Retirement Flashcards
Basic Concepts of Social Security
Coverage: Nearly every worker is covered under OASDI.
Employment categories not covered by Social Security include:
- Federal employees who have been continuously employed since before 1984.
- Some Americans working abroad
- Student nurses and students working for a college or college club
- Railroad Employees
- A child, under age 18, who is employed by a parent in an unincorporated business
- Ministers, members of religious orders and Christian Science practitioners if they claim an exemption
- Members of Tribal Councils
Social Security
(Reduction of Benefits)
Age 62 - FRA (Full Retirement Age): Benefits reduced $1 for every $2 earned over $17,640 (2019 threshhold)
Social Security
(Taxation)
- Must include Muni Bond Income to calculate MAGI
- If income (MAGI) plus ½ of Social Security Benefits is:
- Above $25K for a single taxpayer, then 50% of the total Social Security is included in Income.
- Above $44k for MFJ, then 85% of the total Social Security is included in Income.
Types of Qualified Plans / ERISA
(Vesting /Admin Costs / Exempt from Creditors / Integrate with Social Security)
- Defined Benefit
- Cash Balance
- Money Purchase
- Target Benefit
- Profit Sharing
- Profit Sharing 401(k)
- Stock Bonus ESOP (NOT integrated with Social Security or cross-tested)
Types of Retirement Plans
(No Vesting / Limited Admin Costs)
- SEP
- SIMPLE
- SAR-SEP
- Thrift or Savings Plans
- 403(b)
Defined Benefit - Qualified Plan
- Favors older employee/owner (50+)
- Certain retirement benefit; Max $225k (2019)
- Meet a specific retirement objective
- Company must have very stable cash flow
- Past service credits allowed
- Forfeitures MUST be applied to reduce employer contributions
- PBGC Insured (along with Cash Balance Plan)
Money Purchase - Qualified Plan
- Up to 25% Employer Deduction
- Fixed Contributions
- Need stable cash flow
- Maximum Annual Contribution lesser of 100% or salary of $56k (2019)
Target Benefit - Qualified Plan
- Up to 25% Employer Deduction
- Fixed Contributions
- Need stable cash flow
- Maximum annual contribution less of 100% of salary or $56K (2019)
- Favors older workers
Profit Sharing - Qualified Plan
- Up to 25% Employer Deduction
- Flexible contributions (must be recurring and substantial)
- Maximum Annual Contribution lesser of 100% of salary or $56K (2019)
- Can have 401(k) provisions
- SIMPLE 401(k) exempt from creditors
Section 401(k) Plan
Qualified profit sharing or stock bonus plan that allows plan participants to defer salary into the plan.
- Max $19,000 (2019) deferral for participants under 50 (subject to FICA)
- Additional $6,000 catch-up for age 50 and over (2019)
Section 415 Annual Additions Limit
- Lesser of 100% of compensation or $56,000 (2019)
- Includes employer contributions, employee salary reductions and plan forfeitures
457 Plans -
- State/Local Government and Nonprofit Employers
- Non-Qualified
- Tax-Advantaged
- As defined contribution plans, both 401(k) and 457 plans are funded when employees contribute through payroll deductions; participants of each plan set aside a percentage of their salary to put into their retirement account
- The normal contribution limit for elective deferrals to a 457 deferred compensation plan is increased from $18,500 to $19,000 in 2019.
- Employees age 50 or older may contribute up to an additional $6,000 for a total of $25,000.
- 457 plans are similar in nature to 401(k) plans, only rather than being offered to employees at for-profit companies, they cater to state and local public workers, together with highly paid executives at certain nonprofit organizations, such as charities.
401(a) Plans
- Qualified
- The employee’s account balance is tax-deferred until the money is withdrawn, while the employer’s contribution is tax-deductible.
- Money-purchase retirement plan
- A money purchase pension plan is an employee retirement benefit plan that resembles a corporate profit-sharing program.
- It requires the employer to deposit a set percentage of the participating employee’s salary in the account every year.
- The employee is not permitted to contribute to the fund but may choose how to invest the money based on options offered by the employer.
- A money purchase pension plan is sometimes likened to a profit-sharing plan. The difference is that the rules for a money purchase plan are rigid. The company cannot adjust its contribution level as profits go up or down.
401(k) Plans
- 401(k) plans are offered by private, for-profit employers and some nonprofit employers
- 401(k) plans are considered qualified retirement plans and are therefore subject to ERISA
- Employers sponsoring 401(k) plans may make matching or non-elective contributions to the plan on behalf of eligible employees
403(b) Plans
- The annual elective deferral limit for 401(k) plan employee contributions increased from $18,500 to $19,000 in 2019. Employees age 50 or older may contribute up to an additional $6,000 for a total of $25,000.
- The total contribution limit for both employee and employer contributions to 401(k) defined contribution plans under section 415(c)(1)(A) increased from $55,000 to $56,000 ($62,000 if age 50 or older).
IRAs
- The contribution limit for Traditional and Roth IRAs increase from $5,500 to $6,000 in 2019. Employees age 50 or older are eligible to contribute an additional $1,000, for a total of $7,000.
Safe Harbor Non-Discrimination
A Safe Harbor 401(k) plan automatically satisfies the non-discrimination tests involving highly compensated employees (HCEs) with either an employer matching contribution or a non-elective contribution.
Safe Harbor Match / Vesting
The statutory contribution using a match is $1/$1 on the first 3% employee deferral and $0.50/$1 on the next 2% employee deferral.
- If the employer chooses to use the non-elective deferral method, the employer must contribute 3% of all eligible employees’ compensation regardless of whether the employee is deferring or not.
- Employer contributions must be immediately vested.
Stock Bonus / ESOP - Qualified Plan
- Up to 25% employer deduction
- Flexible contributions
- Maximum Annual Contribution lesser of 100% of salary or $56K (2019)
- 100% of contribution can be invested in company stock ESOP cannot be integrated with Social Security or cross-tested
Net Unrealized Appreciation (NUA)
NUA Example:
Stock is contributed to the retirement plan with a basis of $20k. The stock is distributed at retirement with a market value of $200k. The NUA, $180k, is not taxable until the employee sells the stock, but the $20k is taxable now as ordinary income.
The $180k is always LTCG. If the client sells the stock for $230k, the $30k of extra gain is either STCG or LTCG depending on the holding period after distributed at retirement.
Keogh Contribution
- Only for sole proprietor and partnerships
- Self-Employment Tax must be computed and a deduction of one-half of the Self-Employment Tax must be taken before determining the Keogh deduction.
Shortcut below takes into account Self-Employment Taxes:
- If contribution 15%: multiply by 12.12% of net earnings
- If contribution 25%: multiply by 18.59% of net earnings