January 2, 2018
On December 20, Congress completed passage of the largest federal tax reform law in more than 30 years. Commonly called the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (TCJA), the new law means substantial changes for individual taxpayers. Continue reading
January 3, 2017
Retirement plan contribution limits are indexed for inflation, but with inflation remaining low, most of the limits remain unchanged for 2017. The only limit that has increased from the 2016 level is for contributions to defined contribution plans, which has gone up by $1,000. Continue reading
November 15, 2016
Saving for retirement can be tough if you’re putting most of your money and time into operating a small business. However, many retirement plans aren’t difficult to set up and it’s important to start saving so you can enjoy a comfortable future.
So if you haven’t already set up a tax-advantaged plan, consider doing so this year.
Note: If you have employees, they generally must be allowed to participate in the plan, provided they meet the qualification requirements.
Here are three options: Continue reading
May 3, 2016
It’s not unusual for the IRS to conduct audits of qualified employee benefit plans, including 401(k)s. Plan sponsors are expected to stay in compliance with numerous, frequently changing federal laws and regulations.
For example, have you identified all employees eligible for your 401(k) plan and given them the opportunity to make deferral elections? Are employee contributions limited to the amounts allowed under tax law for the calendar year? Does your 401(k) plan pass nondiscrimination tests? Traditional 401(k) plans must be regularly tested to ensure that the contributions don’t discriminate in favor of highly compensated employees.
If the IRS uncovers compliance errors and the plan sponsor doesn’t fix them, the plan could be disqualified.
What happens if qualified status is lost? Continue reading
January 5, 2016
Retirement plan contribution limits are indexed for inflation, but with inflation remaining low, the limits remain unchanged for 2016: Continue reading
December 1, 2015
From the Thanksgiving kick-off of the holiday season through December 31, many businesses find themselves short-staffed as employees take time off to spend with family and friends. But if you limit how many vacation days employees can roll over to the new year, you might find your workplace to be nearly a ghost town as employees scramble to use their time off rather than lose it. Continue reading
September 29, 2015
Contributing to a traditional employer-sponsored defined contribution plan, such as a 401(k), 403(b) or 457 plan, offers many benefits:
For 2015, you can contribute up to $18,000. If your current contribution rate will leave you short of the limit, consider increasing your contribution rate through the end of the year. Because of tax-deferred compounding, boosting contributions sooner rather than later can have a significant impact on the size of your nest egg at retirement.
If you’ll be age 50 or older by December 31, you can also make “catch-up” contributions (up to $6,000 for 2015). So if you didn’t contribute much when you were younger, this may allow you to partially make up for lost time. Even if you did make significant contributions before age 50, catch-up contributions can still be beneficial, allowing you to further leverage the power of tax-deferred compounding.
Have questions about how much to contribute? Contact us. We’d be pleased to discuss the tax and retirement-saving considerations with you.
© 2015 Thomson Reuters/Tax & Accounting
Set up your own retirement plan
If you’re self-employed, you may be able to set up a retirement plan that allows you to make much larger contributions than you could make as an employee. For example, the maximum 2014 employee contribution to a 401(k) plan is $17,500 — $23,000 if you’re age 50 or older. Look at how the limits for these two options available to the self-employed compare:
You don’t even have to make your 2014 contributions this year. As long as you set up one of these plans by Dec. 31, 2014, you can make deductible 2014 contributions to it until the 2015 due date of your 2014 tax return. Additional rules and limits apply, so contact us to learn which plan would work better for you.
© 2014 Thomson Reuters/Tax & Accounting
Boris Benic CPA 