Safe Harbor in Western NY

As the year draws to a close, it’s the perfect time to reflect on your financial health and ensure you’re on track to meet your retirement goals. A quick ...

October is National Retirement Security Month, an annual campaign to raise awareness about retirement planning. This initiative offers employers a unique ...

Originally published by the National Institute of Pension Administrators. Download the original PDF here. The mission of a Third Party Administrator ...

Carl and Terri, a couple in their early 60s, had been saving for retirement for over 30 years. They planned to live off their retirement savings, supplemented ...

Al and Maria, both in their early thirties, had been diligently contributing to their retirement accounts since their mid-twenties. They were renting a ...

Retirement planning is crucial for financial security, but women often face unique hurdles that can complicate this process. Understanding and addressing ...

Retirement is meant to be a time to enjoy the rewards of your years of hard work. Unfortunately, it can also make you a target for fraudsters, and scams ...

On September 23, 2024, the Retirement Security Rule will take effect, a pivotal regulatory update issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) aimed at ...

This is an “IRS Rollover Chart” as it related to retirement plans and IRAs. Click here to download the chart as a PDF.  

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 ...

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

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

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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. ...

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

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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

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

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

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

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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) ...

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

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 ...

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.” ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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

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 ...

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 ...

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

“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 ...

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 ...

This forwards automatically to the Newsletter PDF with proper formatting

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 ...

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. Nearly 450 Million people worldwide are currently living with some level of mental illness including anxiety, depression ...

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

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 ...

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

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

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

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 ...

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 When we talk about 401(k) retirement plans, we sometimes focus on the contributions made by ...

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

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

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 ...