Your key retirement dates, from one birthday: 59½, Social Security, Medicare and RMDs.

Retirement rules hang on a handful of birthdays, and the rules sit on different government pages: the IRS for withdrawals, the Social Security Administration for benefits, Medicare.gov for health coverage. I built a free calculator that turns one date of birth into the whole list, and this is what is on it, what surprises people, and what the dates mean if you stop working before 65.

What are the key retirement dates?

Twelve dates matter for most people. Here they are for someone born June 15, 1968, computed by the same code the calculator runs. Years mean the whole calendar year; a month means the first full month the rule applies.

The key retirement dates calculator gives each of these for your own birthday, with the source and a related guide beside each one, and can save the dates still ahead of you as a calendar file.

When can I withdraw from my 401(k) or IRA without the 10% tax?

Generally at 59½, which is six months after your 59th birthday. The IRS says early distributions are generally those taken before age 59½ and carry a 10% additional tax unless an exception applies (IRS Topic no. 557). For the example birthday that is December 15, 2027. Income tax still applies to pre-tax money either way.

The best-known exception is the Rule of 55. The IRS Form 5329 instructions list a distribution from a qualified retirement plan after separation from service "when the separation from service occurs in or after the year you reach age 55" (age 50 for qualified public safety employees and private sector firefighters) (Form 5329 instructions). Two details catch people. It is the calendar year, so someone born in June 1968 qualifies for any separation in or after 2023, not from their birthday. And it covers only the plan of the job you left: not IRAs, and not a plan from an earlier employer. If you need money earlier than the Rule of 55 allows, 72(t) schedules are the other common route.

When can I claim Social Security, and what is my full retirement age?

You can start at 62, with a permanently smaller check, and you get your full benefit at your full retirement age, which depends on the year you were born: 66 for 1943 through 1954, rising two months a year to 66 and 10 months for 1959, and 67 for 1960 on (SSA). Waiting past it adds delayed retirement credits until 70, so there is nothing to gain from waiting beyond that date.

The surprise is how much one day matters. Social Security counts you as having reached an age the day before your birthday, and pays for a month only if you are that age for the whole month, so a birthday on the 1st or 2nd of a month means you are 62 for all of your birth month (SSA POMS RS 00615.015). Born June 2, 1963, you can start in June 2025. Born June 3, you wait until July 2025. It can move your full retirement age too: SSA treats someone born on January 1 as born the year before, so January 1, 1960 gives a full retirement age of 66 and 10 months (first full month November 2026), while January 2, 1960 gives 67 (January 2027). When to claim Social Security covers which age is best for you.

When should I sign up for Medicare?

Medicare's initial enrollment period "lasts for 7 months, starting 3 months before you turn 65, and ending 3 months after the month you turn 65" (Medicare.gov). Sign up for Part B before your birthday month and it starts on the first of that month; sign up in that month or after and it starts the month after you sign up. For the example birthday the window is March 1, 2033 to September 30, 2033, and Part B can start as early as June 1, 2033. A birthday on the 1st shifts everything a month earlier: born June 1, 1968, coverage can start May 1, 2033. Medicare basics for planning covers what it costs.

Two dates around it are easy to miss. The first is the year you turn 63. Medicare looks at your tax return from two years earlier to decide whether you pay the income-related surcharge (IRMAA), so income in the year you turn 63 generally sets your first premiums at 65. That is why a big Roth conversion or capital gain at 63 can cost more than it looks (SSA POMS HI 01101.010; IRMAA explained). The second is your health savings account. Once you are enrolled in Medicare your HSA contribution limit is zero, and if you apply for Medicare or Social Security after 65 and Part A is backdated, contributions made in the backdated months are excess (IRS Publication 969; IRS Chief Counsel memo). HSAs in retirement has the rest.

When do required minimum distributions start?

At 73 for people born 1951 through 1959 and at 75 for people born in 1960 or later, with 72 for people born July 1, 1949 through 1950 and 70½ for those born earlier. For the example birthday that is age 75, in 2043. The first one can wait: the IRS says you can delay it until April 1 of the following year, with the example that if you reach 73 in 2024 you must take the first by April 1, 2025 and the second by December 31, 2025 (IRS RMD FAQs). Delaying the first one means two taxable withdrawals in one year, which is worth planning around. The law is ambiguous for people born in 1959, between 73 and 75, and the IRS has not settled it; the calculator and the Runway planner both use 73. Required minimum distributions explained shows what they look like in dollars. To see your own amount, use the RMD calculator.

Qualified charitable distributions start earlier, at 70½: from that date you can send IRA money straight to a charity and keep it out of taxable income, and it can count toward your required distribution (IRS).

What do these dates mean if I stop working before 65?

Dates become decisions when you pick a stopping age. Add one to the calculator and it counts the months between that day and each milestone. For the example birthday:

Stopping at 59 leaves 6 months before the 10% additional tax stops applying and 72 months, six years, before Medicare. Stopping at 62 flips the problem: Social Security is only 1 month away, but Medicare is 36 months away, so the real cost of an early stop is often health insurance, not income. People in that gap usually use COBRA, a spouse's plan or an Affordable Care Act marketplace plan, and what a marketplace plan costs depends on your income; the ACA subsidies and early retirement post covers it. In every row the Rule of 55 applies, because every stop is after 2023.

The dates tell you what is allowed, not whether the money lasts. That is a different question, and the retirement countdown calculator answers it: the earliest month you could stop with a good chance your savings last.

What does the calculator assume, and what does it leave out?

• It applies the rules as written, from the IRS, SSA and Medicare.gov pages linked above, to a date of birth. It does not know your plan's own rules; an employer plan can be stricter than the law.
• One person. A spouse has their own dates, and survivor and spousal Social Security rules are not shown.
• Calendar-year rules show the whole year, such as the Rule of 55 and catch-up contributions. Months and days appear where the rule is to the month or the day.
• Not covered: birth years before 1943, disability, public safety and other special cases beyond the Rule of 55's age 50, and rules that change by law. Check the sources before acting.

Does the calculator save my date of birth?

No. It runs in your browser: your date of birth is not sent to us or stored, and a calendar file, if you ask for one, is created on your device.

How were these dates calculated?

• Rules: each date applies a rule stated by IRS, SSA or Medicare.gov, linked where it appears. Ages are counted from the birth date: 59½ is six months after the 59th birthday. If a birthday falls on a day the target month does not have, the date moves to the first of the next month so it is never early.
• Code: the page's JavaScript is checked against a separate Python version of the rules, which is also what produced every date and month count in this post, for 861 test birth dates including the 1st, the 2nd, the 29th to 31st and leap days.
• Stopping table: months counted from the stop date's month to the month of each milestone, never below zero. "Before Medicare" counts to the first day Part B can start if you sign up before your birthday month.
• As of: October 26, 2026. Dates for a fixed birthday do not move with the calendar; the rules can, and the sources are linked.

Frequently asked questions

What are the key ages for retirement planning?

50 (catch-up contributions open), 55 (the Rule of 55), 59½ (the 10% additional tax on early IRA and 401(k) withdrawals generally stops), 62 (earliest Social Security), 65 (Medicare), your full retirement age (66 to 67), 70 (Social Security stops growing), 70½ (qualified charitable distributions) and 73 or 75 (required minimum distributions). The free key retirement dates calculator turns your date of birth into the exact dates.

Why does one day change my Social Security start month?

Social Security counts you as having reached an age the day before your birthday and pays for a month only if you are that age for the whole month. A birthday on the 1st or 2nd of a month means you are 62 for all of your birth month; any later day means the following month. For example, someone born June 2, 1963 can start in June 2025 and someone born June 3 in July 2025 (SSA POMS RS 00615.015).

When should I sign up for Medicare if I retire before 65?

Medicare's initial enrollment period lasts seven months: the three months before the month you turn 65, that month, and the three months after. For someone born June 15, 1968 that is March 1 to September 30, 2033. Until then you need health coverage of your own, such as COBRA, a spouse's plan or an Affordable Care Act marketplace plan. Different timing can apply if you have coverage through a current job.

When do required minimum distributions start?

At 73 for people born 1951 through 1959 and at 75 for people born in 1960 or later, with 72 for those born July 1, 1949 through 1950 and 70½ for those born earlier. The first can wait until April 1 of the following year, but then two come due that year. For people born in 1959 the law is ambiguous between 73 and 75 and the IRS has not settled it.

Does the key dates calculator save my date of birth?

No. It runs in your browser and your date of birth is not sent to us or stored.