Adding a Safe Harbor provision can confidently address this issue while providing important benefits to your company and employees.

You already know that a 401(k) is a very popular retirement plan and, like other plan designs, it allows your employees to take advantage of tax deferrals on contributions and earnings while their money accumulates for retirement.

To enjoy this special status, the IRS put in place rules to assure your plan benefits rank and file employees and not just company owners and highly compensated employees. These are called nondiscrimination rules and there are three tests that must be performed each year to determine whether your plan measures up.

Safe Harbor Match

To satisfy the requirement and encourage plan participation, you may choose to offer a Safe Harbor Match. The Basic Match formula provides a 100% match on the first 3% of deferral compensation, plus a 50% match on deferrals between 3% and 5%.

Highly impressed with their level of expertise and outstanding customer service.

Highly impressed with their level of expertise and outstanding customer service.

I highly recommend TPS Group and their quality third-party administration for our 403(b) plan. During our long relationship with TPS Group, we have never failed to be impressed with their level of expertise and outstanding customer service. They keep their promises and it’s easy to work with them. Having our own rep Lauren McNabb is a plus!

- Don Senecal

Safe Harbor Services

Pension Consultation Services

Pension Consultation Services

TPS Group is a Third Party Retirement Administrator (TPA) committed to your company's success.

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401(k) Plans

401(k) Plans

Here at The Pension Service, we understand Retirement Plans and the importance that they play within your company; for both you and your employees. TPS Group works with businesses like yours to help achieve long-term success. The Pension Service will help you design a 401(k) Program that your employees can easily understand and feel confident participating in.

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Creative Plan Design

Creative Plan Design

At The Pension Service, we are committed to provide the highest quality actuarial, consulting and retirement plan administration services by listening carefully and being responsive with creative solutions that meet the unique needs and objectives of our clients.

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More Retirement Plan Types

More Retirement Plan Types

We offer a variety of retirement plans for businesses of all sizes, including 401(k) Plans, Profit Sharing Plans, Creative Plan Design, Public Works Plans, & MEP Retirement Plans, and all of the options below.

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Safe Harbor Team Members

Safe Harbor Resources

401(k) and Retirement Plan Limits for the Tax Year 2024

401(k) and Retirement Plan Limits for the Tax Year 2024

401(k) and Retirement Plan Limits for the Tax Years 2018 through 2024.

Safe Harbor Videos

Four Things to Know About ERISA Fidelity Bonds and Fiduciary Liability Insurance

Encourage Greater Participation with a QACA Safe Harbor Plan

Financial Wellness Is Essential to Saving for Retirement

When to Set Sail with Safe Harbor

Safe Harbor Articles

Retiring Overseas: Pros and Cons of International Retirement

Retiring Overseas: Pros and Cons of International Retirement

Retiring abroad can be an attractive option for individuals seeking a change of scenery, a lower cost of living, or new cultural experiences and adventures ...

How Your HSA Can Supplement Retirement Savings

How Your HSA Can Supplement Retirement Savings

Jordan and Lisa both had high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) with Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) through their employers. Throughout their working years, ...

Generational Savings: Boomers to Gen Z

Generational Savings: Boomers to Gen Z

In the dynamic landscape of personal finance, each generation brings its unique approach to savings, shaped by the economic and political climate, societal ...

Long-Term, Part-Time Rules

Long-Term, Part-Time Rules

As part of the SECURE Act, Long-Term, Part-Time (“LTPT”) rules were created in 2019. Effective for plan years beginning after 12/31/2020, 401(k) plans ...

Don’t Let Health Care Costs Derail Your Retirement

Don’t Let Health Care Costs Derail Your Retirement

After housing and food, health care is one of the largest expenses you can expect in retirement. According to Fidelity Investments, a 65-year-old retiring ...

Employers: Now’s the Time to Act!

Employers: Now’s the Time to Act!

If you’re an employer with a SIMPLE IRA plan for your workforce and want to switch to a 401(k) profit-sharing plan beginning January 1, 2024, the deadline ...

Understanding Retirement Catch-Up Contributions in 2024

Understanding Retirement Catch-Up Contributions in 2024

The SECURE 2.0 Act, signed into law in December 2022, includes measures aimed at simplifying the process for Americans to build their retirement savings. ...

The Importance of Financial Wellness Education in the Workplace

The Importance of Financial Wellness Education in the Workplace

Between an unexpected major car repair, looming tuition bills for the kids, and ballooning credit card debt, Andy and his wife were financially strained. ...

Secure Act 2.0: What You Need to Know

Secure Act 2.0: What You Need to Know

As part of TPS Group's commitment to promoting a secure financial future for all, we're excited to share with you the key provisions of the SECURE Act ...

What Employers Should Know About Safe Harbor 401(k) Plans

What Employers Should Know About Safe Harbor 401(k) Plans

Traditional 401(k) and safe harbor 401(k) plans are similar and are available for employers of any size. However, a safe harbor 401(k) plan has certain ...

Is a Roth 401(k) Right for You?

Is a Roth 401(k) Right for You?

The pre-tax advantages of a 401(k) plan make it a very effective way for employees to save for retirement and lower their tax burden. Since taxes on a ...

Is Your Retirement Plan Still Aligned with Your Business Needs?

Is Your Retirement Plan Still Aligned with Your Business Needs?

With 2023 right on the horizon, now is a good time for employers to review whether their retirement plans are still in alignment with their business needs ...

Understanding ERISA Fidelity Bonds and Fiduciary Liability Insurance

Understanding ERISA Fidelity Bonds and Fiduciary Liability Insurance

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) is a federal law that sets rules and standards of conduct for most voluntarily established retirement ...

IRS Extends Deadlines for Retirement Plan Amendments

IRS Extends Deadlines for Retirement Plan Amendments

This month, the IRS extended the deadlines to adopt certain retirement plan amendments for most plans. Notice 2022-33 provides plan sponsors with an extension ...

“We’ve Been Hacked” – Cybersecurity and Your Employees

“We’ve Been Hacked” – Cybersecurity and Your Employees

It happens every minute of every day, in all types of businesses around the country: an employee receives a fake email and unwittingly clicks on a link ...

Four Things to Know About ERISA Fidelity Bonds and Fiduciary Liability Insurance

Four Things to Know About ERISA Fidelity Bonds and Fiduciary Liability Insurance

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act known as “ERISA” regulates 401(k) and most other types of employee benefit plans. Under ERISA, anyone who handles ...

Getting the Word Out to Your Employees about Retirement Planning

Getting the Word Out to Your Employees about Retirement Planning

A 33-year-old single mother, Karina paid little attention to her employer’s notices about the company’s 401(k) retirement plan. Retirement seemed like ...

Starter-K Act of 2022 Introduced in the Senate

Starter-K Act of 2022 Introduced in the Senate

On March 30, 2022, Senators John Barrasso (R-WY) and Tom Carper (D-DE) introduced the bi-partisan Starter-K Act in the Senate. This bill allows employers ...

MyCTSavings Notice: Employers with Qualified Retirement Plans Must Certify Their Exception

MyCTSavings Notice: Employers with Qualified Retirement Plans Must Certify Their Exception

Connecticut has implemented a mandatory program called MyCTSavings for employers with 5 employees or more who do not currently have a retirement plan in ...

Maximizing a Business Owner’s Retirement Benefit

Maximizing a Business Owner’s Retirement Benefit

It’s a common story – business owners put everything into their businesses for years before being in a financial position to put real money away for retirement. ...

Cash Balance Plans: Don’t Miss Out!

Cash Balance Plans: Don’t Miss Out!

Cash balance plans can offer high-income business owners and executives significant tax advantages and a way to build large retirement assets. A cash balance ...

Tax Credits for Retirement Plan Start-up Costs

Tax Credits for Retirement Plan Start-up Costs

Retirement plans can help employers attract and retain workers and improve morale. If you’re a small business owner considering a qualified retirement ...

New Laws for 2022: Time to Look at your Handbooks!

New Laws for 2022: Time to Look at your Handbooks!

Paid Leave Connecticut employers have been (or should have been) withholding a small percentage of employees’ salaries this year to contribute to the ...

The Advantages of Roth After-Tax 401k Deferrals

The Advantages of Roth After-Tax 401k Deferrals

When a 401k plan includes a Roth option, participants who are eligible to make traditional pre-tax 401k deferrals are also eligible to make Roth after-tax ...

Is Your Organization Safe from Email Attacks?

Is Your Organization Safe from Email Attacks?

In the fourth edition of the Phishing and Fraud Report, it was discovered that phishing incidents rose 220% during the height of the global pandemic compared ...

Notice to Employees Regarding Saver's Credit

Notice to Employees Regarding Saver's Credit

This notice explains how you may be able to pay less tax by contributing to your Employer’s Plan or to an individual retirement arrangement (“IRA”). If ...

What You Need to Know about New Rules for Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs)

What You Need to Know about New Rules for Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs)

A required minimum distribution, or RMD, is the minimum amount that must be withdrawn each year from a retirement account such as an IRA, 401(K), 403(B) ...

2021 Tax Advantages of Cash Balance Plans

2021 Tax Advantages of Cash Balance Plans

A cash balance plan is an employer-sponsored defined benefit plan that can be created by any business entity including Corporations, LLCs, Partnerships, ...

Are HSAs Redefining Health Care?

Are HSAs Redefining Health Care?

Ron, a single Millennial, was given the option by his employer during the annual enrollment period to choose a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) with ...

Cycle 3 Restatements: Here’s What You Need to Know

Cycle 3 Restatements: Here’s What You Need to Know

The Internal Revenue service requires all qualified retirement plans to update their plan documents every 6 years, in a formal process called a “plan restatement.” ...

Going Paperless with Retirement Plans

Going Paperless with Retirement Plans

In July 2020, the Department of Labor finalized a rule that makes it easier for retirement plan sponsors to send certain retirement plan documents to covered ...

Are You at Risk for a Lawsuit? How HR Analysis can Save Employers from Costly Litigation

Are You at Risk for a Lawsuit? How HR Analysis can Save Employers from Costly Litigation

The last thing that Eric needed was the news that a former employee had filed a lawsuit against his company alleging discrimination. The owner of a manufacturing ...

What are the Best States for Retirement?

What are the Best States for Retirement?

For years, Bob and his wife Ellen talked about moving from the Northeast to a southern state when it was time to retire. They often vacationed at a coastal ...

How COVID has Impacted Retirement Readiness

How COVID has Impacted Retirement Readiness

Dawn and Carlos, a married couple in their early sixties, had both worked in the nonprofit sector for most of their careers. They had saved for retirement ...

Financial Wellness and Emergency Savings

Financial Wellness and Emergency Savings

Money is a leading cause of stress for most Americans, even those considered wealthy. Surveys show that people worry about retirement savings, unexpected ...

Pros and Cons of Annuities vs. Lump Sum Payouts for Defined Benefit Plans

Pros and Cons of Annuities vs. Lump Sum Payouts for Defined Benefit Plans

At age 66 and widowed, Eric was ready to retire and faced with a choice: take a one-time lump sum benefit equal to the $550,000 he had in his defined benefit ...

Season’s Greetings from TPS Group

Season’s Greetings from TPS Group

To our Friends and Associates – Each year during the holiday season, we take great pleasure in setting aside time from our regular work to send a heartfelt ...

Top Fears of Employees Approaching Retirement

Top Fears of Employees Approaching Retirement

The decision to retire often brings a mix of emotions: relief, excitement, and anticipation of more time to relax, travel, and pursue other interests. ...

Performance Development vs Performance Management: Is it Time for a Change?

Performance Development vs Performance Management: Is it Time for a Change?

“I’ve been doing performance reviews for the past 20 years, and I’ve never gone back and looked at any of them once they were submitted.” “I usually just ...

Pros and Cons of CARES Act Retirement Account Withdrawals

Pros and Cons of CARES Act Retirement Account Withdrawals

Bob’s wife, Angie, was laid off from her job in retail when the pandemic began and stores closed their doors. To make matters worse, Bob became infected ...

TPS Talks Newsletter | Apr. - May 2020 | Issue 1

TPS Talks Newsletter | Apr. - May 2020 | Issue 1

This forwards automatically to the Newsletter PDF with proper formatting

COVID-19 and Workplace Stress: Tips for Managers and Leaders

COVID-19 and Workplace Stress: Tips for Managers and Leaders

As the engines of the economy restart in phases, many business leaders are grappling with concerns about the welfare and safety of their employees and ...

CEFEX, Centre for Fiduciary Excellence, LLC, has renewed the certification of TPS Group

CEFEX, Centre for Fiduciary Excellence, LLC, has renewed the certification of TPS Group

RECORDKEEPER/ADMINISTRATOR RENEWS CERTIFICATION TO INDUSTRY BEST PRACTICES PITTSBURGH, May 27, 2020, CEFEX, Centre for Fiduciary Excellence, LLC, has ...

May is Mental Health Awareness Month

May is Mental Health Awareness Month

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Nearly 450 Million people worldwide are currently living with some level of mental illness including anxiety, depression ...

How the CARES Act Applies to Your Retirement Plan

How the CARES Act Applies to Your Retirement Plan

This forwards automatically to the Employer Connect PDF with proper Q&A formatting.

Aligning Plan Design with Your Goals

Aligning Plan Design with Your Goals

Aligning Plan Design with Your Goals Most of us live in homes that were not custom-designed for us. We adapt to them rather than expect them to be optimized ...

IRS 5500 Extension

IRS 5500 Extension

The IRS has published some good news for Form 5500 filers—well, some Form 5500 filers. Under Notice 2020-23, released April 9, the extensions generally ...

The CARES Act and Retirement Plans

The CARES Act and Retirement Plans

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was signed into law on March 27, 2020, in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Key provisions ...

CT Recovery Bridge Loan Program

CT Recovery Bridge Loan Program

Coronavirus Business Recovery TPS Group will continue representing the interests of you and your employees during this crisis and keep you informed of ...

Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA)

Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA)

As America has nearly shut down overnight due to the coronavirus pandemic, we understand employers are faced with growing concerns about how to manage ...

IRS Extends 2019 Qualified Plan, IRA, HSA Contribution Deadlines

IRS Extends 2019 Qualified Plan, IRA, HSA Contribution Deadlines

The IRS on March 24 updated its website to indicate that it has extended until July 15, 2020 the deadlines for making contributions to workplace-based ...

TPS Group Statement On COVID-19 Outbreak

TPS Group Statement On COVID-19 Outbreak

At TPS Group, we care deeply about the safety of our employees, customers, and communities. Due to the evolving situation with the coronavirus (COVID-19) ...

Understanding How Forfeitures Work in Your Retirement Plan

Understanding How Forfeitures Work in Your Retirement Plan

Understanding How Forfeitures Work in Your Retirement Plan When we talk about 401(k) retirement plans, we sometimes focus on the contributions made by ...

Encourage Greater Participation with a QACA Safe Harbor

Encourage Greater Participation with a QACA Safe Harbor

You already know that a 401(k) is a very popular retirement plan and, like other plan designs, it allows your employees to take advantage of tax deferrals ...

Understanding Why a QDIA Matters

Understanding Why a QDIA Matters

Understanding Why a QDIA Matters Auto-enrollment has been proven to be effective in raising participation rates in 401(k) plans. As a result, it's been ...

When to Set Sail with Safe Harbor

When to Set Sail with Safe Harbor

When to Set Sail with Safe Harbor You already know that a 401(k) is a very popular retirement plan and, like other plan designs, it allows your employees ...

Salary Deferral Deposits: Avoiding Fiduciary Violations

Salary Deferral Deposits: Avoiding Fiduciary Violations

For the 401(k) fiduciary, the importance of timely salary deferral deposits cannot be overstated. An employer that fails to remit employee contributions ...

Davis-Bacon Prevailing Wage Plans: Key Points for Employers

Davis-Bacon Prevailing Wage Plans: Key Points for Employers

The Davis-Bacon Act is a federal prevailing wage law governed by the Department of Labor that applies to contractors and subcontractors who perform work ...

Set Sail with Safe Harbor

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