A tech-forward CPA firm.An easier 401(k) audit.
First audit or fifth, we work through the platforms you already use — read-only access to payroll and the recordkeeper — so we do the work, not your team. If your plan just crossed 120 participants with balances, this is also where to find out in November, not April.
- Plan year
- Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2026
- Form 5500 due
- August 2, 2027, audit attached
- With extension
- October 15, 2027
Fast. Fixed-fee. Fully remote.
The rule
Participants with account balances on the first day of the plan year. Over 120 means a large-plan filing with an independent audit attached. Your recordkeeper has the number.
Check the ruleThe fee
Set by how your payroll handles the plan, not by headcount. Fully automated plans get our lowest fixed fee, with a two-year price guarantee — and with read-only access, we do the work, not your team.
See the feeThe guide
Twenty pages for the person who has to handle a first audit: confirm the count, who owns what, which records to pull, what to ask any auditor. No sign-up.
Get the guideWhat a 401(k) audit costs
Fixed fee, set by how your payroll handles the plan. Two questions.
Start with the right count.
The test is participants with account balances on the first day of the plan year — not headcount, not payroll. The number lives in your recordkeeper's report; ask for it and you'll know in a day.
- Under 100No audit.
- 100–120A plan that filed as a small plan last year can usually elect to keep filing small (the 80–120 rule).
- Over 120Large-plan filing. An independent audit must be attached to the Form 5500. The 80–120 election isn't available.
Existing calendar-year plans. New plans, mergers, short years and pooled arrangements have their own rules — the guide covers them on page 5.
Your Company's First 401(k) Audit
Twenty pages — or a firm that does the work for you. Everything in this guide could be your work. It isn't, if your auditor treats saving your time as part of the engagement and works through the platforms you already use.
Twenty pages for the person who has to handle it: how to confirm the requirement, who's responsible for what, which records to request from each provider, what usually goes wrong, and eight questions to ask any auditor before you sign. Written by Charles Renwick, CPA, CFA and Nick Blossman, CPA. Useful whichever firm you choose.
Want the year-end checklist in December? Leave your email and we'll send it. Optional.
Where should we send it? The download starts as soon as you submit.
Request an audit proposal
Fixed fee, in writing, usually within one business day — first audit or a switch from another firm. You don't need a finished audit package, just the basics.
Please don't send participant Social Security numbers, payroll detail or account-level records through this form. We'll set up secure delivery when the audit starts.
Not sure where you stand? Ask the partner who signs the audit.
Bring your plan year, last year's filing and your recordkeeper's name. He'll tell you whether an audit is required, what it would cost, whether your processes qualify for a lower fee — and he'll say so if you don't need one.
Want the guide for your file?
Leave your name and mailing address and we'll post one this week.
Straight answers.
How do I know if the plan needs an audit?
Count participants with account balances on the first day of the plan year. Over 120: audit required. 100–120: you can usually keep filing as a small plan if you did last year. Under 100: no audit. Your recordkeeper has the number.
We heard the threshold is 100. Why 120?
Both are right. 100 is the normal large-plan line; the 80–120 rule lets a plan that filed small last year keep doing so up to 120. Above 120 the election isn't available.
When is it due?
For a December 31, 2026 plan year, the Form 5500 with the audit report attached is due August 2, 2027. A timely Form 5558 extends the filing to October 15, 2027. It does not extend the audit work.
Can the audit be done remotely?
Yes. Records come through a secure portal, meetings happen by video, and provider reports come directly from the provider. Remote doesn't mean less evidence; it means less travel.
What does it cost?
A fixed fee set by how your payroll handles the plan, not by headcount: ; more where payroll is partly or not automated. Two-year fixed-price guarantee. A short call often finds further discounts based on how your processes run.
How much of our team's time will this take?
Less than you'd expect. With an automated payroll integration and read-only access to payroll and the recordkeeper portal — named users, multifactor authentication, no shared passwords — we pull most records and do most of the testing ourselves. Your team answers a short list of questions, not a long one. That's also what makes the lowest fee possible.
Who pays the audit fee?
The audit fee is generally a permissible plan administrative expense. Whether the plan pays it from plan assets or the company pays it depends on your plan document and is a decision for you and your TPA; we'll point you to the provision.
We're under 120. Are we done?
Probably. The exception is a plan that previously filed as a large plan, where different rules apply. The guide covers it on page 4, or ask us.
We've been audited before. Do you take over existing plans?
Yes. Ongoing annual audits and plans switching auditors are a normal part of the practice; the fee estimate above applies the same way, and switching is simpler than most sponsors expect. If you'd like a second fixed-fee quote beside what you're paying, request one above.
What happens after I request a proposal?
Charles reads it, calls or emails within one business day, and sends a written fixed-fee proposal with a calendar. If you sign, the first records request goes out the same week.
Distributed. Partner-level. Since 2014.
CMR Associates is a CPA firm founded in 2014 and based in Mandeville, Louisiana, with a team of about thirty serving clients in 31 states. Partners Charles Renwick, CPA, CFA and Nick Blossman, CPA lead every plan audit personally and are the authors of The 401(k) Audit Playbook and the first-year guide on this page.
The audit practice handles 401(k) plan audits at every stage — first-year audits, ongoing annual audits, and plans switching from another firm — with fixed fees, fully remote fieldwork, an approach that starts from the records your providers already keep, and a partner who answers the phone.