RMD aggregation rules decide which retirement accounts you can combine to satisfy a single required minimum distribution and which must be paid on their own. Your traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs form one family you can pool, multiple 403(b) contracts form a second, and each 401(k) or 457(b) plan stands alone (IRS Publication 590-B, 2025).
You may total the required minimum distributions from all of your traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs and withdraw the combined amount from any one of them (IRS Pub 590-B, 2025). Multiple 403(b) contracts aggregate the same way within their own group. Each 401(k) and 457(b) plan pays its own RMD separately, and you can never cross-aggregate different account types.
RMD aggregation rules at a glance
RMD aggregation rules permit combining distributions only within a like account type, never across types. Your IRAs pool with your IRAs, your 403(b) contracts pool with your other 403(b) contracts, and each employer defined contribution plan such as a 401(k) or 457(b) stands on its own (IRS RMD Comparison Chart, 2025). The chart below shows each aggregation family at a glance.
Talk With Craig Wear's Team
Craig has helped IRA millionaires save over $1 million each in unnecessary taxes. Find out if a Roth conversion strategy fits your retirement, with no sales pressure and no product pitch.
| Account type | Aggregation family | Can combine the RMD with |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional IRA, SEP IRA, SIMPLE IRA | IRA family | Any of your other traditional, SEP, or SIMPLE IRAs |
| 403(b) tax-sheltered annuity | 403(b) family | Your other 403(b) contracts only |
| 401(k) | Stands alone | Nothing. Each 401(k) pays its own RMD, even if you own several |
| 457(b) governmental plan | Stands alone | Nothing. Each 457(b) pays its own RMD |
| Inherited IRA | Separate track | Only inherited IRAs from the same decedent, same type |
| Roth IRA (original owner) | No lifetime RMD | Not applicable during the owner’s lifetime |
Your IRAs are one aggregation family
Your traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs form a single aggregation family. You calculate a separate RMD for each account, total those amounts, then withdraw the combined total from any one or more of the IRAs (IRS Pub 590-B, 2025). A person holding a traditional IRA, a SEP IRA, and a SIMPLE IRA may satisfy all three required minimum distributions from one account.
The IRS states the rule plainly: an owner “must calculate the RMD separately for each IRA that they own but can withdraw the total amount from one or more of the IRAs” (IRS RMD FAQs, 2025). This flexibility helps when one IRA holds cash and another holds assets you would rather not sell.
Can you combine RMDs from multiple 401(k)s or a 401(k) and an IRA?
No. Each 401(k) is a defined contribution plan that must calculate and pay its own RMD from that specific plan, with no combining allowed even across several 401(k)s. You also cannot cross-aggregate: an IRA RMD can never be paid from a 401(k), and a 401(k) RMD can never be paid from an IRA (IRS RMD Comparison Chart, 2025).
The IRS is explicit: “If you have more than one defined contribution plan, you must calculate and satisfy your RMDs separately for each plan and withdraw that amount from that plan” (IRS, 2025). If you hold three old 401(k) balances from former jobs, you owe three separate RMDs. Left-behind 401(k) accounts are a frequent source of missed distributions.
Can 403(b) RMDs be aggregated?
Yes, but only with other 403(b) contracts. If you own more than one 403(b) tax-sheltered annuity, you may total the RMDs and take them from any one or more of those 403(b) accounts (IRS RMD Comparison Chart, 2025). A 403(b) RMD can never be satisfied from an IRA, a 401(k), or a 457(b) plan.
A timing trap matters before you move money. Under IRS final regulations, an RMD cannot be rolled over, and the first dollars distributed in any year are treated as the RMD. Take the year’s 403(b) RMD first, then roll the remaining balance to an IRA. Rolling the whole 403(b) first moves a required amount into the IRA, where it becomes an excess contribution.
Where do inherited IRAs and 457(b) plans fit?
Inherited IRAs and 457(b) plans each follow separate tracks and never merge with your own IRA family. An inherited IRA may be combined only with other inherited IRAs from the same decedent that are the same account type. A governmental 457(b) plan stands entirely alone, paying its own RMD like a 401(k) (IRS Pub 590-B, 2025).
Beneficiary rules are more involved, because the 10-year payout window and annual-RMD requirements depend on when the original owner died and your relationship to them. For the full framework, see the Q3 Advisors guide to inherited IRA RMD rules under SECURE 2.0. This page covers which of your own accounts you can combine; that page covers the beneficiary timelines.
Roth accounts and RMDs
As the original owner of a Roth IRA, you take no lifetime RMDs at any age, so Roth IRAs never enter the aggregation math while you are alive (IRS Pub 590-B, 2025). Beginning in 2024, SECURE 2.0 also removed lifetime RMDs from designated Roth accounts inside employer plans, so a Roth 401(k) or Roth 403(b) no longer requires distributions during the participant’s life.
Because Roth IRAs carry no lifetime RMD, moving pre-tax dollars to Roth before age 73 shrinks the traditional balance your future RMDs are calculated on. Some savers study a Roth conversion in lower-income years and weigh how much to convert to Roth against the current-year tax cost. A conversion is uncapped taxable ordinary income, is irreversible, and cannot itself satisfy an RMD.
How to calculate your RMD when you aggregate
To calculate an aggregated RMD, run each account separately, then combine within the family. The formula per account is the same: the prior-year December 31 balance divided by your factor from the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table in Pub 590-B. Below is a two-IRA example using a Uniform Lifetime Table factor of 24.6 (IRS Pub 590-B, 2025).
- IRA A prior-year balance: $300,000, divided by 24.6, equals $12,195.
- IRA B prior-year balance: $200,000, divided by 24.6, equals $8,130.
- Combined IRA RMD: $12,195 plus $8,130 equals $20,325 on a $500,000 total.
- Because both are IRAs, you may take the full $20,325 from IRA A, from IRA B, or split it between them.
If one of those $500,000 accounts were a 401(k) instead of an IRA, its share could not be blended in. You would owe that plan’s RMD from the 401(k) itself.
RMD age, deadlines, and the missed-RMD penalty
Under SECURE 2.0, RMDs begin at age 73 for anyone reaching 72 after December 31, 2022, and rise to age 75 for those reaching 73 after December 31, 2032 (the earliest age-75 RMD year is 2035). Your first RMD can be delayed to April 1 of the year after you reach RMD age, but a second RMD is then due by December 31 of that same year (IRS RMD FAQs, 2025).
Miss an RMD and the shortfall faces a 25% excise tax, reduced to 10% if you correct it within two years. SECURE 2.0 cut the old 50% penalty to these levels, so any source still citing 50% is out of date. A waiver may be requested on IRS Form 5329 with a reasonable-cause explanation. For the full age and factor schedule, see the Q3 Advisors required minimum distributions 2026 guide.
| Situation | Excise tax on the shortfall |
|---|---|
| Before SECURE 2.0 (outdated figure) | 50% |
| SECURE 2.0, uncorrected | 25% |
| Corrected within two years | 10% |
QCDs and the still-working exception
Two rules interact with aggregated IRA RMDs. A qualified charitable distribution (QCD), available at age 70.5 and older and only from an IRA (not directly from a 401(k)), can count toward that year’s IRA RMD while staying out of taxable income. Some savers use QCDs to hold down the income that drives Medicare IRMAA surcharges and the 3.8% net investment income tax. Confirm the current annual QCD limit in IRS Pub 590-B.
The still-working exception can delay the RMD from your current employer’s 401(k) or 403(b) if the plan allows it and you are not a 5% owner. It never delays IRA RMDs, which are due at RMD age regardless of employment (IRS Pub 590-B, 2025).
Consolidating accounts to simplify RMDs
Consolidating accounts can reduce the number of separate RMDs you track each year. Rolling several old 401(k) balances into one IRA replaces multiple stand-alone employer-plan RMDs with a single IRA family that aggregates. Take any current-year plan RMD before the rollover, since the RMD cannot be rolled over.
Consolidation also shifts your taxable-income timing, which can affect brackets, IRMAA, and conversion planning. If Roth conversions are part of your plan, reviewing the Roth conversion deadline for 2026 alongside consolidation keeps the moves in the correct order.
Work with Q3 Advisors
Q3 Advisors is a registered investment adviser focused on retirement tax planning. This page is educational and is not advice; consult a qualified professional.
Frequently asked questions
Can I take my total RMD from just one IRA?
Yes, for your own IRAs. You calculate a separate RMD for each traditional, SEP, or SIMPLE IRA, then total the amounts and withdraw the full total from any single IRA or any combination of them (IRS Pub 590-B, 2025). Employer plans such as 401(k)s do not qualify for this pooling.
Can you aggregate RMDs from a 401(k) and an IRA?
No. IRAs and 401(k)s are different account types and cannot be cross-aggregated. The IRA RMD must come from an IRA, and the 401(k) RMD must come from that 401(k). This follows from the separate calculate-and-withdraw rules for each account type in IRS Pub 590-B and the IRS RMD Comparison Chart (2025).
Can RMDs from multiple 401(k) accounts be combined?
No. Each 401(k) is a defined contribution plan that must calculate and pay its own RMD from that specific plan (IRS RMD Comparison Chart, 2025). If you hold three 401(k) accounts, you take three separate RMDs. Rolling them into one IRA is one way to reduce that to a single aggregated RMD.
Can 403(b) RMDs be aggregated?
Yes, but only with other 403(b) contracts. If you own more than one 403(b) tax-sheltered annuity, you may total the RMDs and take them from any one or more of those 403(b) accounts (IRS RMD Comparison Chart, 2025). A 403(b) RMD cannot be satisfied from an IRA or a 401(k).
Can I combine RMDs from inherited IRAs?
Only in limited cases. Inherited IRAs may be aggregated with each other when they come from the same decedent and are the same account type. They can never be combined with your own IRAs. Beneficiary rules also vary by date of death and relationship, so confirm your situation against IRS Pub 590-B (2025).
Do I have to take an RMD from each retirement account separately?
It depends on the type. IRAs aggregate within their family, and 403(b) contracts aggregate within theirs, so those can be satisfied from fewer accounts. Each 401(k) and 457(b) must pay its own RMD separately from that plan (IRS RMD FAQs, 2025). Cross-type combining is not allowed.
What is the penalty for not taking an RMD?
The shortfall faces a 25% excise tax under SECURE 2.0, reduced to 10% if corrected within two years (IRS RMD FAQs, 2025). This replaced the prior 50% penalty, so older sources citing 50% are outdated. A waiver for reasonable cause may be requested on IRS Form 5329.
At what age do RMDs start?
RMDs generally begin at age 73 for anyone who reached 72 after December 31, 2022, and rise to age 75 for those reaching 73 after December 31, 2032 (earliest age-75 RMD year 2035). Your first RMD may be delayed to April 1 of the following year, with the second due that same December 31.
