Precious Metals
1. Is it possible to use IRA funds to invest in precious metals such as gold to further diversify my retirement portfolio?
Yes. According to Internal Revenue Code Section 408(m)(3)(A)(i-iv) and 408 (m)(3)B) IRAs may invest in certain precious metal coins and bullion as listed below:
| GOLD COINS |
• American Buffalo
• American Eagle
• Australian Kangaroo/Nugget
• Austrian Philharmonic
• Canadian Maple Leaf |
| SILVER COINS |
• America The Beautiful
• American Eagle
• Australian Kookaburra
• Austrian Vienna Philharmonic
• Canadian Maple Leaf
• Mexican Libertad |
| PLATINUM COINS |
• American Eagle
• Australian Koala
• Canadian Maple Leaf
• Isle of Man Noble |
Note: Gold and Silver coins that have undergone ‘certification,’ also known as ‘slabbed coins,’ are not permitted to be held in IRAs.
In addition to these coins, certain gold, silver, platinum and palladium bars and rounds produced by manufacturers accredited by NYMEX (New York Mercantile Exchange), COMEX (Commodities Future Exchange, division of NYMEX dealing with physical commodities such as gold, silver, platinum and palladium), LME (London Metal Exchange), LBMA (London Bullion Market), NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) Liffe (London International Financial Futures & Options Exchange), LPPM (London Platinum and Palladium Market), TOCOM (Tokyo Commodity Exchange), ISO-9000 or a national government mint and meeting minimum fineness may also be held in an IRA.
Note: Minimum fineness for bars is as follows:
Gold - .995+ Silver - .999+ Platinum - .9995+ Palladium - .9995+
2. Are there any limitations on the type and amount of precious metals that can be held in my IRA?
It is entirely up to the individual to determine how much of a retirement portfolio to allocate to physical precious metals. The current published depository fee covers precious metals investments up to $100,000. Precious metals investments over $100,000 will be charged a higher depository fee.
3. Can I contribute gold coins I already own to my IRA?
No, nor can your IRA purchase any precious metal that you personally own. You are only allowed to contribute cash to your IRA in the form of an annual contribution or through rollovers of former 401(k) plans or transfers from existing IRAs. Transfers in kind of precious metals from one IRA custodian to another are permitted.
4. Are there any other restrictions I should know about?
At this time, Millennium Trust will not accept investment directions for precious investments that would be leveraged.
5. How do I purchase precious metals for my IRA?
The first step is to establish and fund a Precious Metals IRA prior to negotiating the purchase with a dealer since most precious metals dealers usually require prompt payment prior to shipping the Precious Metals.
6. How do I find a precious metals dealer?
There are many broker/dealers who specialize in precious metals and they can easily be found by performing an Internet search. Individual investors considering IRA investing in precious metals should perform the necessary due diligence on the dealer prior to making an investment. It is helpful to check out the ‘About Us’ and ‘Terms and Conditions’ sections of the dealer’s web site to learn about: payment terms, market loss policies, shipments and delivery costs, return policies, investment risks, brokers fees, industry association memberships and customer warranties. If the dealer does not have a physical inventory of precious metals, determine what mint(s) the dealer uses and investigate the mint to determine if it is an authorized retailer of U.S. and international government mints. Please note that depending on the source of the metals, delivery times can run from a few days to several weeks.
The U.S. Mint (www.usmint.gov) and the American Numismatic Association (www.money.org) offer consumer education on their web sites. Millennium Trust does not recommend or endorse any precious metals dealer.
7. What form(s) should I use to make a precious metals investment?
8. What are the fees for establishing a Precious Metals IRA?
It is also important to ‘do the math’ prior to initiating a transfer, rollover or commitment to purchase to insure that adequate funds are being moved to your new account to cover not only the precious metals investment but also dealer’s commissions, shipping, handling, insurance, custodial and storage fees.
For a new, single-purpose Precious Metals IRA, Millennium Trust’s fees are as follows:
- $50 one-time account establishment fee
- $50 annual account administration fee
- $50 annual asset administration fee
- $50 transaction fee (per purchase or sale)
- $100 annual depository safekeeping, non segregated storage fee (for precious metal account values up to $100,000)
- $175 annual depository safekeeping, segregated storage fee (for precious metal account values up to $100,000)
Note: Precious Metals investments over $100,000 will be charged a higher depository fee.
For existing Millennium Trust clients a $50 asset administration fee, $50 transaction fee and $100 safekeeping fee will be charged at the time the transaction is completed. Please remember that additional fees may be charged including but not limited to: dealer commission, shipping, handling and insurance fees.
9. Where does the dealer send my precious metals coins or bars?
Millennium Trust uses the safekeeping services of Delaware Depository (www.delawaredepository.com) licensed by the New York Mercantile Exchange and New York Commodity Exchange and approved by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Your dealer will receive a packing slip and shipping instructions from Millennium Trust once we receive your investment direction, signed dealer invoice and dealer payment instructions. The dealer will ship your precious metals investment directly to a Depository who will then open and inspect the contents and send delivery confirmation to Millennium Trust. The metal will be stored in a fully insured, physically segregated location designated to Millennium Trust.
All gold, silver, platinum and palladium Assets will be segregated and held in bulk in a designated Millennium Trust vault location. Segregated storage of account owner's metals is available at a fee of $175.
10. How are the precious metals valued once they are in my IRA?
Millennium Trust will show a ‘typical bid price’ for the precious metals held in your retirement account and should be used as an indication only. Typical bid prices should not be construed as a firm bid price to buy by any broker or dealer and do not include any dealer markups, markdowns or commissions. Price indications for specific bullion may be obtained from various sources, including www.bullionvalues.org or www.kitco.com.
11. What if I decide to sell some or all of the precious metals in my Millennium Trust Precious Metals IRA?
If precious metals are held in an IRA or other type of retirement account, payment for the sale of precious metals should be made payable to Millennium Trust Co. Custodian FBO (your name) IRA and sent to Millennium Trust’s corporate mailing address found on the Precious Metals Purchase/Sale Direction. Wiring instructions for payment can be found on our ‘Delivery Instructions’ form.
Millennium Trust will not alert the Depository to ship the precious metals until:
- a completed Precious Metals Purchase/Sale Direction to indicate that you are selling certain precious metals from your account is received by Millennium,
- purchaser’s shipping instructions are received and
- payment has been received and in the case of payment by check the standard 5 business day clearing period has passed.
Note: Normal shipping of precious metals by the Depository is through the U.S. Postal Service or express mail carrier. Special shipping and handling requirements will be quoted on a case-by-case basis.
The Depository will use commercially reasonable efforts to prepare Assets for delivery out within 2 to 4 business days from receipt of shipment notification from Millennium Trust.
12. Can my Millennium Trust IRA hold other types of non-traditional or alternative assets?
Yes. You can convert your Precious Metals IRA to a Millennium Alternative Investments (AI) IRA that can accommodate a wide variety of alternative investments such as real estate, private placements, managed futures, commodities and hedge funds in addition to precious metals. Since each type of investment has its own set of requirements and asset administration fees, Millennium Trust has created various investment process timelines to inform investors of specific requirements and timeframes for completing those unique investment transactions. There is no charge to convert your Precious Metals IRA, however, once you add an alternative investment to your account, the standard Millennium Trust Fee Schedule will apply.