It is May 3, 2026. A major provision of the SECURE Act 2.0 has officially triggered today. Any LLC with 5 or more employees is now legally required to offer an automatic-enrollment retirement plan.
- The Penalty: Failure to comply results in a state-level fine of up to $250 per employee, per month.
- The Tax Credit: The good news is that the IRS is offering a “Startup Costs” credit that covers 100% of the plan’s administrative fees for the first 3 years.
- The Shark Insight: “Compliance is forced, but the benefit is yours. Use the ‘Auto-Enrollment’ tax credits to build your own tax-advantaged wealth while satisfying the mandate. If you have 5 employees, you have no choice—do it by June 1st to avoid the first wave of automated fines.”