A qualified plan is a retirement
plan sponsored by employers for the exclusive benefit of employees. These plans follow special IRS rules and qualify for special
tax treatment, such as deferring paying taxes on the contributions until
retirement.
Qualified plans include:
- 401(k)s
- 403(b)s (also known as tax-sheltered annuity plans)
- 457 plans for government employees
- Traditional IRAs
- Roth IRAs
- SEP and SIMPLE plans for employees of small businesses
- Pension plans
- Profit-sharing plans
- Stock bonus plans