Rolling over your retirement plan from a former employer is one way to take control of your retirement savings. You can preserve the tax-deferred status of your retirement assets, without paying current taxes or early withdrawal penalties at the time of transfer.
A plan participant leaving an employer typically has four options (and may engage in a combination of these options), each choice offering advantages and disadvantages.
- Leave the money in his/her former employer’s plan, if permitted
- Roll over the assets to his/her new employer’s plan, if one is available and rollovers are permitted
- Roll over to an IRA
- Cash out the account value.
