Many retirement plans are required by the Department of Labor to cover all eligible employees (ERISA). There are times, however, when an employer may wish to carve out a group of select employees to offer additional retirement benefits. With our experience in non-qualified deferred compensation arrangements, we can help create plans for every size and budget; and, depending on your goals, we can help you create plans that are tax-deductible, address IRS/DOL compliance requirements, with optional golden handcuff provisions and possibly cost recovery.

This information was developed as a general guide to educate plan sponsors, but is not intended as authoritative guidance or tax or legal advice. Each plan has objective requirements, and you should consult your attorney or tax advisor for guidance on your specific situation. In no way does advisor assure that, by using the information provided, plan sponsor will be in compliance with ERISA regulations.

Because we are experienced insurance professionals, we provide a no-cost no-obligation Insurance Policy Review for anyone who requests it, no matter what carrier you have. Why do a review? Well first of all, because things have a way of changing over time. What if your income has changed, and you need more coverage? Or what if you lost weight, or you quit smoking? This might be the time to let your carrier know so you have the potential to get a discount. On the other hand what if your family status has changed and you don't have the correct beneficiaries anymore? For these reasons and many more we highly recommend a periodic policy review.

If you have the ability to continue your normal business operations during a period of disability this can provide stability in your relationships with customers, creditors, and employees. The problem is that too few businesses have set aside the cash reserves to cover all the related overhead expenses of a business when the owner is not able to be in the business on an ongoing basis. As business insurance professionals we provide a unique form of insurance to business owners which covers this risk: Business Overhead Expense Insurance (BOE). A BOE policy can protect your business in the event you become disabled, and it provides monthly income to cover such things as rent or mortgage payments, loans and interest, utilities, phone, maintenance, accounting and legal services, professional dues, auto expenses, employee benefits, employee salaries, depreciation, insurance premiums, taxes, even a replacement for yourself!

When a key employee suddenly dies, it can leave a business vulnerable if that person was largely responsible for bringing in revenue, maintaining key client relationships, or was responsible for specialized day-to-day operations of the business. While employee benefit programs help employers by reducing turnover and increasing morale and overall satisfaction, a Key Employee analysis is designed to help an employer more directly by providing capital infusion at a time when needed most. Through life insurance, tax-free insurance dollars can come into a business to provide support in a time of upheaval and turmoil. It may take months or years to recruit and train a replacement for a key employee. Insurance aims to take the bumps out of the financial road during this process. We are experienced in providing economical Key Employee insurance plans.

One of our most common questions from business owners is how best to protect the value they have built up in their business from an uncertain future. In cases where you have one or more business partners, we can work with you to help structure an optimal outcome in the event that one or more owners dies or becomes disabled prior to retirement and business interest transfer. Our team can work alongside your other advisors to help you create what is essentially a “business will,” a legally binding agreement known as an insured buy-sell agreement that will govern the situation in the event a co-owner dies or is forced to leave the business.

NBT Investment Services and LPL Financial do not provide legal advice or services. Please consult your legal advisor regarding your specific situation.

While many tax deductible employee benefit programs are required by the Department of Labor to cover all eligible employees (ERISA), there may be times when you would like to offer a specialized benefit to your top people. Whether your reason is to provide an incentive for motivation or a reward for performance, we have access to many plans and structures that will allow you to carve-out select employees for inclusion in your strategy. We help create customized strategies for every budget, and we have experience in insurance carve-out programs as well as executive non-qualified deferred compensation programs.

This information was developed as a general guide to educate plan sponsors, but is not intended as authoritative guidance or tax or legal advice. Each plan has unique requirements, and you should consult your attorney or tax advisor for guidance on your specific situation. In no way does advisor assure that, by using the information provided, plan sponsor will be in compliance with ERISA regulations.

Many of our clients who look for estate planning assistance from us are family business owners whose chief concern is how best to pass on the business to the next generation. When ownership is transferred improperly or without adequate planning, taxes often erode the wealth and value that have taken a lifetime to build. Whether you intend to pass your business interest on as a gift to family members, a key employee, or via an outright sale to a third party, we can assist you with the planning aspects of this important transaction.