Updated July 28, 2026. Quick answer: The shortfall carries a 25% excise tax — reduced from 50% by SECURE 2.0 — and reducible further if corrected within the correction window. Relief for reasonable cause exists but has to be requested; it is not automatic.
The sequence
- Take the missed distribution immediately.
- File the reporting form for each year missed — one per year, not one in total.
- Request relief in writing with a short factual explanation and confirmation that the shortfall has been corrected.
Confirm the exact correction-window length and current form with a preparer. Those specifics moved with SECURE 2.0 and this page deliberately does not assert a figure it has not read in primary source.
The most common cause
Multiple accounts, and the belief that taking a large distribution from one covers the others. For 401(k)s it does not — see which accounts actually aggregate. Someone with an IRA and two old 401(k)s can take far more than their total requirement and still have two shortfalls.
Prevention beats relief
Consolidate old employer plans before RMDs begin, and set custodian automatic distributions on every account that requires one separately.
Sources
IRC §401(a)(9) (required minimum distributions); IRC §408(d)(8) (qualified charitable distributions); IRC §4974 (excise tax on shortfalls, as amended by SECURE 2.0); SECURE Act (2019) and SECURE 2.0 (2022); final RMD regulations published 19 July 2024. Cross-checked July 2026 against professional analyses. Indexed dollar limits and correction windows are described rather than asserted.
This states what the cited authority says. It is not tax advice.