IRMAA planning at 63

The timeline by age

Most people join Medicare at 65. Social Security sets the first premium from the tax return two years earlier. The table shows how each year of income lines up with a Medicare premium year, for someone who turns 63 in 2026.

If you enroll in Medicare mid-year, the first year's premium is still set from the return two years back. If you delay Part B because you have employer coverage, the first year that counts shifts later by the same amount.

Before 63: the free window

Income at 60, 61 and 62 has no effect on Medicare premiums at all. For people who retire early, these can be the lowest-income years of their lives: no salary, no Social Security yet, no required distributions. That makes them a natural time to:

• Convert to Roth. Each dollar moved shrinks future RMDs and future MAGI, with no IRMAA cost now.
• Realize gains. Rebalancing a taxable portfolio or selling a concentrated stock position before 63 resets the basis without an IRMAA effect.
• Take larger IRA withdrawals. Living on IRA money while delaying Social Security keeps future required distributions smaller.

One caution: if you buy health insurance through the ACA marketplace before 65, your income also affects the premium tax credit. A large conversion can shrink that credit, so the "free window" may have a different cost. A planner can weigh the two.

At 63 and 64: plan each year's income

From the year you turn 63, every dollar of MAGI counts. If you are still working, your salary sets your first premiums, and retiring later lets you file Form SSA-44 to swap in your lower retirement income. If you are already retired, size any conversion or sale to your headroom.

A worked example

Susan is single, retired at 61 and turns 63 in 2026. Her pension and investment income give her about $95,000 of MAGI. On the 2026 brackets, her headroom is $14,000, so a conversion of $14,000 keeps her on the standard premium at 65. Before 63 she had no such limit; in the two prior years she converted about $60,000 each year, paying only income tax. Starting at 63, she switches to converting about $14,000 a year, or she chooses to fill tier one when the tax savings justify the extra $1,148.40 premium. The Roth headroom finder does this math for any year.

Still working at 63?

Many people are still earning a full salary at 63 and 64. Those years usually put their first Medicare premiums in an IRMAA tier. That is often fine, because retirement itself is the fix: once you stop working, file Form SSA-44 for the work stoppage with an estimate of your new income, and Social Security can lower your premium for the current year. The appeal checklist shows the documents.

If you keep working past 65 with employer health coverage, you may delay Part B without penalty. In that case IRMAA does not apply until you enroll, and the lookback starts from whenever you do.

A checklist for the year you turn 63

1. Estimate this year's MAGI, including December fund distributions.
2. Check the result in the IRMAA calculator against the current brackets, with a cushion for inflation adjustments.
3. Decide on any Roth conversion or gain before December, sized to your headroom.
4. If you plan to retire within two years, note the date; you will need it for Form SSA-44.
5. Repeat at 64, and every year after.

If your spouse is younger

On a joint return, the younger spouse's salary counts toward the couple's MAGI as soon as the older spouse is on Medicare. A 65-year-old retiree married to a 60-year-old who still works can pay IRMAA because of the younger spouse's paycheck. The same lookback applies: the couple's joint income two years earlier sets the older spouse's premium. Planning at 63 therefore starts with the older spouse's 63rd year, even if the household is still earning.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Social Security: Premiums, rules for higher-income beneficiaries
• Medicare.gov: When Medicare coverage starts
• IRS Publication 590-B

Related guides

• The two-year lookback
• Roth conversions and IRMAA
• How to appeal IRMAA