Retirement and Education
Tax–advantaged accounts and plans may allow you to reduce your tax bill today and benefit you in the future:
- Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs)
- Self–Employed/Small Business Plans
- 529 College Savings Plans
- Annuities
Professional Portfolio Management, Estate Planning, and Insurance
Fidelity's professionals can help you manage your assets.
Charitable Giving
Charitable giving is a great way to support the causes that matter most to you, while potentially taking advantage of immediate tax deductions. Fidelity can introduce you to a charitable Giving Account® that may result in even more support for your favorite charities and bigger tax advantages for you.
Investment Options
Tax–exempt and tax–managed investments may help you minimize your taxes. These include:
Retirement and Education
Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs)
- Qualified distributions of earnings from Roth IRAs are federal income tax-free.
- A Traditional IRA offers tax-deferred growth. For some investors, contributions to a Traditional IRA will also be tax-deductible.
Visit Investment Products > Retirement to learn more about IRAs or Open an Account.
Self–Employed/Small Business Plans
Many retirement plans for small businesses offer tax–deductible contributions along with tax–deferred growth of contributions.
Visit Investment Products > Retirement to learn more about Self–Employed/Small Business retirement accounts.
529 College Savings Plans
- Tax–deferred growth on any earnings
- Federal income tax–free qualified withdrawals
- Potential gift and estate tax benefits
Visit the College section under the Retirement & Guidance tab to learn more.
Annuities
An annuity is a contract with an insurance company. In exchange for assets you currently own, you receive a regular stream of income payments starting now or in the future. There is virtually no limit on both the number of annuities you can buy and the annual contributions to those annuities1. Any earnings in an annuity can grow tax deferred until they are withdrawn. Taxable amounts withdrawn prior to age 59½ may be subject to a 10% IRS penalty. There are two basic types of annuities:
- Deferred Annuity — Primarily used to accumulate retirement savings on a tax-deferred basis. You generally do not have to make withdrawals until age 85.
- Income Annuity — This type of annuity is often purchased at the beginning of retirement to help overcome the risk of outliving your assets. The income payments begin soon after purchase and provides income guaranteed2 to last as long as you do.
Note that you may be able to exchange annuity assets from one company to another without triggering a taxable event. Before exchanging, check with your current provider to see if it will assess a surrender charge, also consider the existing benefits and features you may be losing in an exchange.
Visit Investment Products > Annuities to learn earn more about Fidelity Annuities.
TopProfessional Portfolio Management, Estate Planning, and Insurance
Portfolio Advisory ServicesSM 3
Simplify your investment decisions with a professionally-managed account from Fidelity. Relax knowing our team of investment professionals is working to ensure your portfolio is well–diversified.
- Fidelity Portfolio Advisory Service®: Active, ongoing portfolio management using an asset allocation strategy and a model portfolio of mutual funds.
- Fidelity Private Portfolio Service®: Tax–sensitive portfolio management solutions that seeks to enhance after–tax returns5 in accounts consisting of a target portfolio of mutual funds and certain eligible pre–owned securities. Trust services are also offered for investors trying to protect their wealth for future generations.
- Fidelity Personal Trust: Protect your assets for future generations with a trust. Make controlled gifts to family, friends, and charitable organizations.
Learn more about Fidelity's Portfolio Advisory ServicesSM under the Investment Products tab.
Estate Planning
An estate plan can help maximize the value of your estate and try to minimize estate taxes.
Visit Retirement & Guidance > Trusts & Estates to learn how to protect more of your wealth with our suite of estate planning tools:
- Estate Planner — Learn about strategies to help you leave as much as possible to your heirs.
- Estate Tax Calculator — Estimate your federal estate tax liability.
- Estate Plan Organizer — Get organized. It may help you minimize estate taxes and thereby leave more assets to beneficiaries.
Life Insurance
Proceeds from a life insurance policy paid following the death of the insured are generally not subject to federal income taxes. Estate taxes may apply to insurance proceeds. Properly structured gratuitous transfers of life insurance policies to third parties, or original purchase of policies by third parties, may also allow such proceeds to escape transfer (gift or estate) taxes.
There are two main types of life insurance:
- Term Life — Pure protection for a specified period of time, for example 5, 10, 15 or 20 years.
- Permanent Life —
In addition to providing protection for an entire lifetime,
these policies have a cash value component which possesses two income tax-advantages:
- Tax-deferred growth potential of assets
- Tax-favored access to assets through tax-free policy loans and partial withdrawals (tax-free access limited to the cost basis of the policy. Loans and withdrawals can reduce the death benefit and increase the risk that the policy will lapse). Please consult your tax advisor.
Note that you may be able to exchange6 cash value life insurance assets from one company to another (or even to an annuity) without triggering a taxable event.
Visit Investment Products > Insurance to learn more about Life Insurance strategies.
TopCharitable Giving4
Fidelity® Charitable Gift FundSM
By establishing a Giving Account® at the Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund, an independent public charity with a donor-advised fund program, you may :
- Take an immediate tax deduction of up to 50% of your adjusted gross income (AGI) when you contribute cash equivalents (by check or wire).
- Take an immediate tax deduction of up to 30% of your adjusted gross income (AGI) for contributions of long–term appreciated securities. Not only can you potentially avoid capital gains taxes on the appreciation, but charitable donations of capital gain property held for more than one year are usually deductible at fair market value (FMV). (Deductions for capital gain property held for one year or less are usually limited to cost basis.)
- Reduce potential estate, income, and generation–skipping transfer taxes.
- Simplify your tax reporting and more easily comply with new IRS rules around substantiating your gifts for deduction purposes.
Visit the Gift Fund website to learn more about the many benefits of a Giving Account.
The Pooled Income Fund
A program of the Gift Fund that allows you to receive a lifetime income stream and support the charities you care about. With Pooled Income Fund you may:
- Avoid capital gains taxes when you contribute long–term appreciated securities.
- Deduct a portion of your contribution, based on a combination of variables, including the fair market value (FMV) of the contribution, the ages and number of income beneficiaries, and the Pooled Income Fund's historical rate of return. The income stream generated by the Pooled Income Fund is variable based on the performance of the underlying investments in the Fund.
- Simplify your tax reporting and more easily comply with new IRS rules around substantiating your gifts for deduction purposes.
Visit the Gift Fund website to learn more about this income-generating charitable program.
TopInvestment Options
Municipal Money Market Funds
Interest income from municipal money market funds is generally exempt from federal income taxes and may also be exempt from state and local income taxes depending on the issuer and the state in which you live.
Learn more about Tax–Exempt Investing or visit Research > Mutual Funds.
Municipal Bond Funds and Municipal Bonds
Interest income generated by taxable bonds is normally taxed as ordinary income. Interest income from municipal bond funds or individual municipal bonds is generally exempt from federal income taxes and may also be exempt from state and local income taxes, depending on the issuer and the state in which you live.
Visit Investment Products > Fixed Income to learn about Fidelity Municipal Bond Funds or get a Municipal Bond Quote.
Tax–Managed Stock Fund
This fund is managed using an investment strategy that is sensitive to the potential impact of federal income tax on shareholder investment returns.
Visit Research > Mutual Funds to learn about the Fidelity Tax–Managed Stock Fund.
Top- Fidelity reserves the right to limit contributions.
- Guarantees are subject to the claims paying ability of the issuing insurance company.
- Fidelity Portfolio Advisory Service® is a service of Strategic Advisers, Inc., a registered investment adviser and a Fidelity Investments company. Fidelity Private Portfolio Service® may be offered through the following Fidelity Investments companies: Strategic Advisers, Inc., Fidelity Personal Trust Company, FSB ("FPT"), a federal savings bank, or Fidelity Management Trust Company ("FMTC"). Non-deposit investment products and trust services offered through FPT and FMTC and their affiliates are not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency, are not obligations of any bank, and are subject to risk, including possible loss of principal. These services provide discretionary money management for a fee.
- Information provided is general and educational in nature. It is not intended to be, and should not be construed as, legal or tax advice. Neither Fidelity nor the Gift Fund provides legal or tax advice. Content provided relates to taxation at the federal level only. Availability of certain federal income tax deductions may depend on whether you itemize deductions. Rules and regulations regarding tax deductions for charitable giving vary at the state level, and laws of a specific state or laws relevant to a particular situation may affect the applicability, accuracy, or completeness of the information provided. Charitable contributions of capital gain property held for more than one year are usually deductible at fair market value. Deductions for capital gain property held for one year or less are usually limited to cost basis. Consult an attorney or tax advisor regarding your specific legal or tax situation.
- Fidelity Private Portfolio Service® applies tax-sensitive investment management techniques (including tax loss harvesting) on a limited basis, at its discretion, primarily with respect to determining when assets, in a client's account should be bought and sold. As a discretionary investment management service, any assets contributed to an investor's account which Fidelity Private Portfolio Service does not elect to retain may be sold at any time after contribution. An investor may have a gain or loss when assets are sold.
- Before exchanging, check with your current provider to see if it will assess a surrender charge, also consider the existing benefits and features you may lose in an exchange.
The Fidelity® Charitable Gift FundSM is an independent public charity with a donor-advised fund program. Various Fidelity companies provide non-discretionary investment management and administrative services to the Gift Fund. Charitable Gift Fund is a service mark, and Giving Account is a registered service mark, of the Trustees of the Fidelity Investments® Charitable Gift Fund. Fidelity and Fidelity Investments are registered service marks of FMR LLC, used by the Gift Fund under license.
Principal value, income payments, and investment returns of a variable annuity and investment returns and principal value of a variable life insurance policy will fluctuate and you may have a gain or loss.
An investment in a money market fund is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Although the fund seeks to preserve the value of your investment at $1.00 per share, it is possible to lose money by investing in the fund. Annuities and life insurance are issued by Fidelity Investments Life Insurance Company and in NY, Empire Fidelity Investments Life Insurance Company® NY, NY, Fidelity Brokerage Services, Member NYSE, SIPC and Fidelity Insurance Agency, Inc., are the distributors. Some insurance products are issued by third party insurance carriers.
The tax information contained herein is general in nature, is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be construed as legal or tax advice. Fidelity does not provide legal or tax advice. Fidelity cannot guarantee that such information is accurate, complete, or timely. Laws of a particular state or laws which may be applicable to a particular situation may have an impact on the applicability, accuracy, or completeness of such information. Federal and state laws and regulations are complex and are subject to change. Changes in such laws and regulations may have a material impact on pre– and/or after–tax investment results. Fidelity makes no warranties with regard to such information or results obtained by its use. Fidelity disclaims any liability arising out of your use of, or any tax position taken in reliance on, such information. Always consult an attorney or tax professional regarding your specific legal or tax situation.
Before using the Fidelity Tax Center, review important legal information and terms of use applicable to products, services, and/or information provided by, or accessed through, the Tax Center by the following companies:
Fidelity Investments H&R Block Intuit CCH GainsKeeper TradeLog
Before investing, consider the fund's, insurance product's and its investment options', investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully.
