NJ No exemptions Last reviewed: April 2026

Rules of Gold in New Jersey

The six facts

Statute-level rules. Each fact is sourced; click through to the primary citation.

Exempt (threshold)

Sales tax on bullion

New Jersey exempts investment metal bullion and certain investment coins from state sales and use tax effective January 1, 2025. The exemption was enacted via S721, signed by Gov. Phil Murphy in September 2024 and codified as P.L. 2024, c.64. Statutory definitions: "Investment metal bullion" means any elementary precious metal (specifically including gold, silver, platinum, and palladium) that has been put through smelting or refining and "is in such a state or condition that its value depends upon its contents and not its form" — explicitly excluding metals "assembled, fabricated, manufactured, or processed in one or more specific and customary industrial, professional, aesthetic, or artistic uses." "Investment coin" means any numismatic coin manufactured of gold, silver, platinum, palladium, or any other metal (including non-precious metals) with a fair market value of not less than $1,000 — excluding jewelry, works of art made of coins, and commemorative medallions. The $1,000-FMV threshold applies to coins only — bullion (bars, rounds, wafers, etc.) is exempt at any quantity with no minimum threshold. Standard NJ state sales tax remains 6.625% for transactions outside the bullion/qualified-coin scope.

Source As of 2025-01-01 · high confidence

Recognized as legal tender

New Jersey has not enacted a statute recognizing gold or silver coin or specie as legal tender for public or private debts. S4674 (2024-2025 session) is pending; it would establish a voluntary gold and silver transactional currency system, recognize qualifying gold and silver specie as legal tender under constitutional authority, and create an electronic transactional currency backed by precious metals held in pooled depository accounts. The Commissioner of Banking and Insurance would administer the system; participation would be voluntary with no required acceptance. As of April 2026, S4674 has not advanced to enactment. New Jersey is therefore absent from the legal-tender state list (UT/WY/OK/AR/ID/LA/TN/TX plus pending FL/NH).

Source As of 2026-04-25 · medium confidence

Taxed

Capital gains on bullion

New Jersey taxes capital gains as ordinary income at the standard graduated rate schedule with no separate capital-gains rate and no precious-metals-specific carve-out. For tax year 2025, NJ uses an 8-bracket schedule from 1.4% (lowest) to 10.75% (top). The 10.75% top bracket applies to taxable income over $1,000,000 (single and married filing jointly). The previous "millionaire surtax" that brought the effective top rate to 11.5% on income over $1M (in effect 2020-2023) expired and was not renewed; the 10.75% rate applies for 2024-2025. Both short-term and long-term bullion gains are taxed at ordinary-income rates. New Jersey is one of the highest-rate jurisdictions for bullion capital gains in the dataset, comparable to Massachusetts (5%/8.5% LT/ST + 4% surtax = up to 12.5% effective ST) and Maryland (10 brackets to 6.5% + 2% surcharge >$350K AGI).

Source As of 2025-01-01 · high confidence

State bullion depository

New Jersey has not enacted a state-administered bullion depository. S4672 (2024-2025 session), the proposed New Jersey Bullion Depository Act, was introduced June 30, 2025 by Sen. Robert W. Singer (District 30) and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee. The bill would establish the New Jersey Bullion Depository as a division within the Department of the Treasury to provide secure storage for precious metals, constructed and operated entirely by private contractors under State oversight. The depository would serve as custodian for bullion and specie transferred to or otherwise acquired by the State or its instrumentalities, and would also offer secure storage services to private parties. As of April 2026, S4672 has not advanced past committee referral.

Source As of 2026-04-25 · medium confidence

State gold & silver reserves

The New Jersey State Treasurer does not hold physical gold or silver as a reserve asset. There is no statutory authority for a New Jersey state precious-metals reserve. The pending S4672 (Bullion Depository Act) and S4674 (legal tender / transactional currency) would create infrastructure for state custody of bullion but do not, on their face, mandate a state-treasury reserve allocation analogous to New Hampshire's HB 302.

Source As of 2026-04-25 · medium confidence

Pension fund holdings

The New Jersey Division of Investment (NJDOI), which manages the state Pension Fund (~$78.7 billion net asset value as of June 30, 2024, returning +10.7% net of fees for FY24), does not disclose a physical-precious-metals or commodities sleeve in its FY24 Annual Report. NJDOI targets approximately 30% of the portfolio in alternative investments (~$30 billion across private equity, real estate, hedge funds, private credit, and infrastructure), with the remainder in public equities, fixed income, and cash equivalents. Tactical FY24 changes included increased high-yield fixed income and decreased international equities — no precious-metals sleeve introduced. Standard institutional asset classes only.

Source As of 2024-06-30 · medium confidence

What this means for buyers

When you buy bullion in New Jersey: bullion is exempt from state sales tax above a transaction-size threshold. Below the threshold the standard sales-tax rate applies, so larger consolidated purchases capture the exemption; small accumulation purchases may be taxed.

When you sell or otherwise realize a gain: capital gains on bullion are taxed as ordinary income at New Jersey’s state-tax rates, stacked on top of the federal 28% collectibles rate. This is a real drag on long-term holdings — consult a CPA before realizing a major position.

Mostly standard taxation; one carve-out worth knowing about. Confirm it covers your specific purchase before relying on it.

Coin & bullion dealers in New Jersey

Verified retail dealers — sourced from state corporation registries, BBB, and trade associations.

Full directory

American Coin & Stamp Co.

Operating since 1955

View dealer

Bergen Coin Exchange

Operating since 1949

View dealer

SG Rare Coins

Operating since 1979
ANA Life Member, PCGS Authorized, NGC Authorized

View dealer

The Elusive Spondulix

PCGS Authorized, NGC Authorized

View dealer

About this page. Each fact on this page links to its primary source. State laws change, so confirm material facts with your CPA or the state Department of Revenue before acting on a transaction. Fair Market Value does not provide legal or tax advice.

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