I'm looking at a hardship request based on dire medical need and am concerned that if I tell the PA to obtain evidence of the need, it would contain personal medical information protected under HIPAA. Has anyone set up a structure to deal with these types of requests? I haven't been able to find much on the interplay between the hardship distribution rules and HIPAA privacy requirements. Anyone else encountered this before, and if so, can you point me in the right direction . . .

I have a client that would like to know what type of policies can be ran through a cafeteria plan. I have researched EBIA and Flex Answer Book and it does not cover the following; Cancer Expense Protection Policy, Intensive Care Policy, Hospital Confinement Policy, Specified Health Event Policy, Voluntary Life Insurance. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!

I hear arguments on both sides as to whether the 2nd 1040 extension to 10/15 counts toward extending the contribution deadline for a PS plan. I know 1.404(a)-1( c ) says "extensions", but some folks are nervous because that gives sole proprietors one more month to fund than a December FYE corporation. Help! Thanks!

We have had several changes in our HR department and we are confused, who has the authority to approve withdrawal requests? Does it have to be a trustee? or can it be any of the authorized signers?

Thanks in advance for your help!

i'm looking for recommendations for a good seminar on HRA's. I need to attend one quickly. I will consider any geographical location.

If a participant takes a distribution due to an unforseen emergency must the participant suspend salary deferrals? If so, how long is the required suspension?

Cites would be helpful.

I have a question regarding receipts claimed on the medical reimbursement claim form. I have an employee who was charged a fee for no show/ late cancellation on an appointment. Has anyone seen this before and is this an allowable expense?

Any help would be appreciated.

May a 403(b) plan be set up as a 413© multiple employer plan?

Where is the IRS guidance for the following situation:

A non-union employee is eligible and participating in a qualified plan. He terminates employment and two months later is re-hired as a union employee at another division. As a union member, under plan terms, he is not eligible to participate in the plan.

Can he take a total distribution from the plan at any time now because he had a separation from service?

He had an loan outstanding at the time of his termination. If he does not take a distribution, am I obligated to resume withholding loan repayments from his pay?

A PBGC plan has an NRD of 65 and 5. The owner, who is scheduled to retire at 65, is getting close to retirement and during a meeting states that he intends on working to 70.

What happens to the various benefits legally?

My opininon is as follows:

Funding for the plan benefits depends on whether a benefits suspension notice needs to be invoked. A projected benefit at 70 (greater of AE or current formula) could therefore be used OR the current benefit at the later retirement age. This is therefore an assumption.

The question concerns other calculations.

For current liability, my inclination is to use the same methods and assumptions as my valuation.

Am I required to ignore this new valuation 'assumption' and use the participant's normal retirement age for purposes of the current liability calculations? This would obviously impact the current liability calculations and the PBGC premium calculations as well (assuming the general method was being used).

I could not find any cite other than that the assumptions should match those used in the valuation except for required interest / mortality changes. Any comments are greatly appreciated.

Ok start shaking your heads, I am clueless about money matters.

I am in my early 40's and have no retirement or savings accounts.

My employer doesn't offer 401k or retirement plans. I make very little money a year (less than $10,000), but my husband does well. I would like to open a Roth IRA but really really don't want the stress of the stock market. Even if CD's might not make as much money isn't it better to open a conservative secure something. We had money in a savings account but with the 1% interest and charging monthly fees if it fell below a certain amount, we moved the money into our checking account. My husband has a 401k. I want to be really conservative and know that the money placed will only increase as time goes by. I thought of CD's but I am pretty clueless about how they work. If you open one for a certain number of years, does the bank notify you when the term is up and what do you do then? There has to be something that is safer than the stock market but earns more than a savings account. Can anyone help?

Has anyone ever seen any document language which provided for the sum of continued accruals plus actuarial increases vs the greater of the two? Would this be treated as a separate benefit structure and require (a)(4) testing?

Under the proposed regs 1.457-4(d) a deferral of compensation was allowed only if an agreement providing for the deferral was entered into before the begining of the month in which the amounts would be otherwise paid or payable and the participant is an employee in that month. The final regulations purportedly allow, under the special rule, for elections to defer to be made after the beginning of the month for sick, vacation & back pay provided the vacation pay would otherwise have been payable before the employee has a severance from service.

What is the case for an employee whose termination date is June 30, he severs his employment as of that date, but his accumulated sick pay, etc. is included in his final paycheck which is not paid to the now terminated employee until the next pay period which would be in July, due to administrative requirements? If he is entitled to the pay as of his date of termination, is this sufficient to deem the accumulated sick pay, etc. as "payable" before the severance from service?

Can commissions be excluded from the definition of compensation (for calculating contributions) in a Safe Harbor plan with 401(k) and employer non-elective?

Thanks -

Can a sponsor sponsoring a 401(k) plan stop paying administrative expenses, and instead charge them to participants on a monthly/quarterly basis without notifying participants of the change?

Assume the document allows payment of expenses, and that the expenses are reasonable (flat charge per month per head).

What are the parameters of Social security replacement plans? Can I create one in a 401(a)? Could I create one in a 403(b)? I understand that there is a certain percentage from employer and employee, what are those percents? Is there any guidelines from the IRS? If a plan is implemented would the IRS or Social security Administration need to be informed?

Thanks for any info!

We have a client who allows employees to pay preimums pre-tax through the cafeteria plan. The health insurance company has increased their premiums effective 9/1. It's a significant cost increase that would allow the participants to make a change in status and have the premiums increased. However, the cleint has a number of employees who had not participated in the plan at the beginning of the year and would like to automatically enroll them now. Can the employer implement an automatic enrollment mid year?

Employer has a 401k/PS plan and starts up another business. He wants to amend the plan to:

. make the new business the sponsor employer and the old business a participating employer

. change the name of the plan to refer to the new business

. remove the 401(k) and match feature

. add a vesting schedule to the profit sharing

. add eligibility requirements

. add a cross testing allocation for the profit sharing

Does anyone see a need to start-up a new plan?

I have a small DB plan where the actively employed 100% owner elected to convert his PVAB into a 414k account (money never left the trust) about 4 years ago. He now is coming upon 70 1/2 in 2004. He has a TEFRA 242b election which states that no minimum distribution is needed until he ceases employment.

Should I be concerned that the 414k conversion may have voided the 242b election?

We had an employer with a major delinquency problem.

One cause of action the Union and Plan brought was

under the state prevailing wage law. (Very similiar

to Davis-Bacon in all material respects.) The theory

was that by failing to pay his fringes, he had also violated

the prevailing wage act.

The order from the court awards the monies and penalties,

but specifies the payments are to be made to the

employees...not their benefit plans. This creates the

obvious problem that our db/dc plans must grant them

service credit for all hours worked...even though we

will not be receiving the contributions.

Questions:

1. Can we somehow negate the service credit that

would otherwise be earned? How?

2. Do we have to collect the monies from our members?

3. Any other ideas?