Building on the momentum from the prior quarter, equity markets delivered another strong performance in Q3 2025, with all major U.S. indices posting robust gains and setting new record highs. The S&P 500 Index1 and Nasdaq Composite Index2 advanced by 7.8% and 11.2%, respectively, during the quarter, extending their year-to-date (through 9/30/25) gains to 13.7% and 17.3%. This continued rally...
On November 13, 2025, the IRS announced the Cost of Living Adjustments (COLAs) affecting the dollar limitations for retirement plans for 2026. In October, the Social Security Administration announced a modest benefit increase of 2.8%. Retirement plan limits also increased over the 2025 limits. COLA increases are intended to allow participant contributions and benefits to keep up with the “cost...
On September 15, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the IRS issued final regulations implementing the Roth catch-up contribution requirement under the SECURE 2.0 Act. These rules will significantly impact how plan sponsors administer catch-up contributions for certain high-income participants starting in 2026. Key Takeaway for Plan Sponsors Beginning January 1, 2026, employees who are...
It’s that time of year again. A chill is in the air, football is on TV almost every night, and many are planning family holidays. It’s also time—if your plan has a December year end—to start thinking about your annual data request. You may wonder why we ask for this data at the end of every year. The bottom line is that we need the information to keep your plan in compliance and provide the best...
December 2025 1st: Participant Notices – Annual notices due for Safe Harbor elections (note that some plans are no longer required to distribute Safe Harbor notices), Qualified Default Investment Arrangement (QDIA), and Automatic Contribution Arrangements (EACA or QACA). 31st: ADP/ACP Corrections - Deadline for a plan to make ADP/ACP corrective distributions and/or deposit qualified...
After a challenging start to the quarter, marred by a tariff-induced sell-off in the first part of April, equity markets staged a remarkable turnaround in Q2 2025. After bottoming out on April 7th, both the S&P 500 Index1 and Nasdaq Composite Index rebounded strongly, surging by 28.3% and 37.8%, respectively, to close out the quarter, reaching new all-time highs in the process. This largely...
You may have been reading in the news about the recent uptick in ERISA class action lawsuits relating to the use of forfeitures. This article will be relevant to your plan if you have employer contributions and apply a vesting schedule to those funds. What is a Forfeiture? An Employer may design its retirement plan so that contributions it makes for its participants are subject to a vesting...
Uncashed distribution checks present a persistent and often overlooked challenge for retirement plan sponsors. Despite the best efforts of plan administrators, some participants fail to cash their distribution checks, leading to administrative burdens, fiduciary concerns and potential compliance issues. A recent publication by Retirement Management Services (RMS) sheds light on this issue and...
When a participant in a qualified retirement plan undergoes a divorce, the participant’s account balance may be an asset that is split with the former spouse. As the plan exists for the exclusive benefit of its participants, a court order is required to transfer the participant’s benefits to the ex-spouse. Once approved by the plan administrator, this court order is called a Qualified Domestic...
September 2025 15th: Required contribution to defined benefit plans, money purchase pension plans and target benefit pension plans. Contribution deadline for deducting 2024 employer contributions for those sponsors who filed an extension for Partnership or S-Corporation tax returns to extend the March 15, 2025, deadline. 15th: Due date for 2025 PBGC Comprehensive Premium Filing for defined...
Written By: Brent Miller, Senior Portfolio Manager Q2 2025 was a period of significant recovery for U.S. equity markets, following a turbulent start to the period marked by trade tensions and economic uncertainty. After bottoming out on 4/7/25, both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rebounded strongly, surging by 28.3% and 37.8%, respectively, to close out the quarter and reaching new...
Since reaching respective all-time highs on February 2025 and December 2024, the S&P 500 Index1 and the Nasdaq Composite Index2 both reached correction territory in Q1 2025, indicating a decline of between 10% and 20% from these record levels. A deeper analysis, however, reveals that the Q1 2025 market environment was impacted by both a broad-based selloff and a market rotation, both of...
As a plan sponsor, you may be using vesting schedules to encourage employee retention, but new research from Vanguard reveals that this strategy may not be as effective as you think. In reality, vesting schedules do little to keep employees from leaving – and they might actually be creating unnecessary administrative costs for your company. What is a vesting schedule? While the funds that an...
Many different Federal agencies affect the operation of retirement plans. First, Congress enacts the laws that govern plans; then, various entities such as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Department of Labor (DOL), Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), and the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) interpret and carry out those laws. The most important thing to note is that...
May 2025 15th: Quarterly Benefit Statement - Deadline for participant-directed plans to supply participants with the quarterly benefit/disclosure statement, including a statement of plan fees and expenses charged to individual plan accounts during the first quarter of 2025. June 2025 30th: EACA ADP/ACP Corrections - Deadline for processing corrective distributions for failed ADP/ACP...
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