I maxed out my pre-tax 401(k) earlier this year. I had already used up my entire employer match, so the remaining money flowing into the account was after-tax. When I looked at my most recent statement, I noticed that my YTD total contributions are now $72k. Since I am under 50 years old, my limit for this year is $69k. Apparently there was no automatic cutoff of contributions above the limit, so now my 401(k) holds $3k that it shouldn't.
Schwab indicates that they'll return the money to me by April 15 of next year, but that they can't do anything in the meantime. (In case anyone is curious, Schwab has my correct DOB in their system: they don't think I'm over 50). All of the other posts I've seen about excess contributions relate to folks who had multiple 401(k)s over the course of a year, but I've only had this one. Do I have any options other than waiting 11 months for my money back?