He Turned 73 and Delayed His First RMD to April 1 to Buy Time. The Second One Was Due in December. Medicare Read Both as One Year’s Income.

He Turned 73 and Delayed His First RMD to April 1 to Buy Time. The Second One Was Due in December. Medicare Read Both as One Year’s Income.

Gerelyn Terzo

Sat, September 5, 2026 at 6:26 PM GMT+3 5 min read

Quick Read

• Delaying the first RMD to April 1 stacks two distributions on one tax return, potentially bundling over $150,000 in income for a $2 million IRA.

• Medicare sets 2028 premiums using 2026 income, so a bunched RMD year can trigger IRMAA surcharges costing a married couple nearly $5,770 extra annually.

• Taking the first RMD by December 31 instead of April 1 keeps both distributions on separate returns and eliminates the income-stacking problem entirely.

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A retiree turned 73 in 2025 and used the option Congress left him. Instead of taking his first required minimum distribution (RMD) by December 31, he delayed it until April 1, 2026. The second RMD was still due December 31, 2026. Two withdrawals landed on one tax return, and Medicare does not care that the first one "belonged" to 2025. Both dollars became 2026 income. The April deadline bought three months. It did not buy another tax year.

For someone with a $2 million IRA, the first RMD can approach $75,500. If the account remains near that size, the second can approach $78,500. Bunching them can push more than $150,000 onto one return before pensions, investment income or taxable Social Security enter the calculation.

Why the Doubled Year Reprices Medicare

Medicare generally uses tax information from two years earlier. Modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) from 2026 will therefore help determine his 2028 Part B and Part D premiums. For this purpose, MAGI is adjusted gross income (AGI) from Form 1040 line 11 plus tax-exempt interest from line 2a. Social Security does not average the two RMDs, assign the first one to 2025 or unwind the timing decision. It reads the figure reported for 2026. The 2028 income-related monthly adjustment amount (IRMAA) thresholds and premiums have not been announced. The 2026 schedule nevertheless shows the scale of the cliffs:

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These are surcharges on top of the standard Part B premium and any Part D plan premium. Using the second row as an illustration, a married couple would owe an additional $480.80 a month, or nearly $5,770 for the year. The actual 2028 brackets will differ, but the structure remains: crossing a line can reprice an entire year of premiums (we mapped the rest, from coverage gaps to premium cliffs, in a free guide to Medicare's hidden bills).

SSA-44 Does Not Undo Voluntary Bunching

Form SSA-44 can lower IRMAA when income falls after a qualifying life-changing event, such as marriage, divorce, the death of a spouse, work reduction, work stoppage or loss of pension income. Choosing to delay an RMD is not one of those events. Neither is a Roth conversion or a voluntary property sale.

If the tax return is accurate and the higher MAGI resulted from a timing choice, SSA-44 does not let the retiree spread the income back across two years. A spouse's death is different because it is a qualifying event. Filing status depends on the year of death, and a surviving spouse may request that Social Security use newer, lower income information. That relief comes from the death and resulting income change, not from the two-RMD pileup itself.

December Is the Real Deadline

Three moves can keep the April option from becoming an expensive surprise:

1. If turning 73 this year, compare taking the first RMD by December 31 with delaying it until April. The earlier withdrawal keeps the first two RMDs on separate returns.

2. Model MAGI before year-end, including both distributions, taxable Social Security, pensions, tax-exempt interest and any discretionary gains or Roth conversions.

3. If charitable giving is already planned, consider a qualified charitable distribution. Once eligible, it can satisfy part or all of an RMD without adding that amount to AGI.

If both RMDs are already locked into 2026, prepare for the possible 2028 premium increase and keep 2027 income from creating a repeat in 2029. April 1 buys three months, not a tax break. The useful decision happens the December before, while the two distributions can still be kept on separate returns. Put the tax and Medicare calendars side by side before December, and April 1 can remain a planning tool instead of becoming a premium surprise.

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