Hi. I am hoping someone point me in the right direction. We have an employee out on extended unpaid leave. I am told that due to the ACA, the Employer must keep the employee on our health plan indefinitely even in a situation where the employee cannot work due to his own health condition and he is on extended unpaid leave following FMLA.

Thanks.

The IRS FIRE site will be down for scheduled maintenance starting December 9, 2016 at 6 PM Eastern Standard Time through January 16, 2017

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Please tell me someone has a direct connection to some senior person at the IRS who can explain that this is beyond idiotic. 1099's are all due 1/31st and the very system needed to file said 1099's is out of commission until half way through the only month they can be filed?? Seriously?

I have a strange situation and looking for advice:

I have a salesman who has slowed down as he turned 70 on September 5, 2015.

He is still trying to make some sales, but decided on February 5, 2016 (before he even turned age 70-1/2) to take an in-service distribution and roll it to his IRA as he felt the grass was greener in the IRA. He received a commission check in January, 2016, but didn't receive another one until September, 2016 (I told you he slowed down). Not sure he'll ever make another sale.

If this is the case, I could see the IRS having the opinion that his retirement date falls in 2016 and, as a result, his RBD is 4/1/2017, making his first distribution calendar year 2016. Suddenly, that in-service distribution, which looked ok in February as he was still working, becomes a distribution that included his RMD.

I feel I need to suggest to the Trustee and the custodian platform that they split that rollover distribution into two 1099-R's, one for the RMD amount (taxable) and one for a non-taxable rollover. We then need to advise the participant that he should request a distribution of excess contributions from the IRA for the RMD amount on or before the due date of his 2016 tax return.

Agree???

Thanks in advance.

James

I have an owner that has a 12,000 AB at age 55 which is about near what the 415 dollar limit would be reduced to age 55. Plan wants to terminate and if I value the 12,000 as deferred to NRA (62), the plan is over-funded. What's to stop us form amending the plan to provide for an unreduced early at age 55? Applicable to all participants.

Pension plan erroneously made a lump sum distribution to an individual who had never been a participant in the plan or worked for the employer. Do the ECPRS correction procedures for an overpayment apply here or is there something more specific to this situation? The ECPRS definition of overpayment refers to a payment to a "participant or beneficiary" - and this individual was neither.

Here's the story - former employee allegedly provides a name and SSN that do not belong to him he was hired. Employee Bill participates in the pension plan under the false name and SSN for a few years but is eventually terminated for providing false employment documents (apx. 2008).

In 2016, the individual whose name and SSN were used by the former employee applies for social security and receives a 'Potential Private Pension Benefit Notice' regarding the pension benefit under his name and SSN. He contacts the employer (whom he never worked for), files a claim, and is paid a lump sum distribution of apx. $7,000. He provided a different DOB than what was on file for the former employee but that was not caught at the time. Someone how he learns there is a 401k benefit under his name/SSN as well and while trying to get that paid to him, he discloses to the employer that he had never worked for the employer and was allegedly a victim of identity theft by a cousin. Recipient is refusing to pay the $7,000 distribution back to the plan.

I'm clear on the rights of the real former employee to the benefits he earned while working, despite the incorrect SSN, and that he will have to provide a valid SSN or TIN to receive distributions from the qualified plans. But how does the employer correct the $7,000 distribution to other guy? Do the ECPRS overpayment procedures apply? Does the employer have any avenues available for recoupment that they would not have if this was an overpayment to an actual participant (i.e. does this guy have rights under ERISA here)?

The employer made the error here, but the recipient also made a claim for benefits from a plan he knows he never participated in. He has acknowledged that the former employee participated in the plan and "earned" the pension benefit using the recipient's SSN.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

Does a notice have to be provided to participants in a non-qualified individual account plan for which a top hat filing has been made? No per 2520.104-23? Thanks in advance for any guidance!

Do assets converted from prior providers during the reporting period get reported at their 'carrying values' as 'beginning of year' assets in Part 1 of Schedule H? Or are they excluded as are current year contributions?

Can someone point me to the regulations applicable to the merger of two multi-employer plans. Specifically, what happens to the credit balances and amortization bases of the plans?

If plan A mergers into plan B, does plan A's credit balance just go away, or do we need to adjust the credit balance in plan B to consider it?

Is there still the understanding that there is no Federal income tax withholding simply do to the vesting and consequent income inclusion of deferred compensation under Section 457(f) where there is nothing being paid until later? Is there a more recent statement from the IRS on this than the 1999 TAM, either another TAM or PLR or even in a speech?

We have a plan that allows certain employees to purchase equity interests in our company. Is that an ERISA plan?

Would any of the following features make it an ERISA plan:

1. Right of first refusal.
2. Employee required to sell stock back to company upon separation from service.
3. Employee required to sell stock back to company upon death.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Small CPA firm with a safe harbor 401-k Plan where 1 of the CPA's and some of the staff terminated prior to end of year and formed a new firm. They will not receive Profit Sharing contributions since the plan requires employment on last day of year.

Can they start a new safe harbor plan in December to make up for the lost profit sharing and to maximize salary deferrals or does it have to be a January 1 date for safe harbor 401-k?

A small closely held Corp put in a SERP 10 yrs ago. It's a defined benefit type where the retirement benefit is a fixed amount. Now the Exec is retiring.

The CPA had additional Social Security tax withheld from the Execs salary every year since inception, but I'm not sure how he arrived at the amount. In research, I'm reading it should have been charged on a discount of what the ultimate benefit would be. Is that correct?

I have read that since this compensation is considered to have been earned during the Execs working years, the Exec can defer some of the retirement benefit into the co. 401k, if the 401k permits it. Is that correct?

Lastly, IRS Pub 957 suggests the retirement income is reported on a W-2 in boxes 1 and 11. and no Social Security or medicare tax is withheld. Is that correct?

Thanks so much for any input

Ray

Plan had a terminated employee as of 4/1/16 who needed (and did) take first RMD. Person has since been rehired by same company. Does employee have to continue taking RMDs where he has been rehired and is not an owner?

Plan wants to add auto enroll and escalate for 2017 so we set up a conference call to discuss.

Get this: Based on an auditors recommendation, the employer requires that ALL employees acknowledge and sign documentation each year for their 401k deferral percentage. So Joe comes meets with HR and HR says, "I see you are deferring 3%. Would you like to do that for next year?" "Yes, I would." "Great, sign here."

We don't see where auto enroll would come into play because everyone is making an affirmative election. Same thing with auto escalate; employee is effectively making an election to increase, decrease, or stay the same each year.

It appears that I would need to have the HR department repeal some of their procedures.

Anyone have any suggestions or run across this before?

If a VS DC plan has DL for EGTTRA and now is submitting for PPA.

What amendment must be stated on 5307 item g?

What amendments must be sent to the IRS with the 5307?

Thanks

Hello,

As a final exam I've been allowed to write a 15 page paper on any ERISA topic. The thing is I have no idea what to write about. I do have Lexus Nexus, which should make the process of writing the paper easier, but I have no idea what to write about! Possibly something easy to understand.

Best,

Hambbino

Has anyone matched the apr rates for 2016 vs 2017 at age 62 assuming a lump sum at 5.5% or at 5%?

Not being lazy, but I have not loaded the new tables yet.

A client of ours is a physician who is 100% owner of her private practice and sponsors a 401(k) plan. She and her husband bought 80% of a liquor store, not realizing that they might have to cover these employees under the plan. I don't see any way around this being a controlled group but I wanted to make sure I'm not missing something. They asked about transferring all ownership to the husband, but I told them the attribution rules applied. I'm sure they couldn't pass coverage by excluding them, as there are more employees at the store than the clinic. Is there any creative way to structure this to avoid a controlled group?

Does anyone know of a website to go to in order to check your CE status for ERPA? Someone I met mentioned checking to see that all her credits were properly reported.

Why would a TPA have the file Form 5500 instead of Form 5500-SF for a small, 8 participant plan, other than to charge a higher fee??

The investments are with a broker.