Employee benefit plan updates for 2015
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It is time to update small business benefit plans
by Tony Novak, CPA, MBA, MT January 17, 2015
If you have a small business that offers employee benefits to workers, you are likely aware that these plans must be documented in writing. When the law changes, it is often necesary to update those benefit plan documents.
Legal documents should be reviewed by an attorney. I am not an attorney; I offer help in the design and planning of benefits and my firm Freedom Benefits offers free proptotype benefit plan documents to small business clients and their attorneys.
This is a list of changes likely to affect 2015 small business employee benefit plans.
Cafeteria benefit plans
Annual dollar limit for Flexible Spending Account (FSA) contributions increased to $2,550. Also, if you did not already modify your FSA plan documents to allow a $500 carry-over from year to year, this can still be done now to allow the benefits for 2015.
Health Savings Accounts (HSA)
The 2015 HSA contribution limit is $3,350 for single and $6,650 for family.
The maximum out-of-pocket amount for HSA-qualified High Deductible Health Plans (HDHP) in 2015 is $6,450 for single and $12,900 for family.(The maximum out-of-pocket limit for an HDHP under the Affordable Care Act are still $6,600 for single and $13,200 for family but an HSA-qualified health insurance plan must comply with the more strict IRS limits even though the ACA may permit them to be higher).
Health Insurance
The maximum insurance deductible for a qualified insurance plan under ACA increased to $2,050 for individuals and $4,100 for family.
Adoption tax credit
The adoption assistance tax credit rose to $13,400 and the income range for phasing out the credit now starts at $201,010.
Retirement plans
The elective deferral limit for 401(k) plans and most defined contribution retirement plans increased to $18,000. The defined contribution retirement plan catch-up contribution limit for people over 50 increased to $6,000.
The annual limit for defined contribution plans increased to $53,000.
The compensation limit used to define “highly compensated employee” increased to $120,000.
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