RMD Age Changes Under SECURE 2.0: What Pre-Retirees Need to Know

The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) 2.0 Act moved the required minimum distribution (RMD) starting age from 72 to 73 for anyone who turned 72 after December 31, 2022, and moves it again to 75 for people born in 1960 or later (their first RMD year is 2035). The statute's wording overlapped for people born in 1959; the 2024 proposed regulations place them at 73. If you had already turned 72 in 2022 or earlier, nothing changed for you. For everyone currently between 60 and 72, the change means a longer window before the IRS forces money out.

What SECURE 2.0 Changed, and When

The original SECURE Act (2019) had already pushed the RMD age from 70½ to 72; SECURE 2.0 continued that trajectory in December 2022.

People born in 1951 faced brief ambiguity about their starting age. IRS Notice 2023-75 confirmed their required beginning date is April 1 of the year after they turn 73.

SECURE 2.0 also softened the penalty for a missed or short RMD. The excise tax fell from 50% of the amount you should have withdrawn to 25%, and to 10% if you correct the shortfall within a two-year correction window.

The Roth 401(k) Change That Often Gets Overlooked

Before 2024, Roth 401(k) accounts were subject to lifetime RMDs. Starting January 1, 2024, designated Roth accounts inside 401(k) and 403(b) plans no longer generate them, so that money compounds tax-free without a mandatory distribution forcing it out.

The Real Payoff: A Wider Roth Conversion Window

The years between retirement and the first RMD are often the most valuable Roth conversion years a person will ever have. Income drops after leaving work, bracket space opens up, and Social Security may not have started. That window now runs to 73, and for those born in 1960 or later, to 75.

A 63-year-old retiring at 65 and delaying Social Security to 70 already has a five-year window that no longer gets compressed at the back end, and dollars converted in those lower brackets land in a Roth that faces no future RMD.

Consider a hypothetical client who assumed Roth conversions were a late-60s conversation. Mapping the delayed RMD start, the Social Security gap years, and a Roth 401(k) with no distribution requirement made converting a portion of his traditional individual retirement account (IRA) in years 63 through 68 the clearest priority. This belongs in your tax plan, where account structure is set before income flows.

The delayed age matters less if your income stays high through your early 70s (deferred compensation, rental income, a pension filling the lower brackets).

How This Connects to RMDs and QCDs

The age changes are one piece of the framework covered in the parent pillar, RMDs and QCDs: The Required-Distribution Rules That Shape Retirement Income After 73: how RMDs are calculated, how qualified charitable distributions (QCDs) send up to $111,000 in 2026 (indexed for inflation) to charity without ordinary income, and how the inherited IRA 10-year rule creates urgency for beneficiaries.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does delaying RMDs to 73 mean I should always wait until then to take distributions?

Not necessarily. Many pre-retirees benefit from voluntary withdrawals or Roth conversions before 73 because they control the timing and amount.

I was born in 1960. What is my RMD starting age?

Age 75. The second SECURE 2.0 threshold applies to people born in 1960 or later, so your first RMD year is 2035, the year you turn 75.

Does the Roth 401(k) RMD elimination apply retroactively?

It applies to distributions required after December 31, 2023. There is no retroactive recapture, but any Roth 401(k) balance you hold today carries no lifetime RMD.

Should I roll my Roth 401(k) into a Roth IRA to avoid RMDs?

Before 2024 that rollover made sense specifically to avoid the Roth 401(k) RMD rule. Now both accounts treat lifetime RMDs the same way, so the decision turns on investment options, costs, creditor protection, and whether your Roth IRA five-year clock has already started.

What to Do Next

Your birth year sets the age. The starting age moved twice in recent years and moves again in 2033, so the number that applies to you depends on where your birthday falls relative to those boundaries.

Common mistakes. People carry an old number in their head. Someone told 70½ decades ago, or 72 more recently, either starts too early and gives up years of deferral, or waits for an age that does not apply and misses a required year. The boundary years are the dangerous ones, because two people born months apart can have different starting ages, and general advice from a friend or an article is wrong for one of them.

Worth a conversation if you were born in the early 1960s, you are planning conversions timed around when distributions begin, or you have not confirmed your own start year against the current rules. The years before that date are often your most valuable planning years, and how many you have left shapes the conversion plan. Book a call.

The information provided is for educational purposes only and does not constitute investment, legal, or tax advice. Tax law changes frequently, so verify current rules before acting. Consult with qualified professionals for guidance specific to your situation.