#retirement-plans
Explore retirement plan options, contribution limits, and strategies for business owners
A 412(e)(3) plan funds pensions through insurance contracts, letting owners in their 50s deduct $100,000+ a year — with IRS-mandated fixed premiums.
October 15 is the extended Form 5500 deadline — miss it and penalties run $250/day IRS plus up to $2,739/day DOL, unless you file under the DFVCP.
The DOL's Lost and Found database lets workers search for forgotten 401(k)s by SSN — $2.1 trillion sits unclaimed. Here's how to search and claim yours.
The IRS still-working exception lets non-5% owners delay 401(k) RMDs past 73 until retirement — but only from a current employer plan that allows it.
A beneficiary form beats your will. Audit every 401(k), IRA, life policy, POD and TOD account for missing contingents, ex-spouses and minors.
Terminating a 401(k), SEP, or SIMPLE IRA requires 100% vesting, full asset distribution, and a final Form 5500 due seven months after the last payout.
File by October 15 and the IRS failure-to-file penalty — 5% a month, ten times the failure-to-pay rate — stops; it is also the last day to fund a 2025 SEP-IRA.
The DOL expects certified mail, record checks, beneficiary contact, and free online searches — and IRS Rev. Rul. 2019-19 taxes a 401(k) check never cashed.
An ERISA fidelity bond protects the plan from theft, not you. Fiduciary liability insurance covers 401(k) breach-of-duty claims for $500–$2,500 a year.
Switching 401(k) recordkeepers freezes accounts — ERISA requires a blackout notice 30 to 60 days ahead, or the DOL can assess $173 per participant per day.
To close a 401(k) when selling or shutting down: board resolution, full vesting, distribute within 12 months, file a final Form 5500.
Form 5500 is due July 31 for calendar-year plans; IRS late penalties run $250 a day up to $150,000, but DFVCP caps small-plan relief at $1,500.
