Employee Benefits Law Blog
The IRS recently issued Revenue Procedure 2026-34, a significant update to the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS). The new guidance, which is effective immediately, incorporates changes made by the SECURE 2.0 Act and expands and clarifies several correction options available to retirement plan sponsors.
EPCRS allows employers to correct certain retirement plan errors while preserving the plan's tax-favored status. It includes three principal correction programs: the Self-Correction Program (SCP), the Voluntary Correction Program (VCP), and the Audit ...
The short answer is YES! Here’s the plain‑English, straightforward version of how an ESOP works as a succession strategy:
1. The company sets up an ESOP trust.
2. That trust then buys some or all the owner’s stock.
3. Employees earn shares over time as a retirement benefit.
4. The company keeps operating - same management, same board.
5. Finally, instead of having to sell the business to a competitor, or shutting the doors completely, the owner ultimately sells to the people who helped build the business.
Sounds great, so what’s the catch? There is fine print and I wouldn’t be ...
