Gold IRA Depositories: Where IRA Metals Are Stored, What It Costs and How Safe It Is (2026 Guide)

Gold IRA metal is stored in a vault your IRA custodian hires, because the tax code requires IRA bullion to stay in a trustee's physical possession, not your home. Your custodian is the bank or trust company that legally holds your IRA, and the tax code calls it the trustee. Bullion means coins and bars valued for their metal, and a depository is the vault business that stores them.

The IRS approves no vault for IRAs. Storage usually costs $100 to $225 a year on custodian fee schedules read in September 2026. So which vault holds your metal, and how safe is it?

This guide explains what a depository is, why the IRS keeps no list of them and what the storage rule requires. It compares the 6 main US vaults and prices storage at 5 account sizes. It closes with 6 real risks, 7 questions and the 3 ways metal leaves a vault.

The table below sums up gold IRA depositories in 11 facts as of September 29, 2026.

What Is a Gold IRA Depository?#

A gold IRA depository is a high-security vault business that stores your IRA's coins and bars for your custodian, keeps them on its books as yours and never owns them. The legal word for this is bailment: you keep ownership, and the vault only holds the metal. International Depository Services (IDS), a vault on Equity Trust's and GoldStar's lists, says its metal is "held as bailment."

Vault records are allocated, which means the books list exact items or quantities as yours. Delaware Depository says even its shared storage is "allocated on our system and physically separated by product" (FAQ, read September 29, 2026). Every precious metals IRA, whether it holds gold, silver, platinum or palladium, keeps its metal in a vault like these.

A depository is not the dealer, your custodian or a bank, so your metal is not a deposit and FDIC insurance does not apply. Unallocated accounts, where you are only owed metal the institution itself owns, are never used for IRAs. IDS's pool accounts are one: "each individual coin or bar is not specifically titled."

The same vaults, often called precious metals depositories, also store metal outside IRAs, usually for a yearly percent of its value. If the vault holds the metal, what does the IRS actually approve?

Is there a list of "IRS-approved" depositories?#

No: the IRS publishes no list of approved depositories, and "IRS-approved depository" is sales shorthand for a vault your IRA custodian has a contract with.

The IRS keeps one real list: nonbank trustees, companies it allows to act as IRA trustees although they are not banks (Treas. Reg. 1.408-2(e)). The nonbank trustee list had 73 entities on April 1, 2026. Only one is a metals business: Lone Star Tangible Assets, LP, approved on November 30, 2023. It runs the state-owned Texas Bullion Depository, and the approval covers the company as a trustee, not the vault.

Three of the top 5 search results for "gold IRA depository" say or imply that the IRS approves vaults (read September 29, 2026). One gold IRA company's guide, dated March 2025, lists "11 IRS-approved depositories." One of them is First State Depository, a vault whose assets a federal court had frozen on September 29, 2022, about two and a half years earlier. What the IRS list does cover for custodians is explained in "IRS-approved" gold IRA custodians.

Who does what: the dealer, the custodian and the depository#

Three companies touch your metal: the dealer sells it, the custodian legally holds your IRA, and the depository stores it for the custodian. The table below shows what each one does, what it does not do and how you pay it.

The dealer often chooses the vault for you: GoldStar Trust's metals page says the dealer "usually determines" the depository (read September 29, 2026). Custodians do not check the dealer or its price either (SEC Initial Decision No. 1030, June 27, 2016, which dismissed the SEC's case against custodian Equity Trust).

Fees and vault lists differ between gold IRA custodians. Every schedule and vault list is compared in gold IRA custodians.

The custodian and the vault sign a custody agreement covering your metal. At Entrust, it is "available upon request," and vault fees pass to you "at actual costs and without markup" (fee disclosure, Rev. 12-4-2025).

What Are the IRS Storage Requirements for a Gold or Silver IRA?#

To store gold in an IRA, the metal must be IRA-eligible and held by the IRA's trustee or the vault it hires; metal you keep yourself counts as withdrawn. The 4 storage requirements are listed below.

1. Eligible metal: fineness means purity. Gold must be at least .995 fine (99.5% pure), silver .999, platinum and palladium .9995, or a named coin such as the American Gold Eagle (26 U.S.C. 408(m)(3)(A)-(B)).
2. Trustee possession: the custodian or the vault it hires holds the metal (408(m)(3)(B)).
3. A trustee that qualifies: a bank, a state-supervised trust company (408(n)) or an IRS-listed nonbank trustee (Treas. Reg. 1.408-2(e)).
4. No personal use: you cannot take the metal home and keep it in the IRA (McNulty v. Commissioner, 2021).

The tax code treats coins and metal as collectibles, items whose purchase counts as a withdrawal unless an exception applies (26 U.S.C. 408(m)). Break the storage rule, and the exception is lost: the metal's cost is a distribution, a withdrawal the IRS taxes. The full set of gold IRA rules covers contributions, rollovers and withdrawals.

Keeping gold at home is legal outside an IRA: Americans have been free to own gold again since December 31, 1974, after the 1933 gold order (Pub. L. 93-373). Home storage gold IRA offers still circulate, and the home storage gold IRA guide checks each pitch against the McNulty ruling.

Does the vault itself have to be a bank or trust company?#

No: only your custodian must be a bank or trust company, and the vault can hold the metal as the custodian's agent, a company acting for it. SafeOunce found no IRS ruling or court case, as of September 29, 2026, that disqualifies this setup.

Delaware Depository, whose trust company answers to the Delaware State Bank Commissioner, argues otherwise. Its white paper says the vault itself should be a "bank," because an agent's possession may be only "constructive": legal control without holding the item.

The argument favors its author, since Delaware Depository is a trust company and IDS, Brink's, A-Mark Global Logistics (AMGL) and the Texas Precious Metals Depository (TPMD) are not. The 2002 ruling covered a different setup: storage companies holding metal for themselves, "not the IRA trustee."

Does it matter which state the vault is in?#

Mostly no: the vault's state does not change the income tax on your IRA withdrawals, because that tax follows where you live, not where the metal sits. The list below shows 3 things the vault's state does and does not change.

• Income tax on withdrawals: set by your home state when the money comes out. One dealer's page says Nevada storage avoids tax on IRA cash-outs, and that is wrong.
• Sales tax at purchase: some states charge sales tax when bullion is delivered there. IDS and the Texas Bullion Depository explain this for Delaware and Texas, so ask before you buy.
• State law on the vault: Texas H.B. 1056 (signed June 22, 2025) made gold and silver coins legal tender in Texas from September 1, 2026, without changing IRA storage rules. A Texas clause voiding a non-Texas seizure in a general emergency (Gov't Code 2116.023) is untested in court.

Each state's rule is in state income tax on gold IRA withdrawals.

Where Are Gold IRA Metals Stored? The 6 Main US Depositories Compared#

Gold IRA metal sits in vaults on your custodian's list, and the 6 main US ones are Delaware Depository, Brink's, IDS, AMGL, TPMD and the Texas Bullion Depository. Your custodian's statement should name your vault and storage type, and the vault's own holdings report, its list of what it holds for your account, confirms it.

COMEX is the main US exchange for gold futures, contracts to buy or sell gold later at a set price. Its owner, CME Group, reports the metal held in each listed vault. A troy ounce (oz) is 31.1034768 grams. The table below compares the 6 vaults on 8 points as of September 29, 2026.

Vault names, owners and lists as published or filed, read September 29, 2026. COMEX figures are exchange bars only, not IRA coin holdings.

Four of the 6 vaults publish no insurance limit at all, and AMGL's figure is its parent's shared group program. Only 2 answer to a state: Delaware Depository's trust company and the Texas Bullion Depository.

Other vaults you may see on custodian lists, dealer pages or rankings are listed below.

1. Loomis: Swedish-owned Loomis is COMEX-listed with 664,715 ounces of gold (September 28, 2026). Its only IRA mention is an unexplained entry on Equity Trust's list: "A-Mark Global Logistics, Loomis Intl (AMGL)."
2. Dakota Depository and Idaho Armored Vaults: Dakota Depository in Fargo, ND, and Idaho Armored Vaults are on Entrust's and Advanta's lists.
3. CNT Depository: the CNT Depository in Bridgewater, MA, is COMEX-listed for silver (21,000,500 ounces, September 28, 2026). SafeOunce found no IRA custodian that lists it.
4. Citadel Global Depository Services: an APMEX subsidiary whose storage Brink's runs, with no evidence that it holds IRA metal.
5. Dealer vaults: SD Depository and Money Metals Depository belong to the dealers SD Bullion and Money Metals Exchange (see the ownership table below).
6. Malca-Amit: COMEX-listed Malca-Amit held 1,569,770 ounces of gold (September 28, 2026) and offers "allocated or unallocated" metal. SafeOunce found no IRA custodian that lists it.

First State Depository in Wilmington, DE, once used by 15 custodians, failed in 2022. If your custodian's list holds several vaults, who decides which one holds yours?

Can you choose your own depository?#

You can choose only among the vaults on your custodian's list, which ran from 1 vault at Provident (March 2025) to 8 at Advanta (September 2026). The table below shows each custodian's list.

Ask your custodian for its vault list before you buy. Then write the vault name on the purchase direction, the form that tells the custodian to pay the dealer. A blank line leaves the choice to the seller, who often picks for you.

Which gold IRA vaults are owned by gold dealers?#

AMGL (Gold.com), IDS (Dillon Gage) and TPMD (Texas Precious Metals) are owned by dealer groups, and the company that runs the Texas Bullion Depository also owns a coin dealer. The table below maps 12 vaults to their owners in 9 rows as of September 29, 2026.

Dealer ownership matters because the vault's report is then not an independent check on the seller. First State shared an owner and a building with dealer Argent Asset Group. The receiver, a court-appointed manager, and its accounting firm later found 1,006 accounts whose records did not match the metal. Dealer ownership is not proof of a problem.

Some dealer-owned vaults also serve IRAs. Money Metals Depository lists 6 IRA trustees, including New Direction and Advanta IRA (September 2026), and SD Bullion uses SD Depository in its "3-in-1" IRA without naming the custodian. SD Depository, Money Metals and Citadel are compared in dealer-owned vaults.

Where is the largest gold depository in the United States?#

The largest store of US government gold is the Treasury's vault at Fort Knox, Kentucky, with 147.3 million ounces on August 31, 2026. Among private vaults on the COMEX list, Brink's holds the most gold: 7,053,978 ounces (September 28, 2026).

The Treasury's gold reserve status report lists 147,341,858.382 fine troy ounces, meaning ounces of pure gold, at Fort Knox. That is about $610.7 billion at the LBMA PM price, the London afternoon benchmark, of $4,144.55 (September 28, 2026). Fort Knox holds only government gold, no IRA metal.

The table below ranks the COMEX gold vaults from the CME gold stocks report of September 28, 2026.

These figures count exchange bars only, and no vault publishes its IRA holdings. Delaware Depository holds 0.8% of COMEX gold, yet it sits on 6 of the 7 custodian lists above. Some vault and dealer pages call a vault "one of only eight COMEX-approved depositories," but the CME report of September 28, 2026 lists 11 gold vaults.

What Does Gold IRA Storage Cost? Options Compared at 5 Account Sizes#

IRA storage costs about $100 to $225 a year on published custodian schedules (September 2026), and $215 to $325 at 3 flat-fee custodians once their account fee is added. Equity Trust, STRATA and GoldStar charge flat fees, the same dollars at any balance, except GoldStar's segregated fee above $125,000. Entrust adds a value-based fee, a percent of your metal's value, so its totals rise with the balance.

Custodians use different names for shared storage. Equity Trust says non-segregated, STRATA and GoldStar say commingled, and Entrust says allocated. All three mean your coins sit with identical coins of other owners and are recorded as yours. Segregated storage keeps your exact items on their own shelf.

The table below adds each custodian's yearly account fee to its storage fee at 5 account sizes.

Sources: Equity Trust FS-0004-05 Rev. 081726; STRATA fee page (August 31, 2026); GoldStar GTC Rev. 01/2026; Entrust fee disclosure Rev. 12-4-2025 and storage forms Rev. 3/7/2024. Entrust rows assume the IRA holds one kind of asset: $219 a year plus 0.17% of value above $50,000; two or more kinds add $110 a year. Not included: setup ($50 at Equity Trust and at GoldStar), trade fees ($75 per trade at STRATA, including $35 depository handling), shipping and exit fees. The GoldStar segregated rate above $125,000 is read from a misaligned PDF column, so no dollar figure is printed. SafeOunce computation.

Commingled metal is still yours, but Equity Trust's Precious Metals Risk and Fee Disclosure (read September 29, 2026) shows what you get back. It is "the weight and general type," and you "may not receive the same brand, year, or condition." Segregated storage costs about $50 to $100 more a year at flat-fee custodians, or $1,000 to $2,000 over 20 years at 2026 fees (GoldStar below $125,000). When the extra fee is worth it is in segregated vs commingled gold IRA storage.

Dealer offers of "free storage" cover year one or a stated period only; then the custodian's normal fee applies.

Gold IRA storage fees also differ in billing dates. Each custodian's schedule, billing dates and value-based options are in gold IRA storage fees.

Why do storage fees cost small accounts the most?#

Storage fees cost small accounts the most because they are flat: the same dollars take a bigger share of less gold. Twenty years of a $235 yearly fee equals 47% of the gold in a $10,000 IRA, but under 5% in a $100,000 IRA.

SafeOunce computation, with gold and fees held at 2026 levels; real prices and fees change. Segregated storage makes the small-account trap worse. A $10,000 IRA at STRATA with segregated gold pays $325 a year, 3.25%, or $3,250 over 10 years.

These are only the yearly gold IRA fees for holding metal. Setup, trade and exit charges are added in gold IRA fees.

Value-based fees work the other way and grow with the balance. Entrust's account fee adds 0.17% of value above $50,000. AMGL storage through Entrust costs 0.08% a year allocated ($70 minimum) or 0.16% segregated ($170 minimum) (Entrust fee disclosure Rev. 12-4-2025; AMGL storage forms, 2024). The percent charge rises above those minimums once the metal is worth more than $87,500 or $106,250.

Is storage through an IRA cheaper than renting vault space yourself?#

Yes, usually: segregated IRA storage for $100,000 of metal at the Delaware Depository costs $150 a year through Entrust. A personal segregated account at the same vault costs $1,500, 10 times as much. The table below compares 5 ways to store $100,000 of metal as of September 29, 2026.

The IRA route adds the custodian's account fee and holds only IRA-eligible metal. Percent rates on a vault's own price list, such as Delaware Depository's 0.50% and 1.5%, are personal-account prices, though some depository rankings show them as gold IRA fees. Brink's and IDS publish no IRA prices, so a percent rate quoted for them cannot be checked against their own documents.

Minimums follow the same split. IRA storage has no separate vault minimum beyond the custodian's flat fee or AMGL's $70 and $170 floors. Personal accounts at Delaware Depository pay at least $25 per billing for shared storage and $50 for segregated (schedule R220301). The Texas Bullion Depository's $25 quarterly minimum is the binding cost below about $20,408 of metal (effective April 1, 2026).

APMEX's Citadel vault charges 0.55% a year (storage page, captured August 23, 2026). Above about $29,100 of metal, that costs more than a $160 flat fee such as Equity Trust's segregated rate.

How Safe Is Gold in an IRA Depository? 6 Risks and What Protects You#

Metal in a large IRA vault is insured and recorded as yours, but 6 risks remain: fraud, insurance limits, exclusions, dealer ownership, weak audits and unpaid fees. The one documented IRA vault failure, First State Depository, was a vault where 90% of 2,102 accounts were IRAs. The safest place for IRA gold is a vault on your custodian's list; gold outside an IRA can sit in a vault or at home.

The 6 risks are listed below.

1. Fraud or theft at the vault. A Wilmington, DE vault failed from the inside, through its owner. First State Depository had its assets frozen by a federal court on September 29, 2022, in a case brought by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), a federal regulator. Segregated labels did not stop the theft.
2. Insurance limits and melt-value payouts. One vault policy covers all of a vault's customers together, up to a limit per claim: the most the insurer pays for one event. Payouts use spot value, the current market price of the raw metal. A higher declared value, one you register for a special coin, applies only if it is on file.
3. Exclusions. Delaware Depository's policy excludes war, terrorism, cyber-attack and chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear weapons (FAQ, read September 29, 2026). Its agreement adds government "confiscation or nationalization or requisition" (section 4.6). Gold.com's policies exclude terrorist attacks and civil unrest, and its filings do not say they cover customer IRA metal (FY2026 10-K).
4. Dealer ownership. A vault owned by the seller is no independent check on the seller (see the ownership table above).
5. Audits that do not count your coins. COMEX audits cover registered bars only: large exchange bars with a COMEX warrant, the exchange's title document. Delaware Depository's audit report is an SSAE18 SOC 1 Type I: an outside auditor checks, on one date, whether its safeguards (controls) are well designed. No IRA vault SafeOunce checked publishes a Type II report, which tests controls over months; see what depository audits check and miss.
6. Unpaid fees and dormant accounts. Equity Trust may "liquidate your precious metals assets ... and force distribute any remaining assets" when fees go unpaid; Entrust acts after 30 days' notice. Delaware Depository's agreement (section 4.2) says dormant bullion "will be liquidated and a commission will apply" before it goes to the state. First State's receiver sought forfeiture, a permanent loss, of about $4.1 million of intact metal whose 266 owners had not filed claims (May 2023).

The table below sets out the First State record.

The real cover was smaller than the IRA metal alone: over $92 million held against a $75 million limit. The table below shows what each protection does and does not do.

How gold IRA storage is insured differs by vault. Limits and exclusions vault by vault are in how gold IRA storage is insured.

The one documented IRA vault loss came from the owner, not a break-in. IDS, for example, says it uses UL Class III vaults, a lab rating for vault strength (IDS site, read September 29, 2026).

Storage is one cost among several; the real downsides of a gold IRA are weighed with a verdict by situation.

Is your metal safe if the gold company that sold it fails?#

Yes, if the metal already sits in the vault in your IRA's name; no, if you paid for an order that never reached the vault. Metal in your account is not the dealer's property. An undelivered order leaves you an unsecured creditor: someone owed money with no claim on any specific property.

Rosland Capital, a gold IRA dealer, shows both sides. On July 2, 2026 it filed a liquidating Chapter 11 case, a bankruptcy in which the company closes and sells what it has (No. 2:26-bk-16650-BB). Its filing says customer products were "deposited in the customer's separate and individualized account at DDSC" (Delaware Depository). The table below sets out 3 failure cases.

What happens to your rights if a depository fails is covered step by step.

How Do You Choose a Gold IRA Depository? 7 Questions and a Verdict by Situation#

Choose a gold IRA depository by getting your custodian's vault list, then asking who owns each vault, what its insurance pays and excludes, and what storage costs. The 7 questions you should ask are listed below.

1. Ask your custodian for its vault list, and write the vault you want on the purchase direction.
2. Ask whether your dealer or its parent company owns the vault.
3. Ask 5 insurance questions: the limit and whether it is shared, who is insured, whether employee theft and mysterious disappearance are covered, the payout basis and the exclusions. Mysterious disappearance means metal missing with no known cause.
4. Ask whether segregated storage is offered for the metal you hold, including silver coins.
5. Get the total yearly fee in writing, account plus storage, and the dates it is billed.
6. Check that your statement names the vault, product, quantity, storage type and any bar serial numbers. Ask for the vault's own holdings report, and if the vault claims COMEX approval, find it on the CME report. In the First State case, the CFTC's complaint says custodians "did not physically possess or hold the assets."
7. Refuse any "lease" or "yield" program on stored metal, a plan that pays you income for letting someone else use it. Texas law bans leasing the Texas Bullion Depository's holdings (Gov't Code 2116.022).

Question 6 catches missing metal, because only the vault's report shows what sits on the shelf, and you can check that your gold is really in your IRA yourself. Here is how to check that your gold is really in your IRA, step by step.

The table below matches 6 common situations to the storage setup that usually fits.

This page ranks no vault, because no single vault fits every reader. A ranking of the best gold IRA depositories on published criteria is in best gold IRA depositories.

How Does Metal Leave the Depository? Sales, Shipments and Transfers#

Metal leaves an IRA vault in 3 ways: a sale back to a dealer, a taxable shipment to you, or a move to another vault or custodian. The 3 ways are listed below.

• Sale inside the IRA: the dealer buys the metal back, and the custodian receives the cash. No tax is due while the cash stays in the IRA.
• In-kind distribution: in kind means the metal itself, not cash. You owe tax on its fair market value, the price it would sell for, on the day it leaves. STRATA uses the "spot value of the metals on the date the assets leave the account."
• Transfer: the metal moves to another vault on your custodian's list or, in kind, to a new custodian.

How do you cash out a gold IRA? You sell gold in your IRA back to a dealer through your custodian, then withdraw the cash; buyback prices and fees are compared there.

The table below lists exit fees at 3 custodians (schedules read September 29, 2026).

Taking physical gold out of the IRA is a withdrawal, and the custodian reports it to the IRS on Form 1099-R. The step-by-step for taking physical gold out of the IRA is on the distributions guide.

What if IRA coins are lost in the mail?#

A lost IRA shipment is paid only up to the vault's per-package limit, and only if you claim in time. The 4 rules that decide a claim are listed below.

1. Package limit: Delaware Depository pays up to $100,000 per package, "without regard to premiums" (Shipping FAQ, effective November 18, 2024). It uses the New York spot price at the close on the 2nd business day after the loss.
2. Claim deadline: 30 calendar days from shipment at Delaware Depository; STRATA asks for claims within 7 days.
3. Shipping account: if the package ships on your own FedEx or UPS account, Delaware Depository's cover does not apply.
4. Delivery scan: once tracking shows the package delivered, Delaware Depository does not investigate a loss. Only your homeowner's policy might help then, so check it before you ship.

Can you move IRA metal to a different depository?#

Yes: you can move IRA metal to another vault on your custodian's list for a shipping charge, or to a new custodian through an untaxed transfer in kind.

Within the same custodian, STRATA's fee page lists "Precious Metals Shipping: $10 + depository cost" (read September 29, 2026). Entrust's AMGL storage form (2024) lists $25 per internal transfer out of segregated storage and $19.50 per package shipped.

A move to a new custodian is a trustee-to-trustee transfer: the old custodian sends the metal straight to the new one. It is not a rollover, where money or metal comes to you first and must go back within 60 days. So no 60-day clock, once-a-year limit or tax withholding applies (IRS Publication 590-A).

Exit fees apply at the old custodian (see the table above), and Provident treats a transfer out as a termination ($250, fee disclosure of March 2025). Equity Trust does not say whether its $125 transfer fee and $250 termination fee both apply to one full exit. Ask for a written exit quote, and compare gold IRA transfer-out fees before you move.

Can you leave the metal in the same vault after it leaves the IRA?#

Yes, at some custodians: they can move metal you take out of the IRA into a personal account at the same vault, but it is still a taxable withdrawal. STRATA, for example, can move the metal to your own account at Delaware Depository or TPMD within up to 5 business days.

STRATA calls this "a reportable distribution," one it reports to the IRS on Form 1099-R. Delaware Depository then bills personal rates: 0.50% a year for shared storage or 1.5% for segregated (schedule R220301, read September 29, 2026). Personal-account disputes there go to private arbitration in Wilmington, with the customer paying half its cost.

STRATA says "the exact metals originally distributed must generally be returned ... within 60 days." Putting them back counts as your one allowed IRA-to-IRA rollover in any 12-month period (IRS Announcement 2014-15).

Gold IRA Depository Storage vs Other Ways to Hold Gold#

A gold IRA must keep its metal with its custodian, which in practice means a depository the custodian hires. Gold you own outside an IRA can sit in a home safe, a bank safe deposit box or your own vault account. How the whole gold IRA works, from opening to withdrawal, is on the main guide.

Depository vs a safe deposit box or an IRA LLC#

Neither counts as the custodian holding your metal: a safe deposit box or an IRA LLC you control is not trustee possession. In McNulty (2021), the Tax Court taxed an IRA LLC's home-stored coins as a withdrawal. An IRA LLC, often sold as a checkbook IRA, puts you in charge of the account's cash and assets. Here is why a checkbook IRA for gold still needs a custodian.

SafeOunce found no IRS ruling that approves IRA-LLC bullion held at a depository either. A self-directed IRA for gold is the simpler route: it keeps the metal with a custodian and its vault from day one.

Can IRA gold be stored offshore?#

Some custodians list a foreign vault, but no IRS ruling says offshore IRA storage is allowed or banned. Get your custodian's written confirmation before any metal leaves the US.

Advanta's list, for example, includes Strategic Wealth Preservation in the Cayman Islands (September 2026). The tax code still requires possession by a qualifying trustee (26 U.S.C. 408(m)(3)(B)).

Whether IRA gold stored offshore meets the custody rule is covered in detail.

Storing gold you own outside an IRA#

Gold you own outside an IRA can be kept at home legally, or in the same vaults at personal rates of about 0.5% to 1.5% a year (September 2026). The IRA vs personal table above lists those rates.

At home, check your homeowner's policy. The standard form many insurers use (ISO HO-3) has a $200 special limit on money, bullion and coins, and policies vary.

Costs and taxes for holding metal yourself appear side by side in gold IRA vs physical gold.

Gold IRA depository frequently asked questions#

These 9 answers cover common questions about IRA vaults.

Is the Delaware Depository legit?#

Yes: the Delaware Depository's trust company is chartered and examined by Delaware's State Bank Commissioner, and CME Group, which runs COMEX, licenses it for all four metals. The charter dates from October 30, 2009, and FideliTrade owned the firm as of 2016.

Who runs the Texas Bullion Depository?#

The State of Texas owns it as an agency of the Comptroller's office, and a private contractor, Lone Star Tangible Assets, runs it. Don Huffines has headed the Comptroller's office since August 1, 2026. Lawsuits against the vault are limited to "the amount on deposit" (Gov't Code 2116.009).

Can you visit your gold at the depository?#

Sometimes: visits are arranged through your custodian, and some vaults charge for them, such as $35 per half hour for the Texas Bullion Depository's viewing room. Delaware Depository charges personal accounts $35 per staff hour, and a visit takes two staff, so about $70 an hour (September 2026).

STRATA pickups require your vehicle details, your driver's license and at most one guest. Here is how to visit your gold IRA metals at the depository.

Is gold in a depository covered by FDIC or SIPC?#

No: FDIC covers only uninvested cash up to $250,000, and SIPC covers securities, so IRA metal relies on the vault's own insurance. FDIC insurance is the federal cover for bank deposits.

SIPC protects brokerage customers up to $500,000, including $250,000 of cash, when a brokerage firm fails. Coins and bars are neither deposits nor securities. See what SIPC covers and does not.

Can the government seize gold stored in a depository?#

No current US law orders gold handed in, but Delaware Depository's insurance excludes government seizure, and a Texas law against outside seizure is untested in court.

In 1933, a presidential order (Executive Order 6102) required Americans to hand in their gold by May 1, 1933. The history behind can the government confiscate your gold explains that order.

What is the difference between allocated and unallocated storage?#

Allocated metal is recorded as yours at the vault; unallocated metal is only a claim on metal the institution owns, and it is never used for IRA storage.

Sellers use "allocated" in 3 ways: any metal recorded as yours (the vault meaning), shared storage, or segregated storage. Commingled IRA storage is still allocated. The entry on allocated storage sorts out the three meanings.

Can you pay storage fees from outside the IRA?#

It depends on your custodian: some let you pay from outside the IRA, others require payment from the IRA, and the IRS has not addressed vault storage directly. IRS Publication 590-A covers only trustee administrative fees. Custodian Directed IRA accepts outside payment (2026 fee schedule), while custodian Preferred Trust says storage "must be paid directly from your IRA" (fee schedule 1.26.26).

Why does my statement value the metal below what I paid?#

Custodians value IRA metal near its spot or melt value, while you paid the dealer's price, which includes its spread. Equity Trust uses "the previous day's metal type value," which leaves out dealer markups (Precious Metals Risk and Fee Disclosure, read September 29, 2026).

That value sets your required minimum distributions, the yearly withdrawals the law requires from age 73 or 75 depending on your birth year. It is also the value on your Form 1099-R. Each line is explained in gold IRA statement.

Do depositories also store silver, platinum and palladium?#

Yes: the same vaults store all four IRA metals, but segregated storage for silver coins is not offered everywhere. Through GoldStar, Delaware Depository segregates silver only as 1,000-oz bars; through Entrust or STRATA, it offers no segregated silver (September 2026).

On the COMEX report of September 28, 2026, JP Morgan held the most silver (132,672,002 ounces) and Delaware Depository held 16,539,505. Loomis led platinum with 195,823 ounces (February 2, 2026). Eligible bars and coins are listed for a silver IRA.