Gadgetfreak

https://www.colonialsurety.com/insurance/

For any of you TPAs who also do in-house recordkeeping, what software do you use to manage client onboarding? I am currently researching project management systems that include a client portal (for the new client to complete and return forms, for the advisor to upload their investment menu, etc.). Any ideas? Thanks.

Interesting, because I have heard great things about the NIPA owner's group and conference. I haven't seen as much with ASPPA.

I was active in ASPPA in the past, but not so much anymore. I don't attend conferences and don't pay for their webcasts. I also feel I am finished with my formal educational aspirations regarding credentials. I saw some perks on NIPA: Membership Categories & Benefits - National Institute of Pension Administrators (NIPA). I might actually save enough money to make the membership cost inconsequential. They also have similar training modules for my staff. In fact, NIPA seems to have more options (at least with their certificates). I just don't know if they are as "prestigious". I could get credential reciprocity, but I don't know which credentials are more prestigious - an I certainly wouldn't advertise both. Thanks.

Just polling the folks on this forum. As a TPA business owner, If you could only pick one of the two organizations for membership, which would it be and why? Thanks in advance.

@Bird Agreed! I forgot to mention the balance forward or other annual val situations. I will say that the smaller RKs provide better hand-holding and personal attention than the big "1-800" type companies. So even the out-of-the-box situations can be handled (and communicated) better by those smaller firms.

There are always two sides to every story (well, sometimes 3). As Mojo said, a lot of things can hold up distributions - some are compliance issues/concerns and others are the participants' fault. I have seen a participant complete the wrong form or an incomplete form. Support will tell them again and again what is needed and the participant simply doesn't listen. E-mails and phone calls are ignored and then the participant disappears for 6 months. All of a sudden, they reappear with a complaint to their advisor saying "it is taking 6 months".

Ah, then I am not understanding the role of the RM in your situation. I figured that back-office teams would send out/post notices and job of the RM was just to speak to the client about design, testing results, reminders to submit the 5500, payroll upload/website questions, etc.

Thanks. And since the RM is really only the pass-through between all of the different internal departments, how many plans does each RM handle?

We work compartmentalized with separate departments for Sales/Marketing, Compliance, Conversions, Distributions, Participant Call Center, and Plan Sponsor/Advisor Daily RK support (i.e., help with payroll uploads and other questions). So, for those in similar situations, I don't see where a Relationship Manager even fits in. For the Plan Sponsor: - Conversions would handle onboarding - Testing, Documents, and 5500 interactions would be handled by Compliance - Ongoing questions would be handled by Support - Distributions would handle distribution-related matters The Sponsor/Advisor could be dealing with 4 different people after onboarding, though the positive is that they are getting a pro in each department instead of a jack-of-all-trades master of none. Furthermore, if one person is out (or separates from the company), there is no scramble to reassign the work. Any further thoughts? Thanks.

Thanks for the response. I am not really sure how to identify the small to mid-size TPAs who ALSO do in-house daily RK (it doesn't seem that you do). I hope others on this forum can chime in too. But I appreciate your answer.

I would be most appreciative if anyone is willing to share some information with me. I am aware of two main staffing structures for TPA firms: One or more employees are assigned to a block of plans. They handle everything for that plan soup-to-nuts. This is the “Relationship Manager” approach. Segregated departments (i.e., conversions, compliance, distributions, etc.). I believe the former is more prevalent for TPA-only businesses, though I know some TPAs that use the second method. I am more interested in the small to mid-size TPAs that also handle internal daily recordkeeping (say on the Relius, SRT, or Datair daily platform). What structure are you using - or is it a combination of the above? If I am a new client starting or moving my plan, and you will be handling TPA and recordkeeping, who am I dealing with for implementation and ongoing communications over the entire year? I appreciate any help you can provide.

I don't mind admitting if I am wrong but I wonder if there is any precedent or official regulation for this. We know that a Distributable Event allows for a distribution. But you are saying that you cannot receive a termination distribution if, at the time it is requested/received, you are employed back at that same company. I guess it comes down to what is the event? a) Just the termination? b) The termination + the sending of the paperwork? c) The termination + the sending of the paperwork + the receiving of the paperwork? d) The termination + the sending of the paperwork + the receiving of the paperwork + the processing of the distribution? Is a TPA/RK looking back at the employment status on the actual day they process the distribution to make sure the EE wasn't rehired? I doubt it. So it can't be D. But then it is possible that they are processing a distribution for a rehired EE. And what about all the online distribution systems? The terminated participant requests the distribution. The employer confirms that s/he is terminated and approves the processing of it. There is no going back in every situation to confirm they aren't rehired. That is why my initial thought is that the actual distributable even triggers the ability to get the distribution - again, absent any known fraud. But I am happy to be proven wrong.

But a "disributable event" was triggered on day X (Date #1). Date #2 is the date the participant mails it. Date #3 is the date the TPA receives it. I could see an argument that dates 2 and 3 don't even matter. Then again, I can see it the other way too. Absent any knowledge of intended fraud, I might ask an ERISA attorney but it seems reasonable to process the request.

Another issue that was not discussed here is the threat of fraud. Although standard ISD requests are the more common type, I imagine that self-certified hardships (without any involvement from the employer) could lead to nefarious activity by scammers. With hardship documentation required, there are at least other means to determine that the person requesting the hardship is indeed the actual participant. With employer involvement, they can actually check with their employee to determine if a request was made. Although online requests at least block people behind a username/password (and, hopefully, MFA) security, it can still be hacked. And, with forms, it would be even easier for a scammer to complete it, self-certify a hardship, and get a fraudulant distribution.

I am a complete IDIOT!!! I have no idea what I was thinking. I looked at it yesterday and again today and didn't catch that I was reading 2014 as 2024. Must have been a mind trick. Wow, I need a vacation :). Thank you so much for bringing this up. You could have been a lot more brutal in your reply :). I will renew now.

See below screenshot from Form 8554 (Rev. 11-2022) (irs.gov)

I am going to bring this back for a discussion. I last renewed on 4/1/20 and my notes say that was to cover 1/1/20-12/31/22. I had a calendar reminder pop on for Saturday 4/1/23 reminding me to renew for the 1/1/23-12/31/25 cycle. Now I am not so sure. My SS# ends with a 5. According to Form 8554 (Rev. 11-2022) (irs.gov), my next renewal is 4/1/24. Something doesn't make sense here. Does anyone know if the cycles chages? Was there a grace period because of COVID or something? The form clearly says I shouldn't renew for an extra year but I am almost 100% positive my last cycle was 2020-2022. Anyone have any ideas? Thx.

I spoke with the IRS today (only a 15 minute wait). They told me the same - I need to wait until it is processed (either as good or as an error) before they can do anything. If good (which I expect it will be), I can either call them to have them remove it and then upload a new one OR I can upload an amended one. While on the phone, she also mentioned that they are switching to a new system soon. I will need to create a new Fire.gov account using ID.me. There may be another thread on this so I am not going to discuss it here but I am just letting y'all know.

So I created an amended form through FTW and want to upload it to Fire. Look at their website: My file has not yet been processed. I should be able to upload a Replacement File. But it is grayed out. Sadly, I expect I will be on the phone with the IRS for a while today.

I just uploaded an 8955-SSA file to the Fire system. There was an error on the file. Does anyone know how to cancel the filing?

People are still dizzy from Secure 2.0 :).

Yes. That is what I am asking. We know that most new plans over 10 EEs will need an EACA. We also know about the new LTPT rules that start in 2024 require that sponsors allow LTPT EEs to defer but are not required to give an employer contribution. I thought that it might be possible that they would also be exempt from the EACA rules. Of course, I also confirmed that, should an LTPT end up having a balance, they WILL count in the new calculations for an audit requirement.

This is really a HUGE deal. Why isn't this garnering more attention? I have many clients with 100+ eligible employees and under 50 participants with balances. They are going to save a bundle!

Does anyone know if participants that become eligible because of the LTPT rules will ALSO need to be follow the EACA rules?