Fact-checking and sources
Source hierarchy
We rely on sources in this order:
- Law and government. The Internal Revenue Code, Treasury regulations, IRS publications and notices, U.S. Tax Court decisions, and guidance from the CFTC, SEC, FTC and state regulators.
- Primary company documents. Official fee schedules, account agreements, disclosures and product specifications from dealers, custodians, depositories and mints. These are treated as the company's own statements.
- Reputable secondary sources. Established financial, legal and industry publications, used for context and labeled as commentary.
- Community sources. Forums and social media help us find the questions people ask. They are never cited as evidence for a financial or legal claim.
How facts are checked
- Each factual claim in a guide is linked to, or listed in, its sources.
- Numbers that change, such as contribution limits, are checked against the current-year source.
- Each guide shows the date its facts were last checked.
Sources we can't access
If a key source can't be read or confirmed, the related claim is left out rather than stated from memory.