Gold IRA Tax Rules

Direct transfer vs. 60-day rollover

The short answer: for employer-plan money, ask for a direct rollover. For IRA money, ask for a trustee-to-trustee transfer. These routes avoid the 60-day redeposit deadline, and direct employer-plan rollovers avoid mandatory 20% withholding. The one-rollover-per-12-months limit is different: it applies only to IRA-to-IRA 60-day rollovers.

These are different transactions even though both are commonly called a “rollover.” The distinction is where much of the avoidable tax damage occurs.

“Direct” can describe two different transactions. An IRA-to-IRA trustee-to-trustee transfer generally is not reported as a distribution. A direct rollover from a 401(k), 403(b), or governmental 457(b) plan to an IRA is generally reported on Form 1099-R, while the receiving IRA reports the rollover contribution on Form 5498. Both routes avoid having the distribution paid to you personally, but the tax reporting is different.

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.

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 Topic 413.

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.

What cannot be rolled over

The short answer: not every retirement-plan distribution is an eligible rollover distribution. Required minimum distributions and hardship distributions from employer plans cannot be rolled over.

• Required minimum distributions (RMDs): the required amount itself must stay out of the rollover. Complete the RMD before rolling over the remaining eligible amount.
• Hardship distributions: these are not eligible rollover distributions.
• Certain periodic payments: substantially equal periodic payments meeting the statutory duration rules are not eligible rollover distributions.
• Certain corrective distributions: distributions of excess contributions, excess deferrals, and related earnings can also be ineligible.

A qualified plan loan offset is different and can have special rollover rules and deadlines. Do not assume every loan-related distribution is automatically ineligible.

Primary source: IRS Topic 413 — Rollovers from retirement plans.

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.

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.

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.

Can I put gold I already own into an IRA?

No, not as a regular IRA contribution. Regular IRA contributions must be made in money; you cannot contribute personally owned coins or bullion in kind. A self-directed IRA can use cash already inside the IRA to buy qualifying metal through the account’s custodian or trustee.

Do not sell your own metal to your IRA or otherwise transact with the account for your personal benefit. Transactions between an IRA and its owner can trigger the prohibited-transaction rules. Rollovers are different because they move eligible retirement assets under separate rollover rules.

Primary sources: IRS Publication 590-A and IRS Publication 590-B.

How gold held in an IRA is taxed

The short answer: buying or selling metal inside an IRA generally does not create a current capital-gains tax bill for the IRA owner. The tax result usually appears when money or property is distributed, and it depends on the type of IRA.

• Traditional IRA: contributions may be deductible depending on your circumstances. Distributions are generally taxed as ordinary income to the extent they are taxable; nondeductible basis can make part of a distribution nontaxable. Early distributions can also face the 10% additional tax unless an exception applies.
• Roth IRA: contributions are made with after-tax money. Qualified distributions are tax-free. A qualified distribution generally requires the Roth IRA five-year period plus age 59½, death, disability, or the limited first-home exception.
• Gold held personally outside an IRA: long-term gain on gold, silver, and other collectibles enters the 28% rate-gain calculation. The maximum federal rate applicable to collectibles gain is 28%, although the actual rate can be lower depending on the taxpayer’s overall situation.

An IRA is not automatically the better home for gold. Tax bracket, holding period, liquidity needs, fees, and future distribution rules all matter.

Primary sources: IRS Publication 590-B, IRS Publication 550, and IRS Schedule D instructions.

Required minimum distributions with physical metal

The short answer: the RMD starting age depends on birth year. Final regulations set the applicable age at 73 for people born in 1951 through 1958 and 75 for people born in 1960 or later. For people born in 1959, the final regulations reserve the issue; proposed regulations would use age 73. 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:

1. Sell metal inside the IRA and distribute cash. The buyback spread and timing can matter because the account must generate cash by a deadline.
2. 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 and IRS/Treasury 2024 RMD final and proposed regulations.

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 can apply when you separate from service with the employer during or after the calendar year you reach age 55 and then take a distribution from that employer plan. This specific exception does not apply to IRAs. Moving the money from the plan into an IRA can therefore remove that exception for later IRA withdrawals.

Primary sources: 26 U.S.C. § 72(t) and IRS Topic 558.

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.

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.

Frequently asked questions

Mistakes to avoid

1. Taking an employer-plan distribution payable to you when a direct rollover was available.
2. Missing the 60-day deadline or failing to replace the 20% withheld from an employer-plan distribution paid to you.
3. Making a second IRA-to-IRA 60-day rollover within the same 12-month period.
4. Trying to roll over an RMD or another distribution that is not rollover-eligible.
5. Keeping IRA-owned metal at home or assuming an IRA-owned LLC automatically makes personal possession acceptable.
6. Buying high-premium proof, collectible, or “limited” coins without comparing the dollar price, metal value, and spread.
7. Rolling an employer plan into an IRA without considering whether the age-55 separation-from-service exception matters to you.
8. Using a nonbank custodian without confirming that it appears on the IRS list of approved nonbank trustees and custodians.

Check the custodian: IRS approved nonbank trustees and custodians.