Small businesses with five or more employees that don’t offer a qualified retirement plan have less than a week to register with CalSavers, a retirement savings program for private-sector workers.
As required by law, employers are mandated to register with CalSavers by June 30, 2022 if they:
• Have at least five California-based employees, at least one of whom is 18 years old or older; and
• Don’t offer a qualified retirement plan, such as a 401(a), 401(k), 403(a), 403(b), 408(k), 408(p) or a payroll deduction IRA with automatic enrollment.
Register Today
Eligible employers must register online at CalSavers.com.
There are no employer fees and employers do not make contributions to employee accounts.
After an employer registers with CalSavers, they must provide the CalSavers program administrator with a collection of personal information about each individual employee within 30 days of registering. This information includes the employee’s:
• Name;
• Social Security number;
• Date of birth; and
• Contact information.
After a 30-day opt out period for employees ends, employers will begin deducting each employee’s contributions to the CalSavers program from their salary each payroll period; then, within seven days of deduction, it will remit the employee’s contributions to the program administrator through bank transfer.
Non-compliant employers will be penalized $250 per employee upon the first penalty notice. If noncompliance persists another 90 days, employers will be penalized an additional $500 per employee, for a total of $750 per employee for sustained noncompliance.
Note for Exempt Employers: Although not required, CalSavers requests that employers that already offer a qualified retirement program, and are exempt from participating in the program, inform CalSavers of their exemption in the employer portal.
Visit the CalSavers website to register and get more resources (like program brochures and templates for communications with employees), guided support and FAQs.
Staff Contact: Katie Culliton
