#retirement-plans
Explore retirement plan options, contribution limits, and strategies for business owners
A safe harbor 401(k) automatically passes IRS ADP/ACP nondiscrimination testing in exchange for a fixed employer contribution — a 3% nonelective or a match of up to 4%. Here's how the three formulas compare in cost, the December 1 retroactive adoption deadline, and the 2026 limits ($24,500 deferral, $72,000 total additions, mandatory Roth catch-ups for high earners).
Starting January 1, 2026, SECURE 2.0's Section 603 requires workers 50 and older with over $150,000 in prior-year FICA wages from the same employer to make 401(k) catch-up contributions — $8,000 standard, $11,250 for ages 60–63 — as after-tax Roth. Plans without a Roth option must amend by December 31, 2026 or bar catch-ups entirely; W-2 S-corp owners are in scope while K-1 partners are not.
Texas federal courts vacated the DOL's Retirement Security Rule in March 2026, reverting fiduciary status for retirement advice to the 1975 five-part test — the second such rule struck down since 2018. Here's what 401(k) plan sponsors should check now: advisor fiduciary status in writing, compensation disclosures, and a documentation checklist, plus what the DOL's new alternative-assets safe harbor proposal means for small plans.
For 2026 the standard SIMPLE IRA elective deferral limit is $17,000, but employers with 25 or fewer employees (or 26-100 that raise their match) get an enhanced $18,100 limit under SECURE 2.0 — and a rounding quirk means the enhanced-tier catch-up contribution is actually lower than the standard one.
SECURE 2.0 Section 110 lets employers match 401(k), 403(b), SIMPLE IRA, or governmental 457(b) contributions based on an employee's student loan payments instead of elective deferrals, and plan sponsors adopting the feature must formally amend their plan documents by December 31, 2026.
SECURE 2.0 requires new 401(k) and 403(b) plans established after December 29, 2022 to adopt an Eligible Automatic Contribution Arrangement with a 3% default deferral, 1% annual escalation up to a 10–15% cap, QDIA investment, and 90-day permissible withdrawal — with plan document amendments due by December 31, 2026.
A practical guide to ESOP repurchase obligation accounting for closely held companies — how ASC 480-10-S99 classifies redeemable shares as temporary equity, how to fund the obligation with sinking funds, COLI, recycling, and redemption, and the bookkeeping habits that keep plan-year valuations defensible.
Twenty-two states now require small employers to offer retirement savings or face penalties up to $750 per employee. A practical guide to CalSavers, Illinois Secure Choice, OregonSaves, headcount thresholds, registration deadlines, exemption rules, and the compliance traps that trigger non-compliance notices in 2026.
Section 414(b), (c), and (m) treat related businesses as one employer for retirement-plan testing. This guide explains controlled-group and affiliated-service-group rules, the spousal and minor-child attribution traps, and the steps multi-business owners should take before opening a 401(k).
A new 401(k) can be nearly free for small employers — Section 45E reimburses up to 100% of startup costs for three years plus $1,000 per employee in contribution credits for five years. Here is who qualifies and how to claim it on Form 8881.
SECURE 2.0 turned Section 45E into a 100% refund of pension plan startup costs—up to $5,000 per year for three years—for employers with 50 or fewer employees, stacked with a per-employee contribution credit worth up to $1,000 and a $500 auto-enrollment credit, all claimed on Form 8881.
A Voluntary Employees' Beneficiary Association under Section 501(c)(9) lets small and mid-sized employers pre-fund retiree medical, severance, and other welfare benefits tax-free — but Section 419 deduction caps, the 100% Section 4976 excise tax on disqualified benefits, and listed-transaction rules in Notices 95-34 and 2007-83 punish mistakes. Here is how a single-employer VEBA actually works, what it can fund, and the three IRS exams it has to pass every year.
