403(b) plan
Inspire your employees to save with an Equitable 403(b) plan
A new kind of retirement plan experience
How can a 403(b) plan help employees save?
To attract and retain employees, you’ll want a retirement plan that provides guidance, flexibility and a degree of certainty. Choose an Equitable America or Equitable Financial 403(b) retirement savings plan and you’ll have the tools and support you need to improve your plan’s effectiveness and help simplify the administrative process.
Provider choice can help educators save more for retirement
In fact, according to a recent study, many K–12 employees who work with a financial professional have measurably better outcomes and demonstrate more effective financial behaviors.1
A 403(b) plan, which is similar to a 401(k) for educators and non-profit employees*, can help supplement their pension or other retirement savings. It’s specifically designed for education and non-profit professionals, has the flexibility to adjust as their needs change and can help you turn their salary into a more comfortable retirement.
Easier, simpler plan administration
- A dedicated support team will work with you to facilitate your plan’s implementation and maintain a program that meets all compliance requirements.
- Use our simple, streamlined website and online tools for easy automated record keeping.
- Your employees get answers to their questions through our participant website, Voice Response Unit, available 24/7, or our Customer Service Representatives.
Personalized guidance and flexible strategies
- Flexibility – Your employees can customize a savings strategy to suit who they are now, with opportunities to adjust later on.
- Support on their terms – Your employees can enroll in your 403(b) plan in the way that works best for them: in person, over the phone or online.
- Meet the diverse investment needs of your employees – Equitable offers a broad spectrum of investment products to fund your retirement plan – from variable and fixed annuities to mutual fund options. Our investment platform features a high degree of flexibility to help you design a package appropriate for you and your employees.
Educators make Equitable the #1 choice for 403(b) plans
Since 1859, Equitable has helped people build and secure their financial futures. Our 403(b) plan is designed to meet the unique needs of educators and non-profit employees across the country. That’s just one reason why we are the #1 choice for educators in K-12 schools in the U.S.2 and help thousands of non-profit employees realize their retirement dreams.
With Equitable Excellencesm, we’re one of the nation’s largest corporate providers of scholarships for students planning for college, awarding over 7,300 students with more than $30 million in financial aid. We also support educators by providing grants to schools to help fund their professional education and development.
*A 403(b) plan, often referred to as a tax-sheltered annuity (TSA) plan, is a retirement plan available specifically to employees of public schools and certain 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations – i.e., non-profit organizations. By comparison for context, a 401(k) plan is a qualified plan available specifically to employees of for-profit companies. While they have similarities, 403(b) plans and 401(k) plans are not interchangeable or entirely comparable.
1 Equitable Value of the Advisor Study, 2022. Independent research conducted by Zeldis Research Associates, and commissioned by Equitable, highlights the financial benefits K–12 educators can gain by working with a financial professional with respect to their 403(b) account. These responses reflect anonymous individual opinions from the survey and are not intended as predictions of any product/investment performance, may not represent the experience of any other plan participant, and should not be relied upon as basis for any purchase decision. Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company (Equitable Financial) and its affiliates do not guarantee the accuracy or applicability of the information included in these responses. These responses were collected by Zeldis Research, a third-party vendor not affiliated with Equitable Financial or its affiliates.
2 LIMRA, Not-For-Profit Survey, Q2 2024 results based on 403(b) participants and contributions.
This discussion is not intended as legal or tax advice. Accordingly, any advice provided herein is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, by any taxpayer for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer. Such advice was written to support the promotion or marketing of the transaction(s) or matter(s) addressed, and you should seek advice based on your particular circumstances from an independent tax advisor.
Variable annuities and mutual funds are offered by prospectus, which contains more complete information, including investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses, and which can be made available from your Financial Professional of the company. Please read the prospectus carefully before you invest or send any money.
An annuity contract used to fund this qualified employer-sponsored retirement arrangement should be purchased for its features and benefits other than tax deferral. For such cases, tax deferral is not an additional benefit of the annuity. You may also want to consider the relative features, benefits and costs of this annuity with any other investment that you may have in connection with your retirement plan or arrangement.
Equitable believes that education is a key step toward addressing your financial goals, and we've designed this discussion to serve simply as an informational and educational resource; it does not offer or constitute investment advice and makes no direct or indirect recommendation of any particular product or of the appropriateness of any particular investment-related option. Your needs, goals, and circumstances are unique, and they require the individualized attention of your financial professional. But for now, take some time just to learn more.
Variable annuities are issued by Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company (Equitable Financial) (NY, NY), by Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company of America (Equitable America), an AZ stock company with an administrative office located in Charlotte, NC, or by Equitable Financial Life and Annuity Company (Equitable Colorado), with an administrative office located in Charlotte, NC. Please refer to your contract for information on the issuing company. Variable annuities issued by an Equitable company are co-distributed by affiliates Equitable Advisors, LLC (NY, NY) (member FINRA, SIPC) (Equitable Financial Advisors in MI & TN) and Equitable Distributors LLC (NY, NY). The investments in this program are subject to investment risks, including possible loss of the principal invested. They are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation nor are they deposits to, obligations of, or guaranteed by any bank.
The obligations of Equitable Financial, Equitable America and Equitable Colorado are backed solely by their claims-paying ability.