401(k)는 노후를 대비한 미국의 연금제도로서 Tax를 부과하기전에 불입금액을 공제하고 401(k) plan에 투자된 금액에 대해서는 만기가 되어 찾을때까지 tax를 부과하지 않기 때문에 2중으로 절세를 할수 있습니다. 많은 회사가 고용인이 plan에 투자 하는 비율에 따라 함께 투자를 해주고 있어 최고의 연금제도로 꼽히고 있습니다

만기는 59 1/2세 이고 만기이전에 투자금액을 찾을수도 있지만 초기에 찾을수록 세금이 전액부과되고 투자 옵션에 따라 페널티를 물수도 있으므로 이점을 유의하셔야 합니다. 미국에 영구히 정착할 계획이라면 당연히 401(k)에 투자하셔야겠죠? 투자금액과 투자대상도 개인이 선택하게 되어있으므로 투자를 잘하면 훌륭한 노후대책이 될것 입니다. 다음은 401(K)에 관한 설명입니다. ** How They Work ** The 401(k) mechanism is fairly simple. The plan is set up by your employer as a defined contribution retirement arrangement. That means you are the one who pays into the plan, although your employer and the plan provider who offers your 401(k) do just about all the work. Your 401(k) contribution is automatically deducted from your paycheck each pay period. This money is taken out and invested before your paycheck is taxed. After you have decided what percentage you want deducted from your check, and how to invest it, the work is done for you. Once this money is taken out, you can’t spend it, but it is yours. It grows in your personal 401(k) account. Although you can withdraw the money for certain emergencies or in some cases borrow against your investment, the money is intended to stay in your account until you are 59 1/2. While the investment is growing in your 401(k) account, you will not pay any taxes on it. When you withdraw the money at retirement, you will be taxed on the amount you have in your account. ** Employer Match ** In some cases, employers make their own contributions to your 401(k) plan. This contribution takes the form of an employer match on your contribution. Usually the employer matches a certain percentage of your contribution. For example, an employer may elect to put in 50 cents for every dollar you contribute. That’s an immediate return on your investment, regardless of how you invest your 401(k) money. Not every employer matches the employee contribution, but in some cases the company will match the employee contribution dollar-for-dollar. A 100% return on your investment is more than even the most audacious get-rich investments would dare to offer. ** What Do You Have To Do? **

The 401(k) plan is not an investment per se. It is a way to invest. Within the particular plan offered by your employer there are a number of investment options (each plan has a different set of options). These options may include mutual funds, guaranteed investment contracts (GICs) and, in some cases, stock in your employer. You decide which of these investments you want to buy, and how much of your total contribution you want to put in each. This is a key difference between paying into Social Security and contributing to a 401(k). With Social Security, Uncle Sam decides how to invest your money. With a 401(k) plan, you decide for yourself. That may seem scary, but it gives you the opportunity to invest in a range of high-quality, professionally managed and potentially very lucrative investments. The Social Security Administration is legally obligated to stick to a very narrow range of investments. ** 401(k) Advantages ** There are many, many advantages to saving in a 401(k) plan. Employers, employees, politicians, reporters and investment professionals are so unanimous in their praise for 401(k) plans that it’s almost scary. Let’s look at some of the unique benefits of the plan. Pretax Investing As we mentioned, your 401(k) contribution is deducted before taxes are taken out. That helps in two ways. It means you will be taxed on a smaller sum of money, so your initial tax hit will be lower. If you elect to contribute 6% to your 401(k), you’ll notice your take-home pay is reduced, but by far less than 6%. In fact, if you were earning $30,000 per year, being taxed at the 1995 rate of 28% and contributing 6% to a 401(k), your tax hit would be reduced by more than $500. Pretax investing also increases your investing power. By putting up a chunk of your money before taxes, you will be investing a larger amount of money. In the example above, 6% of your pretax income amounts to $1800. But 6% of your post-tax income comes to less than $1700. If you wanted to match that $1800 through post-tax investing, you’d have to cut into your own take-home pay. Tax-Deferred Growth on Your Investment Since you don’t pay taxes on any return you make on a 401(k) investment, you’ll accumulate savings faster. Tax-deferred growth gives you the full benefit of compounding growth. Every year the full amount of your investment will grow without interruption from the IRS. If you were 40 years from retirement, and begin contributing a fairly

modest $2,000 per year to a 401(k), that money would grow quickly. Say your investment options offered an annual return of 10%, and you contributed faithfully every year. At the end of 40 years, you would have contributed a total of $80,000. But your 401(k) account will be worth $973,684. That’s because the growth on your investment each year has not been subject to tax. Few investment options can match this kind of growth. Access to the Stock and Bond Markets Stock and bond mutual funds are investment options in virtually all 401(k) plans. These investments are potentially much more rewarding than more conventional savings vehicles, such as certificates of deposits, savings accounts and treasury bonds. You could always invest in stocks and bonds on your own. But a 401(k) plan gives you immediate and easy access to the more remunerative financial markets. Professional Management They don’t let dummies manage mutual funds. Most money managers have MBA degrees or higher, and years of experience in the financial markets. On Wall Street or State Street, managing a fund is considered the pinnacle of a career in finance, and only proven investors get the job. So when you put money into stock or bond funds, you’ll be getting the assistance of a skilled, professional investor. Ease and Convenience 401(k) providers work hard to make your investment experience a pleasant one. One frequently expressed fear of potential investors is that they won’t be able to keep track of their 401(k) contributions and won’t know how it is invested. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Once you make your contribution and investment decisions, your 401(k) account is meticulously managed, and you are kept up to date through quarterly reports. If you want to keep track of every penny, you’ll be able to do that. But you won’t have to. Mutual funds, which you will most likely be investing in through your 401(k), are well run, user-friendly vehicles, and let you participate in the markets with whatever degree of safety or risk you choose. Funds put a premium on customer service, and this is why they have become so popular. ** The Drawbacks ** There are some things you should be aware of before investing in a 401(k) plan. The Money Is Off-Limits until you turn 59 1/2 Remember that a 401(k) plan is a retirement investment. If you

withdraw money before 59 1/2, you will face some stiff expenses. For starters, you will be taxed on all of your investment and earnings. And most plans impose some financial penalty on participants who make early withdrawals. This may become an issue when you change jobs or just leave your current job. Most people in this situation choose to "roll over" their 401(k) investments into Individual Retirement Accounts or into another 401(k) plan with their new employer. You Have to Decide How to Invest If you’ve never invested in stocks or bonds before, you’ll have to give some thought to investing with a 401(k) plan. There are added levels of risk and more complex investment issues to consider when you are making your investment plan. It’s important to know what you’re buying.