Use a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer whenever possible.
A direct transfer has no 60-day deadline, no mandatory withholding, and no one-rollover-per-year limit. An indirect rollover puts the money in your hands and creates all three risks.
Rules verified 26 July 2026. This page summarizes federal tax rules and is not tax, legal, or investment advice.
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What this page is — and is not
This is a plain-English summary of the federal rules that govern moving retirement money into a precious-metals IRA, with a primary source attached to each major rule.
It is not advice about your situation. Account type, age, income, state law, plan terms, and transaction history can change the result. Before moving retirement money, speak with a CPA, Enrolled Agent, or tax attorney who is paid by you rather than by a metals dealer.
Direct transfer vs. 60-day rollover
The short answer: ask the custodian for a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer. It has no deadline, no withholding, and no annual limit. A 60-day rollover — where the money passes through your hands — has all three.
These are different transactions even though both are commonly called a “rollover.” The distinction is where much of the avoidable tax damage occurs.
| Rule | Direct transfer | 60-day rollover |
|---|---|---|
| Money touches you | No | Yes |
| Deadline | None | 60 calendar days |
| Mandatory withholding | None | 20% from employer plans |
| Frequency limit | Unlimited | One per 12 months for IRA-to-IRA rollovers |
| Reported as a distribution | No | Yes, generally on Form 1099-R |
| Risk if something goes wrong | Lower | Taxable income plus a possible 10% additional tax |
A direct transfer moves funds between custodians without passing through your control. If a salesperson steers you toward taking a check “because it is faster,” slow down and ask the current plan administrator or custodian to explain the direct-transfer option in writing.
Primary source: IRS: Rollovers of retirement plan and IRA distributions.
The 60-day rule
The short answer: after receiving a retirement-account distribution that you intend to roll over, you generally have 60 calendar days to deposit the full amount into the receiving account. Miss the deadline and the distribution is generally taxable.
Weekends and holidays count. The clock is measured from receipt of the distribution, not from the date printed on the check.
The IRS has waiver and self-certification procedures for limited circumstances, including certain financial-institution errors, serious illness, a lost or uncashed check, or a death in the family. Relief is not automatic. A missed deadline belongs with a qualified tax professional, not a salesperson.
Primary sources: IRS Publication 590-A and IRS 60-day rollover waiver FAQs.
The 20% withholding trap on 401(k) rollovers
The short answer: if an eligible rollover distribution from a 401(k) or similar employer plan is paid to you, the plan generally must withhold 20% for federal tax. To complete a full rollover, you must replace that withheld amount from other funds within 60 days.
| Example | Amount |
|---|---|
| Employer-plan balance requested | $100,000 |
| Mandatory federal withholding at 20% | $20,000 |
| Check you receive | $80,000 |
| Amount required for a full rollover | $100,000 |
| Shortfall funded from other savings | $20,000 |
If you deposit only the $80,000 you received, the withheld $20,000 is generally treated as a distribution. It may be subject to ordinary income tax and, if you are under 59½ and no exception applies, the 10% additional tax.
This mandatory 20% withholding does not apply when the employer plan sends the money directly to the receiving trustee or custodian.
Primary sources: 26 U.S.C. § 3405 and IRS Publication 590-A.
The one-rollover-per-12-months rule
The short answer: you may make only one 60-day IRA-to-IRA rollover in any 12-month period, counted across all of your IRAs combined rather than separately for each account.
The 12-month period begins when you receive the first distribution. A second attempted 60-day IRA rollover inside that period may be taxable, and depositing it into another IRA can create an excess contribution.
Transactions not covered by this limit
- Trustee-to-trustee IRA transfers.
- Rollovers from employer plans into IRAs.
- Rollovers from IRAs into employer plans.
- Roth conversions.
Primary sources: IRS Announcement 2014-32 and IRS Publication 590-A.
Which metals an IRA may legally hold
The short answer: qualifying bullion generally requires gold of at least 99.5% fineness, silver of at least 99.9%, and platinum or palladium of at least 99.95%, together with specific coins named in the statute.
Section 408(m) generally treats collectibles acquired by an IRA as distributions, with narrow exceptions for qualifying coins and bullion held in the required custody arrangement.
| Metal | General minimum fineness |
|---|---|
| Gold | 99.5% (.995) |
| Silver | 99.9% (.999) |
| Platinum | 99.95% (.9995) |
| Palladium | 99.95% (.9995) |
The American Gold Eagle exception
The American Gold Eagle is 91.67% pure, below the general .995 bullion threshold, but it is specifically named in the statutory coin exception. That does not create a blanket exception for foreign coins with similar purity.
“IRS-approved” is not an IRS endorsement
The IRS does not certify or endorse dealers, custodians, or individual products. A coin or bar either satisfies the applicable statutory requirements and custody rules or it does not.
Legal eligibility is not the same as a reasonable price
Proof coins may be legally eligible while carrying much higher dealer premiums than bullion containing the same metal weight. Ask for the dollar price, melt value, and percentage over spot in writing. The Gold IRA Fee Transparency Database tracks which providers publish pricing and fee information.
Primary sources: 26 U.S.C. § 408(m) and IRS: Investments in collectibles.
Home storage: why personal possession is dangerous
The short answer: eligible IRA bullion must remain in the physical possession of a qualifying trustee. Taking it home can be treated as a taxable distribution, and an IRA-owned LLC does not automatically solve the possession problem.
Section 408(m)(3)(B) conditions the bullion exception on physical possession by the trustee. The problem is not merely whether a coin is eligible; the custody and control of that coin also matter.
What happened in McNulty
In McNulty v. Commissioner, 157 T.C. No. 10 (2021), an IRA owner used an IRA-owned LLC to buy American Eagle coins and stored them in a personal home safe. The Tax Court held that her unfettered control over the coins resulted in taxable distributions.
The coins themselves were statutorily eligible. The failure involved possession and control. Permitted metal plus improper custody can still produce a prohibited result.
If a company promotes a “home storage,” “checkbook,” or “LLC” Gold IRA, ask it to address McNulty by name and in writing. Independently review the answer with a tax professional.
Primary sources: 26 U.S.C. § 408(m)(3)(B), McNulty v. Commissioner, 157 T.C. No. 10 (2021), and IRS Publication 590-B.
Prohibited transactions
The short answer: an IRA cannot transact with you or other disqualified persons for personal benefit. A prohibited transaction involving the owner can cause the account to lose IRA status as of the first day of that tax year.
Disqualified persons generally include the account owner, spouse, ancestors, descendants and their spouses, fiduciaries, and certain entities they control.
- Selling metal you already own to your IRA.
- Buying IRA metal from the account for personal use at a favorable price.
- Storing IRA metal at your home, business, or a relative’s property.
- Personally guaranteeing an obligation of the IRA.
- Using IRA-held metal for any current personal benefit.
Primary sources: 26 U.S.C. § 4975, 26 U.S.C. § 408(e), and IRS Publication 590-B.
Required minimum distributions with physical metal
The short answer: the RMD starting age depends on birth year. It is generally 73 for people born from 1951 through 1959 and 75 for people born in 1960 or later. A metals IRA must still satisfy the deadline even when the asset is harder to value or sell. Roth IRAs have no lifetime RMD for the original owner.
With physical metal, an RMD can generally be handled in two ways:
- Sell metal inside the IRA and distribute cash. The buyback spread and timing can matter because the account must generate cash by a deadline.
- Take an in-kind distribution. The metal is delivered to you and its fair market value on the distribution date is reported as taxable income.
Before opening the account, ask how the custodian determines year-end fair market value and how the dealer calculates buyback prices. Most providers do not publish both. Compare disclosures in the fee database.
Primary sources: IRS RMD guidance and IRS Publication 590-B.
Distributions before age 59½
The short answer: a distribution before age 59½ is generally subject to a 10% additional tax on top of ordinary income tax unless a statutory exception applies.
Exceptions can include death, total and permanent disability, substantially equal periodic payments, qualifying higher-education expenses, a first-home purchase within the statutory limit, certain medical expenses, and an IRS levy. Each exception has conditions.
The age-55 separation-from-service exception applies to qualifying employer plans, not IRAs. Moving a 401(k) into an IRA can therefore remove an option that might otherwise have been available between ages 55 and 59½.
Primary sources: 26 U.S.C. § 72(t) and IRS Publication 590-B.
What gets reported, and by whom
The short answer: custodians generally use Form 5498 to report IRA contributions, rollover receipts, and annual fair market value, and Form 1099-R to report distributions. A direct trustee-to-trustee transfer is generally not reported as a distribution.
| Event | Typical form | Filed by |
|---|---|---|
| Direct trustee-to-trustee transfer | Generally none as a distribution | — |
| 60-day rollover | 1099-R and 5498 | Distributing and receiving custodians |
| Annual fair market value | 5498 | Custodian |
| Cash or in-kind distribution | 1099-R | Custodian |
| Deemed taxable distribution | 1099-R may apply | Custodian |
The fair market value reported for physical metal affects RMD calculations. Ask whether the custodian uses spot value, a dealer bid, another market quotation, or a documented appraisal method.
Primary source: IRS Instructions for Forms 1099-R and 5498.
IRA contribution limits for 2026
The short answer: the 2026 IRA contribution limit is $7,500, plus a $1,100 catch-up contribution for people age 50 or older, for a total of $8,600 across traditional and Roth IRAs combined.
Rollovers do not count against this annual contribution limit. Moving $200,000 from an employer plan into an IRA is not a $200,000 annual contribution.
Primary sources: IRS Notice 2025-67 and IRS IRA contribution limits.
Compare custody, storage, metals, and pricing before moving retirement money.
Use a written checklist, verify the transfer method with the current custodian, and compare provider disclosures independently.
Frequently asked questions
Where to read the rules yourself
- IRS Publication 590-A — contributions and rollovers
- IRS Publication 590-B — distributions, RMDs, and additional taxes
- 26 U.S.C. § 408 — IRA rules, collectibles, and custody
- 26 U.S.C. § 4975 — prohibited transactions
- McNulty v. Commissioner, 157 T.C. No. 10 (2021) — home possession of IRA-owned coins
Found an error? Send a correction. Material corrections are recorded on the change log.
Last verified 26 July 2026 by Henny Willis. Federal rules only. State treatment may differ.