Joint Life Expectancy Table: Eligibility and RMD Calculation

The joint life expectancy table, formally IRS Table II in Publication 590-B, is the table you use to calculate a required minimum distribution when your spouse is the sole beneficiary of your retirement account and is more than 10 years younger than you. Divide your prior year-end account balance by the distribution period where your age and your spouse’s age intersect on the table. Because the table assumes two lives rather than one, the distribution period runs longer than the default Uniform Lifetime Table, and your annual RMD comes out smaller.¹

Who Can Use Table II

Two conditions must both hold for the entire distribution year. Your spouse must be the only beneficiary on the account, and your spouse must be more than 10 years younger than you.¹ If either one fails at any point during the year, you drop back to the Uniform Lifetime Table (Table III), which assumes a beneficiary exactly 10 years younger regardless of your spouse’s actual age.

The sole-beneficiary condition catches more people than the age gap does. If your IRA names your spouse along with your children, or names a trust with your spouse as the trust’s primary recipient, you generally lose access to Table II. The designation on file with your custodian is what controls, so check it before you calculate.

Inherited Accounts Do Not Qualify

Table II is only for original account owners calculating their own RMDs. If you inherited an IRA, from a spouse or anyone else, you use the Single Life Expectancy Table (Table I) instead.¹

Roth IRAs You Funded Yourself

Original Roth IRA owners have no lifetime RMDs, so the question of which table to use never comes up on your own Roth.² Inherited Roth IRAs do have RMDs, but those beneficiaries use Table I.³

The Three Numbers You Need

Every Table II calculation runs on three inputs: the account balance, your age, and your spouse’s age.

The balance is the fair market value of the account as of December 31 of the prior year.³ Your financial institution reports it on the year-end statement. Use that exact figure, not a current balance and not an estimate.

For both ages, use the age each of you reaches on your birthday during the distribution year. If you turn 75 in November 2026 and your spouse turns 64 in March 2026, the 2026 calculation uses 75 and 64, even if you run the numbers in January while you are still 74.¹

Looking Up Your Distribution Period

Table II sits in IRS Publication 590-B as a grid with two age axes. Find your age on one axis and your spouse’s age on the other, and read the value at the intersection.¹ That value, in years, is your distribution period.

The number will be higher than what the Uniform Lifetime Table gives for the same owner age. Publication 590-B’s own worked example uses a 75-year-old with a 64-year-old spouse: Table II produces a distribution period of 25.3 years.¹ The Uniform Lifetime Table for a 75-year-old is 24.6. The wider the age gap, the wider that gap grows, and the smaller your required withdrawal.

Running the Calculation

Divide the prior-year balance by the distribution period. That is the whole formula.

Using the same IRS example, a $100,000 balance divided by 25.3 gives an RMD of $3,953.¹ The same balance divided by 24.6 under the Uniform Lifetime Table gives $4,065. The $112 gap is small at $100,000; at $1 million, the annual difference is over $1,100, and that untouched money keeps growing inside the account.

The RMD is a floor, not a ceiling. You can always take more if you need it. Taking less is what triggers a penalty.

Multiple Accounts, One Table Choice at a Time

If you own more than one traditional IRA, calculate a separate RMD for each, then withdraw the total from whichever IRA you prefer.¹ Traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs can be aggregated this way. Each 401(k) RMD, by contrast, must come out of that specific 401(k), and 403(b) accounts can only be aggregated with other 403(b) accounts.⁴

Table eligibility runs account by account. You may qualify for Table II on an IRA where your younger spouse is the sole beneficiary, and fall back to the Uniform Lifetime Table on another IRA that lists your children alongside your spouse. Calculate each account with the table its beneficiary designation supports.

Deadlines and the Penalty for Falling Short

Every RMD after your first is due by December 31 of the distribution year. If you miss the deadline, the IRS imposes an excise tax of 25% on the shortfall.⁵ A $10,000 shortfall costs $2,500 in penalty, plus the income tax you still owe when the money eventually comes out.

Correct the miss within two years by withdrawing the shortfall and filing Form 5329, and the penalty drops to 10%.⁵ SECURE 2.0 introduced that reduced rate, replacing the 50% penalty that applied before 2023. Automatic distributions through your custodian are the simplest way to avoid the problem entirely.³

Life Events That Break the Table II Rule Mid-Year

Because both conditions must hold for the whole year, a mid-year change in marital status or beneficiary designation can push you off Table II for that year.

A divorce finalized in July means your spouse was not the sole beneficiary for the full year, so the calculation reverts to the Uniform Lifetime Table. The same happens if you amend a beneficiary form during the year to add a child or a trust.

If your spouse dies during the distribution year, Publication 590-B notes that exceptions apply, and the mechanics depend on the specific circumstances. Get advice in the year of a spouse’s death about which table applies for that year and going forward.

1
Internal Revenue Service. Publication 590-B – Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 408A – Roth IRAs
3
Internal Revenue Service. Retirement Plan and IRA Required Minimum Distributions FAQs
4
Internal Revenue Service. RMD Comparison Chart (IRAs vs. Defined Contribution Plans)
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 4974 – Excise Tax on Certain Accumulations in Qualified Retirement Plans