Disclosure: Elite Coin Group is a precious metals dealer, not an IRA custodian, financial adviser, attorney, or tax professional. This page is general information, not tax, legal, or investment advice, and it is not an offer to sell. Elite Coin Group sells the precious metals discussed here and profits from those sales, including to IRA customers. Read our Customer Disclosures and consult your own advisers before acting.
Specifically, it lets you invest in alternatives outside the stock market. These include private equity, precious metals, real estate, and cryptocurrencies.
In short, if you want a tax-advantaged way to build a custom portfolio, an SDIRA may be ideal.
A self directed precious metals IRA is a retirement account you direct into physical gold, silver, platinum, or palladium held under IRC §408(m): an IRA generally cannot hold “collectibles,” but §408(m)(3) excepts coins such as American Eagles and bullion meeting contract-market delivery fineness — 99.5% for gold and 99.9% for silver — kept in the physical possession of the IRA trustee (IRS Publication 590-B). A self directed IRA gold position and a self directed IRA precious metals position qualify the same way, through a trustee or custodian.
Internal Revenue Code §408 governs IRAs. Under §408(a), an IRA must be held by a trustee or custodian. Under §408(m), an IRA generally cannot invest in “collectibles,” but §408(m)(3) excepts (A) specific coins described in 31 U.S.C. §5112 — including American Eagle gold, silver, and platinum coins — and certain coins issued under State law, and (B) gold, silver, platinum, or palladium bullion whose fineness meets the minimum that a contract market requires for delivery on a regulated futures contract, provided the bullion is in the physical possession of the IRA trustee. In current contract-market practice, those delivery minimums are 99.5% for gold and 99.9% for silver; platinum and palladium have their own contract-market minimums. This is why the 22-karat American Gold Eagle, 91.67% fine, is IRA-eligible: it qualifies under the coin exception, not the bullion fineness standard. All IRA metals must be held by your custodian or an approved depository; the IRS has treated personally held metal as a taxable distribution. (See Sources.)
Browse eligible products in our gold coins and silver coins categories, and confirm eligibility of any specific product with your custodian before buying.
Annual contribution — fund the IRA with cash up to the current IRS contribution limit (see the IRS links in Sources; limits change annually). Transfer — a custodian-to-custodian move between IRAs, with no annual limit. Rollover — you receive the funds and must deposit them within 60 days; under §408(d)(3)(B) you may complete only one 60-day rollover in any 12-month period (IRS Pub 590-B). Many 401(k) and similar employer plans can be rolled into an IRA when you leave the employer. Your custodian reports distributions; mistakes can create taxable events, so confirm the mechanics with your tax professional.
A gold IRA typically involves several separate charges: a custodian account setup fee, an annual custodian administration fee, depository storage and insurance fees (segregated storage generally costs more than commingled), transaction and wire fees, and the dealer spread — the difference between what you pay and the metal’s bid price, which runs higher on proof, graded, and “limited-edition” coins. Amounts vary by provider and are not set by the IRS. Get each fee in writing from your custodian, and a written quote from us, before you buy. The CFTC has published warnings about gold and silver IRA scams; see Sources.
Generally no. IRA contributions must be made in cash (IRC §408(a)(1)); the IRA buys metals with account funds from an approved dealer. Metal you already own cannot simply be contributed, and attempts to do so can trigger taxable distributions or prohibited-transaction problems (IRC §4975). Ask your custodian and tax professional first.
Under §408(m)(3), bullion must meet the minimum fineness a contract market requires for delivery — in current practice 99.5% for gold and 99.9% for silver — while statutorily excepted coins, such as American Eagles, are eligible as coins regardless of bullion fineness. Platinum and palladium have their own contract-market minimums. Confirm any specific product with your custodian.
Not without serious risk. The IRA trustee must hold the metals or place them with an approved depository; personally held metal has been treated as a taxable distribution. “Home storage gold IRA” LLC arrangements are marketed but carry real risk — get tax advice first.
See the fee types above; your custodian’s written schedule governs. We quote our prices in writing before any purchase.
No. It is general information under IRC §408. Consult a tax professional or fiduciary adviser about your situation.
Fact-checked 2026-10-20 by the Elite Coin Group team against the sources below.
Therefore, take the first step toward securing your financial future. Our IRA specialists will guide you through the entire process.
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