A quiet news day, so three payroll and benefits items. The Social Security wage base goes to $192,300 on Jan. 1, the IRS expanded its retirement plan error-correction rules, and the 2027 401(k) limits are due soon.
The Social Security Administration set the 2027 taxable maximum at $192,300, up from $184,500 in 2026, according to its contribution and benefit base page. The 6.2% rate stays the same for employer and employee, and the new cap applies to wages paid from Jan. 1, 2027.
What it means for a 10-to-50-person business
The change only hits people paid above $184,500 a year. At the cap, each side pays $11,922.60 in 2027 versus $11,439 in 2026, a rise of $483.60. Say an owner of a 15-person electrical contractor draws a $210,000 W-2 salary. The business pays $483.60 more in employer tax and the owner has $483.60 more withheld, $967.20 combined. Everyone paid under $184,500 sees no change. Medicare's 1.45% has no cap and does not move.
What to do
?Ask your vendor
Ask your payroll provider to confirm the 2027 wage base is loaded, then check the first January pay stub for anyone over $184,500.
What it costs
What it costs
Employer share, 1 salary at or above $192,300 × $483.60
$483.60/yr
Employee withholding, same person
$483.60/yr
Checking the January payroll run
0.5 hrs
Doing nothing
$483.60/yr more in employer tax per top earner, and a wrong withholding if your payroll software is not updated
On Oct. 22 the IRS and Treasury issued Rev. Proc. 2026-34, which expands the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System and replaces Rev. Proc. 2021-30. It took effect on release; a second procedure, Rev. Proc. 2026-33, creates a correction program for IRAs starting May 1, 2027.
What it means for a 10-to-50-person business
EPCRS is how an employer fixes mistakes in a retirement plan and keeps its tax benefits. It covers qualified plans such as 401(k)s, plus SEP and SIMPLE IRA plans. Say a 30-person electrical contractor learns its payroll provider sent 401(k) deferrals late for two pay periods. That is the kind of error this program exists for. The release does not list every new fix, so read the revenue procedure or ask your plan administrator before assuming a specific error qualifies. If your plan has no known errors, the effect on you is small.
What to do
?Ask your vendor
Ask your 401(k) administrator whether any known errors, such as late deposits or missed enrollments, can be fixed under the new procedure.
What it costs
What it costs
Call with plan administrator
1 hr
Correction fees
ask for a quote; amounts depend on the error and the provider
Doing nothing
Known errors stay open, and the plan's tax-favored status stays at risk if the IRS finds them first
The IRS has not yet released its 2027 retirement plan limits; its latest newsroom posting is dated Nov. 4. For 2026 it published the limits on Nov. 13, 2025, setting the 401(k) deferral cap at $24,500 and the SIMPLE IRA cap at $17,000, per Notice 2025-67.
What it means for a 10-to-50-person business
Payroll providers set each employee's deferral cap from these numbers. Say a 20-person landscaping firm runs a SIMPLE IRA: staff can defer up to $17,000 in 2026, and the 2027 figure will set what they can defer from January. The IRS has not said when the 2027 numbers will post, so the mid-November timing is a pattern, not a promise. The effect is small: it changes a payroll setting once a year.
What to do
◷Wait
Wait for the IRS notice, then ask your payroll or plan provider to confirm the 2027 caps are loaded before the first January payroll.
What it costs
What it costs
Checking the new caps in payroll
0.5 hrs
Telling staff the new limit
0.5 hrs
Doing nothing
Staff may hit the old cap early if payroll is not updated, and miss higher savings room