New Requirement for Employers: New York Secure Choice Savings Program

New York State has officially launched the New York Secure Choice Savings Program, a state-facilitated retirement savings initiative that begins its phased rollout this year. The program is intended to expand access to retirement savings for employees whose employers do not already sponsor a qualified plan.

For many organizations, this will introduce new administrative steps tied to payroll, employee communications, and registration with the State.

What is Secure Choice?

Secure Choice is an automatic-enrollment Roth IRA arrangement overseen by New York. It is not an employer retirement plan.

Employers that fall under the law are responsible for facilitating access. Employer’s responsibilities are largely administrative and include registering the company, distributing materials prepared by the State, submitting employee information, and processing payroll deductions.

Importantly, employers do not make contributions to employee accounts and do not have fiduciary responsibility for investment performance, plan design, or benefits paid.

Which employers are covered?

Participation is required for businesses that:

• employed 10 or more employees in New York during the prior calendar year,
• have operated for at least two years, and
• have not offered a qualified retirement plan (such as a 401(k) or 403(b)) within the past two years.

An employer may not terminate an existing retirement plan simply to participate in the state program.

The rollout will occur in phases based on workforce size:

• Employers with 30 or more employees must register by March 18, 2026.
• Employers with 15–29 employees must register by May 15, 2026.
• Employers with 10–14 employees must register by July 15, 2026.

Employees are eligible if they are 18 years or older and receive taxable wages in New York. This includes part-time staff. Independent contractors are excluded.

Secure Choice uses automatic enrollment, but employees retain control over their participation.

Once an employer submits employee data, the State communicates directly with individuals and provides a 30-day period for them to set their contribution rate, select investments, and designate beneficiaries. Employees who do not make elections will be placed into default settings.

The default contribution is 3% of after-tax pay, and employees may generally increase, decrease, or otherwise modify their rate within program and IRS parameters.

Employees may decline participation during the initial enrollment period or at any time afterward. If they opt out, the program will notify the employer to stop deductions.

Next steps:

• confirming whether the organization meets the coverage criteria,
• determining whether an exemption applies because a qualified plan is in place,
• assessing payroll system readiness, and
• watching for official notices and access codes from the State.

Rimon Law is here to support your compliance efforts. Contact: Tara, Humma, Partner, Christopher Kelly, Partner or Alyssa Murphy, Human Capital Business Advisor.

This summary is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal advice nor does it create an attorney-client relationship with Rimon, P.C. or its affiliates.