Must I pay tax on what the bond earns? You choose whether to report each year's earnings or wait to report all the earnings when you get the money for the bond. If you use the money for qualified higher education expenses, you may not have to pay tax on the earnings.
Cons of I Bonds
This cap makes I Bonds unsuitable for those looking to invest larger sums. Early withdrawal penalty: If you cash in your I Bonds before five years have passed, you lose the last three months of earned interest. This penalty may impact liquidity for those who need their funds sooner.
Interest from corporate bonds and U.S. Treasury bonds interest is typically taxable at the federal level. U.S. Treasuries are exempt from state and local income taxes. Most interest income earned on municipal bonds is exempt from federal income taxes.
Purchase prices start at $25, and you can buy in any amount above that up to $10,000 per person, per calendar year. You also can buy an I bond in paper form, through the Tax Time Purchase Program.
November 1, 2024. Series EE savings bonds issued November 2024 through April 2025 will earn an annual fixed rate of 2.60% and Series I savings bonds will earn a composite rate of 3.11%, a portion of which is indexed to inflation every six months. The EE bond fixed rate applies to a bond's 20-year original maturity.
Normally, you're limited to purchasing $10,000 per person on electronic Series I bonds per year. However, the government allows those with a federal tax refund to invest up to $5,000 of that refund into paper I bonds. So most investors think their annual investment tops out at $15,000 – one of the key I bond myths.
If a financial institution pays the bond, you get a 1099-INT from that financial institution either soon after you cash your bond or by January 31 of the following year. If your bonds are in your TreasuryDirect account, your 1099-INT is available in your account by January 31 of the following year.
Risk Considerations: The primary risks associated with corporate bonds are credit risk, interest rate risk, and market risk. In addition, some corporate bonds can be called for redemption by the issuer and have their principal repaid prior to the maturity date.
I-bonds are also attractive because investors bear almost no risk of losing their principal. The composite rate can never be less than 0%, even during deflationary periods when the inflation rate is negative.
Unlike I-bonds, TIPS are marketable securities and can be resold on the secondary market before maturity. When the TIPS matures, if the principal is higher than the original amount, you get the higher amount. If the principal is equal to or lower than the original amount, you get the higher original amount.
I bonds have earned their reputation as an inflation-fighting tool for retirees. As of May 2024, I bonds are returning 4.28%, which is lower than the same period in 2023 but still well ahead of the inflation rate of 3.5%. The previous I bond rate stood at 5.27%, set in November 2023.
If you hold the bond for less than five years at the time when you cash it in, you will lose the last three months of accrued interest. On the other hand, you can avoid the I Bond withdrawal penalty by holding onto your bonds for the long haul.
For electronic savings bonds as gifts, both you and the recipient must have a TreasuryDirect account. TreasuryDirect is the official United States government application in which you can buy and keep savings bonds. You can gift a savings bond to adults or children.
The trade-offs, however, can include reinvestment risk, lower long-term returns, low to negative real returns because of the effects of inflation, and reduced portfolio diversification when needed most. Normally, bonds with longer maturities require higher yields to compensate investors for additional risks.
TAKEAWAYS: Not losing money by holding a bond until maturity is an illusion. The economic impact of market rate changes still impacts investors holding bonds until maturity. A bond index fund provides an investor with greater diversification and less risk.
I cashed some Series E, Series EE, and Series I savings bonds. How do I report the interest? In general, you must report the interest in income in the taxable year in which you redeemed the bonds to the extent you did not include the interest in income in a prior taxable year.
In Treasury Direct, when you buy a Treasury marketable security, you must hold it in your TreasuryDirect account for 45 days before selling or transferring it. This means you can't sell or transfer a 4-week bill from TreasuryDirect because it matures in less than 45 days.
Use the Education Exclusion. With that in mind, you have one option for avoiding taxes on savings bonds: the education exclusion. You can skip paying taxes on interest earned with Series EE and Series I savings bonds if you're using the money to pay for qualified higher education costs.
Boost Your Annual Investment With Your Spouse—But Not Your Kids. As mentioned, anyone with a Social Security number can purchase I bonds. This means that for a married couple, the annual limit is effectively raised to $20,000 since each spouse can buy $10,000 worth of bonds.
Treasury bills function more like cash in your portfolio and can be a safe harbor during turbulent economic times. Treasury bonds can provide a dependable stream of income, but can suffer a loss of value on secondary markets if interest rates go up.