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Form 8881 Instructions

Instructions for Form 8881, Credit for Small Employer Pension Plan Startup Costs and Auto-Enrollment

Rev. January 2024

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  • Form 8881 - Credit for Small Employer Pension Plan Startup Costs and Auto-Enrollment
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Department of the Treasury  
Internal Revenue Service  
Instructions for Form 8881  
(Rev. January 2024)  
Credit for Small Employer Pension Plan Startup Costs, Auto-Enrollment, and  
Military Spouse Participation  
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code  
unless otherwise noted.  
Taxpayers, other than partnerships and S corporations,  
whose only source of these credits is from a partnership  
or S corporation, are not required to complete or file this  
form. Instead, they can report these credits directly on  
Form 3800.  
Future Developments  
For the latest information about developments related to  
Form 8881 and its instructions, such as legislation  
enacted after they were published, go to IRS.gov/  
Part I. Credit for Small Employer  
Pension Plan Startup Costs  
(Including Employer Contributions)  
What’s New  
The credit is allowed under section 45E and is part of the  
general business credit. You may elect, however, to have  
section 45E not apply for the tax year the credit is  
Increased small employer pension startup costs  
credit. The SECURE Act 2.0 of 2022 (SECURE 2.0)  
provides that eligible employers with 1–50 employees are  
eligible for an increased small employer pension plan  
startup costs credit under section 45E of 100% of qualified  
startup costs, subject to limitation. The credit for eligible  
employers with 51–100 employees remains at 50% of  
qualified startup costs, subject to limitation. See Credit for  
available by not claiming it on your tax return for that year.  
Plan Startup Costs Credit  
How To Figure the Credit  
For tax years beginning after 2022, for an eligible  
employer with 1–50 employees, the credit is 100% of the  
qualified startup costs paid or incurred during the tax year.  
For an eligible employer with 51–100 employees the credit  
remains at 50% of the qualified startup costs paid or  
incurred during the tax year. The credit is limited to the  
greater of $500 or the lesser of $250 for each employee  
that is eligible to participate in the plan and not highly  
compensated (as defined in section 414(q)) or $5,000 for  
the first credit year and each of the following 2 tax years.  
No credit is allowed for any other tax year.  
Employer contribution credit. SECURE 2.0 added an  
additional startup cost credit under section 45E available  
to certain eligible employers, in an amount equal to an  
applicable percentage of the employer’s contributions (not  
including an elective deferral, as defined in section 402(g)  
(3)) to an eligible employer plan. See Employer  
Military spouse participation credit. SECURE 2.0  
added a new military spouse retirement plan eligibility  
credit under section 45AA available to eligible small  
employers who maintain defined contribution plans with  
specific features that benefit military spouses. The title of  
the form has been updated to include this new credit. See  
Eligible employer. To be an eligible employer, you must  
have had no more than 100 employees who received at  
least $5,000 of compensation from you during the tax year  
preceding the first credit year. However, you are not an  
eligible employer if, during the 3 tax years preceding the  
first credit year, you established or maintained a qualified  
employer plan with respect to which contributions were  
made, or benefits were accrued, for substantially the  
same employees as are in the new eligible employer plan.  
See section 45E(c) for rules for controlled groups and  
predecessor employers.  
Qualified startup costs. Qualified startup costs are  
expenses paid or incurred in connection with (a)  
establishing or administering an eligible employer plan, or  
(b) the retirement related education of employees with  
respect to the plan.  
Eligible employer plan. An eligible employer plan is a  
qualified employer plan (as defined in section 4972(d))  
with at least one employee eligible to participate who is  
not a highly compensated employee. All eligible employer  
plans of the same employer are treated as one eligible  
Business Under Common Control below for rules on  
treatment as a single employer.  
General Instructions  
Purpose of Form  
Eligible small employers use Form 8881, Part I, to claim  
the credit for qualified startup costs incurred in  
establishing or administering an eligible employer plan  
(including for employer contributions). The Part I credit is  
allowed under section 45E.  
Eligible small employers can use Form 8881, Part II, to  
claim the credit for an eligible automatic contribution  
arrangement in a qualified employer plan. The Part II  
credit is allowed under section 45T.  
Eligible small employers can use Form 8881, Part III, to  
claim the credit for a military spouse’s participation  
(including for employer contributions) in an eligible defined  
contribution plan. The Part III credit is allowed under  
section 45AA.  
Feb 8, 2024  
Cat. No. 74839D  
 
eligible employer plan. See section 45E(c) for rules for  
controlled groups and predecessor employers.  
First credit year. The first credit year is generally your  
tax year that includes the date that the eligible employer  
plan becomes effective with respect to the eligible  
employer. However, you may elect to have the preceding  
tax year be the first credit year and claim the credit for  
qualified startup costs paid or incurred during that tax  
year. For example, a calendar-year eligible small employer  
whose eligible plan is first effective on January 1, 2024,  
may elect to treat 2023 as the first credit year and claim  
the credit for qualified startup costs paid or incurred during  
2023 on its 2023 tax return.  
Qualifying employer contributions. Qualifying  
employer contributions include any contributions (not  
including an elective deferral (as defined in section 402(g)  
(3)) by the eligible employer to an eligible employer plan,  
but do not include any such contribution on behalf of an  
employee who received wages (as defined in section  
3121(a)) from the eligible employer for the tax year in  
excess of $100,000.  
Member of Controlled Group or Business Under  
Common Control  
No Deduction Allowed for Credit Amount  
You must reduce your otherwise allowable deduction for  
startup costs by the credit amount on line 5.  
For purposes of figuring the credit, all members of a  
controlled group of corporations (as defined in section  
52(a)), all members of a group of businesses under  
common control (as defined in section 52(b)), and all  
members of an affiliated service group (as defined in  
section 414(m)) are treated as a single employer. As a  
member, compute your credit based on your proportionate  
share of qualifying employer contributions giving rise to  
the group’s credit for plan startup costs. Enter your share  
of the credit on lines 6a–6g. Attach a statement showing  
how your share of the credit was figured, and write “See  
Attached” next to the entry space for line 6g.  
Member of Controlled Group or Business Under  
Common Control  
For purposes of figuring the credit, all members of a  
controlled group of corporations (as defined in section  
52(a)), all members of a group of businesses under  
common control (as defined in section 52(b)), and all  
members of an affiliated service group (as defined in  
section 414(m)) are treated as a single employer. As a  
member, compute your credit based on your proportionate  
share of qualifying small employer plan startup costs  
giving rise to your group's credit for small employer plan  
startup costs. Enter your share of the credit on line 5.  
Attach a statement showing how your share of the credit  
was figured, and write “See Attached” next to the entry  
space for line 5.  
Part II. Small Employer  
Auto-Enrollment Credit  
The credit is allowed under section 45T and is part of the  
general business credit.  
How To Figure the Credit  
Employer Contribution Credit  
How To Figure the Credit  
The credit is $500 for the first tax year that an eligible  
employer first includes an eligible automatic contribution  
arrangement (as defined in section 414(w)(3)) in a  
qualified employer plan. The credit is $500 for each of the  
following 2 tax years, provided that you continue to  
maintain the arrangement at any time during the  
applicable tax year. No credit is allowed for any other tax  
year.  
The small employer contributions credit may be claimed  
only for tax years of an eligible employer beginning after  
2022.  
For an eligible employer, the credit is an applicable  
percentage of qualifying employer contributions, up to  
$1,000 per employee, made by an eligible employer for  
the first tax year during which the plan becomes effective  
with respect to the eligible employer and the succeeding 4  
tax years. The applicable percentage is 100% for the first  
and second years, 75% for the third year, 50% for the  
fourth year, and 25% for the fifth year. For any tax year, the  
applicable percentage (subject to the maximum $1,000  
per employee limitation) is reduced by 2% for each  
employee in excess of 50 employees during the preceding  
tax year.  
Eligible employer. To be an eligible employer, you must  
have had no more than 100 employees during the tax year  
preceding the first credit year who received at least  
$5,000 of compensation from you during that tax year.  
Qualified employer plan. A qualified employer plan is a  
qualified employer plan (as defined in section 4972(d)). All  
qualified employer plans of the same employer are treated  
as one eligible employer plan. See Member of Controlled  
rules on treatment as a single employer.  
Eligible employer. To be an eligible employer you must  
have had no more than 100 employees who received at  
least $5,000 of compensation from you during the tax year  
preceding the tax year during which the eligible employer  
plan becomes effective. However, you are not an eligible  
employer if during the 3 tax years preceding the tax year  
during which the plan becomes effective, you established  
or maintained a qualified employer plan with respect to  
which contributions were made, or benefits were accrued,  
for substantially the same employees as are in the new  
First credit year. The first tax year that the credit applies  
is your first tax year in which you or a person treated as a  
single employer with you first includes (or had included)  
an eligible automatic contribution arrangement in an  
eligible employer plan. See Member of Controlled Group  
treatment as a single employer.  
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Instructions for Form 8881 (January 2024)  
   
Member of Controlled Group or Business Under  
Common Control  
Military spouse. A military spouse is an employee of the  
eligible small employer who is not highly compensated (as  
defined in section 414(q)) and, as of the first date that the  
employee is employed or rehired by the employer, is  
married (as defined in section 7703) to a member of the  
uniformed services (as defined in U.S. Code Title 10,  
section 101(a)(5)) serving on active duty. For this purpose,  
you may rely on an employee’s certification that the  
employee’s spouse is a member of the uniformed services  
if such certification provides the name, rank, and service  
branch of the spouse.  
For purposes of figuring the credit, controlled groups of  
corporations under section 414(b), partnerships or sole  
proprietorships under common control under section  
414(c), and affiliated service groups under section 414(m)  
are treated as a single employer. In addition, leased  
employees described in section 414(n) are treated as  
employed by the employer. As a member, compute your  
credit based on your proportionate share of the $500  
annual credit giving rise to the group's small employer  
auto-enrollment credit. Enter your share of the credit on  
line 9. Attach a statement showing how your share of the  
credit was figured, and write “See Attached” next to the  
entry space for line 9.  
Member of Controlled Group or Business Under  
Common Control  
For purposes of figuring the credit, controlled groups of  
corporations under section 414(b), partnerships or sole  
proprietorships under common control under section  
414(c), and affiliated service groups under section 414(m)  
are treated as a single employer. In addition, leased  
employees described in section 414(n) are treated as  
employed by the employer. As a member, compute your  
credit based on your proportionate share of the maximum  
$200 and $300 annual credit per military spouse giving  
rise to the group's military spouse participation credit.  
Enter your applicable share of the credit as appropriate on  
line 12 and line 13. Attach a statement showing how your  
share of the credit was figured, and write “See Attached”  
next to the appropriate entry space for line 12 and line 13.  
Part III. Military Spouse Participation  
Credit  
The credit is allowed under section 45AA and is part of the  
general business credit.  
How To Figure the Credit  
The military spouse participation credit may be claimed  
only for tax years of an eligible small employer beginning  
after December 29, 2022.  
For an eligible small employer, the credit is $200 for  
each military spouse who is an employee of the employer  
and who participates in an eligible defined contribution  
plan of the employer at any time during the tax year, plus  
up to $300 of the amount of employer contributions (not  
including an elective deferral, as defined in section 402(g)  
(3)) to the plan during the tax year on behalf of the military  
spouse. For each employee, the credit is limited to 3  
successive tax years of the employer, beginning with the  
first tax year during which the employee began  
Specific Instructions  
Line A  
Enter the number of employees of the eligible employer  
who received at least $5,000 of compensation from you  
during the tax year preceding the first credit year that  
applies to the small employer plan startup costs credit.  
participating in the plan after it was adopted as, or  
amended to be, an eligible defined contribution plan.  
Eligible small employer. To be an eligible small  
employer, you must have had no more than 100  
employees during the tax year preceding the tax year for  
which the credit is claimed who received at least $5,000 of  
compensation from you during that tax year.  
Eligible defined contribution plan. An eligible defined  
contribution plan is any defined contribution plan (as  
defined in section 414(i)) of the eligible small employer  
under which military spouses employed by the employer  
are eligible to participate in the plan not later than 2  
months after the military spouse begins employment and,  
upon such participation, are immediately eligible to  
receive the same amount of employer contributions under  
the plan that a similarly situated participant who is not a  
military spouse would be eligible to receive under the plan  
after 2 years of service, and immediately have a  
non-forfeitable right to the military spouse's accrued  
benefit derived from employer contributions under the  
plan. All eligible defined contribution plans of the same  
employer are treated as one eligible defined contribution  
Common Control below for rules on treatment as a single  
employer.  
Line 2  
The computation must be based on the number of  
employees entered on line A.  
Line 3  
Enter the number of non-highly compensated employees  
who are eligible to participate in the eligible employer plan  
during the tax year for which the credit is claimed.  
Line 6a  
Enter the number of your employees during the tax year  
preceding the tax year for which the credit is claimed.  
Line 6c  
The employer contribution credit is subject to a $1,000  
limit per employee after taking into account the  
percentage that applies to the first through fifth years of  
the plan.  
Therefore, if you have employees for whom you made  
employer contributions (not including elective deferrals, as  
defined in section 402(g)(3)) of more than $1,000 (and the  
contributions are not disqualified because you paid the  
employee wages in excess of $100,000), first determine  
the amount of contributions made for each individual  
employee for the tax year. For this purpose, do not include  
Instructions for Form 8881 (January 2024)  
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contributions greater than the amount specified below for  
the plan year.  
If this is treated as the first or second year of the plan,  
do not include contributions of more than $1,000 per  
employee.  
Line 12  
Include only employees who participated in the eligible  
defined contribution plan at any time during the tax year  
and who have not participated in the plan at any time prior  
to the 2 tax years preceding the tax year. For such  
If this is treated as the third year of the plan, do not  
purpose, do not count any tax years during which the plan  
did not qualify as an eligible defined contribution plan.  
include contributions of more than $1,333 per employee.  
If this is treated as the fourth year of the plan, do not  
Line 13  
include contributions of more than $2,000 per employee.  
Include only employer contributions (not including an  
elective deferral, as defined in section 402(g)(3)) on behalf  
of an employee who meets the requirements to be  
included on line 12.  
If this is treated as the fifth year of the plan, do not  
include contributions of more than $4,000 per employee.  
After determining the amount for each individual  
employee, add the amounts together and enter the total  
on line 6c.  
Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the  
United States. You are required to give us the information. We need it to ensure that you are complying with these laws  
and to allow us to figure and collect the right amount of tax.  
You are not required to provide the information requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act  
unless the form displays a valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a form or its instructions must be  
retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any Internal Revenue law. Generally, tax  
returns and return information are confidential, as required by section 6103.  
The time needed to complete and file this form will vary depending on individual circumstances. The estimated burden  
for individual and business taxpayers filing this form is approved under OMB control number 1545-0074 and 1545-0123  
and is included in the estimates shown in the instructions for their individual and business income tax return. The  
estimated burden for all other taxpayers who file this form is shown below.  
Recordkeeping  
Learning about the law or the form  
Preparing and sending the form to the IRS  
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6 hr.  
1 hr.  
42 min.  
53 min.  
2 min.  
If you have comments concerning the accuracy of these time estimates or suggestions for making this form simpler,  
we would be happy to hear from you. See the instructions for the tax return with which this form is filed.  
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Instructions for Form 8881 (January 2024)