Is there a maximum amount a person can specify for tax withholding on an IRA distribution? For example, if a retired taxpayer (over-65) has under-withheld during the year on IRA distribution and doesn't want to file quarterly or estimated taxes or pay an IRS penalty, can he withdraw a specific amount from an IRA savings account in December and specify 100% withholding for taxes? Assume it's the kind of savings account where money can be withdrawn at any time.
Maximum Withholding Percentage?
Sep 15, 2021
Last reply: 4 years ago
3 Replies
Legally, the most you can withhold for taxes is 100% of the distribution. It's possible that some custodians have a lower maximum.
Ira Smilovitz, EA Leonia, NJ
One data point: Vanguard will withhold 0, 10%, or any higher amount that you specify. Apparently you can't have them withhold anything between 0 and 10%.
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But don't forget: there's state withholding too, so you probably can't apply 100% of the distribution to Federal withholding. Some states don't allow you to opt out of state withholding if you're having Federal tax withheld. This table is about a year old, but will give you an idea:
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One can fill out W-4P to indicate the desired level of withholding, and to overcome the plan admin defaults.
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