strategy.
Delaying your RMD can also provide you with the following benefits:
Reduce the amount of your Medicare premiums
Reduce the percentage of your social security benefit that is taxed
Make you eligible for tax credits or deductions that you would have phased out of
Potentially allow you to realize a 0% tax rate on long-term capital gains
Continue to keep your pre-tax retirement dollars invested and growing
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About Michael……...
Hi, I’m Michael Ruger. I’m the managing partner of Greenbush Financial Group and the creator of the nationally recognized Money Smart Board blog . I created the blog because there are a lot of events in life that require important financial decisions. The goal is to help our readers avoid big financial missteps, discover financial solutions that they were not aware of, and to optimize their financial future.