Move 401K without penalty to Gold

Protecting retirement savings with Gold is particularly important today because of rising Inflation, rising interest rates, and mounting geopolitical tension.

These economic factors along with hyper-extended Stock markets are causing concerned investors to ask this question:

The big caveat on moving a 401K to Gold without penalty is that the move is only possible if you are no longer working for the company that provided the 401K. Currently active 401K accounts are not eligible for a penalty-free Gold IRA rollover.

Eligible 401(k)
Any 401(k) account from a previous employer is eligible for a tax and penalty free 401k rollover to Precious metals. The IRS allows you to move retirement funds one time per year without penalty. This makes it possible to purchase physical Gold using your tax-advantaged savings.

non-Eligible 401(k)

Unfortunately, there are limited options for investing active 401K money unless your company 401k plan offers a self-directed option where you can buy individual securities. Otherwise, you are stuck with the choices the plan offers which may or may not include some kind of Precious metals Mutual fund.

To use the funds in your active 401k account for a penalty-free purchase of physical Gold you would have to change employers, thereby making the currently active 401k eligible for a Gold IRA rollover without penalty.

401k rollover to Precious metals

The IRS makes a distinction between a rollover and a transfer of Retirement accounts.

In an account transfer the Investor takes a distribution and receives funds from one Retirement account and then deposits those funds into another tax-advantaged account.

In a 401k rollover to Precious metals IRA the funds move directly from one account Trustee to Gold IRA Trustee without the Investor acting as a middle-man.

Investors tend to use the term ‘rollover’ interchangeably for both rollovers and transfers. The key distinction between the two events is whether the Investor takes personal possession of their retirement funds or not.

How to move 401k without penalty

The IRS requires that an account transfer be completed within 60 days.

60 days after a distribution any money that has not been transferred into another IRS-approved Retirement account will be treated as regular income at the investor's current tax rate. In addition to the taxes, investors under age 59 1/2 will be subject to a 10% early withdrawal fee on the distributed fees.

If you are wondering how to move 401k without penalty, the answer is simple: complete your account transfer within 60 days, or better yet, do a 401k rollover to a Precious metals IRA. With an account rollover there is no risk of triggering the 60-day IRS rule.

401k to Silver IRA rollover

The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 added Silver and Gold to the list of assets that can be held in self-directed IRAs. In 1998 Platinum and Palladium were added.

Any of the four Precious metals, or a mix of the metals, can be held in a self-directed IRA. There is no difference between a “Silver IRA” or a “Gold IRA”.

To perform a 401k to Silver rollover you follow the simple four-step process shown below. In step four you choose Silver instead of Gold.

Gold IRA rollover guide

4-Step process

Here’s a simple four-step Gold IRA rollover guide:

It really is as simple as that. And all of the Gold IRA companies have knowledgeable specialists to help you with the process.

Permitted Forms of Gold

The IRS only allows certain forms of Gold to be held in a self-directed IRA as specified in U.S. Code 408 (Individual Retirement Accounts).

Some general guidelines on the permitted forms of Gold:

Most metal for the least money

Never pay a premium for proof Coins, limited edition Coins, boxed Coins, or Certificates of Authenticity.

That recommendation is especially true for a Gold IRA where the physical Gold is stored in an IRS-approved depository. Unless you plan to take possession of this Gold after you retire, you will never physically hold it in your hands so what difference does it make whether it is proof or not?

Gold is Gold whether it is a proof American Eagle Coin or a beat up Krugerrand from the scratch-and-dent bin.

Buy physical Gold that has the lowest premium over the price of Gold Bullion.

The objective is to obtain the maximum number of ounces possible for a given amount of money.

For example, if the premium on Gold Maple Leafs is lower than the premium on Gold Eagles, buy Maple Leafs. If a 100 gram Gold bar has a lower premium than three Gold Maple Leaf Coins, get the Gold bar.

Where Your Precious Metals Will Be Stored

The IRS requires that a third-party Custodian hold the Gold in a self-directed IRA.

Each investor’s Gold is held in their name by the Custodian in the same manner that a Broker-Dealer holds an investor’s stock shares or Mutual fund Investments.

The Gold IRA companies have established relationships with IRS-approved metals depository facilities. After the investor establishes a Gold IRA account they will choose one of those depositories to serve as the Custodian for their Gold IRA.

Ready to start the rollover or transfer process for your eligible 401K CLICK HERE and grab your FREE 2022 Gold kit. Protect your retirement savings today from Inflation and market risk.

Convert 401k to Gold

After you convert your eligible 401k to a Gold IRA these are some of the Gold Coins and bars you will be able to purchase:

American Gold Buffalo

American Gold Eagle

Australian Gold Kangaroo

Austrian Gold Philharmonic

Canadian Gold Maple Leaf

Great Britain Gold Britannia

Gold IRA pros and cons

Like all Investments, Gold IRAs have their pluses and minuses.

A Gold IRA is not the ideal way to own physical Precious metals but it is the only way to purchase those metals with tax-advantaged retirement savings.

Here are a few more Gold IRA pros and cons to consider:

Principal 401k Gold

Principal Securities, Inc. offers traditional and Roth IRA accounts that allow investors to purchase Mutual funds, Stocks, ETFs, and Bonds. The company does not offer a Gold IRA at this time.

Employees wanting to move their currently active Principle 401k to Gold have a few options although a Gold IRA rollover is not one of them. Unfortunately, 401k accounts cannot be moved while they are active with a current employer. 

To gain Precious metals exposure in the Principal 401k an investor can purchase Gold-related ETFs and Mining stocks.

Fidelity 401K Gold

Fidelity is one of the companies offering Gold IRAs and they have a Gold Mutual fund for active 401k investors.

With a long history dating back to 1946, Fidelity is one of the largest Investment management firms in the US today with over $2 trillion in assets under management and more than 25 million customers.

At its founding the company offered two Mutual funds. Today Fidelity offers Investment advice, Wealth management, Life insurance, and retirement services. Individual investors, Financial advisors, businesses, and institutional investors look to Fidelity for management of equity, fixed income, and balanced Mutual funds.

Investors seeking exposure to the Precious metals can feel comfortable with an Investment in Fidelity 401K Gold.

Understand that using the word “best” in an internet search has a predictable result.

This search term is going to bring out the affiliate marketers and lead generators because they can smell money in the water. 

To create a list of the best Gold IRA companies in 2022 we would first need to define criteria for being ‘best’.

What are we looking for in a Gold IRA? What factors are most important?

Is it lowest transaction and management fees? How long the company has offered Gold IRA products? How long the company has been in business?

How do we find a Gold IRA company that we can trust?

Find a Reputable Gold IRA company

Since we are dealing with physical Gold that will be stored on our behalf, perhaps trust is the single most important factor for us to consider.

It is unlikely that an internet search for the ‘best’ Gold IRA will actually lead us to a company that we will feel comfortable with as conservative Investors.

As an alternative method for finding a Gold IRA, we might consider starting from the trust angle.

Which of the Investment management companies are we already familiar with? And more importantly, which of them can we trust to manage our hard-earned money?

Unless we have a compelling reason to do otherwise, it is probably best to stick with large, reputable companies for our Gold IRA accounts.

If you are already a client of Fidelity Investments investigate their Gold IRA and compare it to other offerings like the ones below.

Most of the Gold IRA companies offer free Investor Kits if you click the link in the table. 

Conclusions

Moving your eligible 401k to Gold without penalty is easy following the simple 4-step process given here.

Using tax-advantaged money to purchase physical Precious metals provides protection from Inflation and economic turmoil that could occur if current geopolitics spin out of control.

Protect your retirement savings today by moving your eligible 401k to Gold without penalty.