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Last month, the Treasury Department and the IRS issued joint final regulations, answering many looming questions after the proposed regulations were issued.
The IRS also released technical guidance regarding all cost‑of‑living adjustments affecting dollar limitations for pension plans and other retirement-related items for tax year 2026 in Notice 2025-67 PDF, posted today on IRS.gov.
The IRS must provide a safe harbor permitting all plan administrators to rely on wage information on W-2s when determining whether employees have exceeded the catch-up wage threshold of $145,000, recommends the American Institute of CPAs.
It is crucial for plan sponsors to think ahead and familiarize themselves with new provisions coming in 2026, including higher catch-up contributions, big changes to required minimum distributions and changes for annuities.
Employers need to be aware of the increased limit on catch-up contributions on older participants, as well as DOL’s new policy on transferring benefit payments on missing participants and uncashed checks of $1,000 or less.
The SPARK Institute submitted several recommendations regarding Saver’s Match and proper use of forfeited plan funds to be part of the upcoming 2025-2026 Priority Guidance Plan, in a letter sent to the Treasury and the IRS.
While the official IRS announcement will come later this year, the contribution limit for retirement accounts will likely increase from $23,500 to $24,500 in 2026, according to a new Milliman report.