Silver IRA: Which Silver Qualifies and How a Rollover Works

A silver IRA is a self-directed individual retirement account that owns physical silver coins and bars. The silver has to be at least .999 fine, or an American Silver Eagle, and a trustee has to hold it at a depository. Most people fund one by moving money from an existing IRA or an old 401(k), and the same account can hold gold as well.

Want the details in writing first? Request a free silver IRA kit and read it at your own pace.

What a silver IRA is

On paper it's an ordinary IRA. The tax rules for a traditional or Roth IRA don't change because the account owns metal. What changes is the custodian: you need one that allows physical precious metals, which is why these accounts are self-directed.

Your statement lists what the account owns. That might be 500 American Silver Eagles, or a handful of 100-ounce bars, each with its weight and fineness, valued at the current silver price. You'll hear it called a precious metals IRA too. A gold and silver IRA is the same account holding both metals, and nothing stops you from buying gold and silver in one purchase.

The IRS rule for silver

It starts with a ban. Internal Revenue Code section 408(m) says that when an IRA buys a "collectible," the cost is treated as a distribution to you. Metals and coins are on the list of collectibles. Section 408(m)(3) then makes two exceptions, and silver IRAs rest on both of them.

• Certain coins struck by the U.S. Mint. For silver, that's the American Silver Eagle. IRS Publication 590-A says an IRA can invest in "one-ounce silver coins minted by the Treasury Department."
• Bullion that meets the minimum fineness a regulated futures exchange requires for delivery, as long as it's "in the physical possession of a trustee." Publication 590-A puts it as "certain gold, silver, palladium, and platinum bullion."

For silver, the exchange benchmark is COMEX. CME Group's silver futures specification calls for silver that assays "to a minimum of 999 fineness." So the working line is .999. Silver below it, other than the Silver Eagle, doesn't meet either exception, and an IRA that bought it would be treated as having paid you out.

Custodians write the same line into their own rules. Equity Trust Company, for example, lists a minimum fineness of .999 for silver bars, and for gold .995. It also requires bars from manufacturers accredited by exchanges such as NYMEX/COMEX or the LBMA, or from a national mint.

Silver coins and bars that qualify

These are the pieces you'll be offered most often. Each issuer publishes its fineness, so you can check them against the rule yourself.

Two practical limits. Equity Trust says coins that have been graded and sealed in plastic ("slabbed") aren't acceptable in its IRAs, and that includes American Eagles. And each custodian keeps its own approved list, so ask for it before you pick products. Our IRA coin checker tests a specific coin or bar against the fineness rule, and gold and silver side by side has the full coin specifications.

IRA coin checkerDoes a coin or bar meet the IRS rules for an IRA?

How a silver IRA rollover works

You're moving retirement money you already have into a new self-directed IRA, and then that IRA buys the silver. The move itself can go one of three ways, and the IRS treats them differently.

Transfer from another IRA

Your current custodian sends the money straight to the new one. Publication 590-A says a transfer "from one trustee directly to another, either at your request or at the trustee's request, isn't a rollover." Because nothing is paid to you, it's tax free, and the once-a-year limit on rollovers doesn't apply. This is the usual route, and the one we'd use.

Direct rollover from a 401(k) or other employer plan

The plan pays the money directly to the new IRA's trustee. Your plan's rules decide when you can do this, which is often after you've left that employer. The IRS says no tax is withheld from an amount paid this way. If the plan pays you instead, it has to withhold 20%, even if you intend to roll it over.

60-day rollover

The money comes to you first and you deposit it into the new IRA yourself. You generally have 60 days from the day you receive it. You also get only one IRA-to-IRA rollover in any 12-month period, counting all your IRAs together. Miss the deadline and the amount is treated as a taxable distribution, possibly with the 10% additional tax if you're under 59½.

Opening the account, start to finish

1. Choose a precious metals company. It explains the process and prices the coins and bars.
2. Open the self-directed IRA with a custodian, traditional or Roth to match the money you're moving.
3. Fund it by transfer or direct rollover. New contributions also work, within the yearly limit of $7,500 for 2026 ($8,600 at age 50 or older), per Publication 590-A.
4. Pick qualifying silver, gold or both, and agree on the price.
5. Sign the purchase direction. The custodian pays the dealer from your IRA and the metal ships to the depository in the account's name.
6. Check your first statement against the order.

Augusta Precious Metals, the company we refer readers to, says it does 95% of the paperwork for you. Its minimum investment is $50,000.

Custodian and depository

Three businesses are involved, and it helps to know which one does what.

The custodian has to be a bank or another trustee the IRS has approved; the IRS publishes its list of approved nonbank trustees. A custodian doesn't choose your silver or judge its price. An investor alert from the SEC, NASAA and FINRA says self-directed IRA custodians are "only responsible for holding and administering the assets in the account."

You can't keep IRA silver at home. The bullion exception only covers metal held by a trustee, and the Tax Court ruled in McNulty v. Commissioner (2021) that an IRA owner who took IRA-bought coins home had received a taxable distribution. Our storage guide explains how depositories keep metal segregated or pooled.

Augusta's preferred custodian is Equity Trust and its preferred depository is Delaware Depository.

Costs to ask about before you sign

Get each of these in writing. The CFTC suggests the same before any metals purchase.

• The setup fee to open the account.
• The yearly administration fee charged by the custodian.
• The yearly storage fee, and whether it differs for segregated and pooled storage.
• The price per coin or bar over the silver spot price. The CFTC says "A dealer will always sell metal above the spot price and buy it back below the spot price."
• Shipping and insurance to the depository.
• What the company would pay to buy the metal back, and how that price is set.
• Any fee to take metal out in kind, shipped to you, later on.

Augusta publishes its schedule: $50 one time to open, $125 a year administration (custodian) and $100 a year storage. It also lists ZERO setup, custodian and storage fees for up to 10 years, and everyone qualifies. Shipping and transit insurance are free to all customers. There's a 100% 7-Day Money-Back Guarantee and a Highest Buyback Guarantee. Our premium calculator turns any quote into a price over spot in dollars and percent.

Gold and silver in the same IRA

The account works the same for both metals. The differences are in the metal itself.

The price per ounce is the big one. On World Bank yearly averages, an ounce of gold cost about as much as 86 ounces of silver in 2025. So the same dollars buy far more silver by weight, and it fills more space in the vault. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Both prices rise and fall, and neither metal comes with a guarantee. Many owners hold both in one account. How you split it is your decision, and you can buy more of either later through the same custodian.

For the gold side of the account, see how a gold IRA works.

Picking a silver IRA company

We don't rank companies, but we'd check the same things for any of them.

1. A written fee schedule covering setup, administration and storage.
2. The named custodian and depository.
3. The minimum investment.
4. Written buyback terms.
5. Its Better Business Bureau and Business Consumer Alliance profiles, which you can read yourself.
6. How its staff are paid.

Augusta Precious Metals has been in business since 2012 and is headquartered in Casper, Wyoming. Its educators are salaried and non-commissioned. It has an A+ BBB rating and AAA at the Business Consumer Alliance, and Money magazine named it "Best Overall Gold IRA Company" for 2022 to 2026. Our gold IRA companies comparison lines up five companies on what each one publishes.

What people ask about silver IRAs

What is a silver IRA?

A self-directed IRA that owns physical silver meeting IRS rules: American Silver Eagles, or bullion at least .999 fine. A trustee holds the metal at a depository.

Can you have gold and silver in the same IRA?

Yes. A gold and silver IRA is one self-directed account holding both metals, each meeting its own fineness rule: .999 for silver and .995 for gold bullion.

How do I roll over my 401(k) into a silver IRA?

Open a self-directed IRA, then ask your plan for a direct rollover to the new custodian. Paid that way, no tax is withheld. Your plan's rules decide when you can move the money, often after you leave the employer.

What silver is IRA approved?

The American Silver Eagle by name, plus silver bullion at least .999 fine, such as the Silver Maple Leaf, the Britannia and bars from accredited refiners. Each custodian keeps its own approved list.

Can I store my silver IRA at home?

No. The bullion exception in section 408(m) requires the metal to be in the physical possession of a trustee, and the Tax Court has treated home storage of IRA coins as a taxable distribution.

What does a silver IRA cost?

A setup fee, yearly administration and storage fees, and the price of the metal over spot. Augusta Precious Metals lists $50 to open, $125 a year administration and $100 a year storage, with ZERO setup, custodian and storage fees for up to 10 years.

Sources and fact-check15 primary sources, checked October 17, 2026

1. 26 U.S. Code section 408(m), via Cornell Legal Information Institute
2. IRS: Publication 590-A, Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)
3. IRS: Publication 590-B, Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)
4. IRS: Approved nonbank trustees and custodians
5. CME Group: Silver futures contract specs
6. CME Group: Gold futures contract specs
7. U.S. Mint: Bullion coin programs (American Eagle gold and silver specifications)
8. Royal Canadian Mint: 2026 Silver Maple Leaf 1 oz bullion coin
9. The Royal Mint: Britannia 2026 1oz Silver Bullion Coin
10. Equity Trust Company: Precious metals IRA
11. FTC: Buying Platinum, Gold, and Silver Jewelry
12. FINRA, SEC and NASAA: Investor alert, self-directed IRAs and the risk of fraud
13. CFTC: 10 Things to Ask Before Buying Physical Gold, Silver, or Other Metals
14. U.S. Tax Court: McNulty v. Commissioner, 157 T.C. No. 10 (2021)
15. World Bank: Commodity Markets (Pink Sheet), annual prices, nominal U.S. dollars

We check every figure against the original source: the mint, the regulator, the exchange or the company itself. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.