I have (had) a SIMPLE IRA at Vanguard which was opened by a previous employer in March 2013. That's less than two years, for those that know the rules around SIMPLE IRA. But I didn't understand the rules, and was trying to consolidate my IRAs. I started a distribution from Vanguard which I was going to roll into a Betterment IRA. After I initiated it, I read some more (this is the wrong order to do things) and realized I should leave that money alone. So I logged back into Vanguard's web site, and looked for the Order Status of the distribution. It was nowhere to be found, so I (incorrectly) assumed Vanguard had prevented me from making the distribution. Two days later... and the SIMPLE IRA has been liquidated and I'm facing a 25% penalty!
So my question is this: Is there anywhere that I can create a SIMPLE IRA, roll these funds into the new SIMPLE IRA, and get a Form 5498 showing that this is a valid rollover so that I can avoid the huge tax penalty?
Edit: After my second call to Vanguard today, I've been given a go ahead to mail them a check with the Simple IRA account number, and it will be deposited and I'll avoid the tax penalty.