IRS Tax Forms
Form 5329: RMD Penalties, Exceptions, and How to File
Form 5329 reports additional taxes on retirement plans and other tax-favored accounts. Common reasons to file include a missed required minimum distribution, excess IRA or HSA contributions, or an early retirement withdrawal requiring an exception. It can also request relief from the additional tax on a missed RMD.
Official sources
Official IRS Form 5329 Resources
Quick reference
Form 5329 at a Glance
Question; Quick answer
- What does it calculate?
- Additional taxes, not the ordinary income tax on retirement distributions.
- Early-withdrawal tax?
- Generally 10% of the amount subject to tax, with exceptions and a special SIMPLE IRA rule.
- Excess-contribution tax?
- Generally 6%, subject to account-specific calculations and correction rules.
- Missed-RMD tax?
- Generally 25% of the shortfall, potentially reduced to 10% or waived.
- Where does the tax go?
- Generally Schedule 2, line 8, for individual filers.
- Can spouses share one form?
- No. Each spouse who needs Form 5329 completes a separate form.
Form purpose
What Is Form 5329?
The full title is Additional Taxes on Qualified Plans (Including IRAs) and Other Tax-Favored Accounts. The form handles several different problems, so start by identifying the account and the transaction, not by applying one penalty rate to everything.
An early withdrawal concerns money taken out too soon. An excess contribution concerns money put in beyond the permitted amount. An RMD shortfall concerns money that should have come out but did not. One taxpayer can have more than one issue in the same year.
Form 1099-R reports distributions. Form 8606 may establish their taxable portion or Roth treatment. Form 5329 determines whether an additional tax applies. Paying ordinary income tax does not resolve that separate calculation.
Filing requirements
Who Must File Form 5329?
You may need it when:
- A taxable early distribution is subject to additional tax or an exception is not correctly reflected on Form 1099-R.
- Only part of a distribution qualifies for an exception.
- Current-year or unresolved prior-year excess contributions require reporting.
- You missed some or all of an RMD, including one from an inherited account.
- Taxable distributions from education or ABLE accounts require an additional-tax calculation.
- Special Roth conversion or rollover recapture rules apply.
Receiving Form 1099-R does not automatically require Form 5329. If code 1 correctly appears on every applicable non-Roth distribution and the 10% tax applies to the full taxable amount, the IRS permits direct reporting on Schedule 2 without Form 5329. Other filing triggers still need checking. See the IRS filing requirements.
Before you start
Records to Collect Before Filing
Gather Forms 1099-R, 5498 and relevant HSA records; account statements; contribution dates and designated tax years; prior Forms 5329, 8606 and 8889; RMD calculations; and distribution confirmations.
For corrections, record the amount, date discovered, date corrected and custodian's earnings calculation. For an exception, keep evidence such as qualifying expenses, separation dates or medical documentation. Inherited-account work also needs the owner's date of death, required beginning date and beneficiary classification.
Use a separate worksheet for each account and tax year. For CPA firms, this reconciliation fits within individual tax return preparation support, with the firm retaining its review process.
Form walkthrough
Form 5329 Instructions by Part
Complete only the relevant parts of the 2025 form.
| Part and lines | What to report |
|---|---|
| I, lines 1-4 | Early distributions, eligible exceptions and the resulting additional tax. |
| II, lines 5-8 | Taxable education or ABLE distributions subject to additional tax after exceptions. |
| III, lines 9-17 | Excess traditional IRA contributions and prior-year amounts remaining. |
| IV, lines 18-25 | Excess Roth IRA contributions and permitted reductions. |
| V, lines 26-33 | Excess Coverdell ESA contributions. |
| VI, lines 34-41 | Excess Archer MSA contributions. |
| VII, lines 42-49 | Excess HSA contributions, coordinated with Form 8889. |
| VIII, lines 50-51 | Excess ABLE contributions. |
| IX, lines 52-55 | Required distributions, timely withdrawals and additional tax on the shortfall. |
In Part I, line 1 generally starts with the includible early-distribution amount, not automatically the gross withdrawal. Line 2 identifies the qualifying exception amount and code. Lines 3-4 calculate the remaining tax. Roth recapture can require additional amounts even when a withdrawal is not currently taxable income.
In Parts III-VII, bring forward unresolved excesses from the correct prior-year lines. A new calendar year does not erase an old excess. Follow the account-specific balance caps and adjustments in the official form.
Tax reference
Early-Withdrawal Tax and Form 5329 Exception Codes
Taxable retirement distributions before age 59 1/2 generally face an additional 10% tax. Certain SIMPLE IRA distributions within the first two years of participation face 25% instead.
An exception normally removes the additional tax, not ordinary income tax. A hardship withdrawal is not automatically an exception simply because a plan permits it.
| Common code | Potential exception | Important distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Separation from service in or after the year turning 55 | Applies to qualifying employer-plan distributions, not IRAs. Special public-safety rules differ. |
| 02 | Substantially equal periodic payments | Strict payment and duration rules apply; changes can trigger recapture. |
| 03 / 04 | Total and permanent disability / death | Eligibility must meet the applicable definition. |
| 05 | Unreimbursed medical expenses | Limited to qualifying expenses above 7.5% of AGI. |
| 07 / 08 | Certain unemployment health-insurance premiums / higher education | IRA exceptions, not general 401(k) exceptions. |
| 09 | Qualified first-home costs | IRA exception with a $10,000 lifetime limit. |
| 11 | Qualified reservist distributions | Active-duty and distribution-timing conditions apply. |
| 12 | Certain incorrectly coded early distributions | For distributions received at age 59 1/2 or older that carry code 1, J or S. |
| 13 | Certain Section 457 plan distributions | Amounts attributable to qualified-plan rollovers can have different treatment. |
| 19 | Qualified birth or adoption distribution | Generally up to $5,000 per individual for a qualifying birth or adoption, within the applicable one-year period. |
| 21 | Earnings on qualifying corrective IRA distributions | Timely correction rules must be satisfied. |
| 22 / 23 | Domestic abuse / emergency personal expenses | Separate eligibility, amount and repayment rules apply. |
This is a selection, not the full code list. Enter 99 if multiple exceptions apply, following the Form 5329 exception instructions.
An emergency personal expense distribution is limited to one per calendar year and the smaller of $1,000 or the vested account amount exceeding $1,000. Restrictions generally apply for the next three calendar years unless repayment or subsequent contributions meet the rules. It is not a general $1,000 tax-free withdrawal allowance. See IRS Notice 2024-55.
Qualified disaster recovery distributions follow Form 8915-F rules rather than the normal Form 5329 early-distribution calculation.
Penalty guidance
Missed RMD Penalty, Correction Window, and Waiver
First establish the correct RMD
For an IRA owner, the calculation generally divides the previous December 31 account balance by the applicable IRS life-expectancy factor. The appropriate table depends on ownership and beneficiary circumstances. Use the IRS RMD guidance and worksheets, not an owner-only calculator for an inherited IRA.
For people reaching age 73 in 2025, the first IRA RMD is generally due April 1, 2026. Later annual RMDs generally have a December 31 deadline. Delaying the first payment can put two distributions in one calendar year. A return extension does not ordinarily extend the RMD deadline.
Calculate each IRA's RMD separately before using permitted aggregation. A withdrawal from your own IRA cannot satisfy an inherited IRA's requirement. Inherited IRAs generally aggregate only within the same decedent and compatible account category. Employer plans generally require separate withdrawals, with a special aggregation rule for 403(b) accounts.
A qualifying charitable distribution can count toward an RMD. Continuing to work does not postpone an IRA owner's RMD, although a qualifying employer plan may allow a still-working delay. Special ownership restrictions apply to that employer-plan exception.
Correct the shortfall promptly
The standard additional tax is 25% of the amount not distributed as required. It can fall to 10% when, within the correction window, you both receive the corrective distribution from the relevant plan and submit a return reflecting the additional tax.
The window ends on the earliest of:
- Mailing of an IRS deficiency notice for the tax.
- Assessment of the tax.
- The last day of the second taxable year beginning after the year in which the tax is imposed.
For a calendar-year tax imposed for 2025, the third limit is December 31, 2027, but IRS action can close the window earlier. This is not permission to postpone correcting the withdrawal.
Part IX separates amounts subject to the reduced rate from other amounts. Do not add late corrective withdrawals to lines 53a or 53b as though they were timely. They support correction relief, not a rewritten withdrawal history. The tax belongs to the year containing the applicable final RMD deadline. See the Part IX instructions.
Request a reasonable-cause waiver when appropriate
The IRS may waive all or part of the additional tax when the shortfall resulted from reasonable error and reasonable steps are being taken to fix it.
Complete the required-distribution and timely-distribution entries. Follow the instructions for entering RC and the shortfall for which relief is requested beside the applicable line 54 entry, then calculate any tax remaining after the requested relief. Pay any tax reported on line 55.
Attach a factual explanation identifying the affected year and account, required and actual withdrawals, cause of the error, corrective distribution and steps to prevent recurrence. Do not use a generic story that does not match the records. Relief is an IRS decision, not a guaranteed result.
A useful waiver workpaper has five entries: the RMD originally due; the amount received by its deadline; the resulting shortfall; the dated evidence of correction; and the factual reason for requesting relief. Attach relevant support where appropriate and retain the underlying statements. If only part of the shortfall qualifies for relief, distinguish that amount from the portion on which tax remains payable.
Inherited IRAs and the year of death
The 10-year inherited-IRA rule does not always permit waiting until year 10. Certain beneficiaries of owners who died on or after their required beginning date must also take annual distributions. Earlier transition relief for specified missed beneficiary RMDs through 2024 should not be assumed to cover 2025.
If an owner dies with an unfinished death-year RMD, beneficiaries generally must address the remaining amount. Separate automatic penalty relief may apply when the corrective distribution meets the deadline in the regulations, generally the later of the beneficiary's applicable return deadline, including extensions, or the end of the following calendar year. This relief does not cancel the distribution requirement. See IRS final RMD regulations, section 54.4974-1(g)(3).
Tax guidance
Correcting Excess IRA and HSA Contributions
An excess can arise from exceeding a dollar limit, insufficient compensation, Roth income limits, ineligible HSA coverage or contributions from multiple sources. Employer HSA contributions count toward the applicable limit.
For excess IRA contributions, common approaches include:
- Timely return of excess: Have the custodian distribute the excess and attributable earnings under the correction rules, generally by the return due date including extensions. The earnings can remain taxable even when the additional early-distribution tax does not apply.
- Eligible recharacterization: Some IRA contributions can be redesignated through a qualifying transfer. This does not guarantee a traditional IRA deduction.
- Later correction or absorption: A prior excess may be withdrawn or absorbed by unused contribution room under the applicable rules, but an earlier year's 6% tax may remain due.
For an HSA, coordinate the excess calculation with Form 8889 and have the custodian identify a return of excess and earnings correctly. Do not confuse the 6% excess-contribution tax on Form 5329 with the separate HSA distribution or testing-period taxes on Form 8889.
Correction deadlines and mechanics differ across accounts, especially education accounts. Do not apply the IRA procedure to every account in the form. Use Publication 590-A for IRA contributions and Publication 969 for HSAs.
Ask the custodian to process the correct type of transaction. A routine withdrawal, contribution recharacterization and return of excess are not interchangeable. Keep the custodian's calculation of attributable earnings rather than estimating it from the account's overall gain. Also reconcile any corrected information return so the same earnings are not included twice.
Worked examples
Form 5329 Examples
These simplified examples isolate the additional tax, not the taxpayer's entire return.
| Situation | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| $10,000 RMD, $7,000 withdrawn on time | $3,000 shortfall x 25% | $750 before relief. If reduced-rate requirements are met, $3,000 x 10% = $300. |
| $10,000 taxable early IRA withdrawal, with $4,000 qualifying for an exception | ($10,000 - $4,000) x 10% | $600 additional tax. Ordinary income tax is evaluated separately. |
| $1,000 unresolved Roth IRA excess, with sufficient year-end account value | $1,000 x 6% | $60 for the affected year, assuming no permitted reduction. |
For the RMD example, a qualifying waiver request covering the full $3,000 shortfall can leave no tax reported for that shortfall while the IRS evaluates relief. The late $3,000 withdrawal still must not be entered as a timely distribution.
Filing guidance
How and When to File Form 5329
Attach it to the relevant return, generally Form 1040, 1040-SR or 1040-NR. Certain trust or estate RMD taxes attach to Form 1041. Use the return's filing deadline, including extensions, while checking separate correction deadlines.
Most calendar-year 2025 individual returns were due April 15, 2026, with a valid filing extension generally running to October 15, 2026. Special relief can change dates. An extension to file generally does not extend the time to pay tax.
If no income tax return is required but Form 5329 is required, follow the standalone paper-filing instructions. Complete the identifying information and sign the separate signature section on page 3. Form 5329 cannot be e-filed by itself.
For a prior-year issue, use that year's form. Whether it can be filed separately or must accompany Form 1040-X depends on the prior filing and other return changes. Check the amended-form box when amending Form 5329 and reconcile related income and tax entries. Keep submission and corrective-distribution records.
Review checklist
Common Form 5329 Mistakes
Applying the old 50% RMD rate to a 2025 shortfall.
Assuming a 1099-R code settles every possible exception.
Using the rule of 55 for an IRA withdrawal.
Paying 6% without correcting the excess that can generate another year's tax.
Treating a late RMD as timely or combining incompatible accounts.
Using one Form 5329 for both spouses or the wrong year's form.
Filing questions
Form 5329 FAQs
Is Form 5329 only for people under 59 1/2?
No. RMD shortfalls and excess contributions can require it regardless of whether the taxpayer is old enough to avoid the early-distribution tax.
Does a Roth IRA have an RMD?
Not during the original owner's lifetime. Inherited Roth IRAs have beneficiary distribution rules. Designated Roth employer-plan accounts also have no owner lifetime RMD, but beneficiary rules still matter.
Will taking the missed RMD automatically remove the penalty?
No. Correction can support the reduced rate, a reasonable-cause waiver or specific automatic relief, but each has conditions. A withdrawal alone does not establish every requirement.
Is Form 5329 the same as Form 8606?
No. Form 8606 addresses IRA basis, conversions and certain distributions. Form 5329 addresses additional taxes and exceptions. A return may need both.
Does a corrective RMD create income in the earlier year?
Generally, a retirement distribution is evaluated for income tax in the year received. Taking a corrective withdrawal does not backdate its receipt to the missed-RMD year. Keep the earlier year's shortfall calculation separate from the distribution-year income reporting and that year's own RMD requirement.
Can tax software prepare Form 5329?
Many tax software products support it, but support for standalone filings, prior years and waiver attachments varies. Inspect the generated form and included statement rather than assuming the interview answers produced the intended result.
Where can I download Form 5329?
Use the official IRS 2025 PDF. For another year, choose the matching revision from the IRS prior-year archive.
Related references
Related IRS Forms and Sources
This guide provides general federal tax information, not individualized tax advice. A qualified tax professional should evaluate the applicable year, account rules and correction options.
