Updated: August 28, 2026

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Why the beneficiary form does the work

A gold IRA is a contract between the account owner and the custodian. The beneficiary named on the custodial paperwork receives the account at death, by contract. That designation sits outside probate. A will does not override it.

The IRS treatment of that beneficiary depends on the relationship. Surviving spouse, minor child of the account owner, disabled or chronically ill individual, and beneficiary not more than ten years younger than the owner each get different rules. Everyone else, including adult children and most trusts, falls under the standard non-spouse rules.

The differences matter in dollars. A surviving spouse can defer taxable distributions for decades. A non-spouse adult child generally has to take everything out within ten years. That compresses taxable income into a much shorter window.

What a surviving spouse can do

A surviving spouse who is the sole named beneficiary of an IRA has three options under Publication 590-B.

Option 1: Treat the IRA as their own

The spouse can retitle the account as their own IRA. From that point forward, the account works like any other IRA the spouse owns. Required minimum distributions start at the spouse’s own RMD age, currently age 73 under SECURE 2.0.

This option is available when the spouse is the sole beneficiary of the account. It is usually the choice with the longest tax deferral.

Option 2: Roll the balance to the spouse’s own IRA

The spouse can move the balance to their own existing IRA or to a new IRA in their own name. This is a trustee-to-trustee transfer in most cases. The result is functionally similar to Option 1, but the accounts are consolidated.

For a gold IRA specifically, the physical metals stay at the depository. The custodial retitling is a paperwork exercise, not a metals shipment.

Option 3: Keep it as an inherited IRA

The spouse can maintain the account as an inherited IRA. This option lets the spouse take distributions before their own age 59 and a half without the 10% early distribution tax. RMDs from an inherited IRA follow different timing rules than an owned IRA.

Under SECURE 2.0, a surviving spouse who elects treatment as an inherited IRA can use a hypothetical RMD calculation and delay distributions until the deceased spouse would have reached RMD age. That change was finalized in the July 2024 Treasury regulations at 26 CFR 1.401(a)(9)-5.

The right option depends on the spouse’s age, the deceased spouse’s age, and the household’s cash-flow needs. This is a decision worth walking through with a tax professional before the paperwork is signed.

What a non-spouse beneficiary gets

Non-spouse beneficiaries fall into two categories under the SECURE Act rules.

Eligible designated beneficiaries

Five categories of non-spouse beneficiaries still get life-expectancy stretch treatment. The IRS lists them at 26 U.S. Code Section 401(a)(9)(E)(ii):

Minor children of the account owner. The stretch ends when they reach age 21, and then the ten-year rule kicks in.
Disabled individuals under the Social Security Act definition.
Chronically ill individuals, as defined for long-term care purposes.
Individuals not more than ten years younger than the deceased account owner. This category often includes siblings.
A surviving spouse. Spouses have separate options above.

Eligible designated beneficiaries can take distributions over their own life expectancy, using the IRS Single Life Expectancy Table in Publication 590-B.

Everyone else: the ten-year rule

Adult children, grandchildren, most trusts, and most other beneficiaries fall under the SECURE Act’s ten-year rule. The account must be fully distributed by December 31 of the year that contains the tenth anniversary of the account owner’s death.

The IRS clarified in the July 2024 final regulations that when the account owner had already started RMDs, the non-spouse beneficiary must also take annual RMDs during years one through nine, in addition to emptying the account by year ten.

For a gold IRA specifically, the ten-year rule creates a metals liquidation timeline. The beneficiary can take in-kind distributions of the physical metals or sell the metals through the custodian’s buyback partner and distribute cash. Both paths trigger income tax on the value distributed.

How this differs from an ERISA plan

The rules above apply to IRAs, including gold IRAs, under IRS Publications 590-A and 590-B. ERISA plans, which include 401(k), 403(b), TSP, and defined-benefit pensions, have separate rules under Section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code and Title I of ERISA.

The most visible difference is spousal consent. In an ERISA plan, federal law requires the spouse to consent in writing before the participant can name a non-spouse primary beneficiary. That requirement does not apply to IRAs.

For couples who consolidate 401(k) rollovers into IRAs, that consent right disappears at the moment of rollover. The named beneficiary at the new custodian controls without the spouse’s signature.

The joint-and-survivor annuity election page covers the ERISA side. This page covers the IRA side.

What happens to the physical metals in a gold IRA at death

The metals do not move automatically. The depository holds them under the custodial agreement. When the beneficiary takes over, three paths are common.

Path one: the account stays open at the same custodian, retitled to the beneficiary. Metals stay in place at the depository. RMDs come out as cash from the custodian’s buyback program or as in-kind coin shipments.

Path two: the beneficiary moves the account to a different custodian. Metals ship from one depository to another, usually insured and tracked by the custodians. The account survives the transfer.

Path three: the beneficiary takes a full distribution. Coins ship to the beneficiary’s address. Income tax applies to the fair market value on the distribution date. The physical metals are then held outside any retirement account.

Each path has fees, tax consequences, and paperwork. None of them are automatic.

Common beneficiary paperwork errors that create real problems

Custodian paperwork drives the outcome. When the paperwork is wrong or out of date, the beneficiary’s options narrow.

No beneficiary named. The account defaults to the terms of the custodial agreement. Many custodians default to the estate. That path removes the ten-year rule benefits and can force faster distribution under the five-year rule.
The wrong spouse named after a remarriage. The named beneficiary controls, not the current spouse.
A minor child named as primary beneficiary without a trust or custodial arrangement. The account can end up in a court-supervised guardianship.
A trust named as beneficiary without meeting the “see-through” trust requirements. The trust may lose the ability to stretch distributions.
Beneficiary form on file at the custodian conflicts with the will. The custodial form wins.

A yearly review of the beneficiary designation is one of the cheapest steps a couple can take. Custodians accept updated forms at any time, without charge in most cases.

The RMD timing after death

For a spousal rollover or spousal treatment, the RMD clock restarts based on the surviving spouse’s age. Under SECURE 2.0, RMDs begin at age 73 for those turning 72 after 2022, and at age 75 for those turning 74 after 2032.

For a non-spouse eligible designated beneficiary, RMDs begin the year after the account owner’s death. The calculation uses the beneficiary’s life expectancy from the IRS Single Life Table.

For a non-spouse beneficiary under the ten-year rule, the timing depends on whether the account owner had reached their required beginning date. If yes, RMDs are required in years one through nine plus full distribution by year ten. If no, no annual RMD is required during the ten years, but the account must be emptied by December 31 of year ten.

The July 2024 final regulations at 26 CFR Section 1.401(a)(9)-5 codify these rules and forgave missed RMDs for tax years 2020 through 2024 while the rules were being finalized. From 2025 forward, the annual RMD requirement inside the ten-year window applies as written.

Related decisions couples often make at the same time

These beneficiary rules interact with the joint conversation on structure, funding, and dealer choice. See the companion pages below.

Deciding about a gold IRA as a couple walks through the joint conversation before either partner signs a custodial agreement. The written-facts checklist lists what to get in writing from the dealer and custodian before either partner commits.

For dealer selection, see the 2026 OPRS dealer list at gold IRA dealers to avoid. It names operators OPRS clears and the ones we warn against.

Gold IRA Beneficiary and Spousal Rights: The Mechanics