IRS Single Life Expectancy Table
The complete IRS Single Life Expectancy Table (Table I) for inherited IRA RMDs — every age 0–120+, with withdrawal percentages and beneficiary decision guide
Key Numbers
Used By
Beneficiaries Only
Age 57 Factor
29.8
Later Years
Subtract 1 (Non-Spouse)
Last Revised
Jan 1, 2022
The Single Life Expectancy Table (Table I of IRS Publication 590-B, Appendix B) sets the divisor for required minimum distributions from inherited IRAs and inherited workplace retirement accounts. It is a beneficiary’s table — account owners taking their own lifetime RMDs use the Uniform Lifetime Table (or the Joint Life Table if their spouse is the sole beneficiary and more than 10 years younger).
Which Beneficiaries Use Table I — Decision Guide
| Beneficiary | Withdrawal rule | Uses Table I? |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse (sole beneficiary) | May treat as own IRA, or stretch as beneficiary with annual recalculation; special spousal timing rules | Yes — re-entered at the new age each year |
| Other eligible designated beneficiary (minor child of owner until 21, disabled or chronically ill person, beneficiary not more than 10 years younger) | Lifetime stretch over single life expectancy | Yes — look up once, then reduce by one each year |
| Other individuals (e.g., adult children) — owner died on/after RBD | 10-year rule with annual RMDs in years 1–9 | Yes — for the years 1–9 RMDs |
| Other individuals — owner died before RBD | 10-year rule, no annual RMDs required | No — just empty by year 10 |
| Non-designated beneficiary (estate, charity, most trusts) | 5-year rule (death before RBD) or owner’s remaining life expectancy | Only via the owner’s remaining factor |
Effective date: these factors apply to distribution calendar years beginning on or after January 1, 2022 (T.D. 9930). They are not indexed and do not change annually. Beneficiaries who started before 2022 received a one-time “reset”: redetermine the factor from this table as if it had always applied, then resume subtracting one per year.
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Single Life Expectancy Table (Ages 0–120+)
Complete table — every age, no ranges omitted. The % of balance column is 1 ÷ factor: the minimum share of the prior December 31 balance a first-year beneficiary must withdraw at that age.
| Age | Factor | % of Balance | Age | Factor | % of Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 84.6 | 1.18% | 61 | 26.2 | 3.82% |
| 1 | 83.7 | 1.19% | 62 | 25.4 | 3.94% |
| 2 | 82.8 | 1.21% | 63 | 24.5 | 4.08% |
| 3 | 81.8 | 1.22% | 64 | 23.7 | 4.22% |
| 4 | 80.8 | 1.24% | 65 | 22.9 | 4.37% |
| 5 | 79.8 | 1.25% | 66 | 22.0 | 4.55% |
| 6 | 78.8 | 1.27% | 67 | 21.2 | 4.72% |
| 7 | 77.9 | 1.28% | 68 | 20.4 | 4.90% |
| 8 | 76.9 | 1.30% | 69 | 19.6 | 5.10% |
| 9 | 75.9 | 1.32% | 70 | 18.8 | 5.32% |
| 10 | 74.9 | 1.34% | 71 | 18.0 | 5.56% |
| 11 | 73.9 | 1.35% | 72 | 17.2 | 5.81% |
| 12 | 72.9 | 1.37% | 73 | 16.4 | 6.10% |
| 13 | 71.9 | 1.39% | 74 | 15.6 | 6.41% |
| 14 | 70.9 | 1.41% | 75 | 14.8 | 6.76% |
| 15 | 69.9 | 1.43% | 76 | 14.1 | 7.09% |
| 16 | 69.0 | 1.45% | 77 | 13.3 | 7.52% |
| 17 | 68.0 | 1.47% | 78 | 12.6 | 7.94% |
| 18 | 67.0 | 1.49% | 79 | 11.9 | 8.40% |
| 19 | 66.0 | 1.52% | 80 | 11.2 | 8.93% |
| 20 | 65.0 | 1.54% | 81 | 10.5 | 9.52% |
| 21 | 64.1 | 1.56% | 82 | 9.9 | 10.10% |
| 22 | 63.1 | 1.58% | 83 | 9.3 | 10.75% |
| 23 | 62.1 | 1.61% | 84 | 8.7 | 11.49% |
| 24 | 61.1 | 1.64% | 85 | 8.1 | 12.35% |
| 25 | 60.2 | 1.66% | 86 | 7.6 | 13.16% |
| 26 | 59.2 | 1.69% | 87 | 7.1 | 14.08% |
| 27 | 58.2 | 1.72% | 88 | 6.6 | 15.15% |
| 28 | 57.3 | 1.75% | 89 | 6.1 | 16.39% |
| 29 | 56.3 | 1.78% | 90 | 5.7 | 17.54% |
| 30 | 55.3 | 1.81% | 91 | 5.3 | 18.87% |
| 31 | 54.4 | 1.84% | 92 | 4.9 | 20.41% |
| 32 | 53.4 | 1.87% | 93 | 4.6 | 21.74% |
| 33 | 52.5 | 1.90% | 94 | 4.3 | 23.26% |
| 34 | 51.5 | 1.94% | 95 | 4.0 | 25.00% |
| 35 | 50.5 | 1.98% | 96 | 3.7 | 27.03% |
| 36 | 49.6 | 2.02% | 97 | 3.4 | 29.41% |
| 37 | 48.6 | 2.06% | 98 | 3.2 | 31.25% |
| 38 | 47.7 | 2.10% | 99 | 3.0 | 33.33% |
| 39 | 46.7 | 2.14% | 100 | 2.8 | 35.71% |
| 40 | 45.7 | 2.19% | 101 | 2.6 | 38.46% |
| 41 | 44.8 | 2.23% | 102 | 2.5 | 40.00% |
| 42 | 43.8 | 2.28% | 103 | 2.3 | 43.48% |
| 43 | 42.9 | 2.33% | 104 | 2.2 | 45.45% |
| 44 | 41.9 | 2.39% | 105 | 2.1 | 47.62% |
| 45 | 41.0 | 2.44% | 106 | 2.1 | 47.62% |
| 46 | 40.0 | 2.50% | 107 | 2.1 | 47.62% |
| 47 | 39.0 | 2.56% | 108 | 2.0 | 50.00% |
| 48 | 38.1 | 2.62% | 109 | 2.0 | 50.00% |
| 49 | 37.1 | 2.70% | 110 | 2.0 | 50.00% |
| 50 | 36.2 | 2.76% | 111 | 2.0 | 50.00% |
| 51 | 35.3 | 2.83% | 112 | 2.0 | 50.00% |
| 52 | 34.3 | 2.92% | 113 | 1.9 | 52.63% |
| 53 | 33.4 | 2.99% | 114 | 1.9 | 52.63% |
| 54 | 32.5 | 3.08% | 115 | 1.8 | 55.56% |
| 55 | 31.6 | 3.16% | 116 | 1.8 | 55.56% |
| 56 | 30.6 | 3.27% | 117 | 1.6 | 62.50% |
| 57 | 29.8 | 3.36% | 118 | 1.4 | 71.43% |
| 58 | 28.9 | 3.46% | 119 | 1.1 | 90.91% |
| 59 | 28.0 | 3.57% | 120+ | 1.0 | 100.00% |
| 60 | 27.1 | 3.69% |
Source: 26 CFR § 1.401(a)(9)-9(b), Table 1 to Paragraph (b), effective for distribution calendar years beginning on or after january 1, 2022. “120+” means age 120 and over.
How Beneficiaries Use This Table
Year one: use your age on your birthday in the year after the owner’s death. Later years (non-spouse): subtract one from the original factor — do not return to the table. A surviving spouse who is sole beneficiary instead re-enters the table at each new age.
Worked Example — $400,000 Inherited IRA, Beneficiary Turns 57
| Year | Age | Factor used | Hypothetical Dec 31 balance | RMD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 57 | 29.8 (from table) | $400,000 | $13,423 |
| 2 | 58 | 28.8 (29.8 − 1) | $405,000 | $14,063 |
| 3 | 59 | 27.8 (29.8 − 2) | $410,000 | $14,748 |
| 10 | 66 | 20.8 (29.8 − 9) | $430,000 | $20,673 |
The age-57 factor of 29.8 matches the example the IRS itself uses in Publication 590-B. Notice the divisor falls by exactly one each year regardless of what the table says for the new age — that is the reduce-by-one (“non-recalculation”) method, and it eventually forces the account to zero.
Missed beneficiary RMDs face the same excise tax as owner RMDs: 25%, reduced to 10% if corrected within two years on Form 5329. The deadline is December 31 each year — there is no April 1 grace year for beneficiaries.
The 10-Year Rule Still Uses This Table
Most non-spouse beneficiaries who inherited after 2019 fall under the SECURE Act 10-year rule. The 2024 final regulations (effective for 2025 and later distribution years) settled the open question: if the owner died on or after their required beginning date, annual RMDs are required in years one through nine, calculated with this Single Life Table and the reduce-by-one method — with the full balance still due by December 31 of year ten. The IRS waived penalties for those missed annual RMDs for 2021–2024 (Notices 2022-53, 2023-54, 2024-35), but the waiver era is over.
If the owner died before the required beginning date, no annual withdrawals are required — only the year-ten deadline. Even then, taking roughly level annual withdrawals often beats one giant year-ten distribution at stacked marginal rates. See the Publication 590-B guide for the full beneficiary rulebook.
You know your factor. Now sequence the withdrawals.
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Single Life Table Questions
Who uses the IRS Single Life Expectancy Table?
Beneficiaries of inherited IRAs and workplace retirement accounts. Eligible designated beneficiaries (a surviving spouse, the owner’s minor child, a disabled or chronically ill person, or someone not more than 10 years younger than the owner) can stretch withdrawals over the Table I factor for their age. Beneficiaries subject to the 10-year rule also use Table I for the annual RMDs required in years one through nine when the owner died on or after their required beginning date. Account owners never use Table I for their own lifetime RMDs — that is the Uniform Lifetime Table or, for a much-younger spouse, the Joint Life Table.
How do I calculate an inherited IRA RMD with this table?
Find your age on your birthday in the year after the owner’s death and read the factor. Divide the account’s prior December 31 balance by that factor. In each later year, a non-spouse beneficiary subtracts one from the original factor instead of looking it up again (the "reduce-by-one" method). Example: you turn 57 in your first distribution year, so the factor is 29.8; the next year you use 28.8, then 27.8, and so on. A surviving spouse who is the sole beneficiary may instead re-enter the table at their new age each year.
Does the SECURE Act 10-year rule replace this table?
For most non-spouse beneficiaries who inherit after 2019, the account must be emptied within 10 years. But the table still matters: under the final regulations that took effect in 2025, if the owner died on or after their required beginning date, those beneficiaries must also take annual RMDs in years one through nine, calculated with the Single Life Table. Eligible designated beneficiaries can avoid the 10-year rule entirely and use the table for their whole life expectancy.
What does the "% of balance" column mean?
It is simply 1 divided by the life expectancy factor — the share of the prior year-end balance that must be withdrawn. At a factor of 29.8, the minimum withdrawal is about 3.36% of the balance; at 16.4 it is about 6.10%. The percentage rises every year as the factor falls.
When did these factors last change?
January 1, 2022, when Treasury’s updated life expectancy tables took effect (T.D. 9930). The new factors are slightly longer than the pre-2022 ones, which lowers each year’s required withdrawal. Beneficiaries who began using the old table before 2022 received a one-time reset: redetermine the factor as if the new table had always applied, then continue reducing by one. The factors do not change annually — only a new Treasury regulation changes them.
Sources
- 1.IRS — Publication 590-B, Appendix B, Table I (Single Life Expectancy)
- 2.eCFR — 26 CFR § 1.401(a)(9)-9(b), Single Life Table (authoritative text)
- 3.IRS — Required Minimum Distributions for IRA Beneficiaries
- 4.Federal Register — T.D. 9930, Updated Life Expectancy Tables (Nov. 12, 2020)
- 5.IRS — Retirement Plan and IRA Required Minimum Distributions FAQs
This content is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, or legal advice. Consult a qualified professional for guidance tailored to your situation.