Retirees Who Turned 73 This Year Can Push Their First RMD to April 1. The Ones Who Do Take Two in 2027, and Some Pay a Medicare Bracket for It
Deferring your first RMD past December 31 keeps 2026 taxes lower, but the two distributions that pile into 2027 can quietly trigger Medicare surcharges that arrive two years after the money is already spent.
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Turning 73 in 2026 comes with a one-time choice. Retirees who reach their required minimum distribution age this year can take that first withdrawal now, or push it to April 1 of 2027. The deferral shrinks the 2026 tax bill, but a second RMD is still due by December 31, 2027. Two years of mandatory income land in a single tax year, triggering thresholds that cause damage that outlasts the distributions themselves.
How the Two-Distribution Year Actually Forms
A retiree who reaches the RMD age of 73 in 2026 has a required beginning date of April 1, 2027, for the 2026 distribution. Every subsequent RMD must be taken by December 31 of its own year. Defer the first, and both distributions land in 2027. Take the first in 2026, and each year stands alone. Deferral only changes which tax year absorbs the income.
Why Stacking Inflates More Than the Tax Bill
The doubled-up year raises adjusted gross income, and federal thresholds react to that AGI. Under the 2026 schedule, a single filer moves from the 22% bracket into 24% at $105,700, and a married couple filing jointly crosses at $211,400. Stacking two RMDs can push the top slice of the second into a marginal rate neither would have faced alone.
Social Security taxation is the second lever, and once combined income clears $25,000 for singles and $32,000 for joint filers, more of the benefit becomes taxable. Above $34,000 and $44,000, up to 85% is included in AGI. A doubled-up RMD year maximizes that percentage.
Medicare Surcharge Arrives Two Years Late
IRMAA uses a two-year lookback, so 2027 AGI drives Medicare premiums in 2029. The 2026 brackets show the narrow runway: a single filer with modified AGI at or below $109,000, or a couple at or below $218,000, pays the standard Part B premium of $202.90.
One dollar over sends the single filer to $284.10. The next tier at $137,000 single or $274,000 joint lifts the total to $405.80. These are cliffs. Part D carries its own surcharge starting at $14.50 per month and climbing to $91.00 at the top. Long-term capital gains and the 3.8% net investment income tax react to the same inflated AGI, converting a 15% gains rate into 20% and dragging investment income into the surtax.
Choice Is Irreversible After December 31
Once 2026 closes, the deferral is permanent. There is no retroactive first RMD or amended return. The right question is which of the two years has more room beneath the next bracket, the next IRMAA cliff, and the 85% Social Security ceiling. That framing, defusing a large pre-tax balance years before the first required withdrawal, is the whole subject of a free guide we put together on the first-year tax bomb.
When Deferral Genuinely Helps, and Ways to Soften the Blow
Deferral works when 2026 income is unusually high, and 2027 will be lower: a partial year of wages, a property sale, or a one-time payout. A qualified charitable distribution from an IRA at age 70½ up to $108,000 per person satisfies an RMD without adding to AGI. A Roth conversion cannot substitute for an RMD. IRAs may be aggregated so one account covers the total, while 401(k) plans generally must be distributed separately. Missing an RMD triggers a 25% excise tax, reduced to 10% if you correct it promptly.
The deadline for the 2026 decision is December 31, 2026. A side-by-side projection of AGI in 2026 and 2027 under both scenarios, marking the next bracket, IRMAA threshold, and Social Security inclusion line on each, shows whichever year has more room beneath those lines to carry the first distribution.
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David Beren has been a Flywheel Publishing contributor since 2022. Writing for 24/7 Wall St. since 2023, David loves to write about topics of all shapes and sizes. As a technology expert, David focuses heavily on consumer electronics brands, automobiles, and general technology. He has previously written for LifeWire, formerly About.com. As a part-time freelance writer, David’s “day job” has been working on and leading social media for multiple Fortune 100 brands. David loves the flexibility of this field and its ability to reach customers exactly where they like to spend their time. Additionally, David previously published his own blog, TmoNews.com, which reached 3 million readers in its first year. In addition to freelance and social media work, David loves to spend time with his family and children and relive the glory days of video game consoles by playing any retro game console he can get his hands on.
