Get the latest updates for our retirement plan solutions.
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RecordkeeperDirect®
Add investment options from other fund managers
Existing RecordkeeperDirect plan sponsors can now add investment options from other fund managers for a low fee. It’s the same recordkeeping experience you know, with the benefit of expanded fund flexibility to help participants pursue their retirement savings goals. Complete the Change of funds or share class form to get started.
Introducing American Funds Core Plus Bond Fund
This diversified U.S.-focused fixed income mutual fund is designed to anchor a portfolio through a research-based investment approach. American Funds Core Plus Bond Fund invests in securities across all fixed income sectors, seeking to balance preservation and potential enhanced income compared to a traditional core fund.
We expect this new fund to be available for RecordkeeperDirect in early November 2025.
Prepare for important year-end deadlines
As the plan year ends, there are several deadlines and potential action items that plan sponsors should be aware of. These include year-end notices and disclosures, mandatory distributions, required minimum distribution reminders, and more.
Plan sponsors can use the following resources to help them meet these year-end retirement plan obligations.
Be prepared for the new SECURE 2.0 Roth catch-up rule
Starting January 1, 2026, catch-up contributions for participants who earned more than $145,000 (indexed annually) in Social Security FICA wages in the prior calendar year must be made as Roth contributions.
Plans that don’t allow Roth contributions should consider adding Roth elective deferrals as a contribution type. If a plan does not offer Roth contributions, higher-paid participants subject to the Roth catch-up requirement will not be able to make catch-up contributions. If you don’t want to offer Roth contributions, you may also remove the option to make catch-up contributions.
We encourage you to work with your payroll provider now to ensure catch-up contributions for higher-paid participants are directed appropriately. For plans that automatically switch catch-up contributions from pretax to Roth when a participant is subject to the Roth catch-up requirement, the sponsor/payroll provider is responsible for changing impacted participants’ deferrals from pretax to Roth. For plans that don’t have a Roth source, sponsor/payroll providers are responsible for stopping impacted participants’ deferrals when the applicable deferral limit is reached.
We can help you comply with this requirement by collecting a new high-earner indicator on our system that identifies participants who are subject to the Roth catch-up requirement. The indicator will drive reports with relevant data to assist with contribution processing and identifying any participants that may require corrections.
Watch for more details soon, including information on how to add the high-earner indicator to the recordkeeping system.
Make onboarding easier with Plan Manager templates
As we see an increase in the adoption of our Plan Manager tool, we continue to streamline the process of onboarding new retirement plans online. Now, you can create a plan template based on an existing plan and store up to five templates for future use.
Take advantage of a more powerful proposal
Help unlock your next retirement plan opportunity with a streamlined proposal. Now you can focus on what matters most to your clients and the value you can offer with our recordkeeping solutions.
The streamlined proposal is available as a PDF or printed brochure through our Retirement Planalyzer® tool, where you can easily find and compare retirement plan options.
Get the latest SECURE 2.0 Act provisions updates
The SECURE 2.0 Act marked a significant step toward enabling more small business owners and employees to pursue retirement stability. Get the latest updates on our recordkeeping support to help you take advantage of key SECURE 2.0 provisions.
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PlanPremier®-TPA
Introducing American Funds Core Plus Bond Fund
This diversified U.S.-focused fixed income mutual fund is designed to anchor a portfolio through a research-based investment approach. American Funds Core Plus Bond Fund invests in securities across all fixed income sectors, seeking to balance preservation and potential enhanced income compared to a traditional core fund.
We expect this new fund to be available for PlanPremier in early November 2025.
Prepare for important year-end deadlines
As the plan year ends, there are several deadlines and potential action items that plan sponsors should be aware of. These include year-end notices and disclosures, mandatory distributions, required minimum distribution reminders, and more.
Plan sponsors can use the following resources to help them meet these year-end retirement plan obligations.
Be prepared for the new SECURE 2.0 Roth catch-up rule
Starting January 1, 2026, catch-up contributions for participants who earned more than $145,000 (indexed annually) in Social Security FICA wages in the prior calendar year must be made as Roth contributions.
Plans that don’t allow Roth contributions should consider adding Roth elective deferrals as a contribution type. If a plan does not offer Roth contributions, higher-paid participants subject to the Roth catch-up requirement will not be able to make catch-up contributions. If you don’t want to offer Roth contributions, you may also remove the option to make catch-up contributions.
We encourage you to work with your payroll provider now to ensure catch-up contributions for higher-paid participants are directed appropriately. For plans that automatically switch catch-up contributions from pretax to Roth when a participant is subject to the Roth catch-up requirement, the sponsor/payroll provider is responsible for changing impacted participants’ deferrals from pretax to Roth. For plans that don’t have a Roth source, sponsor/payroll providers are responsible for stopping impacted participants’ deferrals when the applicable deferral limit is reached.
We can help you comply with this requirement by collecting a new high-earner indicator on our system that identifies participants who are subject to the Roth catch-up requirement. The indicator will drive reports with relevant data to assist with contribution processing and identifying any participants that may require corrections, as well as payroll warnings and custom participant messaging.
Watch for more details soon, including information on how to add the high-earner indicator to the recordkeeping system.
Take advantage of a more powerful proposal
Help unlock your next retirement plan opportunity with a streamlined proposal. Now you can focus on what matters most to your clients and the value you can offer with our recordkeeping solutions.
The streamlined proposal is available as a PDF or printed brochure through our Retirement Planalyzer® tool, where you can easily find and compare retirement plan options.
Get the latest SECURE 2.0 Act provisions updates
The SECURE 2.0 Act marked a significant step toward enabling more small business owners and employees to pursue retirement stability. Get the latest updates on our recordkeeping support to help you take advantage of key SECURE 2.0 provisions.
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Simplify retirement plan notices
Plan sponsors have a responsibility to send certain plan notices to employees every year. But that doesn’t mean they need to spend a lot of time printing documents and stuffing envelopes. Our notice delivery services make it easy for plan sponsors to send notices and fulfill their fiduciary duties.
For PlanPremier, plan sponsors may opt to have a range of notices automatically generated and sent via email for free (or $2.50 each via regular mail). They may also upload a notice and have us mail it for $2.00 per mailed notice. Learn more about notice delivery for PlanPremier.
For RecordkeeperDirect, plan sponsors may upload a notice and have us mail it for $2.00 per mailed notice. Learn more about notice delivery for RecordkeeperDirect.
Offer more fund flexibility
RecordkeeperDirect (with fund flexibility) enables you to offer access to investments from multiple fund managers, including American Funds for an additional fee. Add to that the many benefits that RecordkeeperDirect offers today, like simplified administration, powerful employee engagement and straightforward pricing.
RecordkeeperDirect (with fund flexibility) is available now to new plans and coming soon for existing plans.
New reporting enhancements coming soon
The Reports & Analysis section on the plan sponsor website will be updated in June 2025, providing a more robust reporting experience. If you have any saved templates, they won’t carry over. Please take time now to document any templates you have.
New participant enrollment videos
Give employees an overview of the enrollment process and encourage them to start saving with these short how-to videos. The videos are available in both English and Spanish.
Watch: How to enroll in your workplace retirement plan
Our payroll integration service has been expanded
We make it easy to connect with a broad range of payroll providers to help plan sponsors simplify contributions and protect sensitive information. Check out the payroll providers available through our network connections and additional providers through Payroll Integrations. In addition to 180 standard integration, we offer 360 payroll integration to further simplify the payroll process for plan sponsors.
Learn more about our payroll integration service and direct vendor connections:
You can now verify lost participants online
To help protect plan participants, we now place a stop-mail indicator on their account if we receive returned mail.
When we place a stop-mail indicator on an account, we’ll notify the plan sponsor and/or third-party administrator by email. They can verify or update the participant’s address online.
New force-out distribution and automatic IRA rollover request form
A new form simplifies the process of requesting force-out cash distributions and/or automatic IRA rollovers for terminated participants in RecordkeeperDirect plans.
We recommend plan sponsors review their plan document and consult their third-party administrator prior to submitting this request to ensure the vesting information they provide is correct.
Take advantage of online enrollment
Are you and your employees still relying on paper forms to enroll or update contribution rates and beneficiaries? These activities can be streamlined through the participant website and app, potentially saving you time and reducing administrative issues. To enable online enrollment for your plan, submit the completed Online Enrollment Authorization form and Participant Data Supplement file.
Review the RecordkeeperDirect Online Enrollment Summary guide to learn more.
Take advantage of our expanded e-distribution offering
Our electronic withdrawal process makes it easy to request and approve withdrawals online. Additionally, we now support emergency expense distributions, as provided under the SECURE 2.0 Act.
To add this distribution type to their plan, plan sponsors can submit the Plan Maintenance Request form. Once this option is enabled, participants can request this new distribution type via the participant website and app.
Make onboarding easy with Plan manager
Plan manager makes it easy to get RecordkeeperDirect clients up and running with a streamlined digital experience. Let our online tool guide you through the onboarding process — and leave the paper forms behind.
In-plan Roth conversion requests for RecordkeeperDirect
Participants can now use our In-Plan Roth Conversion Request to convert pre-tax assets in their accounts to Roth assets.
To take advantage of this option, plan sponsors may need to update the money types on file for their plan. If necessary, they should complete the Plan Maintenance Request to add in-plan Roth conversion money types. Plans have the ability to allow in-plan Roth rollovers (for participants who have met a distributable event) and/or in-plan Roth transfers (for participants who haven’t yet met a distributable event).
Our website addresses have changed
We’ve updated our retirement plan website addresses as shown below. In doing so, we hope to make it easier to do business with us, and more clearly communicate who we are and the products and services we offer. Please be sure to update your bookmarks.
Website
New address
RecordkeeperDirect
Participant
capitalgroup.com/participant/rkd
Plan sponsor
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/rkd
Third-party administrator
capitalgroup.com/tpa/rkd
PlanPremier
Participant
capitalgroup.com/participant/planpremier
capitalgroup.com/participant/planpremier
Plan sponsor/PartnerLink — PlanPremier-Bundled
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/planpremier
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/planpremier
Plan sponsor/PartnerLink — PlanPremier TPA
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/planpremiertpa
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/planpremiertpa
SIMPLE IRA Plus
Participant
capitalgroup.com/participant/simpleiraplus
capitalgroup.com/participant/simpleiraplus
Plan sponsor
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/simpleiraplus
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/simpleiraplus
Faster, easier hardship distributions available soon
New options will be available soon, including elimination of collecting backup documentation and allowing participants to self-certify, to help ease administrative efforts for plan sponsors and process hardship distributions faster. Watch for more information coming soon.
New participant enrollment videos
Give employees an overview of the enrollment process and encourage them to start saving with these short how-to videos. The videos are available in both English and Spanish.
Watch: How to enroll in your workplace retirement plan
Our payroll integration service has been expanded
We make it easy to connect with a broad range of payroll providers to help plan sponsors simplify contributions and protect sensitive information. Check out the payroll providers available through our network connections and additional providers through Payroll Integrations. In addition to 180 standard integration, we offer 360 payroll integration to further simplify the payroll process for plan sponsors.
Learn more about our payroll integration service and direct vendor connections:
Our website addresses have changed
We’ve updated our retirement plan website addresses as shown below. In doing so, we hope to make it easier to do business with us, and more clearly communicate who we are and the products and services we offer. Please be sure to update your bookmarks.
Website
New address
RecordkeeperDirect
Participant
capitalgroup.com/participant/rkd
Plan sponsor
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/rkd
Third-party administrator
capitalgroup.com/tpa/rkd
PlanPremier
Participant
capitalgroup.com/participant/planpremier
capitalgroup.com/participant/planpremier
Plan sponsor/PartnerLink — PlanPremier-Bundled
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/planpremier
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/planpremier
Plan sponsor/PartnerLink — PlanPremier TPA
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/planpremiertpa
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/planpremiertpa
SIMPLE IRA Plus
Participant
capitalgroup.com/participant/simpleiraplus
capitalgroup.com/participant/simpleiraplus
Plan sponsor
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/simpleiraplus
capitalgroup.com/sponsor/simpleiraplus