Traditional IRA withdrawal rules
Last updated August 2026
Short answer
A Traditional IRA has two thresholds, one at each end of retirement. The first stops you taking money early cheaply, and the second stops you leaving it alone indefinitely.
Before 59.5
The withdrawal is added to your income for the year and taxed at your marginal rate, and an additional 10% tax generally applies on top.
At a 22% marginal rate, taking $10,000 leaves roughly $6,800 after both. The account also loses whatever those dollars would have compounded into.
Unlike a Roth IRA, there is no pool of already-taxed contributions to reach first. Everything deductible that went in is taxable coming out.
The exceptions
Disability, death, and an IRS levy on the account.
Unreimbursed medical expenses above a threshold, health insurance premiums while unemployed, qualified higher education expenses, and up to $10,000 lifetime toward a first home.
Substantially equal periodic payments under section 72(t), qualified birth or adoption expenses, and certain disaster and emergency distributions. Each has its own conditions, and getting one wrong reinstates the tax.
Between 59.5 and 73
Withdrawals are ordinary income with no additional tax, and nothing forces you to take them.
This window is where Roth conversions are frequently done, because income may be lower after work stops but before required distributions and Social Security begin.
Converting during these years moves money out of a balance that will later be forced out at a rate you do not control.
Try it in Walnut
Walnut connects to your brokerage and shows your IRA balances alongside everything else, which is the view a distribution plan actually needs.
Required minimum distributions from 73
The amount is your prior year-end balance divided by a life expectancy factor from the IRS table for your age.
Multiple Traditional IRAs are aggregated for the calculation, and the total may be satisfied from any combination of them. Workplace plans generally have to be taken separately.
A qualified charitable distribution can satisfy the requirement while keeping the amount out of your taxable income, which is one of the few genuinely efficient options available at that age.
Basis, and the proportional rule
Non-deductible contributions create basis, and that portion of any withdrawal is tax-free.
It comes out proportionally across all your Traditional IRAs, so you cannot choose to withdraw the after-tax money first.
Form 8606 is the record. Without it, proving that some of the money was already taxed becomes your problem rather than the IRS's.
Qualified charitable distributions
From age 70.5, money can go directly from an IRA to a qualifying charity without appearing in your taxable income.
It counts toward the required minimum distribution once those begin, which makes it one of the few genuinely efficient ways to satisfy them.
The transfer has to go directly to the charity. Withdrawing first and donating afterwards produces a different and usually worse tax result.
Sources
Distribution rules, the exceptions to the additional tax, required minimum distributions and basis recovery are in IRS Publication 590-B, with the exception list also summarised at Exceptions to tax on early distributions. Walnut is informational and is not an investment adviser. This guide is educational and not personalized tax advice.
FAQ
When can I withdraw from a Traditional IRA without penalty?
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From age 59.5. Withdrawals are still taxed as ordinary income, but the additional 10% tax no longer applies. Before that age both apply unless an exception covers you.
What are the exceptions to the 10% additional tax?
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They include disability, death, unreimbursed medical expenses above a threshold, health insurance while unemployed, qualified higher education expenses, a first home up to $10,000 lifetime, substantially equal periodic payments, IRS levies, qualified birth or adoption, and certain disaster and emergency distributions.
When do required minimum distributions start?
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At age 73 under current law. The first one can be delayed to 1 April of the following year, though doing so puts two distributions in one tax year, which usually costs more than it saves.
How is the required amount calculated?
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Your account balance on 31 December of the prior year, divided by a life expectancy factor from the IRS tables. Balances across multiple Traditional IRAs are added, and the total can be taken from any one of them.
What happens if I miss a required distribution?
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An excise tax applies on the amount not taken, reduced by SECURE 2.0 from the previous 50% and reduced further if the shortfall is corrected promptly. Form 5329 is where the correction and any waiver request is filed.
Is any of my withdrawal tax-free?
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Only the portion representing non-deductible contributions, and only proportionally. If 10% of your IRA balance is after-tax basis, then 10% of each withdrawal is tax-free. You cannot withdraw the basis first.
Does an inherited IRA follow the same rules?
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No. Most non-spouse beneficiaries must empty the account within ten years, and where the original owner had already begun required distributions, annual withdrawals are also required during that period. A surviving spouse has additional options.
What is a qualified charitable distribution?
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A direct transfer from your IRA to a qualifying charity from age 70.5, which stays out of your taxable income entirely and counts toward your required minimum distribution once those begin. The money has to go directly to the charity for it to work.