At long last, the Internal Revenue Service issued proposed regulations under Code section 401(a)(9) that take into account the major changes made by the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019...more
Recent IRS Notice 2022-6 updates longstanding guidance on when a series of payments from an individual account under a tax-favored retirement plan is considered a series of “substantially equal periodic payments”. Under Code...more
Upcoming deadline alert! Plan sponsors should prepare for these upcoming February 2022 deadlines to ensure federal compliance and avoid penalties....more
Upcoming deadline alert! Plan sponsors should prepare for these upcoming January 2022 deadlines to ensure federal compliance and avoid penalties....more
Update (January 4, 2022)
The updated 2022 Forms W-4P and W-4R have been released...more
As we approach the end of 2021, it’s again time for sponsors of 401(a) and 403(b) plans to review their plan documents and plan operations to ensure compliance with increasingly complex qualification requirements. While...more
The IRS recently announced (Notice 2021-61, Nov. 4, 2021) that many of the key pension limits will increase next year – some significantly due to higher inflation. The Social Security Administration and PBGC also recently...more
Background on the 403(b) Pre-Approved Plan Program -
In 2013, the IRS began accepting prototype and volume submitter 403(b) plans (now referred to collectively as “pre-approved” plans) in the first-ever 403(b) remedial...more
On July 16, 2021, IRS issued a new version of the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (“EPCRS”), set forth in Revenue Procedure 2021-30. The new EPCRS provides qualified plan sponsors with the opportunity to correct...more
While we await proposed regulations under Code section 401(a)(9) to reflect the significant changes made to the required minimum distribution (“RMD”) rules under the SECURE Act, the 2020 IRS Publication 590-B for IRA...more
On March 12, the IRS released the latest versions of the 2022 draft withholding forms for pension, IRA and annuity payments. While pension withholding elections have historically all been made on Form W-4P, that form will be...more
Plan sponsors and recordkeepers have long wished for updated electronic delivery or e-delivery rules that permit electronic delivery as the default form of distribution, and one that could be applied uniformly for all notices...more
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) provided employers valuable relief from the economic stress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, by creating access to loans under the Paycheck Protection...more
On November 5, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) released final regulations under section 401(a)(9) of the Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”). 85 Fed. Reg. 72472 (Nov. 12, 2020). The final regulations, which closely...more
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) passed earlier this year delayed the due date of quarterly and final contributions otherwise due in calendar year 2020 to January 1, 2021. But because...more
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 amended long-standing periodic pension default withholding where a Form W-4P (or its substitute) is not received from the payee. Effective January 1, 2018, the Act replaced the “married with...more
IRS Notice 2020-68 (Notice) provides the first round of guidance on a number of provisions under the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act) and the Bipartisan American Miners Act of...more
9/22/2020
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
457(b) Plans ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Distribution Rules ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Contributions ,
IRS ,
Pensions ,
SECURE Act ,
Tax Planning ,
Vesting
On July 8, 2020, the IRS released Notice 2020-54 (the “Notice”), which mandates 2020 W-2 reporting of qualified sick and family leave wages paid to employees under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (the Act). ...more
On June 29, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2020-52, which provides guidance and temporary relief for employers who may choose to reduce contributions during 2020 to their safe harbor 401(k) or 403(b) plan....more
On June 23, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2020-51, which provides much-needed guidance on how defined contribution plans (including 403(b) and governmental 457(b) plans) and IRAs implement the waiver of...more
6/26/2020
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
CARES Act ,
Defined Contribution Plans ,
Employee Benefits ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
IRA Rollovers ,
IRS ,
Required Minimum Distributions ,
Retirement ,
Retirement Plan ,
Retirement Plan Providers ,
SECURE Act
The IRS recently issued Notice 2020-46 that provides for a special leave donation program available for the COVID-19 pandemic. This brings the total to three tax-favored leave programs that are currently available to...more
The retirement plan community got a shock five years ago when the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) dramatically cut back its 60-year-old program of providing employers with the comfort of a determination letter on the tax...more
On June 3, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2020-42 to provide temporary relief for certain participant elections required to be witnessed in the “physical presence” of a plan representative or notary...more
IRS Notice 2020-35 is a follow-on to Notice 2020-23 that provided for a wide range of pension filings and actions that were otherwise due between April 1 and July 14, 2020 that were extended until July 15, 2020. ...more
6/1/2020
/ 403(b) Plans ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Defined Benefit Plans ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
EPCRS ,
Excise Tax ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Form 5500 ,
IRS ,
Pensions ,
Retirement Plan
Plan sponsors, service providers and plan participants have been eagerly awaiting guidance on the new Coronavirus Relief Distribution (CRD) and loan provisions that were added by Section 2202 of the CARES Act. Limited...more