Small business owners understand that they are the ones responsible for saving for their retirement. Unlike many employees who work for large corporations that provide retirement benefits, small business owners must provide those benefits for themselves. A primary means of doing so is to set up retirement savings plans for their businesses to cover themselves and their employees. However, many hesitate to start the process because they are intimidated by the governing rules. In those cases, starting with an IRA-based retirement plan is an easy, effective, and efficient way to start the process. These IRA-based plans - SEP IRAs and SIMPLE IRAs - are low-cost maintenance, easy to communicate to employees, and flexible, providing the business owners with choice of whether to fund the plan from year to year.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
Help small business owners understand why they need to adopt retirement plans for themselves and their employees;
Identify key features and benefits of SEP IRAs and SIMPLE IRAs;
Determine which employees must be covered under SEP IRAs and SIMPLE IRAs;
Determine the steps that businesses should take to establish SEP IRAs and SIMPLE IRAs; and
Explain the operational and administrative requirements for SEP IRAs and SIMPLE IRAs.
Major Topics
Key features for choosing a retirement plan for a small business
Key questions an advisor must ask a small business owner to help determine suitability for a retirement plan
Key questions an advisor must ask a small business owner to help ensure compliance with a SEP IRA or a SIMPLE IRA
How SEP and SIMPLE IRAs benefit the small business owner
How SEP and SIMPLE IRAs benefit employees of small businesses
The tax benefits that help to offset the cost of employer contributions
How to determine which business is eligible to adopt a SEP or SIMPLE IRA
How to determine which employees must be covered
