What If You Have Multiple IRAs or Retirement Accounts?

If you have more than one retirement account, the RMD rules can get a bit complicated depending on what types of accounts you have. For traditional IRAs, you calculate a separate RMD for each account you own, but you are allowed to add those amounts together and take the total from any one IRA or a combination of them. For 401(k) accounts, the rules are stricter and you must take each 401(k) RMD directly from that specific account, you cannot combine 401(k) RMDs with IRA withdrawals. If you have both a traditional IRA and a 401(k), you must satisfy the RMD requirement for each type of account separately. Keeping a clear record of all your retirement accounts and their balances at year end is important so you can make sure you are meeting the requirement for each one.