How to Transfer a Roth IRA to Another Broker: ACATS, Fees, and Timing

To transfer a Roth IRA to another broker, open a Roth IRA at the new firm, complete its Transfer of Assets (TOA) form, and request a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer. The new broker handles the rest through the Automated Customer Account Transfer Service (ACATS), and the assets should arrive within about six business days with no taxes, no withholding, and no penalty.¹

Ask for a Direct Transfer, Not a Check

A direct trustee-to-trustee transfer moves your assets from one financial institution to another without the money ever passing through your hands. Your old broker sends the securities or cash straight to your new broker. This method creates no taxable event, triggers no withholding, and has no limit on how often you can use it.

The alternative, an indirect rollover, is riskier and rarely worth it. Your old broker cuts you a check, and you have 60 days to redeposit the full amount into the new Roth IRA. Miss the window and the IRS treats the money as a taxable distribution, with a possible 10 percent early-withdrawal penalty on earnings if you are under 59½. The broker also withholds 10 percent for federal taxes by default, so on a $50,000 account you might receive only $45,000 while still needing to deposit the full $50,000 to avoid tax on the difference. Indirect rollovers are also capped at one per 12-month period across all your IRAs combined.² A direct transfer sidesteps every one of these problems.

What to Gather Before You Start

You initiate the transfer through the receiving broker, so open the new Roth IRA first. Then pull together the following from your current account:

The full account number of your existing Roth IRA.
The current broker’s full legal name as it appears on your statements.
The exact account title, which should match between both institutions (typically your legal name and Social Security Number).
A copy of your most recent statement. Some receiving brokers require it to verify the account type and holdings.

That information goes onto a Transfer of Assets form supplied by the new broker. The old broker is the “delivering” firm and the new one is the “receiving” firm. Most firms post the TOA form in the account-funding or transfer section of their site.

Full or Partial, In-Kind or Cash

You can move everything or just some of your holdings. For a partial transfer, list exactly which positions to move by ticker symbol, dollar amount, or percentage. For a full transfer, the whole account comes over.

An in-kind transfer keeps your stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds intact during the move so you stay invested through the transition and avoid transaction costs. Liquidation means your old broker sells everything first and sends cash, which may trigger commissions on each sale. In-kind is usually the better default. The exception is proprietary funds the new broker cannot hold, which may need to be sold before or during the transfer.

Submitting the Request

You submit the TOA form through the new broker. Many firms let you complete and sign it online. Some old brokers still require a physical signature, meaning you print, sign, and mail the form to their processing center.

Larger accounts may need a Medallion Signature Guarantee, a stamp that verifies your identity and helps prevent unauthorized transfers. Banks, credit unions, and brokerage firms that participate in the Medallion program can provide one.³ Some institutions now offer virtual appointments for the stamp.

Once the paperwork is validated, the new broker submits the request through ACATS, the standardized system that moves securities and cash between member firms.¹ The old broker then validates the instructions and freezes the account, canceling any open orders so the assets can move cleanly.⁴

Assets That May Not Move Through ACATS

Not everything transfers electronically. The following typically cannot move through ACATS:

Proprietary mutual funds sold only by your old broker, unless the new broker has agreed to accept them.
Mutual funds or money market funds the new broker does not carry.
Private placement limited partnership interests.
Annuities.
Shares in companies that have entered bankruptcy.

If you hold any of these, you will generally need to sell them before the transfer or leave them in the old account.¹ Check with both brokers ahead of time to flag anything that could hold up the move.

Transfer Fees and Reimbursement

Some brokers charge an outgoing account transfer fee. Rates vary. Some firms charge nothing, others charge $50 to $125. Check your old broker’s fee schedule before you start.

Many receiving brokers will reimburse the outgoing fee, especially for accounts above a certain balance. The reimbursement amount and minimum balance depend on the firm, so ask the new broker about their policy before you initiate the move. Keep the old account statement that shows the fee as a line item, since you will usually need it to claim reimbursement.

How Long It Takes

When nothing goes wrong, an ACATS transfer should take no more than six business days from the time the new broker submits the request.¹ If the old firm does not act, or an issue is not resolved in that window, the request is deleted from ACATS and may need to be resubmitted.

During the transfer, your old account may show a zero balance or be locked from trading. After the main assets land at the new broker, a residual sweep runs over the next few weeks to forward any trailing dividends, interest, or fractional shares that posted to the old account after the transfer date.

Transfers involving institutions outside ACATS, such as some banks, insurance companies, or credit unions, are processed manually and have no guaranteed timeframe.¹

Verifying Holdings and Cost Basis After Arrival

Once assets show up in the new account, open the positions tab and confirm that share counts and ticker symbols match your old records. If you liquidated, check that the cash amount matches what you expected after any fees.

Cost-basis information, the original purchase price and date used to calculate gains and losses when you eventually sell, usually arrives a few days after the securities themselves. Look for it on the tax-lot or cost-basis screen in your new account. If anything is missing or wrong, send the new broker documentation from the old broker such as trade confirmations or old statements. Keeping your own records of purchase prices is the best safeguard against basis errors during a transfer.

Inherited Roth IRAs

If the Roth IRA you are moving is inherited, the rules are stricter. The account must move directly from one custodian to another through a trustee-to-trustee transfer. As a non-spouse beneficiary, you cannot use a 60-day indirect rollover. If the old broker sends you a check for the inherited assets, the money is generally treated as a taxable distribution and cannot be deposited into an inherited IRA.

The new account must be titled as an inherited Roth IRA and carry both the original owner’s name and your own. Before you start, confirm the new broker accepts inherited IRA transfers and can title the account correctly.

1
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Transferring Your Brokerage Account: Tips on Avoiding Delays
2
Internal Revenue Service. Rollovers of Retirement Plan and IRA Distributions
3
Investor.gov U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Medallion Signature Guarantees: Preventing the Unauthorized Transfer of Securities
4
FINRA. FINRA Rule 11870 – Customer Account Transfer Contracts