Provider Due-Diligence Checklist

Start with written materials, not sales claims. Save dated copies of the provider's agreement, SOW, fee schedule, methodology, privacy terms, security summaries, referral disclosures, and service descriptions. Capture source proximity, current dates, authorship, and whether each claim comes from a contract, regulator page, provider webpage, third-party referral, or oral statement.

Use status labels narrowly. Not started means no review has happened. In review means evidence is being evaluated. Cleared for planning means the evidence is sufficient for the current planning step. Needs follow-up means a gap, contradiction, or advisor question remains. Not applicable removes the item from the progress denominator, and a zero denominator returns 100% by design.

Do not use the checklist as a secure data room. It has no note fields, persistence, query-string state, cookies, local storage, provider grades, or lead capture. Keep contracts, tax IDs, participant data, account information, passwords, and private records in secure advisor-controlled systems.

IRS ROBS materials describe the core sequence as a C corporation, a qualified plan, rollover or transfer, and plan purchase of employer stock [1] [2]. IRS also warns that determination letters address plan terms rather than correct operation and identifies filing, valuation, prohibited-transaction, discrimination, promoter-fee, business-failure, bankruptcy, lien, and dissolution concerns [1]. Those warnings are why the checklist asks for concrete evidence rather than provider assurances.

DOL fiduciary guidance frames who may be a fiduciary and lists duties of loyalty, prudence, diversification, plan-document compliance, and conflict avoidance [3]. The checklist cannot decide fiduciary status or prudence. It routes role allocation, conflicts, compensation, valuation, and prohibited-transaction questions to independent ERISA counsel, CPA, valuation, and security review where needed.

DOL cybersecurity materials are relevant because ROBS providers, TPAs, recordkeepers, custodians, payroll vendors, and portals may handle participant or plan data [4]. SEC Investor.gov background-check guidance is relevant only where a person or firm claims investment-advice, brokerage, or advisory credentials [5]. State business, professional, insurance, attorney, CPA, and franchise records may also matter, and franchise-related provider referrals should be checked against the applicable franchise-disclosure documents and counsel review.

This page is not a provider marketplace. It does not accept provider inputs in the browser, does not route users to a salesperson, does not create a lead, does not use affiliate compensation to sort providers, and does not rank providers. Internal links below point to source-bounded comparison and methodology pages so users can understand available provider records without treating any record as a recommendation.

A provider that supplies every requested document can still be unsuitable, overpriced, conflicted, insecure, or wrong for a fact pattern. Conversely, an unavailable item may be not applicable. The checklist is a triage and documentation aid, not an endorsement, legal opinion, tax opinion, fiduciary process memo, investment recommendation, security certification, or compliance determination.