“If You Make a Mistake With Your Retirement Account, There's Nothing You Can Do” MYTH — Certain retirement account mistakes can be corrected. And new IRS guidance may make some corrections easier. On October 22, 2026, Treasury and the IRS announced two important developments involving retirement plan compliance. 💡 What's New? 1️⃣ Updated Employee Retirement Plan Correction Program Revenue Procedure 2026-34 expands and updates the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System, commonly called EPCRS. This program allows eligible retirement plan sponsors to correct certain errors while preserving tax-favored retirement benefits. The updated procedure became effective October 22, 2026. 2️⃣ New IRA Correction Program Revenue Procedure 2026-33 establishes the IRA Compliance Resolution System. The new program provides a process for correcting certain eligible inadvertent IRA failures caused by service-provider errors. Important: The new IRA correction procedure becomes effective May 1, 2027. 📊 Example Imagine a small business sponsoring a retirement plan. During an annual review, the business discovers that an eligible employee was incorrectly excluded from certain plan contributions. Depending on the circumstances, the employer may be able to correct the error through an available EPCRS procedure. The appropriate correction could involve additional contributions, earnings adjustments, and supporting documentation. 🔍 Why Does This Matter? Retirement plan errors can potentially affect: • Employee retirement benefits. • Employer compliance obligations. • Plan tax qualification. • Required contributions. • Tax reporting. Fortunately, certain errors can be corrected under established IRS procedures. ⚠️ Important Qualifications Not every mistake qualifies for self-correction. Some errors require formal submissions or other corrective actions. The new IRA correction program does not provide unlimited relief for all IRA mistakes. Existing automatic waiver and self-certification procedures for certain late rollovers remain available where applicable.

Your 20-Minute Year-End Tax Payment Checkup Will you owe additional federal income taxes when you file your 2026 return? There's still time to evaluate your situation. On October 23, the IRS reminded taxpayers to review their withholding and estimated tax payments before the upcoming filing season. This week's workshop will help you identify a potential tax payment shortfall. 📊 Let's Work Through an Example Assume your projected 2026 federal income tax liability is: Estimated total federal income tax: $28,000 Your anticipated tax payments are: Federal income tax withholding: $18,000 Estimated tax payments already made: $6,000 Total anticipated payments: $24,000 Projected balance due: $4,000 Based on these assumptions, you may owe approximately $4,000 when filing your return. However, whether an estimated tax penalty applies depends on additional factors. 💡 Understanding the Safe Harbor Rules Generally, taxpayers may avoid federal estimated tax underpayment penalties by paying enough tax throughout the year to satisfy applicable requirements. Common safe harbor thresholds include: ✅ At least 90% of the current year's tax liability. OR ✅ Generally, 100% of the prior year's tax liability. For certain higher-income taxpayers, the prior-year threshold increases to 110%. Other conditions and exceptions apply. 📝 Your Workshop Assignment STEP 1 — Estimate Your 2026 Income Include wages, business profits, investments, retirement distributions, and other taxable income. STEP 2 — Estimate Your Federal Tax Liability Consider your filing status, deductions, and applicable credits. STEP 3 — Review Payments Made Check federal withholding and estimated payments. STEP 4 — Calculate the Difference Subtract anticipated payments from projected tax liability. STEP 5 — Evaluate Your Options Depending on your circumstances, you may need to adjust payroll withholding or make an additional estimated payment. 📅 Important Deadline For most calendar-year individual taxpayers:

Protect Your Tax Identity Before the IRS System Goes Offline in November Did you know someone could attempt to file a fraudulent tax return using your Social Security number? Tax-related identity theft remains a serious concern. On October 22, 2026, the IRS issued an important reminder encouraging taxpayers to protect their online accounts and obtain an Identity Protection PIN. There's also a timing consideration. 🔐 What Is an IP PIN? An Identity Protection PIN is a six-digit number issued by the IRS. It helps prevent someone else from filing a federal income tax return using your Social Security number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number. The PIN provides an additional layer of protection. Even if someone obtains your personal information, they generally cannot successfully electronically file a return using your identity without the required IP PIN. 📅 Why Act Now? The IRS announced that taxpayers planning to file early in 2027 should request an IP PIN before the online system becomes unavailable for annual maintenance in mid-November 2026. The system is generally expected to become available again in mid-January. 🛠️ Your Tax-Smart Action Steps STEP 1: Visit the official IRS website. STEP 2: Access your IRS Individual Online Account. STEP 3: Locate the Identity Protection PIN service. STEP 4: Complete the required identity verification. STEP 5: Securely retain your IP PIN for tax preparation. 📊 Practical Example Imagine a taxpayer whose Social Security number was compromised in a data breach. A criminal attempts to file a fraudulent federal return claiming a $6,000 refund. If the taxpayer has an IP PIN, a return submitted without the correct PIN generally cannot be electronically filed successfully. The PIN helps protect the taxpayer's identity and legitimate refund. ⚠️ Important Considerations An IP PIN changes annually. Never share it with an unsolicited caller, email sender, or text-message contact. Provide it only to your trusted tax professional when preparing your return.

Your 2026 Tax Return Is Already Taking Shape. Are You Paying Attention? Here's something most taxpayers don't realize: Your tax return isn't created when your accountant prepares it. It's created throughout the year—one financial decision at a time. On October 23, 2026, the IRS issued a timely reminder encouraging taxpayers to practice year-round tax planning. Why? Because waiting until tax season often means missing opportunities that required action during the previous year. 💡 Think About It During 2026, you may have: 💰 Changed jobs or received a salary increase. 🏠 Purchased or sold property. 📈 Earned investment income. 🏢 Started or expanded a business. 👨‍👩‍👧 Experienced changes in your household. Each of these events can affect your tax liability. But here's the important distinction: Tax preparation reports what happened. Tax planning helps influence what happens next. 📊 A Simple Example Imagine two business owners who each expect to earn $200,000 in 2026. Business Owner A Waits until March 2027 to review taxes. By then, many year-end planning opportunities have expired. Business Owner B Reviews projected income in October 2026. Before December 31, the owner evaluates eligible retirement contributions, business expenses, estimated taxes, and available deductions. The second owner has more time to make informed decisions. That doesn't guarantee lower taxes—but it creates opportunities to evaluate legitimate strategies before applicable deadlines. ⚠️ Important Reminder Not every tax strategy applies to every taxpayer. Eligibility depends on income, filing status, business structure, and other circumstances. Appropriate documentation is essential. 🎯 Monday Mindset The most valuable tax planning decision you make this year may simply be deciding to start before the year ends. Don't wait until April to discover what you could have done in December. 💬 Community Question: Have you completed a preliminary estimate of your 2026 federal income taxes?

Over Age 50? Your 2026 Retirement Catch-Up Contributions May Work Differently If you're approaching retirement, 2026 offers an important opportunity to review your retirement contribution strategy. But there's a rule affecting certain higher-income employees that deserves special attention. Beginning in 2026, some employees must make their retirement plan catch-up contributions on a Roth basis. 💰 First, Know the 2026 Limits For eligible employees participating in a traditional 401(k): Regular employee contribution limit: $24,500 Additional catch-up contributions may be available. Age 50–59: $8,000 Age 60–63: $11,250 Age 64 and older: $8,000 These limits assume the plan permits the applicable contributions. 💡 What's Different for Higher Earners? Beginning in 2026, certain employees whose prior-year wages exceed a specified threshold must make their catch-up contributions as Roth contributions. For 2026, the relevant threshold is: More than $150,000 in 2025 FICA wages from the employer sponsoring the plan. This rule generally affects eligible employees who make catch-up contributions to applicable employer retirement plans. 📊 Example Consider an employee who: • Is age 55 during 2026. • Earned $170,000 in applicable wages from the employer during 2025. • Participates in the employer's 401(k) plan. The employee may generally contribute up to: Regular employee contribution: $24,500 Catch-up contribution: $8,000 Total potential employee contribution: $32,500 However, because the employee's applicable 2025 wages exceeded $150,000, the $8,000 catch-up contribution generally must be designated as Roth. 🔍 Why Does That Matter? Traditional pretax 401(k) contributions generally reduce current taxable income. Roth contributions do not provide the same current-year income tax deduction. However, qualifying Roth distributions in retirement may be tax-free. Therefore, the distinction can affect both current-year taxes and long-term retirement planning.