403(b) to Gold IRA Rollover: Rules for Teachers, Nurses and Nonprofit Employees (2026 Rules, 6 Steps)

Yes: a 403(b) can be rolled into a gold IRA once you leave the employer or reach 59 1/2. A direct rollover to the new custodian triggers no tax, no withholding and no penalty. The harder questions are which kind of 403(b) you hold, what it costs to leave it, and what the plan gives you that an IRA does not.

A rollover moves retirement money between accounts and keeps its tax break. The new account is a self-directed IRA, whose custodian (the trust company or bank that holds it) allows vaulted metal.

A gold IRA rollover can start from many kinds of account. This page covers the 403(b), the plan of teachers, nurses and nonprofit employees. It sets out the 2026 rules, the 5 plan features you give up, the 6 steps, the 20% withholding trap and surrender charges.

No company can pay to change what this page says. Every rule below links to the statute, the regulation or the IRS.

Can You Roll a 403(b) Into a Gold IRA?#

Yes, a teacher, nurse or nonprofit employee can roll a 403(b) into a gold IRA. The law treats a 403(b) payout like a 401(k) payout, so it can go to a traditional IRA that holds IRA-eligible metal (26 U.S.C. 403(b)(8)).

The IRS rollover chart shows "403(b) (pre-tax)" to a traditional IRA as "Yes". A gold IRA is an ordinary traditional or Roth IRA whose custodian allows vaulted metal. The older name "tax-sheltered annuity (TSA)" means the same plan as a 403(b).

A 403(b) comes in 3 forms, and the form decides how easily the money moves. The IRS lists them on its 403(b) page (reviewed January 30, 2026).

• Annuity contract: a contract sold by an insurance company.
• Custodial account: mutual funds held for you by a custodian, also called a 403(b)(7) account.
• Retirement income account: an account set up by a church or a church body.

The company that holds your 403(b) is the vendor.

Why can't a 403(b) hold physical gold?#

A 403(b) cannot hold gold coins or bars because the tax code limits it to annuity contracts and to custodial accounts invested in mutual funds. That leaves no legal slot for metal.

Before SECURE 2.0 (Public Law 117-328, section 128), the text named only "regulated investment company stock". The 2022 change added a fund type, not metal. Any gold inside a 403(b) is therefore a mutual fund that owns mining shares or similar securities, never metal with your name on it.

The rules on whether you can hold gold in a 401(k) differ and are covered separately.

When can 403(b) money leave the plan?#

Money you put in from your paycheck can leave a 403(b) when you leave the employer, reach 59 1/2, become disabled or die. The plan's own document can be stricter than the law.

A payout that may move to an IRA is an eligible rollover distribution. The table shows the earliest exit for each of the 6 kinds of 403(b) money.

The law sets the earliest date. Your plan's written document can be stricter. Regulations read October 2, 2026.

So ask the plan, not the vendor's sales desk (Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-6).

Does changing schools count as leaving your job?#

Not always: under Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-6(h), a teacher who moves from one public school to another public school of the same State employer has not left the employer.

The same rule says leaving does occur when you move from a 501(c)(3) hospital to its for-profit subsidiary. Ask the plan in writing whether your move counts as a severance from employment before you request a rollover.

Can you roll a 403(b) into a gold IRA while still working?#

Yes, from age 59 1/2, if your plan allows in-service withdrawals (payouts while you still work there). The law permits it, but the plan's written document decides.

Rollover money you brought in from another plan can leave earlier if it sits in a separate account (Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-6(i)). Plan rules for a rollover while still working differ for 401(k), 403(b), 457(b) and TSP money.

Which 403(b) payments can never be rolled over?#

Five kinds of 403(b) payment can never go into a gold IRA: required minimum distributions, hardship withdrawals, installments over 10 years or more, corrective refunds and loans treated as distributions. IRS Publication 590-A lists them.

• Required minimum distributions (RMDs): amounts the law forces out each year.
• Hardship distributions: early payouts for an urgent need.
• Payments spread over your life expectancy or 10 or more years, including annuity payments already started.
• Corrective distributions of excess contributions.
• Deemed loan distributions: plan loans the law treats as paid out.

Two common claims are wrong. Hardship money cannot be rolled over. And once an annuity has started paying for life, those payments cannot be redirected.

Which Rules Govern a 403(b) Plan in 2026?#

Four layers of rules govern a 403(b) plan in 2026: tax code section 403(b), the July 26, 2007 final regulations, the written plan and the 2022 SECURE 2.0 Act.

These rules matter for a rollover because they decide when your money may leave, who must sign off and what the plan may offer. The timeline shows how the rules were built.

If you only want the decision, skip to Should You Roll Your 403(b) Into a Gold IRA?.

SafeOunce timeline from the sources named in each row.

The 2007 Final 403(b) Regulations Were Published on July 26, 2007 and Apply From January 1, 2009#

The Treasury and the IRS published the final 403(b) regulations on July 26, 2007 (T.D. 9340, 72 FR 41128), and they apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2008. The full text is in the Federal Register, and the start date is in Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-11(a).

Final regulations are Treasury rules that have the force of law. These were the first full rewrite since the original regulations of December 24, 1964, 43 years earlier.

Three groups got a later start or an exemption. A collective bargaining agreement is a union contract.

Older descriptions still say the regulations were "expected to be finalized in 2007". They were finalized on July 26, 2007 and have applied since 2009.

The regulations also ended the free contract swaps of Revenue Ruling 90-24. For swaps after September 24, 2007, the plan must allow the swap, and employer and vendor must agree to share information (Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-10(b)(2)).

Every 403(b) Plan Has Needed a Written Plan Since January 1, 2009#

Since January 1, 2009, a 403(b) contract keeps its tax break only if it is "maintained pursuant to a plan", meaning a written plan that the employer follows in practice. The rule is Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-3(b)(3).

Before 2009 a 403(b) often had no plan document at all, only individual contracts. The written plan decides 4 things for a rollover, listed below.

• In-service withdrawals: whether you can take money out at 59 1/2 while still working.
• Loans and hardship withdrawals: whether they exist at all.
• Vendors: which ones are in the plan and whether you can swap between them.
• Sign-off: who confirms that you have left the employer before a vendor pays out.

The plan may give that last job to the employer or to a plan administrator, the firm that runs the plan, never to you (Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-3(b)(3)(ii)).

IRS Notice 2009-3, issued in December 2008, gave employers until December 31, 2009 to adopt the document, effective January 1, 2009, if they ran the plan reasonably in 2009. Flaws in the document could be fixed back to 2010 until June 30, 2020, according to the IRS 403(b) pre-approved plans page (reviewed July 8, 2026).

One exception: the IRS 403(b) page (reviewed January 30, 2026) says: "All 403(b) plans, except church plans that do not contain any retirement income accounts, must have a written program".

SECURE 2.0 Changed 403(b) Plans in 12 Ways, Starting December 29, 2022#

The SECURE 2.0 Act was signed on December 29, 2022 (Public Law 117-328, division T). The table below lists 12 of the changes it made to 403(b) plans. The amendment notes to 26 U.S.C. 403(b) list each section.

A catch-up contribution is extra paycheck money allowed from age 50.

Sections of Public Law 117-328, division T, as listed in the amendment notes to 26 U.S.C. 403(b) and in sections 401 and 72. The Roth catch-up rule for higher earners (section 603) also applies to 403(b) plans; final regulations apply to tax years beginning after December 31, 2026.

None of the 12 changes listed lets a 403(b) hold metal, and none changes the rollover rules. A direct rollover to an IRA works in 2026 as it did before the Act.

Which 403(b) plans does ERISA cover?#

ERISA, the federal pension law, covers a 403(b) at a private nonprofit when the employer contributes or runs the plan. It does not cover public-school plans or most church plans. ERISA stands for the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.

The safe harbor is in 29 CFR 2510.3-2(f). Joining must be voluntary, only you may enforce your rights, and the employer's role stays limited to listed tasks.

Older descriptions call it unknown whether any 403(b) is an ERISA plan. ERISA 403(b) plans do exist. Coverage matters twice on this page: for spousal consent and for creditor protection.

Should You Roll Your 403(b) Into a Gold IRA?#

Rolling a 403(b) into a gold IRA makes sense only for the part of your savings you want in physical metal for many years. Price the surrender charge and the plan features you give up first.

The spread is the gap between what you pay a dealer and what the dealer pays back. A surrender period is the span of years in which an annuity charges a fee for leaving. The 9 situations below each turn on one rule.

Numbers as of September 2026. Situations overlap; check every row that fits you.

The table describes situations, not advice for your household. Whether a gold IRA is a good investment at all is a separate question with its own data.

Gold fell 26.1% from its peak on January 29, 2026 to its low on July 16, 2026 (LBMA PM price, peak to trough). On September 28, 2026 it was still 23.3% below that peak.

A fee-only planner or tax professional can check your numbers. A person who sells you an annuity or a coin is usually not your fiduciary, someone bound to put your interest first.

Cheaper ways to own gold without a gold IRA company#

The cheapest gold exposure for most 403(b) owners is a gold ETF such as GLDM, which charges 0.10% a year, held in an ordinary IRA after a rollover. An ETF is a fund that trades like a stock, and its expense ratio is the yearly fee.

The 3 routes to gold after a 403(b) rollover are listed below, with costs as of September 2026. A gold ETF is the first.

• Gold ETF in a brokerage IRA: GLDM 0.10%, IAU 0.25% and GLD 0.40% a year.
• Fidelity IRA bullion: Gold Eagles, 1 oz Buffalos and bars stored at FideliTrade. Buying costs 2.90% under $10,000, falling to 0.99% at $100,000 or more. Storage costs 0.50% a year, and the IRA minimum purchase is $1,000 (schedule FA-FEES-0926).
• Self-directed gold IRA: coins or bars at a depository, for $215 to $325 a year flat plus the dealer spread.

Fidelity's bullion program is generally not available inside a Fidelity workplace plan (schedule FA-FEES-0926). That program, the closest thing to a Fidelity gold IRA, needs no gold IRA company.

What Do You Give Up When You Roll a 403(b) Into a Gold IRA? 5 Plan Features#

Rolling a 403(b) into a gold IRA can cost you 5 plan features: the age-55 rule, plan loans, two RMD breaks, creditor protection, and low-cost funds or annuity guarantees.

Your plan's Special Tax Notice lists the first two. It follows the model in IRS Notice 2020-62, which says: "IRAs are not subject to spousal consent rules, and IRAs may not provide loans". Ask the plan whether your spouse must sign.

1. The age-55 rule for penalty-free withdrawals#

The age-55 rule lets you take 403(b) money without the 10% early-withdrawal penalty if you leave your job in or after the year you turn 55. The rule does not follow the money into any IRA.

Public safety employees in a governmental plan get the rule at 50 or after 25 years of service (72(t)(10)). The example is a teacher who retires at 56 with $400,000. She needs $30,000 a year until 59 1/2, which is $105,000 in all.

SafeOunce computation.

Since December 29, 2025 a plan may also allow penalty-free withdrawals for long-term care premiums, which an IRA does not (SECURE 2.0, section 334).

The age-55 rule is one of the gold IRA age rules that change at 50, 55 and 59 1/2.

2. Plan loans#

A 403(b) that offers loans can lend you up to the lesser of $50,000 or half your vested balance, with a floor of $10,000. An IRA, including a gold IRA, can never make you a loan. Your vested balance is the part that is yours to keep (26 U.S.C. 72(p)(2)(A)).

An unpaid loan when you leave becomes a plan loan offset: the plan cancels the loan against your balance. You can replace it with your own cash in the IRA until your tax-filing deadline for that year, including extensions (26 U.S.C. 402(c)(3)(C)).

3. The still-working RMD delay and the pre-1987 balance#

A 403(b) gives two RMD breaks an IRA does not. You can wait until you retire if you still work for that employer past 73. And money held on December 31, 1986 stays out of the RMD math until 75.

In an IRA, the RMD rules start at 73 or 75 whether you work or not. The still-working delay belongs to the 403(b) (Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-6(e)(3)(i)).

The second break affects only people in the plan before 1987. The vendor must have records of that balance.

A rollover to another 403(b) also ends this break. Only a direct transfer or exchange between 403(b) contracts keeps it (Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-6(e)(6)).

4. Creditor protection#

In federal bankruptcy, 403(b) money you roll into a gold IRA stays protected without a dollar limit. The $1,711,975 cap on IRAs does not count rollovers from a 403(b).

Outside bankruptcy, for example after a lawsuit judgment, federal law shields an ERISA 403(b) (29 U.S.C. 1056(d)(1)). A public-school or church 403(b) and every IRA depend on state law. So for many teachers the rollover changes little outside bankruptcy. For hospital and charity staff in ERISA plans it can change a lot.

Keep the rollover in its own IRA, and keep the Form 1099-R (code G) and Form 5498 (box 2) that prove its source. Each state's rule on whether an IRA is protected from creditors and bankruptcy is in the 50-state table.

One date is often given wrongly as "October 2007". The bankruptcy law behind these protections was signed on April 20, 2005 and applies to cases filed from October 17, 2005 (Public Law 109-8).

5. Low-cost funds and annuity guarantees#

A gold IRA adds flat custodian and storage fees of about $215 to $325 a year, as of September 2026, plus a dealer spread. It also ends any guarantee written into a 403(b) annuity contract.

A flat fee is the same dollar amount whatever your balance. A fee of $235 a year (Equity Trust metals-only schedule FS-0004-05 Rev. 081726, non-segregated storage) is 2.35% of $10,000, 0.94% of $25,000 and 0.47% of $50,000 (SafeOunce computation).

An annuity's guarantees can include a fixed interest rate, lifetime income options and a death benefit, a set amount paid to your heirs. They stop when you surrender the contract, so ask the insurer to list them in writing. The SEC notes that an annuity held inside an IRA or a 401(k) gives no extra tax advantage. The dollar costs are set out in the cost section below.

How to Roll a 403(b) Into a Gold IRA in 6 Steps#

A 403(b) to gold IRA rollover takes 6 steps. Step 5 protects you from taxes: a direct rollover paid to the new custodian, never to you.

The 6 steps are listed below in the order you do them.

1. Find out which kind of 403(b) you hold.
2. Ask for the exit rules and surrender charges in writing.
3. Decide how much to roll over.
4. Open a self-directed IRA and choose the dealer separately.
5. Request a direct rollover payable to your gold IRA custodian.
6. Buy IRA-eligible metal, then check the statement and tax forms.

Step 1: Find out which kind of 403(b) you hold#

Look at your statement or call the vendor and find out whether your 403(b) is an annuity contract, a mutual-fund custodial account or a church retirement income account. One employer can leave you with two or three 403(b)s at different vendors. Each one is rolled separately.

The 4 questions for the vendor are below.

• Ask whether the contract was issued before 2009 and whether your employer still sends money to that vendor.
• Ask which money is pre-tax, Roth and after-tax.
• Ask for the loan balance, if you have a loan.
• Ask whether an RMD is due this year.

Step 2: Ask for the exit rules and surrender charges in writing#

Ask the vendor in writing for today's surrender value, the surrender-charge schedule and the amount you can take out each year without a charge. The surrender value is what you get after the insurer's fee for leaving early.

The answer covers the 3 items below.

• Surrender value today, next to the account value.
• The date the surrender period ends.
• Any payout limit: certain fixed annuities pay out only in installments.

Ask the plan for its Special Tax Notice, which must reach you 30 to 180 days before payment. Ask for the fee notice too. One Empower 403(b) plan notice lists $25 to $75 per distribution (Illinois Eastern Community Colleges, as of June 30, 2023).

Step 3: Decide how much to roll over#

Decide the dollar amount before you call a dealer. The law lets you roll all or part of an eligible distribution, and keeping part in the 403(b) keeps its features.

The amount to roll is your balance minus 3 items. They are money you may spend before 59 1/2 after leaving at 55 or later, any RMD due, and any part still under a surrender charge. The decision table above shows which apply to you.

Step 4: Open a self-directed IRA and choose the dealer separately#

Open a self-directed IRA of the same tax type as the money you are moving, at a custodian that holds precious metals. Pre-tax 403(b) money needs a traditional IRA, and Roth 403(b) money needs a Roth IRA.

The dealer, often called a "gold IRA company", sets the metal's price. The questions to ask when you choose a gold IRA company are the same whoever you call. An SEC and NASAA investor alert says custodians "generally do not evaluate the quality or legitimacy" of an investment or its promoters.

Get these 5 numbers in writing before any money moves.

• Price per coin and percent over spot. Spot is the current market price of the metal.
• The dealer's buy-back bid today. The bid is what the dealer would pay you for the same coin now.
• All yearly custodian and storage fees.
• All exit fees.
• The cancellation window and what starts it.

Ask the custodian for its letter of acceptance, which tells your vendor where to send the money. It usually gives the payee as "[Custodian] FBO [your name] IRA", the account number and "Direct Rollover" for the memo line. FBO means "for the benefit of".

You can revoke a new IRA for at least 7 days, against the custodian, not the dealer (Treas. Reg. 1.408-6).

These lines appear in the CFTC cases behind the 11 signs of gold IRA scams.

Step 5: Request a direct rollover payable to your gold IRA custodian#

Ask the 403(b) vendor for a direct rollover and give it the custodian's payee name. The check or wire is then made out to the custodian for your benefit, and nothing is withheld.

Withholding is tax the payer takes out before you get the money. A 403(b) contract must offer a direct rollover (Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-3(a)(7)).

Because of the written plan, the vendor often needs the employer or plan administrator to confirm that you have left, so allow time. Payee names and wire details differ among gold IRA custodians, so copy them from the letter.

A check payable to the custodian but mailed to you is still a direct rollover: forward it (IRS Publication 590-A). A check payable to you starts the 20% withholding and the 60-day clock.

Step 6: Buy IRA-eligible metal, then check the statement and tax forms#

Sign the custodian's purchase direction only after the rollover cash shows in your gold IRA, and only for metal that is IRA-eligible under 26 U.S.C. 408(m)(3). A purchase direction is the form that tells the custodian what to buy and from whom.

The law allows named US coins: the Gold Eagle, the 1 oz Silver Eagle and the Platinum Eagle. The Gold Eagle is .9167 fine. It is eligible because the statute names it, not because of its purity.

The law also allows bullion (bars and coins valued for their metal) at a set fineness, or purity: gold .995, silver .999, platinum and palladium .9995. The full list of precious metals the tax code allows shows each coin's legal route.

The IRS publishes no list of approved coins: its investments FAQ says "there is no list of approved investments". Two tax forms record the 403(b) rollover.

Source: IRS, 2026 Instructions for Forms 1099-R and 5498.

Your first gold IRA statement values the metal at its market price without the dealer's markup, so it shows less than you paid.

The metal goes to a depository chosen through the custodian. Keeping IRA gold at home is a taxable distribution of its cost (McNulty v. Commissioner, 157 T.C. No. 10 (2021)). A home storage gold IRA was the setup the Tax Court taxed in McNulty.

How Do You Avoid Taxes and Penalties on a 403(b) Rollover to Gold?#

There is no tax and no penalty for rolling a 403(b) into an IRA when the money goes by direct rollover. Tax arises only if a check is made out to you and part of it never reaches the IRA.

3 rules keep a 403(b) rollover from being taxed when the money moves.

1. Choose a direct rollover: 0% is withheld.
2. Deposit the full amount within 60 days if a check comes to you, including the 20% withheld (26 U.S.C. 402(c)(3)(A), applied by 403(b)(8)(B)).
3. Never buy coins with the money yourself. An IRA accepts only cash, and only the custodian may buy the metal (26 U.S.C. 408(a)(1); Lemishow v. Commissioner, 110 T.C. 110 (1998)).

There is no deadline to roll over after you leave the job: the 60 days start only when a distribution is paid to you. If a check does reach you, the rollover deadline calculator counts the 60 days and flags holidays.

"No tax" means no tax at the time of the rollover. A traditional gold IRA stays tax-deferred, and later withdrawals are ordinary income.

The 20% withholding trap on a $150,000 403(b) check#

If your 403(b) check is made out to you, the vendor must withhold 20% for federal tax. You must replace that 20% from savings within 60 days or pay tax on it.

The 20% withholding trap is the main reason to choose a direct rollover. The table shows 3 options on a $150,000 403(b). The owner is 52 and left the job at 50, so the age-55 rule does not help. Her tax bracket, the rate on her top slice of income, is 22%.

SafeOunce computation. In the 24% bracket, option A costs $7,200 + $3,000 = $10,200.

A tax credit is an amount taken off your tax bill. The IRS model notice in Notice 2020-62 says: "you must use other funds to make up for the 20% withheld".

The 60-day clock starts on the day you receive the money. How to count the days is covered on the 60-day rollover rule page.

Does the once-a-year rollover limit apply to a 403(b) rollover?#

No: the one-rollover-per-year limit covers only IRA-to-IRA 60-day rollovers, so a rollover from a 403(b) does not count.

Annuity installments rolled one by one are each a plan-to-IRA rollover and are not limited either. The source is IRS Announcement 2014-32.

How Much Does a 403(b) to Gold IRA Rollover Cost?#

A 403(b) to gold IRA rollover has 4 costs: a surrender charge, a plan fee, gold IRA fees of about $215 to $325 a year, and the dealer's spread.

The table gives each cost with its source and date.

Custodians are named only as sources of published fee schedules. Commingled storage keeps your metal with other owners' metal; segregated storage keeps it apart.

Annuity surrender charges#

A surrender charge is a fee an insurance company takes when you pull money out of an annuity in its early years. The SEC says the period typically lasts six to eight years, sometimes ten.

Two routes cost $0: waiting until the surrender period ends, or moving only the free 10%, which is $8,000 a year.

Whether a direct rollover of the free amount is allowed each year depends on the contract and the plan. What an annuity guarantees and a gold IRA does not is set out in gold IRA vs annuity.

Gold IRA fees and the dealer spread#

On $100,000 over 10 years, the custodian and vault cost about $3,200, while the metal's markup and bid gap cost about $5,400 to $36,100 depending on what you buy.

How dealers set gold IRA markups and spreads decides most of the 10-year cost. A round trip is buying a coin and selling it straight back. The bid gap is how far below its own cost the dealer buys back.

SafeOunce computation: Equity Trust precious-metals-only schedule FS-0004-05 Rev. 081726, segregated storage, gold price flat. Costs include the bid gap. The custodian is named only as the source of a published schedule.

The spread also sets your break-even, the price rise that gets you back to your starting value.

With the bid gap included, a 5% spread needs a 10.4% rise in the metal, and a spread of about 20% needs 31.1%. To test your own quote, work out how much metal must rise to cover the markup and fees.

Special Cases: Roth 403(b), RMD Years, Old Contracts, TIAA and Church Plans#

Five situations change the 403(b) rollover rules: Roth or after-tax money, an RMD year, a contract from an employer you left long ago, an annuity with payout limits, and a church or closing plan.

Roth 403(b) and after-tax money#

Roth 403(b) money can go only to a Roth IRA, so a Roth balance needs a Roth gold IRA. After-tax contributions can be split off to a Roth IRA under IRS Notice 2014-54.

A Roth 403(b) is a designated Roth account: paycheck money you already paid tax on. The IRS rollover chart marks it "No" for a traditional IRA, and the 1099-R code is H. A Roth gold IRA pays qualified withdrawals tax-free.

The plan's Roth 5-year clock does not carry over to the Roth IRA. And since 2024 a Roth 403(b) has no lifetime RMDs, the same as a Roth IRA (Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-6(e)(3)(iii)).

Pre-tax 403(b) money can also go straight to a Roth IRA. The whole amount is then taxable income that year; the chart says "Must include in income".

Rolling over at 73 or older: two separate RMDs#

In a year when you owe a required minimum distribution, the 403(b) pays the RMD first and only the rest can be rolled. Afterwards the 403(b) and the gold IRA each have their own RMD.

After the rollover, required minimum distributions from the gold IRA can be paid in cash or in coins. An RMD rolled over by mistake is an excess contribution, taxed 6% a year until you remove it.

A 403(b) from an employer you left before 2009#

A 403(b) contract from an employer you left before January 1, 2009 can still be rolled into a gold IRA. The old employer's written plan does not have to cover it.

An old contract may be past its surrender schedule. Ask the vendor.

TIAA Traditional and other annuities with payout limits#

Certain fixed annuities limit lump-sum payouts, and TIAA Traditional in certain contract types is reported to be one of them. Where a limit applies, the money reaches a gold IRA only in installments or not until a stated date.

Ask TIAA which contract type you hold and what its payout rules are before you plan a rollover. Each installment can be rolled over directly. Contract types and payout rules are covered in the TIAA to gold IRA rollover guide.

Church plans and plans that are being closed#

A church 403(b) can be rolled into a gold IRA under the same distribution and rollover rules. The written-plan rule applies to it only when it uses a retirement income account.

If your employer ends its 403(b) plan, called plan termination, the plan may pay out all balances. One condition applies: the employer makes no contributions to another 403(b) for 12 months. That payout can be rolled over like any other (Treas. Reg. 1.403(b)-10(a)(1)). Ask for a direct rollover before the payout date.

SafeOunce takes no money from any company named on this page.

Which Other Retirement Accounts Can You Roll Into a Gold IRA?#

Besides a 403(b), you can move a 401(k), a governmental 457(b), the TSP, a pension lump sum or an existing IRA into a gold IRA.

An existing IRA moves by trustee-to-trustee transfer, a payment from one IRA custodian straight to another. The table names the method and the trap for each of the 5 sources.

Questions readers ask about moving a 403(b) into gold#

The 5 questions below come from real searches about moving a 403(b) into gold.

Is it a good idea to roll a 403(b) into an IRA?#

Rolling a 403(b) into an IRA is a good idea when the IRA gives you something the plan cannot, such as physical metal or lower fund costs. It also helps if you no longer need the plan's age-55 rule, loans or annuity guarantees.

The decision table above sorts 9 situations. A person paid on the sale is usually not your fiduciary.

What is the best thing to do with a 403(b) when you retire?#

You have 4 choices for a 403(b) at retirement: leave it, roll it to an IRA, turn it into lifetime annuity payments, or cash it out and pay tax.

Leaving it keeps the age-55 rule and the pre-1987 break, while rolling it opens metal and ETFs. Annuity payments cannot be rolled over once started. Cashing out means ordinary income tax, plus 10% under 59 1/2 unless an exception applies.

Which is better for teachers, a 403(b) or an IRA?#

They do different jobs: a 403(b) takes up to $24,500 from your paycheck in 2026, while an IRA takes $7,500 and can hold physical gold.

At 50 or older the 403(b) adds an $8,000 catch-up ($11,250 at ages 60 to 63), and the IRA adds $1,100 (IRS Notice 2025-67). Rollovers do not count toward either limit, so a teacher can use both. The 2027 limits are not announced.

What is the downside of a gold IRA?#

A gold IRA has 3 main downsides: metal pays no interest or dividends, the spread and flat fees eat into small balances, and traditional withdrawals are ordinary income.

A flat $235 a year is 2.35% of a $10,000 account, as of September 2026. The pros, cons and real downsides are weighed with 55 years of data.

Why does Dave Ramsey say not to invest in gold?#

Dave Ramsey says precious metals "don't produce anything, they don't pay dividends, and they don't earn interest" (Ramsey Solutions, page updated March 19, 2026). Inside an IRA those points stand, but his 28% tax point does not apply.

That 28% rate covers collectibles held outside an IRA. Why Dave Ramsey and Warren Buffett say no to gold is answered point by point.