You must opt for IRA-eligible gold, which has a fineness or purity of 99.5% of American Buffalo coins. Credit Suisse gold bars manufactured in an approved facility. Stored in a secure depot by an IRA depository, manufactured by a government mint or an accredited manufacturer. According to the IRS, eligible gold can be included in your IRA as long as it is physically owned by a bank or an IRS-approved trustee who is
not a bank.
If you properly transfer your money from an IRA or retirement account to a gold IRA, there is no tax impact. Self-managed IRAs, which include gold IRAs, have the same contribution and distribution limits based on your age as traditional IRAs. Unlike gold ETFs or gold company stocks, a precious metal IRA allows you to hold the physical precious metals in accordance with IRS regulations. Although IRAs used to be limited to holding American Eagle gold and silver coins, IRAs can now invest in IRS-approved gold, silver, palladium, and platinum bars and
coins.
If you’re interested in setting up such an account, you’ll need to look for a specialized custodian or company that is able to handle all the documentation and reporting for tax purposes required to maintain a Gold IRA. There is no limit to the number of direct IRA transfers from one IRA custodian bank to another that you can initiate. IRS rules allow funding a Gold IRA with funds from another IRA, 401 (k), 403 (b), 457 (b), or Thrift Savings Plan. A precious metal IRA is simply a traditional, ROTH, SEP, SIMPLE, rollover, or inherited IRA that owns precious metals and may contain gold, silver, platinum,
or palladium.
You don’t want to fund a gold IRA with cash because you’ve already paid taxes on that money, and the point of using an IRA as an investment tool is to take advantage of the tax benefit that comes with using pre-tax dollars. If you just want to buy gold or silver, here’s what you need to know to buy gold outside of an IRA. Funds can be added to your IRA through a transfer between IRA representatives, a transfer between retirement accounts, or as a new cash deposit to a new IRA account. If the IRS determines that the day your IRA gold came into your home was the “distribution” date, you may end up paying additional penalties and back taxes owed from the time it
was distributed.
IRA holders have been allowed to use funds in their IRA account to purchase eligible precious metals since 1998 following the passage of the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997. Gold American Eagle gold bars and polished gold coins are the only gold coins that are exempt from purity guidelines. IRA-eligible gold coins, bars, and bullets must meet a number of requirements set forth in the Internal Revenue Code in order to be stored in a standalone
IRA.
