5 people own 20% of a business. The same 5 people make up the board of a non-profit. Controlled Group?

Are there special rules that might apply to a collectively bargained plan for allocation condition purposes?

In this takeover plan, the collective bargaining agreement was found to have required that the match be allocated on a monthly basis and that the participant work 120 hours in a month to get the match for that month. This would exceed the annual 1,000 hour DOL rule that typically applies.

I need to identify three independent benchmarking services for consideration to benchmark fees in a medium sized 401(k) Plan. Although I find lots of discussion in articles noting that independent benchmarking services are increasingly available and are a best practice, I do not see many references to specific providers in any of these discussions. Can anyone point me to a resource listing top benchmarking providers or would anyone be willing to say who are some of the industry leaders in providing independent 401(k) fee benchmarking services based on personal experience?

Thanks

What is your process for a Missed Auto increase?

Last year person was missed.. so actually this year she should be increased by 2 %. Anybody have any hard and fast rules on this?

They were increased on their first year.. to 3 %.. then 2015 should have been 4 and 2016 should be 5....

Thoughts?

Restructuring is prohibited in ADP testing, but if a controlled group exists and there are 2 separate plans within the controlled group, can each plan be tested separately assuming each passes 410(b), or are both required to be aggregated for ADP purposes?

If you are doing a VCP submission for a late interim amendment (where the compliance fee is only $375), can you submit the late interim amendment in proposed form, rather than a signed amendment)?

When doing the nondiscriminatory classification test, we use the mid point between the safe harbor and non-safe harbor numbers.

Are those two numbers (sh and nsh) used for anything else? If we are always using the midpoint, why have 2 #'s?

A plan makes the decision to switch to a Stable Value fund with a slightly lower rate in order to reduce recordkeeping fees. I can't find what notice, if any, is required to participants. Would this be considered a 'fund change' that would require 30 days notice in order for the plan to receive 404c protection?

Do you have plans with ExpertPlan? The website is going dark 1/8th. We're raising a big stink and emailing everyone we know at Ascensus. You should do the same if you have a decent book over there.

Download all of your reports now. I don't know what you're going to be able to do get transaction histories if you're researching deposit differences.

One of the worst decisions Ascensus has made, and there is a lot to choose from.

I am working with a client who has requested that a retroactive amendment be made to their current AA. The plan is on a pre-approved prototype defined contribution document. They know that the amendment must go through the VCP program.

Number 7b on the Form 8950 asked if I have concurrently submitted a Form 5300 series? I have answered the question 'no' as I was under the impression that the service is no longer accepting Determination Letter request for pre-approved plans. Am I correct in my assumption?

By answering 'no', the form instructs me to provide an attachment explaining why we did not file. What should the attachment say?

Thanks for your help with this matter.

Accounting firm merged with another accounting firm on November 1, 2015. Therefore, the auditor will be different for 12-31-15 audits than it was for 12-31-14.

Question is does this change in auditor, due to the merger of accounting firms, require the completion of Part III of the Schedule C, reporting the "termination" of the accounting firm.

Thanks for any replies.

An ESOP retirement plan has fewer than 100 participants at both the beginning and the end of the plan year. All of the plan's assets are "qualifying plan assets" within the meaning of the 104-46 rule. The employer securities are not publicly traded.

Is there anything about the ESOP nature of such a plan that would preclude it from relying on the small-plan excuse from an independent qualified public accountant's audit of the plan's financial statements?

Plan sponsors both a US and a Puerto Rico plan (not dual-qualified but separate plans). I have an HCE that worked for both companies during 2015 and participated in both plans.

Does mandatory HCE aggregation apply? In other words, if both plans were US plans (assuming part of the same controlled group) and the HCE was eligible and participated in both plans, I would be required to aggregate their comp/contributions under both plans and test the total in both plans. Is this a requirement if US vs Puerto Rico plan?

Trying to dust off my memory on this issue.

A new company is establishing a 401(k) in 2016. The selected record keeper will serve as the discretionary trustee.

We are in the process of establishing an oversight committee.

Currently the board has three members, one U.S. two from London. Assuming the board retains the final decision making authority for the plan memory serves that I have a domestic trust issue.

Is that the case or has this issue been resolved somewhere in the past 15 years?

With respect to the auto enrollment failuires in this procedure, it says you "may use" the default investment fund. Can you still use the DOL's lost interest calculator?

I'm just envisioning a correction involving 15 people where you have to look up their fund based on their DOB and get all the invidiualized returns for each date range, for a fund whose performance might not be publicly available on yahoo because it's an insurance company wrap. This sounds like a horrible nightmare...

From 2015-28 (emphasis added by me):

(2) Calculation of Earnings for certain failures to implement automatic contribution features. This revenue procedure provides an alternative safe harbor method for calculating Earnings for Employee Elective Deferral Failures under § 401(k) plans or § 403(b) Plans that have automatic contribution features and that are corrected in accordance with the procedures in section 3.02(1) or 3.03 of this revenue procedure. If an affected eligible employee has not affirmatively designated an investment alternative, missed Earnings may be calculated based on the plan’s default investment alternative, provided that, with respect to a correction made in accordance with the procedures in section 3.02(1) of this revenue procedure, any cumulative losses reflected in the Earnings calculation will not result in a reduction in the required corrective contributions relating to any matching contributions.

All the best in 2016!

Where do you show distribution processing fees on your 5500's?

A thought came up here to include them on the Distributions line so the amount of distribs match the distributions report from the r/k system (even though the fees are not included in the 1099-Rs).

I've always included them in the Other Fees category.

Your thoughts are appreciated.

Plan excludes reimbursements or other expense allowances, fringe benefits, moving expenses, deferred compensation, and welfare benefits from the plan definition of compensation. (the usual)

The employer gives the employees money to cover the cost of their health insurance premiums. It is included on their W-2 and is taxable income. Would this come under any of the above excluded categories?

Facts:

-Immediate 401k entry for new hires, 1 yr match entry

-Based on % deferral rate election, ee can max out 401k early, but match will continue to be allocated on a payroll basis up to the 3% of pay

-New ee maxes out 401k prior to match eligibility, so no actual 401(k) is made after such date

Question:

1. Can ee receive a match somehow on a prorated 401k amount (ie 3% of pay since match eligibility)?

Can multiple distributions from an IRA within a 60 day period be rolled over as 1 amount in compliance with the 60 day rollover rule. For example.

Day 1 - $4,000 distribution (no taxes w/h) f/ IRA 1

Day 40 - $5,000 distribution (no taxes w/h) f/ IRA 1

Day 40 - $500 distribution (no taxes w/h) f/ IRA 1

Day 55 - $9,500 rolled over back to IRA 1.

Does this comply with the 60 day rollover rule?

Example 2:

Day 1 - $60,000 distribution (no taxes w/h) f/ 401k #1

Day 35 - $42.35 distribution (residual income) (no taxes w/h) f/ 401k #1

Day 55 - $60,042.35 rolled over to IRA #2

Does this comply with the 60 day rollover rule?

If example 2 complies, but example 1 doesn't, why?

In example 1, what is the maximum amount eligible for the 60 day rule?: $9,500; $5,500; or $5,000?

I would argue that regardless of the number of distributions within a 60 day period, the total amount eligible as 1 amount rolled over is the total amount distributed within the 60 day period as one continuous amount distributed over multiple days. Neither 26 USC 408, nor regulations under CFR 1.408 limit or define the number of distributions for 1 rollover.

Example 3: same facts as example 1 except IRA owner rolls over $9,500 to IRA #2 at a different institution.

Same result?

Other opinions?