There is a telltale sign that you are a true benefit nerd… you have printouts of the annual benefit plan limits tacked to the wall by your desk. I’m guilty of it myself. Last year I finally got tired of bouncing between multiple charts to track the retirement and health plan limits I regularly reference, so I created a single comprehensive chart ...
Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) are a powerful tool for ownership transition, offering tax advantages, liquidity for shareholders, and a path to employee ownership. At the same time, ESOP transactions are fiduciary transactions governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and subject to close regulatory scrutiny. An ...
Earlier this month, the IRS issued guidance on the health savings account (HSA) changes enacted as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). While the guidance does not significantly alter the provisions announced when the law was passed in July, it does provide helpful details on how the new rules will be applied operationally.
As a holiday gift to employers, the IRS has released Notice 2026-6 on December 19th, which extends the transition period for certain federal tax and reporting requirements related to State Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) programs through calendar year 2026. This extension gives employers and states extra time to update payroll and ...
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) increased the annual dependent care FSA contribution limit from $5,000 to $7,500 (or $3,750 for married individuals filing separately). This amount has not been increased in 25 years, and anyone with kids in daycare knows that $5,000 doesn’t go very far today. While this is a welcome update for many ...
We get questions on administering benefits for employees on approved leaves year-round. But with the new year approaching, it is important to understand the tax issues affected by your administration of group health plan benefits for employees on leave, particularly for leaves that cross calendar years.
If you provide group health benefits and ...
For plan sponsors with a pre-approved 401(k) plan document that contains a discretionary matching contribution, there is a new compliance requirement. This new requirement is a result of the IRS-required Cycle 3 Restatement issued in 2022. This new requirement is needed in any year when a discretionary match is made.
Even though a ...
The IRS released its annual update for the cost-of-living adjustments for 2026. Similar to the adjustments made last year, there are widespread increases for 2026. As you can see from our chart below, almost all IRS limits were affected by this year’s cost-of-living adjustments. However, the HCE threshold and the increased catch-up ...
When I think of October, I think of pumpkin spice everything, sitting on the sidelines of my kids’ soccer games, football season and retirement plan corrections. I relate plan corrections to October, not because I enjoy them as much as my pumpkin spice latte, but because it is the time of year that we receive many calls about plan corrections ...
The IRS recently issued final guidance on a significant SECURE 2.0 provision that changes how older, high-income employees contribute to their retirement plans. Starting in 2026, employees aged 50 and over who earned more than $145,000 (adjusted annually for inflation) in FICA wages from their current employer in the prior year will be required ...