Simplified Employee Pension (SEP)
Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) plans were created to allow self-employed persons, sole proprietorships, partnerships, small businesses, small employee groups and corporations to provide retirement plans via an easily established and maintained retirement program.
Advantages of an SEP Plan as an employer:
- Contributions are tax-deductible
- Contributions made for employees are a business expense that reduces net profits
- Deadline for establishing and making contributions is the employer's tax return deadline for the year in which the contributions are made
- Contributions are flexible (IRS limits apply. Consult your tax advisor.)
- You may establish an SEP plan and make contributions even if you are employed and covered by a retirement plan at work
Advantages of an SEP Plan as an employee:
- Offers immediate vesting
- IRAs funded by SEP contributions are portable. An employee can move his or her IRA to other financial institutions that offer IRAs
- SEP plan contributions are invested in accordance with the employee's instructions
- Employees can choose from the investments offered by the financial institutions that administer their IRAs
- SEP plan contributions can be made until the employee retires, regardless of age
- SEP plan contributions made by an employer are not included in the employees' income for tax purposes, and employees pay no taxes on the amounts in their SEP accounts until the funds are withdrawn