How do the proposed 2025 IRS life expectancy tables differ from the 2002 tables used now?
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Executive summary
The IRS issued updated life-expectancy tables for RMD calculations effective for 2025 (Tables I–III in Publication 590‑B) and those tables change the “distribution period” (life‑expectancy) factors used to compute required minimum distributions; Publication 590‑B shows specific factors for 2025 and examples using Table II with a joint life expectancy of 25.3 for a 75/64 couple [1]. Separate IRS guidance also released updated static mortality tables for defined‑benefit plans for 2025, a different set of actuarial tables used for pension valuations [2].
1. What changed and where to find it — IRS published new 2025 tables
The IRS’s Publication 590‑B (2025 draft and final versions) contains three life‑expectancy tables — Single Life (Table I), Joint Life and Last Survivor (Table II), and Uniform Lifetime (Table III) — with factors explicitly listed for 2025; the publication and its Appendix B are the authoritative source for the new RMD factors [3] [1] [4]. The agency’s web page for RMDs also points taxpayers to Publication 590‑B for the tables and examples [5].
2. How the new tables affect RMD math — distribution period factors changed for 2025
The practical change is in the “distribution period” or life‑expectancy factor you divide your year‑end balance by to get the RMD. Publication 590‑B uses those updated factors in its 2025 examples (for instance, a 75/64 couple uses a joint life expectancy of 25.3) and instructs owners to divide the account balance at the end of 2024 by the appropriate 2025 life expectancy from the tables in Appendix B [1] [3]. Tax professionals and calculators (Bankrate, SmartAsset) republished the 2025–2026 Uniform Lifetime Table for practical use [6] [7].
3. Direction and magnitude — are RMDs higher or lower under the 2025 tables?
Available sources demonstrate the IRS provided new numeric factors for 2025 in Publication 590‑B but do not universally quantify whether RMDs increased or decreased across all ages compared with the 2002 tables in the materials you supplied. Third‑party commentary says prior updates (for example, 2022) increased distribution periods for most ages, reducing annual RMDs, and LegalClarity reports that the update allowed funds to remain tax‑deferred longer; however, the specific comparison between the 2002 tables and the 2025 tables is not detailed in the IRS excerpts provided here [8] [7]. Therefore, the exact net directional change versus 2002 “for most ages” is not fully documented in the current reporting (not found in current reporting).
4. Different tables for different purposes — RMD vs. pension mortality tables
Don’t conflate the RMD life‑expectancy tables in Publication 590‑B with the IRS’s static mortality tables for defined‑benefit pension plans. The latter are updated separately — Notice and guidance released for 2025 update static mortality tables used to value defined‑benefit plan liabilities, not individual‑account RMDs — and are governed by a different IRS release [2] [9]. Publication 590‑B’s Appendix B is the relevant source for RMDs [1].
5. Practical implications for retirees and planners
If the 2025 distribution periods are longer for a retiree’s specific age, annual RMDs will be smaller; if they’re shorter, RMDs rise. Publication 590‑B gives step‑by‑step examples showing how to apply the 2025 factors (divide year‑end balance by the table factor) and reiterates special rules when a spouse is sole beneficiary and more than 10 years younger — use Table II [1] [3]. Financial‑planning sites reprint the tables and calculators to help individuals compute the new RMD amounts for 2025–2026 [6] [10].
6. Caveats, limitations and where reporting is thin
The supplied IRS materials and third‑party summaries confirm 2025 life‑expectancy factors exist in Publication 590‑B and that static mortality tables for pensions were updated [1] [2]. The sources you provided do not include a direct, side‑by‑side numeric comparison between the 2002 tables and the 2025 tables showing which ages saw specific increases or decreases in distribution periods; therefore a precise “how many years changed at each age” comparison is not available in current reporting (not found in current reporting). For exact numeric deltas, consult Appendix B of the 2025 Publication 590‑B alongside the 2002 table in prior Publication 590‑B archives.
Sources cited: IRS Publication 590‑B and related pages and notices (see Publication 590‑B examples and Appendix B for 2025 life‑expectancy factors [1] [3] [4]; IRS RMD web page [5]; updated static mortality tables for defined‑benefit plans [2]; practical tables/calculators cited by Bankrate and Impact Advisor [6] [10]; commentary noting prior table effects [8]).