What metals can an IRA legally hold?

Federal law treats metals in an IRA as prohibited collectibles, with two exceptions in IRC 408(m)(3): certain government-issued coins, including American Gold, Silver, and Platinum Eagles and coins issued under state law, and gold, silver, platinum, or palladium bullion that meets the minimum fineness a commodities exchange requires for delivery on a futures contract. Qualifying bullion must stay in the physical possession of the IRA trustee or custodian.

Does the IRS require .995 fine gold for IRAs?

Not in those words. The statute does not list numeric purities. It requires bullion to meet the minimum fineness that a regulated futures exchange requires for contract delivery. The commonly quoted figures, such as .995 for gold and .999 for silver, come from exchange contract specifications, not from IRS text, though in practice dealers and custodians apply them.

Who has to store the metal in a gold IRA?

The IRA trustee or custodian must keep physical possession of qualifying bullion. Custodians must be banks or nonbank entities the IRS has approved in writing, and they typically hold metals at commercial depositories. Storing IRA metals at home has been treated by the U.S. Tax Court as a taxable distribution.

How much can I contribute to a gold IRA in 2026?

The same limits as any IRA, because a gold IRA is legally just an IRA. For 2026 the contribution limit is $7,500, plus a $1,100 catch-up contribution if you are 50 or older, per the IRS announcement for 2026. Most gold IRAs are funded by rollovers or transfers from existing retirement accounts rather than annual contributions.

Do gold IRAs have required minimum distributions?

Traditional IRAs, including those holding metals, generally require distributions starting at age 73. Roth IRAs have no lifetime required distributions. Taking an RMD from an account that holds only physical metal can mean selling metal or distributing coins in kind, which is worth planning for.

Gold IRA Rules: What the IRS Actually Requires

A gold IRA is not a special account type. It is an ordinary IRA that holds physical metal, and one section of the tax code, IRC 408(m), decides what it can hold, who must store it, and what happens when the rules are broken. Most of what dealers advertise traces back to this section, so here it is in plain English, sourced from the statute and IRS pages rather than sales material.

The collectibles rule: the default is "no"

The tax code starts from prohibition. Under IRC 408(m)(1), if an IRA acquires a "collectible," the purchase is treated as a distribution to you in the amount the account paid. Collectibles include any metal or coin, along with art, rugs, antiques, stamps, and gems. In other words, the moment your IRA buys a prohibited coin, the IRS treats that money as withdrawn: taxable income, plus the 10 percent additional tax if you are under 59 and a half.

The statute

"The acquisition by an individual retirement account of any collectible shall be treated as a distribution from such account in an amount equal to the cost to such account of such collectible." IRC 408(m)(1), paraphrasing only the ellipses.

The exception: coins and bullion that qualify

IRC 408(m)(3) carves out two categories:

1. Specific government coins

The statute names gold, silver, and platinum coins described in the federal coinage law (these are the American Eagle series), and "a coin issued under the laws of any State." A one-ounce American Gold Eagle qualifies even though its purity is below the bullion standard, because it is named by cross-reference in the statute itself.

2. Bullion meeting exchange fineness

Gold, silver, platinum, or palladium bullion qualifies if its fineness equals or exceeds "the minimum fineness that a contract market requires for metals which may be delivered in satisfaction of a regulated futures contract."

Worth knowing

The purity numbers you see everywhere, .995 for gold, .999 for silver, .9995 for platinum and palladium, are not written in the tax code or on IRS.gov. The statute delegates to futures exchange delivery standards, and those figures come from exchange contract specifications. The practical effect is the same, but a dealer telling you "the IRS requires .995" is quoting COMEX, not the IRS.

The custodian requirement

The bullion exception comes with a catch printed right in the statute: it applies only "if such bullion is in the physical possession of a trustee." IRA trustees and custodians must be banks or nonbank entities that have applied to the IRS in writing and been approved. The IRS publishes the official list of approved nonbank trustees and custodians.

Two things follow from this. First, you cannot hold the metal yourself; the U.S. Tax Court confirmed in 2021 that home storage triggers a taxable distribution, which we cover in detail in our home storage guide. Second, the IRS approves custodians, not dealers. A gold dealer saying it is "IRS approved" is at best describing its custodian partner.

Three companies touch your account, each with fees

Party	What it does	Typical fee layer
Dealer	Sells you the coins or bars, buys them back when you sell	The spread between buy and sell price, the least visible cost
Custodian	Administers the IRA, reports to the IRS, executes your instructions	Setup fee plus an annual account fee
Depository	Stores the physical metal in a vault	Annual storage fee, sometimes scaled to account value

When you compare gold IRA companies, you are mostly comparing dealers. The custodian and depository fees pass through, and the dealer's spread is usually the largest cost you will pay. Companies that publish their fees and name their custodian and depository partners make that comparison possible; several do not.

Contribution limits, rollovers, and RMDs

Contributions (2026): $7,500, plus a $1,100 catch-up if you are 50 or older, per the IRS 2026 cost-of-living announcement. These are the ordinary IRA limits; metal does not change them.
Rollovers: most gold IRAs are funded from an existing 401(k) or IRA. A trustee-to-trustee transfer is not a rollover and has no frequency limit. An indirect rollover gives you 60 days to redeposit and is limited to one IRA-to-IRA rollover in any 12-month period. Miss the window and the whole amount is a taxable distribution.
RMDs: traditional IRAs require minimum distributions starting at age 73. Roth IRAs have no lifetime RMDs. An account holding only bars and coins still owes RMDs in dollars, which can force metal sales or in-kind distributions.

Prohibited transactions can void the whole IRA

Separately from the collectibles rule, IRC 4975 bars self-dealing between an IRA and "disqualified persons," which includes you. Selling property to your own IRA, borrowing from it, or using its assets for your own benefit are all prohibited, and the consequence is severe: the account ceases to be an IRA, and the entire balance is treated as distributed. The home storage schemes marketed around single-member LLCs run straight into these rules.

Comparing gold IRA companies?

We compare precious metals IRA companies on what they publish: minimums, fees, and named custodian and depository partners.

See the comparison

Frequently asked questions

Can I store my gold IRA metals at home?

No. Qualifying bullion must remain in the physical possession of the IRA trustee or custodian, and the U.S. Tax Court held in McNulty v. Commissioner (2021) that taking personal possession, even through an LLC owned by the IRA, is a taxable distribution. Our home storage guide walks through the case and the numbers.

Are American Gold Eagles IRA-eligible even though they are 91.67 percent gold?

Yes. The statute names the American Eagle coins by cross-reference to the federal coinage law, so they qualify as coins rather than having to meet the bullion fineness standard.

Is a gold IRA taxed differently from a normal IRA?

No. The account follows ordinary IRA taxation: traditional balances are taxed as ordinary income when distributed, Roth qualified distributions are tax free. The 28 percent collectibles capital gains rate people cite applies to metals held in taxable accounts, not to IRA distributions.

What does "IRS approved" mean in gold IRA marketing?

Usually less than it implies. The IRS approves banks and nonbank trustees to act as IRA custodians, and it publishes that list. It does not approve, endorse, or vet metals dealers or the coins they promote beyond the statutory eligibility rules.

Sources

This page is general educational information, not tax, legal, or investment advice. IRA rules involve individual facts; consult a qualified tax professional before moving retirement funds. ClearChoiceRadar is not affiliated with the IRS or any government agency.