How to Get a Hardship Loan From a Fidelity 401(k)
401(k) accounts are retirement vehicles for average Americans. These accounts allow employees to contribute each pay period, often with an employer matching, to ultimately use as funds for retirement. Fidelity 401(k) plans allow employees to access the money in their accounts for hardships. Hardship withdrawals from Fidelity are not loans; rather, they are simply advances from your retirement account.
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Instructions
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Obtaining Fidelity Hardship Withdrawals
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Review your specific 401(k) package of rules and regulations. If you are an online customer, you should be able to read these online as well. All Fidelity 401(k) accounts allow for hardship withdrawals---you just need to make sure you are eligible.
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Check your eligibility. Usually hardship withdrawals can only take place if you have no other resources to access. Hardship withdrawals can be used to pay delinquent housing bills, education bills, medical expenses and funeral expenses.
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Fill out the application for a hardship withdrawal if you meet the eligibility requirements on your particular 401(k). This can be handled by filling out the request online or by calling a representative at Fidelity. If you wish to do this online, you'll need to register at Fidelity.com if you aren't already signed up for online access.
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Understand that you may face early withdrawal penalties by accessing your retirement account. Hardship withdrawals are not as serious as liquidation (where you face as much as a 35% tax), but you could face a 10% early withdrawal penalty.
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Complete the hardship application and wait. It should take about a week for the company to render a decision. If approved, you will not be able to make any more payments into your 401(k) for a period of at least six months.
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