What Is a Gold IRA?

• A Gold IRA lets you hold physical gold and other approved metals in a tax-advantaged retirement account.
• It works through a custodian and approved depository — never at home.
• You can roll over or transfer eligible retirement accounts without taxes or penalties.
• Gold IRAs offer diversification, inflation protection potential, and long-term value storage.
• Understand the rules, costs, and risks before you decide.

A Gold IRA isn't a separate category under the tax code — it's a self-directed IRA holding metal, in traditional or Roth form. Same wrapper, different assets. The 2026 annual contribution limit across all your IRAs is $7,500, or $8,600 at age 50+.

Start to finish, a funded and allocated account typically takes two to four weeks — most of that is the outgoing custodian's transfer processing. Full mechanics: How Does a Gold IRA Work?

Versus a conventional traditional IRA, the tax wrapper is identical — same contribution limits, same RMDs, same early-withdrawal rules. What changes is the asset: physical metal held at a depository instead of securities held at a brokerage, with flat custody fees instead of fund expense ratios.

Both give you gold price exposure inside a tax-advantaged account, and they solve different problems. A gold ETF is the cheaper trade: expense ratios run roughly 0.17%–0.40% per year, it sells in seconds, and there's no dealer premium. What you own, though, is a share of a trust — a financial claim settled through the same system as the rest of your portfolio.

A Gold IRA holds the metal itself, titled to your account, with no issuer between you and the asset. You pay for that directness: premiums over spot when you buy, flat custody and storage fees while you hold, and a spread when you sell. The honest rule of thumb: short-term price exposure → ETF; long-term no-counterparty holding → physical. Deeper comparison: ETF vs. Physical Gold.

• 401(k)
• 457(b)
• SIMPLE IRA
• IRA
• TSP (Thrift Savings Plan)
• Profit Sharing Plan
• 403(b)
• SEP IRA
• Other qualified plans

This is why we default every client to a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer.

1. Confirm eligibility. Traditional, Roth, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs almost always qualify; workplace plans qualify after separation or at the in-service age.
2. Open the self-directed IRA. We submit the application to an IRS-approved custodian; the account is titled in your name. About 15 minutes.
3. Fund it. Direct transfer, rollover, or a new 2026 contribution up to $7,500 ($8,600 at 50+). Outbound custodians take 3 days to 3 weeks.
4. Choose metals and lock pricing. You see spot, premium and total — itemized, in writing — before confirming.
5. Metal ships insured to the depository. You receive statements listing exactly what your account holds, and can verify holdings with the custodian at any time.

Not eligible: Krugerrands, British Sovereigns, pre-1965 "junk silver," graded/numismatic rarities, commemoratives, jewelry, non-accredited bars. Full list: purity requirements guide · shop eligible gold.

A custodian is the IRS-approved bank or non-bank trustee that administers your self-directed IRA — it holds title on your behalf, executes your instructions, files IRS reporting (Forms 5498 and 1099-R) and issues your statements. It is a separate legal entity from Allegiance Gold: we never take custody of your funds or metal. That separation is your structural protection, and you should confirm it exists at any firm you consider. Non-bank custodians must be specifically approved by the IRS under Treasury Regulation 1.408-2(e).

IRA metals must sit in an IRS-approved depository — high-security, audited, all-risk-insured vaults such as Delaware Depository or Brink's Global Services. You choose segregated storage (your exact bars and coins held apart and returned to you) or non-segregated/commingled (identical products pooled; equivalents returned). Both are fully insured; segregated costs more and matters mainly for serial-numbered bars. Holdings appear on your custodian statements, and depositories undergo independent audits.

• Growth: tax-deferred (traditional) or tax-free on qualified distributions (Roth). The 28% collectibles capital-gains rate on personally-held gold does not apply inside an IRA.
• Distributions: take cash after selling metal, or take the coins in-kind. Traditional distributions are ordinary income; a 10% penalty applies under 59½ unless an exception fits.
• RMDs: begin at 73 (75 if born 1960 or later) for traditional accounts. Metal isn't divisible — plan liquidity a year ahead. Roth accounts have no lifetime RMDs.
• Prohibited transactions (IRC § 4975): no buying metal you already own, no personal use of IRA assets. Penalty: disqualification of the entire account. Details: IRA Withdrawal Rules.

• Genuinely uncorrelated diversification. Physical gold has no issuer and no counterparty; historically it has moved independently of equities and often inversely in acute stress.
• Currency-debasement hedge. Over multi-decade horizons gold has preserved purchasing power in a way cash and fixed-rate bonds have not — though it's an imperfect hedge over short windows.
• Long-run record. Gold traded near $280/oz in early 2000, first closed above $2,000 in 2020, crossed $4,000 in October 2025 and set an all-time high above $5,500 in January 2026. Past performance isn't a forecast — 2013–2018 sat well below the 2011 peak. Track it live: gold & silver charts.

Diversify and preserve your assets

Most clients allocate a portion — commonly 5%–20% of investable retirement assets — rather than everything, and we don't encourage all-in positions. Whether you're moving a former employer's 401(k) or part of an existing IRA, the mechanics are identical: the custodian moves the funds, you choose the metals, the depository takes custody, and the transfer creates no tax bill when done directly.

A good fit if you: hold a substantial balance concentrated in stocks and bonds; are within ~15 years of drawing income and prioritizing capital protection; have an old 401(k) with a former employer; can hold a non-income asset a decade or more; want a meaningful 5%–20% allocation.

A poor fit if you: have under ~$25,000 to allocate (fixed fees bite); need the money soon or need income from it; haven't captured your full employer match; carry high-interest debt; or want a short-term gold trade — an ETF does that cheaper.

1. What is the premium over spot on this exact product, in dollars — and will you put it in writing?
2. Who is the custodian, and which depository holds the metal? Are they independent of you?
3. What is your buy-back policy and typical spread when I sell?
4. What are all fees in year two, after any first-year waivers expire?
5. Are you recommending bullion or "semi-numismatic" coins — and why?
6. What happens to my metal if your company closes?

A firm that answers all six in writing is a firm you can work with. A firm that dodges any of them has answered you anyway.

• Using an indirect rollover when a direct transfer was available — triggering withholding and a 60-day clock for no reason.
• Buying high-premium proof coins when standard bullion delivers the same metal exposure for far less.
• Ignoring year-two fees because year one was waived.
• Forgetting RMD liquidity and being forced to sell metal on short notice at whatever the market offers.
• Going all-in. Gold is a diversifier, not a portfolio.
• Buying ineligible coins (Krugerrands, junk silver) and creating an accidental distribution.

• The numismatic upsell: steering you from bullion into "exclusive" coins carrying 20%–40% markups over melt. Demand the premium in writing.
• Home-storage pitches: illegal in effect since McNulty; it tells you how the firm treats compliance generally.
• Guaranteed returns and fear-based urgency: "gold only goes up," countdown timers, confiscation scares. No legitimate firm guarantees performance.
• "Zero fees for life": the cost usually moved into the premium, where it's harder to see.
• Pressure to liquidate securities immediately: legitimate diversification is never an emergency.

• Gold vs. Stocks Tool — compare gold against the S&P 500 over any period you choose.
• Live Charts — real-time gold, silver, platinum and palladium spot prices.
• White Papers and Research & Publications — deeper reading.
• Video Library — the concepts on this page, explained on camera.

Custodian

IRS-approved bank or trust company administering a self-directed IRA. Independent of the metals dealer.

Depository

IRS-approved insured vault (e.g., Delaware Depository, Brink's) that physically holds IRA metals.

Spot price

Current market price for immediate delivery, per troy ounce.

Premium

Amount above spot paid for a specific coin or bar — mint, distribution and dealer margin.

Fineness

Purity as a decimal: .995 = 99.5% pure. The IRS sets minimums per metal.

Direct transfer

Custodian-to-custodian funds movement. No withholding, no deadline, unlimited frequency.

RMD

Required minimum distribution from traditional IRAs, starting at age 73 (75 if born 1960+).

Numismatic coin

Collectible valued for rarity, not metal content. Generally not IRA-eligible; typically steep markups.