#employee-benefits
Discover employee benefit options to attract talent and reduce turnover in small businesses
IRS rule: pre-tax disability premiums mean taxable benefits; after-tax premiums mean tax-free ones. Gross-up premiums into W-2 wages to protect employees.
FAVR pays drivers tax-free with a fixed monthly allowance plus a per-mile rate — but it needs five drivers, 5,000 miles each, and a quarterly IRS ceiling test.
A spouse on W-2 payroll can fund a second solo 401(k) and pretax health coverage — if the IRS sees real work, market pay, and payroll records.
WOTC lapsed Dec 31, 2025 — keep filing IRS Form 8850 within 28 days, since past lapses were renewed retroactively and only timely filings qualify.
Terminating a 401(k), SEP, or SIMPLE IRA requires 100% vesting, full asset distribution, and a final Form 5500 due seven months after the last payout.
A rabbi trust defers tax but leaves the employee behind your creditors in bankruptcy; a secular trust is IRS-taxed at funding. Pick by who bears credit risk.
Baltimore's ordinance sets a roughly $18/hour wage plus $5.50 benefits floor for security guards from January 1, 2028 — payroll taxes don't count toward it.
Federal law requires jury-duty time off but no pay; 8 states plus DC mandate employer pay, and the FLSA bars docking exempt salaries.
The DOL expects certified mail, record checks, beneficiary contact, and free online searches — and IRS Rev. Rul. 2019-19 taxes a 401(k) check never cashed.
No federal penalty ($0), but CA, MA, NJ, RI, and D.C. still charge $300–$4,908 per person — plus separate state employer filings.
An ERISA fidelity bond protects the plan from theft, not you. Fiduciary liability insurance covers 401(k) breach-of-duty claims for $500–$2,500 a year.
A QSEHRA lets employers under 50 FTEs reimburse individual health premiums tax-free — up to $6,450 self-only in 2026, with the IRS 90-day notice filed.
