I have a client that has 5 owners. They each have multiple K-1s.

Owner #1 has 1 positive line 14, 1 negative line 14 and a W-2.

Owner #2, #3 & #4 has 2 positive line 14 and 1 negative line 14.

Owner #5 has a negative K-1, plus a W-2 and 1099.

Owners #1 and 5 are less than 5% owners.

They all made salary deferrals.

Owners 2, 3 & 4 have negative net comp.

The negative K-1s have a positive number on line 4 guaranteed payments, but a negative number on line 1 ordinary business income (loss).

so my question is what do I report as compensation? This plan has SHM. I assume that they can defer on the "positive" or guaranteed payments off those K-1s?

We have a client who has a small defined benefit plan and 401(k) plan. Only he and his wife are participants.

He wants to invest in Austrailian real estate. Can this be done?

Thanks.

I am new here but have read dozens of posts and realize that you guys are really knowledgeable and generous with your help. And I really need help.

I went through a nasty divorce, and 4 years later am still trying to finish the settlement. My Ex works for a huge publicly traded global company. Ex and the Plan Administrator have been friends for over 20 years. I cannot get a full and straight answer from the PA as to what my choices are to get my 50% (awarded by the court) of the employee stock options in the account. Every time I try, the PA contacts my Ex and then feeds me Ex's version of what he wants me to know. I finally went back to court and got a Court Order for Ex to authorize the company to give me the full information, but it is still being filtered by the PA.

I did finally get to see the account statements and have learned (after the Court Order) that in these 4 years, Ex has exercised and sold some of the stock. This situation of some sold shares and some unexercised Options probably has complicated the decisions on how to divide the account assets.

The only condition in the divorce decree is that the asset is to be settled in a way to cause the least tax liability to each of us. He is in a very high tax bracket and has to consider AMT. I am on SS and in such a low bracket that I owed no taxes the last 3 years.

How can I learn if the employer's Plan allows for Options to be transferred to me (and exercised at my own tax level) or what other choices I have in this asset division?

Thank you for any and all help.

Company has some benefit plans for Union ee's only, some plans for Non-Union only and some plans include both. Currently there are two wrapped plans (union, nonunion) but the nonunion plan has some benefits which include union. what might a best approach be - keep the two plans separate or actually just combine all into one megawrap plan?

A few years ago, I went to the optician and had him make prescription glasses for me that have their focal point at 18 inches, which is the distance between my eyes and my computer monitor.

It is SO much better than tilting my head up and down trying to get my regular prescription glasses ("progressives") to work properly, or taking off the progressives and working without any glasses (which I did for quite a while).

I can't imagine working any other way now. I put the "computer glasses" into my computer laptop bag whenever I take the computer with me. They even make decent reading glasses in a pinch.

Admittedly, everything's fuzzy if I walk away from my desk and forget to put on my progressives, but I can tell quickly when such a swap is needed.

They weren't too expensive, because I didn't get the anti-glare coating, the automatic darkening, etc. -- maybe the anti-glare would have been worth it, though. Still, I don't see any glare when looking at the high-def flat-screen monitor.

Give it a try!

Profit Sharing plan terminated in the 80's - Form SSA filed at the time indicated a benefit for a participant who went missing - the plan later terminated.... during the course of the termination IRS permitted the balance to revert to the employer (or so it is believed) - Now because of SSA sending the participant of notice of a possible benefit, the participant is making his claim for the benefit - can someone point me in the direction of the rules to go about paying this participant - I've tried searching in the ERISA Outline Book, but am only coming up with info on what do when someone goes missing as opposed to restoring their benefit - is interest applied to the benefit in the case of a terminated plan or are there outlined steps of how to proceed... just not able to put my fingers on it - any help would be appreciated, thanks

Seems like every time I look into an ESOP question, I wish I hadn't.

Suppose there is a SAR for a few critical employees. Suppose it basically operates as a cash bonus if the stock (all owned by a 100% leveraged S-corp ESOP) hits a certain strike price.

How do you take this into account for purposes of determining synthetic equity? Since a future stock value is a complete unknown, then is it safe to assume that there would be NO synthetic equity until the strike price is reached? Or is that an unwarranted assumption?

Hi all,

I am wondering if "Key Person" Insurance policies are generally subject to ERISA? This is not part of a group policy, only life insurance company offers is 100% paid by company for the owners of the company?

Thanks for any guidance you can give.

Participant wants to take a hardship withdrawal. He has roth deferrals only. The distribution would not be a "qualified" distibution under the Roth rules. Since we can only distribute deferrals (and not earnings) for a hardship, would this be non-taxable?

Can someone please clarify something about this new trend? If any of you all have had the same experiences as me, most of my clients problems do not originate from the services covered by 316. So for example, clients are not experiencing "liability" issues because of mailing out disclosures, failing to adopt timely amendments, signing 5500's, etc. I'm not saying that there are no problems with those things (nor potential liability) but certainly no "significant" liability that I have ever seen (in fact nothing beyond the DFVC user fees in my experience).

The problems come from things like this:

-Client provides bad census data (perhaps excluding anyone not contributing)

-Client does not implement automatic deferrals or does not implement a participant election

-Client inadvertently deposits Susan's 401k into Suzanne's account.

-Client does not send in 401k for a pay-period because someone was on vacation

-Loan payments do not get set up on the system.

-401k is not suspended for 6 months after a hardship

-A rehired employee is not permitted back into the plan after rehire

-Safe Harbor Match got deposited to the Regular Match account, and then people forfeited money when they closed their accounts.

-Even though requested on the census, family relationships are not disclosed

-Even though requested on the census, other affiliated entities are not disclosed

I just have a very hard time believing that these are the types of things for which the 316 will accept any responsibility whatsoever. In other words, while the 316's are out there saying "reduce/eliminate" your fiduciary liability, it seems to me they have only closed the door on the most benign of exposures.

Please let me know, maybe I am missing something. Maybe they are reviewing every transaction during the whole year and I just don't know what I'm talking about. Has anyone ever seen the contracts? My suspicion is that there are dozens of scenarios for which the 316 says "well, that's not my problem."

Case: Plan Sponsor of PS plan has always been husband/wife and always filed 5500EZ. Have not restated plan since non-standardized prototype which received DL in 1995, document signed in 1997.

Question: Is it satisfactory to restate the plan to a new prototype and submit VCP with Appendix C Part II Schedule 2?

I understand the SIMPLE must be the only plan of the employer for the year. But not sure what that means.

I have a potential new client who has a SIMPLE for 2014. Can he establish a 401k in 2014 making no contributions for 2014 but accept rollovers?

He wants to take advantage of the increased investment flexibility with no custodian.

Thanks!

A 50% owner of a company earned a benefit under the company's DB plan. Now she has started her own company of which she is the 100% owner and she would like to start a new DB plan.

My reading of IRC Section 415(g) is that her benefits from both plans must be aggregated for 415 purposes. Is this correct? Thanks!

Client contacts us today and says "I bought two more companies at the beginning of the year." He also told the employees they would be eligible to join the client's plan on next available entry date.

The plan is a safe harbor plan. The new companies are wholly-owned by client, so a controlled group exists. Can we add partcipating employer agreements to current safe harbor plan? Can we make them effective as of the date of purchase?

I have a client who would like to have his 401(k) plan be an offset to a new DB Plan. The DB plan he would like to have would be a 412(e)(3) plan. If this is the final design, would the 401(k) Plan be required to offer insurance as an investment of the trust (or as an insured death benefit) as the DB Plan has life insurance as a part of the funding under 412(e)(3)?

I have a solo 401(k) plan. owner/participant(US citizen) wants to take about 5% of plan assets and invest in a foreign (UK) corp with three other foreign(not US citizens) owners. THis corp would then become 100% owner in a domestic(US) LLC.

ALthough I am not totally clear on the PT issue, I am thinking this is ok; but, I do not know about the UBIT issue. Would he be considered an active investor in this LLC??

Plan sponsor had an address change in 2013. Plan document was not amended. Since we can't amend a S/H 401(k) Plan mid-year, we will probably just wait until the restatement to change the address in the document (adoption agreement).

How should the notice to participants be handled? The address is in the SPD, so technically, an SMM would be required. Can an SMM be prepared without a plan amendment? Or is it even an issue at this point?

Husband owns 100% of Dentist Office A.

Wife owns 100% of Dentist Office B

Minor child age 18 (under 21)

Adult child age 25 (over 21)

The husband and wife have no association with each other's businesses. They are not attributed each other's ownership. Same for the adult child. However the minor child is attributed ownership of both companies making them a controlled group.

Question: Once the minor child turns 21 will they cease to be a controlled group (assuming all other factors remain same)? My thoughts would be yes but wanted to double check.

We have an Unsigned DRO that was presented to make sure the plan name was correct before it was submitted to the judge for signature. The Alternate Payee died before it was signed by the judge. 401(k) Plan. Divorce was final in May 12th. They were in the process of submitting to the court, not sure if it is at the court waiting for signature. Any thoughts?

Pat

After 5 yrs.my ex wife has filed for a qdro.My final judgement papers read as follows.Respondents Pension/Retirement,stock and 401k plan thru his employment with his job,worth approx 10,000.00 shall be equally divided between parties. the parties shall make the division through a Qdro and shall cooperate with the signing of all forms needed to complete this agreement.I refused to sign the Qudro because it has 50% 0f my retirement 50% of my 401k but it states in the final judgement half of 10,000,00 dollars now she has sopenaed me back to court

. So who is rite here Me The Particpant or Her the Alternate Payee. I have given her all of the info. that was needed to complete this thru my job they Froze my account and divided the pension.Also she sent a blank copy of final judgement with no judges signiture on it and no seal they asked her for a signed copy and she has not sent it to them.Do i consult a attn.? I need direction court date is the middle of next month .