SEP IRAs do not have to be established until taxes are filed for the year, and it can be done quickly. SEP IRAs require very little paperwork or trouble to establish.

One form will notify the IRS that SEP contributions are being made for the year, and the amount. The only other documentation needed is a plan document, which establishes and outlines the eligibility rules for a particular plan, but this document only has to be kept on file at the business, and does not have to be submitted to the IRS or any regulatory authority.

The plan document should be made understandable and available to every employee, of course. Contributions can be made to an employee’s account without the employee’s approval, if, for some strange reason, the employee wanted to refuse free money.

The deadline to establish a SEP is the date which a business will file its taxes, which could be April 15th or October 15th. Employers have the choice to not fund a SEP in any given year.

Employees can be allowed to fund their own Traditional or Roth IRAs through payroll deductions as part of the plan arrangement with the custodian company. Self-employed sole proprietors can also use a SEP for retirement savings, but their contribution limits will be slightly lower than others.