Plan administrators should be aware that just because a principle is well-established under the law does not mean that people won’t attempt to challenge it anyway. A good example of this is the slayer rule, which prohibits...more
The IRS recently released interim guidance to assist employers who wish to provide matching contributions to the 401(k) or 403(b) plan accounts of employees on their qualified student loan payments (“QSLPs”), in the same way...more
Many who work with defined contribution plan administrators and consult plan sponsors on their ERISA fiduciary duties have been carefully monitoring Disberry v. Employee Relations Committee of the Colgate-Palmolive Company...more
There have been recent developments from both the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and the Department of Labor (“DOL”) and pending court cases about how plan forfeitures under defined contribution retirement plans must be...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has begun accepting determination letter applications for individually designed 403(b) plans. An individually designed 403(b) plan is generally one that is not maintained through a prototype...more
On December 27, 2020, the President signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (the “Act”), the latest major piece of legislation passed by Congress in response to the coronavirus pandemic. This advisory...more
On June 3, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2020-24 providing temporary relief from the physical presence requirement for participant elections that are required to be witnessed by a plan representative or a...more
On May 27, 2020, the Department of Labor published final regulations establishing a new electronic disclosure safe harbor for ERISA-covered retirement plan (but not health and welfare plan) documents. This new safe harbor...more
The uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic have made it difficult for employers to predict the long-term impact of the pandemic on their businesses. In response, many employers are looking for ways to preserve cash...more
In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Department of Labor (the “DOL”) recently issued guidance providing relief to employee benefit plan participants and administrators facing challenges in complying with various...more
In response to the COVID-19 emergency, the IRS has automatically extended the deadline for retirement and welfare plans to file Form 5500 and Form 8955-SSA until July 15, 2020. As explained below, however, this automatic...more
On December 20, 2019, Congress enacted the SECURE Act as part of the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020 (together, the “Act”). The Act includes both required and discretionary changes for employer-sponsored...more
March 31, 2020 is the deadline for retroactively correcting most 403(b) plan document defects that occurred on or after January 1, 2010. These defects can be corrected by amending an individually-designed 403(b) plan or by...more
The Internal Revenue Service has recently issued final regulations easing requirements for hardship distributions from 401(k) and 403(b) plans. The final regulations reflect a number of statutory changes, including those made...more
As we approach the end of 2018, qualified retirement plan sponsors should consider reviewing the various changes brought on by recent legislation, regulations and agency guidance to determine whether any plan amendments or...more
As employers look for creative ways to help employees manage their student loan debt, the IRS recently ruled that employer nonelective contributions to a 401(k) plan for employees who make student loan repayments would not...more
Effective January 1, 2017, except for the last batch of Cycle A filers who were permitted to submit determination letters by January 31, 2017 (i.e., filers with an EIN ending in 1 or 6), the IRS will no longer accept...more
The U.S. Department of Labor has issued new regulations affecting how disability claims are handled under ERISA plans that provide disability benefits or base receipt of benefits on the existence of a disability. While most...more