SIMPLE IRA Loans: Understanding Access & Alternatives

A SIMPLE, or savings incentive math plan for employees, IRA is a retirement account created by your employer as an alternative to a 401k plan that still allows the employer to offer retirement benefits. Unlike a 401k plan, however, the Internal Revenue Service does not permit you to take loans from your SIMPLE IRA. However, by taking a rollover, you can access money from your IRA for up to 60 days without incurring any penalties. For example, this would work for you if you needed to make a mortgage payment this week and your bonus for the year will not be paid for another three weeks.

Step 1

Calculate the amount you want to take out of your SEP IRA. When you take a distribution for a rollover, 20 percent of the money will be withheld to pay taxes you will owe if you do not redeposit the amount within 60 days, so be sure to factor that amount in when determining the size of your distribution. For example, if you wanted to use $8,000 from your SEP, you would have to take a distribution of $10,000 because 20 percent, or $2,000, would be withheld for taxes.

Step 2

Request a distribution from your SIMPLE IRA from the financial institution with custody account. The money will be distributed directly to you.

Step 3

Redeposit the money from the distribution in a qualified retirement account including another SIMPLE IRA or a traditional IRA within 60 days to avoid the IRS considering the amount you took out a distribution. If you fail to get the money back in the account within 60 days, you money will be considered a distribution, which will make the distribution count as taxable income and may incur early distribution penalties.

Step 4

Report the amount of the rollover on line 15a of your form 1040 and write "rollover" next to line 15b, but do not include the amount rolled over as a taxable distribution.

Warning

The IRS does not extend the 60-day time period for weekends or holidays, so be sure to make sure the money is redeposited on time.