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For some time now (both before and after the shutdown), I have had technical difficulties getting an EIN issued online. Roughly nine times out of ten I will get the message "Apply for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) online is currently unavailable We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Please refresh your browser or try again later." The most frustrating part is that you have to complete the entire application process before getting this message. The few times a number was issued, it just seemed random. I have tried deleting cookies, using different browsers, and applying at different times of the day. Are any of you having similar difficulties? Do you have other suggestions or insights that could help? My thanks in advance for any ideas.

for Heritage Pension Advisors, Inc. (Remote / Commack NY)View the full text of this job opportunity

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A lot depends on whether the correct amounts were actually withheld and deposited to the SIMPLE IRA. The deferral percentage should be calculated on gross pay regardless of whether the election was pre-tax or Roth, so it may help to confirm, if you haven’t already, that the correct deferrals were withheld for each pay period. If the correct amounts were withheld and deposited and the only issue was that payroll treated them as after-tax, then it’s really just a payroll clean-up. You’d just want to make sure the year-to-date wages and the W-2s show the right pre-tax treatment. If the correct amounts weren’t withheld or didn’t make it into the SIMPLE IRA, then you’d follow the SIMPLE IRA Fix-It Guide option that best matches the situation, which @justanotheradmin shared above.

In Connor's originating post's first sentence, there is an ambiguity about whether "401(k) clients" refers to plan sponsors, participants, or something else. Connor, you mention that the service provider sent you something that it plans to send (but maybe has not sent to its ultimate audience). Does that service provider invite your comment? Does it ask you to do something, or be mindful of something, before the communication gets to its audience?

Could the plan or the employer be harmed because of a delay in the PBGC's findings?

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Hi A plan of mine was picked by PBGC for audit and all information was provided 6 months ago. I have not heard from them at all since then. sometimes no news is good news but here I am getting a bit worried that I have not heard anything. Between all governmental firings as well as shutdown, does anyone have an experience similar to mine? Thanks

What would you propose as an alternative? The decision to amend the plan to allow for Roth is made above the participant level. If the plan is not amended, then the proposed participant communication seems appropriate. Unless the financial institution has discretion to make plan decisions, including to amend plans to allow Roth contributions(or disallow catch-up), I don't see any alternative. Plans are not required to offer Roth or disallow catch-up. Many the financial institution / recordkeeper do not charge enough or have a set-up that allows a lot of personalized customized plan design and follow-through, depending on the size of the plan. Unless they are on a service level where the financial institution is going to contact each affected plan sponsor personally, and educate them on the pros and cons of amending or not, I don't see it changing. Does the financial institution also maintain the plan's document for these clients? If not, they really aren't in a position to do much else. What is your role? If you are an advisor or TPA, those are the service providers I see doing more education with plan sponsors if a plan does not allow for Roth, but does allow for catch-up. I have had a number follow-up with sponsors throughout the year to educate and see if they would agree to plan amendments.

I have had this done with clients in the past and as long as it was all fixed in the same calendar year and all the reporting is corrected by payroll - it was deemed "corrected" - no harm, no foul. In some cases, payroll had it right, but the deposit to the plan accounts was uploaded incorrectly (an easier situation to correct). We may have documented the correction of the operation error and self-correction via resolution (especially if the plan is subject to audit - this helps). I think the key in administration is to ensure someone(s) is always minding the store and proving that. The split payroll thing between allocating an deferral election between both pre-tax and ROTH (whether deemed or not) will no doubt be an issue next year. I don't see many participants catching it, let alone catching it timely. This needs to be a check/limit at the payroll level.

Also to confirm, it is a lookback calculation? So an employee hired with a salary of $250,000 on 7/1/2025 made FICA wages of $125,000 in 2025. They are not subject to the Mandatory Roth in 2026 because they did not make the limit? regardless they will make $250,000 in 2026. They will be subject to the mandatory roth in 2027.

It's actually based on the employer, determined without regard to controlled groups or affiliated service groups. So if you have a plan sponsored by two companies, A and B, which are members of a controlled group, and employee X earns $100,000 from each A and B, then even though their plan comp is $200,000, they are not subject to Roth catch-up from either employer since their comp from any employer was not greater than the limit. Meanwhile if you have employee Y in the same plan who earns $180,000 from A and $20,000 from B, then their deferrals from A would be subject to Roth catch-up while their deferrals from B would not.

for Nova 401(k) Associates (Remote)View the full text of this job opportunity

Thank you, Peter. Those are excellent points to consider in dealing with this issue. And thank you, Frank (fmsinc) for the helpful case references.

So, the documents governing the plan set provisions for determining the beneficiary. Including what to do when there is no claim. And perhaps providing for the insurer to do it. --------- The plan sponsor might be reluctant to amend the plan for at least two reasons: The insurance contract might provide that plan provisions accepted by the insurer is a condition to the insurer’s obligation. A custom provision might call the employer/administrator to do work that otherwise the insurer is willing to do if the insurer has no obligation beyond following its own procedure. The plan sponsor might prefer that the insurer do the work of applying its procedure for difficult claims. If, however, the plan sponsor considers a plan amendment, the plan sponsor and each plan fiduciary might want each’s lawyer’s advice about whether a new provision ought to apply to a claim that arose before the amendment is made, and, if it applies, how it applies. Further, what would the written plan describe as the set of facts that result in a beneficiary being deemed to have predeceased the participant or otherwise treated as not a beneficiary? How might a reader of the summary plan description perceive that description? This is not advice to anyone.

Hello T haley did you ever receive an answer to this? I have an exact on point situation, but am looking at the compensation issue for statutory compensation thank you

I just want to clarify that almost no TPA or compliance provider every aggressively pursues cumbersome and complex provisions. However, beggers cannot be choosers. I really really want that new business, so I don't get choose their plan design for them 👍. It's always the biggest clients, who by the way have had those provisions for decades at times, that are at issue. Now Congress did us all a favor with SECURE Act (if you want to take a glass half full view of the world). Now when we go to clients and tell them your "plan document sucks" there is some real meat on the bone, since the LTPT stuff in my view is technically, figuratively and literally impossible to comply with.

Thank you for the perspective. Since you are receiving the small pension from the other company, it may have never been reported, or it might have been removed once you went into payment status. Either way, glad to know you are receiving all of your earned benefits.

We work with a large financial institution that has sent us a sample correspondence that they plan to send to their 401(k) clients. It states that if a plan does not permit Roth deferrals, participants whose FICA wages were $150k of less in the prior year can continue to make catch-up contributions on a pre-tax basis, but those whose wages exceed this limt are not permitted to make any catch-ups. The research we have done on this topic seems to suggest that though it's possible to have a plan operate in this manner, it's not recommended, as such an arrangement can create discrimination issues. If this is true, we are surprised that an investment firm, which has a popular recordkeeping platform, would push this method without at least caveating the downside. Do we have a correct understanding of the new rules in this regard?

Peter, To answer your questions: the death benefit is provided by a life insurance contract under an ERISA governed plan. The SPD is the plan document. The SPD provides that the designated beneficiary needs to file a claim for life insurance within one year from the employee's date of death. If no claim is timely filed and the whereabouts of the beneficiary are unknown, the disposition of the benefit will be determined by the provisions of the claim policy of the life insurance carrier indicated in the summary of benefits insert. If the plan were to be amended to adopt a missing participant policy, which should require that the whereabouts of the beneficiary be attempted in spite of his or her deportation and such attempt is unsuccessful, even though it is after the fact, since we are not talking about a qualified retirement plan and there is no vesting for welfare benefits (absent a plan provision to the contrary), could the plan treat the beneficiary as having predeceased the participant? I could see that such a provision could apply prospectively, but I am concerned that the amendment would not be valid retroactively.

Even if an interpleader otherwise would be something an employee-benefit plan’s administrator might consider (and evaluate according to one’s fiduciary duties, including not incurring an imprudent expense if it would be paid or reimbursed from plan assets), an interpleader might not fit the Federal statute—28 U.S.C. § 1335. Among many possible reasons: There might not be competing claims, whether now or even potentially. (For example, if the participant named no contingent beneficiary and the default beneficiary under the plan’s governing documents—for example, the participant’s estate—is administered by the same person as the not-yet-located primary beneficiary.) If no one has submitted a claim for the death benefit and the documents governing the plan do not compel an immediate payment or delivery, there might not be competing claims. Absent competing claims, there might be no controversy until a plan provision compels an immediate payment or delivery. If none of the competing claimants resides in the United States, there might be no U.S. district that is a proper venue for a § 1335 interpleader. See 28 U.S.C. § 1397. There might not be “[t]wo or more adverse claimants, of diverse citizenship as defined in [28 U.S.C. § 1332](a) or (d) [who] are claiming or may claim to be entitled to [the death benefit][.]” 28 U.S.C. § 1335(a)(1). The required diversity of citizenship might not exist if none of the competing claimants is a citizen or resident of any U.S. State or territory. If the facts a complaint alleges do not show adversity of claims to the judge’s satisfaction, a court might dismiss the interpleader for not fitting the statute or not stating a controversy under the U.S. Constitution’s Article III. Despite 28 U.S.C. § 2361’s provision for nationwide service of process, the plan’s administrator, trustee, or other stakeholder might be unable to serve process on one or more of the potential claimants. (rocknrolls2’s originating post says the plan fiduciaries have not located the primary beneficiary.) An ERISA § 502(a)(1)(B) claim “to recover benefits due to him under the terms of his plan, to enforce his rights under the terms of the plan, or to clarify his rights to future benefits under the terms of the plan” won’t work because only “a participant or beneficiary” may bring such a claim. An action for a declaratory judgment might be inapt because there might be no Article III controversy. If no claim is submitted, more likely a fiduciary might hold the death benefit until applicable law treats the right to that benefit as abandoned property. This is not advice to anyone.

Why wouldn't the post sale contributions be allowed? if that business entity is still operating, people are still on payroll, the plan is not terminated(or frozen), then the post sale contributions have to be allowed. The change in ownership in and of itself doesn't change those participant's rights or ability to defer. A plan termination date prior to to the stock sale date does preserve a variety of other things, so often is preferred. But is not required. Also - what do you mean "scheduled for termination"? When the plan is terminated (benefit accruals stop), when it stops accepting deposits (trailing deferrals and employer contributions), and when it actually pays everything out and the trust is $0, are all different things. Absent a company resolution to terminate the plan(and subsequent amendment to the plan document to conform) the plan continues as is. It just might face additional compliance requirements. Since the sale already occurred - you should check with the business entities and see if their buy/sale agreement addresses the plan. I've seen cases where a termination resolution was drafted by the business attorneys and executed just prior to the sale, and then a copy included in the stock sale agreements. Maybe the plan is terminated already.

I was looking at the rules for when you can switch from the full 5500 to a 5500-SF. It seems like, under the new rules, if the number of account balances is under 100 as of the first day of the plan year, the client can file a 5500-SF for that plan year. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Who do you think has the burden of proof that the benefidciary is dead? I am guessing that it falls on the contingent beneficiary (and mabe the plan as well). Here are a few quickly located cases that may be helpful. https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=20000006&q="burden+of+proof+of+death"&btnG= Here are a few more: https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=20000006&q="burden+of+proof+of+the+death"&btnG= Who is at risk of having to pay twice when the deported beneficiary is found alive and well on a beach in Thatiti. How can RocknRolls2 protect his plan and his job. File an interpleader naming the contingent beneficiary and whoever represents the deported one, and have the court make a dead or alive decision. Deposit the proceeds into the Registry of the Court. David