Small Business Tax Credit (Secure Act)

The SECURE Act (Section 104) increased the tax-credit for a small business establishing a retirement plan to $5,000.

Does a small business qualify (for the credit) if they already sponsor a retirement Plan (in this case a SEP-IRA)? They would you like to start a 401k in 2023 but only if they are eligible to  receive the tax credit for a establishing a new retirement plan 

All help is appreciated

Thank you in advance

Most likely not - see third bullet below.

From IRS website: https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/retirement-plans-startup-costs-tax-credit

Eligible employers
You qualify to claim this credit if:

• You had 100 or fewer employees who received at least $5,000 in compensation from you for the preceding year;
• You had at least one plan participant who was a non-highly compensated employee (NHCE); and
• In the three tax years before the first year you’re eligible for the credit, your employees weren’t substantially the same employees who received contributions or accrued benefits in another plan sponsored by you, a member of a controlled group that includes you, or a predecessor of either.