RMD deadline checklist: what still has to clear by December 31
See the lane if MAGI is the worry. Filing status and MAGI. Two questions. No account. Nothing uploaded. Not a bill, and not an RMD calculation.
Run the free checkWho this page is for
This page is for households organizing an age-triggered required distribution before year-end. The job here is a list: which accounts, who to call, and what to ask. It is not a worksheet for dollars.
Start ages by birth year, including the unconfirmed 1959 case, stay on what age required withdrawals start. Inherited accounts follow different clocks. This page is the owner's December 31 date.
Accounts to list, who to call, what to ask
Two calls. The custodian or plan administrator that holds the account, for the processing date and which accounts the firm treats as required this year. A CPA, for whether a distribution that clears this year is income on this year's return. Neither call on this page includes a withdrawal amount.
| Write down | Question for the firm or a CPA |
|---|---|
| Each IRA, and the firm that holds it | Does this firm treat this account as having a required distribution for this calendar year? |
| Each workplace plan (401(k), 403(b), or similar), and its administrator | Is this plan's distribution taken from this plan, separate from IRAs? IRA distributions can be aggregated across IRAs. Workplace plans generally cannot. |
| Whether this calendar year is the first year a distribution is required | Does the firm show April 1 for that first distribution, and a separate December 31 date for the next one? |
| The firm's year-end request date | What is the last day a request can arrive so the distribution can clear by December 31? |
| How the distribution will be reported | Which year-end tax form will show it, so a CPA can see whether it lands in this year's MAGI? |
The aggregation line is the same distinction already on the age guide: IRA required distributions can be combined across IRAs, and 401(k) distributions are generally taken from each plan. This table does not say how much to take from any account. Qualified charitable distribution questions share this December 31 processing clock. This page does not say whether to make one. Those questions are on the QCD deadline page.
When the first required distribution is due
The first required distribution may be delayed until April 1 of the year after the start age. The distribution for the following year is still due by December 31 of that same year. Two distributions can then land in one tax year. That is the rule already stated on what age required withdrawals start. This page does not say whether to use the April 1 date, and it does not divide an account balance by a life-expectancy factor.
If December 31 passes with a distribution still open
A required distribution that is not taken by its deadline can bring a 25% excise tax on the amount not taken. That tax is 10% if the shortfall is corrected within the correction window. This page does not calculate the shortfall, and it does not describe how to correct one. Confirm the date and any correction with the custodian and a CPA. The same penalty statement is on the age guide. The federal description is in IRS Publication 590-B.
An RMD in MAGI can show up on a later Medicare premium
A required distribution that is included in income can raise MAGI for that tax year. MAGI on this site is Form 1040 line 11 plus line 2a. A distribution taken in 2026 is 2026 income. That return is the one generally used for the 2028 Medicare premium. It does not reset the 2026 premium, which is already tied to the 2024 return.
The year pairs, and what the free check marks, are on which return year sets Medicare IRMAA. The free check is a lane, UNDER or OVER, on the return Medicare is already using. It is not an RMD worksheet, and it does not assign a premium for a later year.
Printable December 31 list. The RMD & QCD Year-End Checklist ($37) is the educational list of accounts to write down and questions for the custodian and a CPA. It does not calculate a withdrawal. It does not say whether to take more than the minimum. It does not say whether to give. It is not the $99/year household board. If the open question is MAGI against the Medicare line, the free check above is the lane check.
RMD & QCD Year-End Checklist ($37)Related reading
Common questions
When is the RMD deadline?
For most required minimum distributions, December 31 of that calendar year is the public deadline. The custodian's last day to accept a request can be earlier, because the firm needs time to process the distribution before the calendar date. Ask the firm that holds the account for that request date. This page does not name one firm's cutoff.
When is the first required minimum distribution due?
The first required distribution may be delayed until April 1 of the following year. The next year's distribution is still due by December 31 of that same year, so two distributions can land in one tax year. Start age by birth year is on what age required withdrawals start. This page does not calculate the dollar amount.
What happens if an RMD misses the December 31 deadline?
A missed required distribution can bring a 25% excise tax on the amount not taken, reduced to 10% if corrected within the correction window. This page does not calculate the shortfall and does not describe how to correct one. Confirm with the custodian and a CPA. Federal description: IRS Publication 590-B.
This page does not calculate a required minimum distribution. It does not say whether to take more than the minimum. It does not say whether to make a qualified charitable distribution. Confirm the date, the accounts, and the tax treatment with the custodian and a CPA. Educational only. Not tax, legal, or Medicare advice. MAGI here is Form 1040 line 11 plus line 2a, as described in the IRS Form 1040 instructions.