Estimate the total cost of maintaining a ROBS arrangement.
Use this calculator to itemize setup, recurring compliance, professional, transaction, and exit costs over a planning horizon. It does not publish or infer provider fees. Every fee defaults to zero until you enter a number.
Year-one total
Not calculated
Cumulative nominal
Not calculated
Average annual
Not calculated
Category breakdown
Recurring categories are escalated annually. Transaction and exit categories are counted only when their timing switches are on.
| Category | Nominal total | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Administration | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Recordkeeping | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Valuation | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Form 5500 | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Accounting/tax | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Legal | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Payroll | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Other recurring | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Transaction | Not calculated | Not calculated |
| Exit | Not calculated | Not calculated |
Year-by-year timing
| Year | Recurring | Setup | Transaction | Exit | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Submit at least one cost to calculate the timing table. | |||||
Formula and timing
- Year 1 = setup + base recurring + transaction cost when selected.
- Year n recurring = base recurring × (1 + escalation rate ÷ 100)^(n − 1).
- Cumulative nominal total = sum of every year in the planning horizon. No present-value discounting is applied.
- Average annual total = cumulative nominal total ÷ planning horizon years.
- Exit cost is added only in the final year when selected.
What is not included
The calculator does not infer provider pricing, investment loss, tax liability, penalties, loan interest, audit exposure, correction cost, state corporate charges, business operating losses, or the value of retirement assets that could have stayed invested elsewhere. Add those as explicit user inputs only when you have a defensible estimate.
Privacy and trust
There is no account creation, saved scenario, provider match, or lead-capture form. Calculations run only after you submit this on-page calculator, using FormData from the values currently in your browser.
What the estimate is designed to capture
A ROBS creates a real qualified plan and a C corporation, so cost planning should not stop at the setup invoice. IRS materials describe compliance-check questions about rollover records, participant information, stock valuation and purchases, plan status, Form 5500, Form 1120, and Form 1099-R. [1] Form 5500-series returns report plan qualification, financial condition, investments, and operations. [2] Domestic corporations use Form 1120 to report income, deductions, credits, and corporate income-tax liability. [3]
The calculator therefore separates one-time setup, recurring administration, recordkeeping, employer-stock valuation, Form 5500 support, accounting and corporate tax, legal review, payroll or employment filings, other recurring costs, transaction events, and exit or plan-termination costs. DOL fiduciary guidance says fiduciaries must act solely in participant interests, follow plan documents, avoid conflicts, and use plan assets for benefits and reasonable plan expenses. [4]
Use the result as a worksheet for written quotes. It is not a provider ranking, legal opinion, tax projection, investment-return model, or evidence that a ROBS is suitable for a particular business.
Source notes
- IRS ROBS compliance project. Supports ROBS mechanics, C corporation stock purchase, promoter-fee concerns, valuation, recordkeeping, Form 5500/Form 1120 filing issues, Form 1099-R references, and the boundary that determination letters do not approve operation of a specific arrangement. Page last reviewed Nov. 16, 2025; checked Aug. 12, 2026.
- IRS Form 5500 corner. Supports Form 5500-series annual reporting purpose, who files, electronic filing, due date, extensions, Form 5500-EZ boundaries, and penalty-relief context. Page last reviewed July 20, 2026; checked Aug. 12, 2026.
- IRS About Form 1120. Supports the corporate income-tax filing category for domestic corporations reporting income, deductions, credits, and tax liability. Page last reviewed July 21, 2026; checked Aug. 12, 2026.
- DOL fiduciary responsibilities. Supports plan fiduciary duties, prudent plan administration, plan-document compliance, fee and expense purpose, conflict avoidance, and personal-liability boundaries. Checked Aug. 12, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Does this calculator use provider pricing?
No. All fees default to zero and every dollar amount is user-entered. Use a written provider quote, professional estimate, contract, invoice, or internal budget line before treating the result as a planning number.
Why include Form 5500, valuation, accounting, legal, and payroll categories?
IRS ROBS materials identify recordkeeping, rollover documentation, participant information, stock valuation, Form 5500, Form 1120, and other plan-operation questions as compliance-check topics. DOL fiduciary materials also frame plan fees and expenses as fiduciary-relevant plan-administration issues.
Is cumulative nominal total the same as economic cost?
No. It is a timing model for entered cash costs. It does not discount future payments, measure foregone retirement investment returns, predict business failure, calculate taxes or penalties, or price audit/correction exposure.
When should transaction or exit costs be included?
Turn on transaction costs when the modeled scenario includes acquisition, financing, amendment, correction, stock event, or ownership-change support in year one. Turn on exit costs when the horizon includes a sale, stock redemption, final filing, plan termination, or rollover-out process.