What the fees pay for
A cash balance plan is a pension, and the law requires work every year that a 401(k) does not need. The fees pay for:
- The plan document. Usually a pre-approved plan document: an adoption agreement, the plan and trust, a summary plan description and supporting resolutions. It comes with an IRS opinion letter on its form.
- The design and first-year figures. Choosing the pay credit, interest credit and retirement age, and working out the first contribution range.
- The annual valuation. Each year an actuary values the plan and works out the minimum required contribution and the maximum deductible contribution. An enrolled actuary must sign the funding schedule, Schedule SB, which you keep on file.
- Form 5500-EZ. Preparing the annual return once plan assets pass $250,000, and in the final year. See Form 5500-EZ.
- Amendments. Plan documents need updating when the law changes, and whenever you change the design.
- Closing the plan. A final valuation, benefit calculation, final Form 5500-EZ and the paperwork for the rollover. See closing a cash balance plan.
What the market charges
Published prices for one-person plans cluster in a fairly narrow band. The figures below come from providers' own fee pages in 2026, with one older schedule; many providers do not publish prices at all.
| Fee | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Setup | $1,500 to $2,250 |
| Annual administration and valuation | $1,750 to $2,400 |
| Adding a spouse | Often included; otherwise about $75 to $250 a year |
| Adding a Solo 401(k) with the same provider | Often several hundred dollars a year more |
| Plan amendment | $250 to $1,000 |
| Closing the plan | $1,500 to $3,750, sometimes plus an IRS fee, or quoted only on request |
One provider's calculator page puts the industry range at $2,000 to $4,000 a year. Pricing structures vary: some charge a setup fee and an annual fee, some bill quarterly or monthly, and some bundle the actuary and filings while others charge separately for extras such as distribution or required minimum distribution calculations.
Costs you won't have
A plan that covers only the owner, or the owner and spouse, is outside the government's pension insurance program, so there are no Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation premiums. For a plan that is covered, those run $111 per participant in 2026, plus a variable charge on any underfunding.
Because the plan is outside Title I of ERISA, there is no ERISA fidelity bond requirement.
Investment and account costs
The plan's money sits in a brokerage account you open in the plan's name. These costs are separate from any administration fee:
- Account fees. Some brokerages charge nothing to open or keep a plan account. Check your firm's current terms.
- Fund expenses. Each fund's expense ratio comes out of its returns.
- Advice. If you pay an investment adviser a percentage of assets, that can outgrow every other cost. At 1% a year, a plan worth $3 million costs $30,000 a year in advice alone.
How to invest is your decision as trustee. See investing cash balance plan assets.
Who pays the fees
Administration fees are usually paid by the business rather than from the plan's account, and some providers ask for that. Paying fees from plan assets reduces the money available to fund your benefit. How to treat the fees on your return is a question for your tax adviser.
Weighing the cost
For someone contributing six figures a year, a few thousand dollars in fees is usually a small share of the tax deferred. For someone contributing $30,000 a year, the same fee is a much larger share, and a Solo 401(k) or SEP IRA alone may do the job more cheaply. See cash balance plan vs Solo 401(k).
Remember the fee runs every year the plan exists, including lean years when you contribute only the minimum.
Maxed charges $2,499 a year, with no separate setup fee. In the first year that is a $499 refundable deposit, then $2,000 when the plan documents are ready to sign.
To see what a plan could hold for you, run the calculator or get an estimate.