Retirement savings are not static — they evolve alongside your financial goals and investment strategies. You may have opened your Roth IRA with Fidelity, but over time, you might find that Citi Personal Wealth offers different options or services that better align with your current objectives.
Whether it’s broader investment choices or access to additional financial planning support, transferring your Roth IRA can help you adjust your retirement strategy without triggering unnecessary tax consequences.
At Carry, we want to make financial decisions feel more manageable, even if you’re handling them outside our platform. Please note that while we try to provide the most up-to-date information, these processes are subject to change without notice, so be sure to check with your provider before moving forward.
Step 1: Understand Your Roth IRA Transfer Landscape
Transferring a Roth IRA from Fidelity to Citi Personal Wealth requires careful planning and attention to detail. The process involves moving your retirement funds between financial institutions without triggering any tax consequences, as long as the transfer is handled correctly. A direct transfer ensures your savings move smoothly and maintain their tax-advantaged status.
What You’ll Need
✅ Your current Fidelity Roth IRA account number
✅ Government-issued photo identification
✅ Most recent IRA statement from Fidelity
✅ Personal information for Citi Personal Wealth account setup
✅ Online access to both Fidelity and Citi accounts
Step 2: Open Your Citi Personal Wealth Roth IRA
Before initiating the transfer, you must establish a Roth IRA with Citi Personal Wealth. This new account will receive your transferred funds. Contact a Citi Personal Wealth representative to complete the account opening process, ensuring that your personal information, such as your legal name and Social Security number, matches exactly between both accounts.
✏️ Hypothetical Example: John opened his Roth IRA with Citi Personal Wealth by providing his full legal name, Social Security number, and current address, which matched his existing Fidelity records.
Step 3: Initiate the Direct Transfer
Initiate your transfer through Citi Personal Wealth, the receiving institution. This process ensures a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer, maintaining the tax-advantaged status of your retirement savings and avoiding potential taxes or penalties.
✏️ Real Example: A direct transfer means the funds are sent electronically from Fidelity straight to Citi—you never take possession of the money.
What’s typically required:
✅ Transfer of assets form from Citi Personal Wealth
✅ Your Fidelity account number
✅ Photo identification
✅ Authorization signatures
📝 Important Note: Direct transfers typically take 5–7 business days, but timing can vary depending on both institutions’ processing speeds. Monitor the transfer status through both platforms.
Step 4: Verify Transfer Details
After initiating the transfer, review both accounts to confirm:
✅ The transfer amount matches your Fidelity Roth IRA balance
✅ No unexpected fees have been applied
✅ The transfer completed as a direct custodian-to-custodian movement
✏️ Hypothetical Example: Sarah reviewed her Fidelity and Citi Personal Wealth statements after transfer completion to ensure that her total balance moved correctly without deductions.
Step 5: Understand Potential Transfer Costs
Most Roth IRA transfers between financial institutions are free. However, it’s a good idea to confirm potential administrative costs with both providers.
✅ Fidelity outgoing transfer: Typically no charge
✅ Citi Personal Wealth incoming transfer: Typically no charge
✅ Other minor administrative fees: Confirm directly with both institutions
Step 6: Tax Considerations
A properly executed direct Roth IRA transfer is not a taxable event. Your existing contributions and potential earnings remain protected within the Roth IRA’s tax-advantaged structure.
📝 Quick Tip: Maintain copies of all transfer-related documentation for your personal tax records.
Step 7: Investment Continuity
After your funds arrive at Citi Personal Wealth, review your investment allocations. Citi may offer different investment options compared to Fidelity. Consider rebalancing your portfolio if necessary to ensure it aligns with your overall retirement strategy.
Step 8: Final Verification
Contact both Fidelity and Citi Personal Wealth to confirm that:
✅ The full transfer has completed
✅ Your account balance matches your previous statements
✅ Your new investments reflect your chosen allocations
📌 Additional Resources:
Final Thoughts on Your Roth IRA Transfer
Transferring a Roth IRA from Fidelity to Citi Personal Wealth is a strategic process that requires careful planning and attention to detail. The key takeaways are:
✅ Always initiate a direct, trustee-to-trustee transfer to avoid potential tax consequences.
✅ Prepare all necessary documentation in advance to streamline the process.
✅ Verify the full and accurate transfer of your account balance after completion.
Your next steps include confirming the transfer with both financial institutions, reviewing your investment allocations to ensure they align with your financial goals, and maintaining detailed records of the transaction for your personal files.
While the transfer process is generally straightforward, each individual’s financial situation is unique and may require additional consideration.
📝 Important Reminder: Consider consulting a financial or tax professional if you have complex investments or specific retirement planning questions.
📌 Want to dive deeper? Here are some other helpful resources:
Disclaimer:
The Carry Learning Center is operated by The Vibes Company Inc. (“Vibes”) and contains generalized educational content about personal finance topics. While Vibes provides educational content and technology services, all investment advisory services discussed on this website are provided exclusively through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Carry Advisors LLC (“Carry Advisors”), an SEC registered investment adviser. The information contained on the Carry Learning Center should not be construed as personalized investment advice and should not be considered as a solicitation to buy or sell any security or engage in a particular investment, accounting, tax or legal strategy. Vibes is not providing tax, legal, accounting, or investment advice. You should consult with qualified tax, legal, accounting, and investment professionals regarding your specific situation.
The accounts, strategies and/or investments discussed in this material may not be suitable for all investors. All investments involve the risk of loss, and past performance does not guarantee future results. Investment growth or profit is never a guarantee. All statements and opinions included on the Carry Learning Center are intended to be current as of the date of publication but are subject to change without notice.
To access investment advisory services through Carry Advisors, you must be a client of Vibes on an eligible membership plan. For more information about Carry Advisors’ investment advisory services, please see our Form [ADV Part 2A] (https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=916200) brochure and [Form CRS] (https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/crs/crs_323620.pdf) or through the SEC’s website at [www.adviserinfo.sec.gov] (http://www.adviserinfo.sec.gov/).