Roth conversions and RMDs are two commonly misunderstood moving parts in retirement tax planning, and the first thing to settle is the rule: a Roth conversion does not count as, and cannot satisfy, a required minimum distribution. Once that is clear, the more valuable question is how conversions can shrink the RMDs you face in later years.
No. A Roth conversion does not count as, and cannot satisfy, a required minimum distribution (RMD). If you have reached your RMD age (73 in 2026 for most retirees, per IRS), you must withdraw the full year’s RMD from your traditional accounts first, and the RMD dollars themselves cannot be converted or transferred into a Roth IRA (Source: IRS Publication 590-B, 2026).
Does a Roth conversion count as an RMD?
A Roth conversion does not count as an RMD and cannot satisfy one. The IRS treats your required minimum distribution as a separate obligation that must be met with a distribution you keep (or donate), not with a transfer between retirement accounts. A conversion moves money from a traditional IRA into a Roth IRA; an RMD is a withdrawal you cannot roll over (Source: IRS Publication 590-B, 2026).
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This is the point most searchers arrive with: can a Roth conversion satisfy an RMD, or can an RMD be converted to a Roth IRA? The answer to both is no. Because an RMD is not eligible to be rolled over, the RMD dollars themselves cannot be converted or transferred into a Roth account. You also cannot use RMD money to make a Roth IRA contribution unless you have earned income and stay within the annual limits. Learn more about how a Roth conversion works.
Do you have to take your RMD before a Roth conversion?
Yes. In any year you are subject to RMDs, the ordering rule requires you to withdraw your full RMD across all applicable traditional accounts before you convert any remaining balance. The IRS treats the first dollars leaving a traditional IRA in an RMD year as the RMD, and RMD dollars are not eligible for conversion (Source: IRS Publication 590-B, 2026).
In practice, an RMD-year conversion follows a clear sequence:
- Calculate the year’s RMD for each traditional IRA and applicable employer plan.
- Withdraw the full RMD (you may aggregate IRA RMDs across your IRAs, but plan RMDs are generally taken from each plan separately).
- Only then convert an additional amount from what remains, paying ordinary income tax on the converted sum.
You are still allowed to convert after your RMD age. You simply convert on top of the RMD once the RMD is taken. See our detailed guide on the Roth conversion deadline, which is December 31 of the tax year with no prior-year lookback (Source: IRS Publication 590-A, 2026).
At what age do RMDs begin in 2026?
RMDs begin at age 73 for most current retirees. Under SECURE 2.0, the applicable age is 73 for anyone who turns 72 after December 31, 2022, and it rises to 75 for those who turn 74 after December 31, 2032 (broadly, people born in 1960 or later, starting in 2033). Your first RMD can be delayed to April 1 of the following year (Source: IRS RMD FAQs, 2026).
After that first year, each subsequent RMD is due by December 31. Delaying the first RMD to April 1 means taking two RMDs in one calendar year, which can stack income. RMDs apply to traditional IRAs, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs, and pre-tax balances in 401(k), 403(b), 457(b), and similar plans. See our overview of required minimum distributions for 2026.
Are Roth IRAs subject to RMDs?
No. Roth IRAs are not subject to required minimum distributions during the original owner’s lifetime, which is the central reason the conversion strategy works. Beginning in 2024, designated Roth accounts inside 401(k) and 403(b) plans are also exempt from lifetime RMDs under SECURE 2.0. Inherited Roth accounts do carry distribution rules for most non-spouse beneficiaries (Source: IRS RMD FAQs, 2026).
Because Roth balances sit outside the RMD calculation, every dollar you move from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA is a dollar the future RMD formula no longer applies to. That is the mechanism behind reducing future RMDs, and it is worth quantifying rather than asserting.
How Roth conversions shrink future RMDs and the tax drag they cause
A Roth conversion reduces future RMDs by shrinking the traditional balance the RMD formula is applied to. Each year’s RMD equals your prior year-end traditional balance divided by an IRS life expectancy factor (26.5 at age 73). Converting during your working-to-73 window lowers that balance, so the calculated RMD is smaller every year that follows (Source: IRS Uniform Lifetime Table, Publication 590-B, 2026).
The tables below work through the arithmetic explicitly, using a hypothetical to make the mechanism concrete. This is an illustration only, not a projection of any real account, and it assumes no investment growth and level annual conversions so the math stays transparent.
Consider a hypothetical retiree, Margaret, who reaches age 73 in a future year and could enter RMD age holding different traditional balances depending on how much she converted during her gap years (ages 66 to 72). The first-year RMD is simply the balance divided by the age-73 factor of 26.5.
| Traditional IRA balance entering age 73 | Amount converted during gap years (66-72) | First-year RMD (balance / 26.5) |
|---|---|---|
| $1,000,000 | $0 | $37,736 |
| $700,000 | $300,000 | $26,415 |
| $500,000 | $500,000 | $18,868 |
| $300,000 | $700,000 | $11,321 |
Because the RMD is recalculated each year on the remaining balance, a lower starting balance produces a lower RMD in every later year, not just the first. The next table follows two versions of Margaret from age 73 to 80: one who converted nothing (entering at $1,000,000) and one who converted $700,000 during her gap years (entering at $300,000), using the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table factor for each age and again assuming no growth.
| Age | Factor | No conversions: RMD | Converted $700k first: RMD |
|---|---|---|---|
| 73 | 26.5 | $37,736 | $11,321 |
| 76 | 23.7 | $37,424 | $11,227 |
| 80 | 20.2 | $36,572 | $10,971 |
| Cumulative RMD, ages 73-80 | about $297,800 | about $89,300 |
The forced taxable income in the illustration is roughly $208,000 lower across those eight years in the converted version. That does not by itself mean the strategy comes out ahead: the $700,000 of conversions was taxed as ordinary income in the years it happened, so the real question is whether paying tax earlier, at a chosen rate, compares favorably to the RMD-driven income later. Our Roth conversion break-even guide and how much to convert to Roth walk through that trade-off.
The pre-RMD gap years: often a lower-income, flexible window for conversions
The “gap years” between retirement and age 73 are often the lowest-income, most flexible window for conversions. With paychecks gone and RMDs not yet started, taxable income can dip, which can leave room to convert and fill up a lower tax bracket. This window is frequently described as a favorable time to convert a 401(k) or IRA to Roth, though the right amount depends on your full tax picture (Source: IRS Publication 590-A, 2026).
A common approach is bracket filling: converting only enough to reach the top of a target federal bracket. In 2026 the seven-bracket structure with a 37% top rate was made permanent under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, with the top rate starting above $640,600 for single filers and $768,700 for joint filers (Source: IRS, 2026). Because a conversion is ordinary income with no dollar cap and no MAGI limit, you control the size each year. A 401(k) is generally rolled to a traditional IRA first (a tax-free rollover), and the conversion from that IRA is the taxable event.
Second-order effects: IRMAA, Social Security, and the widow’s penalty
Conversion income does more than trigger income tax. Because it raises MAGI, it can increase Medicare Part B and Part D IRMAA surcharges (assessed on a two-year lookback) and can raise the taxable share of Social Security benefits. It can also expose a surviving spouse to compressed single-filer brackets later (Source: IRS and CMS, 2026).
Medicare IRMAA
In 2026 the standard Medicare Part B premium is $202.90 per month, and the first IRMAA surcharge tier applies to MAGI above $109,000 for single filers and $218,000 for joint filers, based on 2024 income (Source: CMS, 2026). A large RMD or a large conversion can push you over a threshold, and IRMAA works as a cliff: one dollar over can raise premiums for the whole year. See our 2026 Medicare IRMAA brackets guide.
Social Security and the survivor’s penalty
Higher income can also increase the taxable portion of Social Security benefits; our guide on the taxation of Social Security benefits covers the thresholds. The less-discussed risk is the widow’s penalty: when one spouse dies, the survivor often files single the next year, facing narrower brackets and lower IRMAA thresholds while still holding large traditional balances and their RMDs. Drawing those balances down earlier, while both spouses use joint brackets, is one reason some households convert before that transition.
Should you still convert after age 73?
Yes, conversions remain allowed after 73; you convert after the RMD is taken. Whether it makes sense depends on your marginal rate now versus expected future rates, your IRMAA tier, legacy goals, and how a surviving spouse’s brackets would look. There is no age at which conversions stop being permitted, only points where the tax math shifts (Source: IRS Publication 590-A, 2026).
A simple decision framework: after taking the RMD, ask whether converting an additional amount keeps you inside an acceptable bracket and IRMAA tier, whether you can pay the conversion tax from outside the IRA, and whether reducing the balance benefits your heirs or a future single-filer survivor. If those line up, post-73 conversions can still play a role even though the RMD has to come out first.
401(k) rollover to Roth IRA: tax implications and the fine print
Rolling a pre-tax 401(k) directly to a Roth IRA, or rolling to a traditional IRA and then converting, is a taxable event: the pre-tax amount is added to ordinary income in the year of the conversion. A rollover to a traditional IRA is not taxable; only the Roth conversion step is. There is no income limit and no dollar cap on conversions (Source: IRS Publication 590-A, 2026).
Three details matter. First, the pro-rata rule: if you hold any after-tax basis across your traditional IRAs, each conversion is part taxable and part nontaxable in proportion, reported on Form 8606; see our pro-rata rule guide. Second, the Roth five-year rules: a separate five-year clock applies to converted amounts for penalty-free access before 59-1/2, alongside the five-year clock for tax-free earnings. Third, conversions are irreversible: recharacterizing a Roth conversion was eliminated for conversions made on or after January 1, 2018, so there is no undo (Source: IRS, 2026). You may also compare a QCD versus a Roth conversion if you are charitably inclined.
QCDs: a complementary way to offset RMDs
A qualified charitable distribution (QCD) lets an IRA owner age 70-1/2 or older send funds directly to charity, and the amount can count toward the RMD without being added to taxable income. In 2026 the annual QCD exclusion limit is $111,000 per person (Source: IRS, 2026). A QCD does not convert to Roth, but it can satisfy part of an RMD while keeping MAGI, and therefore IRMAA and Social Security taxation, lower.
Used together, a QCD can cover some or all of the RMD for charitably minded retirees, and any additional conversion happens on top of the satisfied RMD. QCD dollars themselves cannot be converted, and the QCD must go directly from the IRA custodian to the qualifying charity.
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Q3 Advisors is a registered investment adviser focused on retirement tax planning. This article is educational and is not advice; for guidance on your own circumstances, consult a qualified tax or financial professional.
Frequently asked questions
Does a Roth conversion count as an RMD?
No. A Roth conversion does not count as an RMD and cannot satisfy one. An RMD must be met with a distribution you keep or donate, while a conversion is a transfer into a Roth IRA. If you are in an RMD year, you must take the full RMD first, and the RMD dollars cannot be converted (Source: IRS Publication 590-B, 2026).
Can you convert your RMD to a Roth IRA?
No. RMD dollars are not eligible to be rolled over or converted, so an RMD cannot be transferred into a Roth IRA. You can convert additional amounts above the RMD once the RMD has been withdrawn, but the required distribution itself must be taken as a taxable withdrawal you keep or give to charity (Source: IRS Publication 590-B, 2026).
Do you have to take your RMD before doing a Roth conversion?
Yes. In any RMD year, the ordering rule requires you to withdraw the full RMD across your applicable traditional accounts before converting any remaining balance. The IRS treats the first dollars out in an RMD year as the RMD, which cannot be converted. After that, you may convert an additional amount and pay ordinary income tax on it (Source: IRS Publication 590-B, 2026).
Does a Roth conversion reduce future RMDs?
Yes, conversions can reduce future RMDs by lowering the traditional balance the RMD formula divides by an IRS life expectancy factor. Moving money to a Roth IRA, which has no lifetime RMDs for the owner, removes those dollars from every future RMD calculation. The trade-off is paying ordinary income tax in the conversion year (Source: IRS Publication 590-B, 2026).
Can you do a Roth conversion after age 73?
Yes. Conversions are allowed at any age. Once you have reached RMD age, you take the required distribution first, then convert an additional amount from what remains. Whether a post-73 conversion helps depends on your marginal tax rate, IRMAA tier, and legacy goals, but there is no rule that ends conversions at a certain age (Source: IRS Publication 590-A, 2026).
At what age do RMDs begin?
RMDs begin at age 73 for most current retirees under SECURE 2.0, rising to 75 for people born in 1960 or later, starting in 2033. The first RMD may be delayed to April 1 of the following year, but later RMDs are due each December 31. Roth IRAs have no lifetime RMDs for the original owner (Source: IRS RMD FAQs, 2026).
Does a Roth conversion increase your taxable income and Medicare premiums?
Yes. A conversion adds the pre-tax amount to ordinary income for the year, which raises MAGI. Higher MAGI can increase Medicare Part B and Part D IRMAA surcharges on a two-year lookback and can raise the taxable portion of Social Security. In 2026 the first IRMAA tier applies above $109,000 single or $218,000 joint (Source: CMS, 2026).
Sources
IRS, Publication 590-A and 590-B, Individual Retirement Arrangements (2026). IRS, Retirement Plan and IRA Required Minimum Distributions FAQs (2026). IRS, Uniform Lifetime Table, Publication 590-B (2026). IRS, “401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026, IRA limit increases to $7,500” newsroom release and Notice 2025-67 (2026 figures, including the $111,000 QCD limit). IRS, “IRS releases tax inflation adjustments for tax year 2026” (standard deduction and top-rate thresholds). Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 2026 Medicare Parts B premiums and IRMAA fact sheet (November 2025). SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (RMD ages). Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (recharacterization of conversions eliminated for 2018 and later).
