Savvy investors know that diversification of their retirement plan is vital for asset protection and risk management. Yet many IRAs and other retirement accounts lack sufficient diversification to protect against volatile markets, lawsuits or what many expect to be sweeping changes governing retirement plans. Many clients have expressed concerns regarding the possibility of being forced to invest in assets they may not be comfortable with. Some even have used terms like nationalization or confiscation. While we feel the potential for nationalization is remote, we do think it is more than prudent to take steps allowing you not only to protect your plan but also to gain global investment flexibility.
IRAs offer you a powerful tool in your retirement arsenal – tax-deferred or, in the case of a Roth, even tax-free growth. At Sovereign International, we believe that you should protect your tax-advantaged retirement plans in the same way you protect your overall portfolio, through effective diversification and the proper and compliant use of international structures.
Internal Revenue Service rules actually prohibit very few investments. This allows you to add almost any kind of international investment to your retirement account, from real estate to precious metals. It takes experience to know how to set up an offshore trading account or add offshore investments to a retirement plan while complying with the IRS or ERISA rules, and that’s where Sovereign International Pension Services comes in – we act as your IRA consultant, informing you about the world of global investing and helping you invest overseas.
One of the keys is to set up a foreign LLC (limited liability corporation) and fund it through your self-directed IRA. You enjoy the tax benefits of an IRA and you save on fees since you are the manager of the LLC. And you can get started right away by rolling over an existing IRA, so you don’t need to have cash available.
Especially for those who have special expertise or interest in a particular asset class or region of the world, taking your IRA offshore can be very rewarding. You are in charge of your self-directed retirement account, and we act as your IRA consultant to help you invest safely anywhere in the world that makes sense to you.
