SEP IRA eligibility
Are employees under the age of 18 able to be covered by a SEP IRA plan if the employer wishes?
I am familiar with the eligibility rules and know that 21 is the default age, but can be less restrictive. I am getting conflicting answers in my research and pub 560 doesn’t specify.
If yes, can a minor sign the account application? Perhaps it is dependent on the custodian’s procedures.?? -Thanks
Permalink Submitted by Alan - IRA critic on Fri, 2015-01-09 22:56
The employer is able to expand eligibility and we know that can be done with respect to the service requirement, and therefore should be able to be done with respect to any plan age requirement as well. Of course, if the service requirement is not reduced as well, the younger the acceptable age is the less likely that employee will have met the service requirement. If employer does expand the age requirement, it will have to apply to all employees reaching that age. It cannot be done selectively. It is possible that custodian resistance could come into play, since there is no direct IRS guidance on this that I can find.