How it works, in depth

IRC §72(t)(1) imposes a 10% additional tax on distributions from a qualified retirement plan or IRA taken before age 59½. §72(t)(2)(A)(iv) excepts distributions that are part of a series of substantially equal periodic payments (SEPP) made at least annually over the taxpayer's life expectancy. The IRS recognizes three safe-harbor computation methods, originally set out in Rev. Rul. 2002-62 and restated — with updated life tables and an explicit interest-rate ceiling — in Notice 2022-6.

A rounding error, a wrong life-expectancy factor, or an interest rate above the ceiling can convert years of penalty-free distributions into a retroactive liability. That is why precision, and a record proving it, matters.

All three examples below use the same illustrative facts: account balance $650,000, taxpayer attained age 52 in the first distribution year, Single Life Table, elected interest rate 4.50% (assumed at or below the applicable 120% mid-term AFR ceiling), annual payments. These figures are illustrative — the platform computes each case deterministically from your actual inputs and the published IRS tables.

The platform's comparison tool runs all three methods on identical inputs so you can show a client the full matrix before electing. A one-time, irrevocable switch from a fixed method to the RMD method is permitted under Notice 2022-6 §3.02(b) and is supported — and documented — in the app. The methodology page carries the exact formulas, the attained-age rule, and the full annuity-factor derivation.

For the fixed amortization and annuitization methods, Notice 2022-6 §3.02(c) caps the interest rate at the greater of 5% or 120% of the federal mid-term rate for either of the two months immediately preceding the month of the first distribution. The platform looks up the published 120% mid-term AFR for the applicable months, applies the ceiling test, and flags any elected rate that exceeds it before you can finalize.

The elected rate is fixed at commencement and never changes for the life of the series — the fixed methods produce one dollar amount that must be paid every year. The workpaper records the elected rate, the AFR source month, and the ceiling computation, so the basis for the rate election is part of the permanent record. Series commenced before Notice 2022-6 are handled under the Rev. Rul. 2002-62 ceiling (120% mid-term AFR without the 5% floor); the platform applies whichever ruleset governs the series' commencement date.

Finalizing a case freezes it into an immutable, timestamped record and produces a print-ready workpaper. Every finalized workpaper contains:

Professional accounts organize work by client folder. Each folder holds the client's name, date of birth, contact email, engagement status (active, on hold, or closed), and notes — and every case you run for that client. New calculations started inside a folder are linked to it automatically, keep the client's details pre-filled, and stay separate from any personal calculations on your account.

Cases move through a clear lifecycle — draft, calculated, finalized, archived — visible at a glance from the folder. Finalized cases are locked; if facts change, you create a new revision that supersedes the old one while the original remains intact in the version history.

When an engagement closes, you control the records: a client folder and all of its cases can be permanently deleted from your account, and your entire account — every folder, case, and uploaded file — can be permanently deleted in one action from the account page. Deletion is immediate and irreversible; nothing is retained.

• Row-level data isolation

  Every record is scoped to the account that created it, enforced at the database layer. No other user — professional or individual — can read, list, or modify your client records.

• Encryption in transit and at rest

  All traffic is served over TLS and stored data is encrypted at rest on the hosting platform.

• No AI in the calculation engine

  Every payment amount is produced by deterministic code reading versioned IRS table data. AI is used only for clearly labeled educational explanations — never for a number on a workpaper.

• No data sold or shared

  Client and calculation data is used to run your calculations and for nothing else. There is no advertising, no data resale, and no third-party analytics on client records.

• Immutable finalized snapshots

  Finalization writes a locked snapshot — inputs, outputs, table versions, firm branding — that cannot be edited afterward, by anyone, including you. Changes require a new, explicitly versioned revision.

Full details are on the privacy page.

Everything substantive on the platform, in one index — start with the methodology if you want the formulas, or the sources page if you want the table datasets.