Last Call: The Final CalSavers Program Employer Registration Deadline is in 2022!

As we noted in April 2021, California law requires most private-sector businesses to register with the CalSavers Retirement Savings Program (“CalSavers”). Covered employers are required to participate in CalSavers if they do not already offer an employer-sponsored retirement plan to their employees. CalSavers registration is required for a covered employer to confirm that it either provides its employees access to a CalSavers Individual Retirement Account, or that it is exempt from doing so because it already offers a qualified retirement plan to its employees. Almost all California private sector employers are required by law to register with CalSavers — only public-sector employers and religious organizations are completely exempt.

Employer Registration

Private-sector employers with five or more employees must register with CalSavers by June 30, 2022. Private-sector employers with more than 50 employees were required to register by June 30, 2021. Missed deadline notices are in progress for these employers. The deadline for private-sector employers with more than 100 employees to register with CalSavers was last year on September 30, 2020. Enforcement of employer compliance is underway for these employers.

While private sector employers that already offer a qualified retirement plan to their employees do not have to participate in CalSavers, they still must register as “exempt” on the CalSavers website. CalSavers is sending out notification letters to covered employers regarding this registration requirement along with an access code to use in the registration process. Employers can then register with CalSavers using that access code. If a covered employer did not receive a notification letter or misplaced the access code previously provided, it can request a new registration access code on the CalSavers website.

For more information, see our April 2021 blog for an overview of the CalSavers program.