When is my RMD due?

You have to take your first RMD by April 1 of the year following the year in which you turn 70.5.

Since you turned 70 in Aug '06, you turned 70.5 in Feb '07 and don't need to take your first RMD until Apr 1, '08.

You've got plenty of time to get this straight. After your first RMD distribution, though, the deadline is Dec 31st, so your first RMD deadline is Apr 1'08 and your second is Dec 31'08. You only get those few extra months the first time.

There are some excellent explanations of this and other related details over at

"IRA RMD" in the search box and look in theArticles section for "Preparing for the RMD Season" The "official" details, of course, are in the IRS publication 590 at In fact, if you pull down the IRS pub, there's an example on p. 34 which is almost exactly your situation ("Laura was born on Oct 1, 1936, reaches 70.5 in 2007, etc.")

Go to the source, IRS Publication 590:

information on RMDs starts on page 33. Basically, it says that you must receive your first RMD before April 1 of the year following the year in which you attain age 70-1/2. However, if you do not receive your RMD for the year in which you attain 70-1/2, you must take both that RMD and the one for the next year in that next year.

In your case, you attained 70-1/2 in Feb 07. You must take an RMD for

2007 before April 1, 2008. You must also take an RMD for 2008, so if you wait until 2008 to take your first RMD, you will have two RMDs in 2008.

Hope this helps.

Dave

It's pretty clear and laid out in IRS Publication 590.

If you are the owner of a traditional IRA, you must start receiving distributions from your IRA by April 1 of the year following the year in which you reach age 70.5. April 1 of the year following the year in which you reach age 70.5 is referred to as the required beginning date.

If you turned 70 in August 2007, you'll turn 70.5 in February 2008. The April 1 of the year following February 2008 is April 1, 2009.

Thus, you must take your *2008* RMD by April 1, 2009. However, you'll still have to take your *2009* RMD by December 31, 2009.

So if you wait to the last possible time to take the first RMD, you'll be taking two RMDs in 2009, which may or may not be more desireable than taking the 2008 RMD in calendar 2008 and the 2009 RMD in calendar

2009.

-- Rich Carreiro snipped-for-privacy@rlcarr.com

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