401(k) plan audits in San Diego, CA
San Diego sponsors filed 6,168 401(k) plans for the 2024 plan year, the 6th most of any US city and 4.7% of all 401(k) plans in California. 393 of them started the year with 100 or more participants with an account balance, which means their Form 5500 needed an independent audit.
How many San Diego 401(k) plans need an audit?
393 of 6,168. 50% of those have fewer than 250 participants with a balance:
| Participants with a balance | San Diego plans |
|---|---|
| 100 to 249 | 198 |
| 250 to 499 | 104 |
| 500 to 999 | 39 |
| 1,000 or more | 52 |
Another 44 San Diego plans filed as small plans but ended 2024 with 100 or more participants with a balance, so their next filing is likely to need a first audit. Check your own plan’s filing, or read how the count works.
What do audited San Diego plans report?
27% of the 352 audited San Diego 401(k) plans that answered the question reported employee contributions reaching the plan late on Schedule H. Late deposits are one of the things an auditor tests; what else a first auditor looks at.
On fees: California plans that paid their audit from plan assets reported a median of $15,966 in 2024, and half paid between $10,750 and $23,091, across 859 filings. Plans that pay from company funds report no fee, so this is the going rate among plans that pay from the plan. The full fee index.
Which Department of Labor office oversees San Diego plans?
The Employee Benefits Security Administration’s San Francisco Regional Office lists California among the states it serves: 44 Montgomery St., Suite 550, San Francisco, CA 94104, (415) 625-2481.
Can a CPA firm from outside California audit your plan?
Yes. ERISA accepts an auditor licensed as a certified public accountant by any state, and most states let CPAs licensed elsewhere practice there under mobility rules. A CPA licensed in another state, with a principal place of business outside California, may practice in California under a practice privilege, with no notice or fee for most CPAs. California adds a firm step: an out-of-state firm must register with the California Board of Accountancy before auditing an entity headquartered in California.
Source: California Business and Professions Code 5096 and 5096.12. To check any CPA or firm, use the directory of state boards of accountancy.
Working with Ledgerline from San Diego
Ledgerline audits 401(k) and 403(b) plans and is booking engagements for the coming season, starting December 2026. The work runs through a secure portal, so your team, your TPA and your recordkeeper each upload only their own items. We have CPAs across the US, so if you would rather meet in person in San Diego, or need any part of the work done on site, we can do that.
Frequently asked questions
Does my San Diego 401(k) plan need an audit?
It does if it had 100 or more participants with an account balance on the first day of the plan year. For the 2024 plan year, 393 of the 6,168 401(k) plans sponsored from a San Diego address were over that line.
How much does a 401(k) audit cost in California?
In 2024 Form 5500 filings, the median audit fee paid by California plans from plan assets was $15,966, and half paid between $10,750 and $23,091. Many sponsors pay their auditor from company funds instead, and those fees do not appear in the filings.
Can a CPA firm from outside California audit a San Diego 401(k) plan?
Yes, subject to California's rules. A CPA licensed in another state, with a principal place of business outside California, may practice in California under a practice privilege, with no notice or fee for most CPAs. California adds a firm step: an out-of-state firm must register with the California Board of Accountancy before auditing an entity headquartered in California.
See where your plan stands from its own filing, or book a short call to talk through what an audit would involve.
Other cities
- DOL: Form 5500 datasets, 2024 plan year (Form 5500, Form 5500-SF and Schedule H). 401(k) plans (feature code 2J) in the DOL's 2024 Form 5500 and 5500-SF datasets, one record per plan, grouped by the sponsor's mailing city as filed.
- DOL: San Francisco Regional Office
- ERISA section 103(a)(3)(D), definition of qualified public accountant
- California Business and Professions Code 5096 and 5096.12