Editor's Note: Join MOAA’s financial and benefits experts and our guest tax professional on Feb. 16 from 2-3 p.m. Eastern for a webinar on what’s new for this year’s tax season.  You can register here regardless of whether you can attend on Feb. 16 -- all registrants receive a link to the recorded webinar.

Most holders of Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), including employer-provided defined contribution plans, are familiar with the COVID-influenced changes (SECURE Act) to mandatory age-based distributions.

If you did not reach age 70½ until after Dec. 31, 2019, then mandatory distributions were delayed until no later than April 1 of the year after the owner’s 72nd birth year. Future distributions must occur by Dec. 31 of each year. If you reached age 72 in 2021 but plan to delay your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) until just prior to April 2022, you will be required to make another withdrawal prior to Dec. 31, 2022.  

If the account owner reached 70½ prior to Dec. 31, 2019, then the initial RMD must have commenced prior to April 1, 2020.      

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Life expectancy tables recently have been updated, reducing the amount of previously calculated RMDs for 2022 and beyond. IRS Publication 590-B is the guiding document for IRAs. As of Jan. 26, 2022, the 590-B is still in draft form. However, the RMD worksheets (Appendix A) and Life Expectancy Tables (Appendix B) are available to make RMD estimates.

Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) plans, SIMPLE IRA Plans, and Qualified Plans -- defined contribution plans, like the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) and 401(k)s -- adhere to IRS Publication 560, which is also still in draft form for 2021 returns. Your defined contribution administrator should calculate RMDs for their account holders.

A comparison of IRA versus Defined Contribution plan RMDs can be found at this link. 

Making Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs) from your IRA? QCDs may be reduced or require an additional adjustment after the 2019 tax season. See page 13 of Pub 590 and the QCD deduction adjustment worksheet (Appendix D).

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Close to TSP RMDs?  Read more here.

Disclaimer: MOAA’s financial and benefits counselors are not licensed tax preparers and do not provide individual tax advice.