doombuggy

Yes, I did have a call with Datair yesterday and they are working with EFAST. The issue has no rhyme or reason. She likened it to getting a busy signal on the phone. This morning I tired to file twice between 7:30 and 8 and got the error. AT 8:15 I decided to try again before I left for physical therapy - it worked! I rushed to file my 3 5500s, but I am sure we will encounter the issue until it is fixed, as another co-worker wasn't able to file last week, but yesterday she could. I was trying to see if people who used other programs/software were having the same issue, since apparently EFAST did some kind of update last month. It is possible it has to do with Datair's "style" of software (i think PR is also windows based like their PeWin system). Thanks for the feedback!

Is anyone getting a "SSL Handshake Failed" error when trying to file a 5500 (any type) for the sponsor (ie you are filing for them and attaching a signed pfd copy)? We use Datair/Calcair and for the past 2 days, I have not been able to file any 5500s. I have had the same # with the DOL for almost 11 years and never had an issue until this week. Apparently EFAST had some kind of update in April and this problem started to happen to Datair customers. My question is it happening to anyone else who uses another software provider - ie FTW, Relius, etc? The problem has been going on for at least 22 days. I appreciate the feedback and wanted to reiterate that we aren't slamming 1 vendor, we are trying to learn if it is more an EFAST issue or something else. Thank you!

Thanks, they share a minor child. My main issue right now is how to file this Form 5500-SF and answer the questions on the Schedule MEP.

So I have a plan that is sponsored by the husband's LLC and the wife's LLC is a participating ER. With SECURE2.0, they would now have to file a Form 5500-SF instead of an EZ. They share a pooled account and neither have employees. I am trying to figure out who to answer questions on the Sch MEP and I think the issue may stem from Part 1 - type of Multiple-Employer Plan. I checked 1c Pooled Employer plan but now I am thinking I should choose 1d Other and come up with a discription - maybe owner only plan that spouse's LLC adopted? In Part II 2e I checked "yes" because the 2 owners are individual working owners. There are no participants besides them, so 2f is 0% and 2g is $0, since all assets in 2d belong to the owners. Any thoughts here?

Thank you. I will figure out the gains.

I will chime in that we use Datair PeWin for admin and FT Williams for documents. I don't care for the system too much - I find it more difficult than the Relius/FIS/Corbel documents that I used for years at other TPAs. It is fairly easy to generate amendments, and I agree, their customer service is great. I just find some items hard to find.

I have a QDRO for a plan and it has awarded a dollar amount to the former spouse Alternate Payee. The date of segregation is 8/2/2024. Is the Alternate Payee entitled to gains on that amount of assignment from the date of segregation until now? I thought the answer was yes, but a co-worker felt that this might not be necessary. Anyone confirm that Alternate Payee is only entitled to the flat dollar amount? Note the plan's assets are held at Hancock, so we will move the amount over to an account for the Alt Payee until she fills out a distribution form. Right now, I am trying to determine how much to move and split it over his 3 sources.

Thanks, I found out the issue was that the "hurricane" link I had didn't mention the 5500, but the "tropical Storm" link did...

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-relief-now-available-to-hurricane-debby-victims-in-all-of-south-carolina-most-of-florida-and-north-carolina-part-of-georgia-various-deadlines-postponed-to-feb-3-2025 The sponsors in the affected areas can get relief on filing their taxes and making deposits, but I don't see where this gives an extension on the 5500 filing deadline? Am I missing something?

Sponsor responded: Interns typically do work over 1000 hours. Interns can work anywhere from 4 (approximately a semester) months – 2 years around here until they graduate and get another job or we hire them. So based on comments from the ARA Director of Regulatory Affairs at ASPPA annual this week (see Bill Presson's comment above) that the class exclusion is legitimate and should still hold - meaning these student interns will not fall under the LTPT employee rule. If the company hires them, they would enter the plan as a f/t employee.

Bill Presson, thanks for that FYI from ASPPA annual. I did not attend this year. John, I did email the plan sponsor to ask her about the interns and her comment. They are an engineering firm, so it is possible that they are college students on the 5 year plan, but I specifically asked what happens - do they terminate, or move on to F/T?

So I have a plan sponsor come back to tell me that their plan excludes interns (which it does) and she is asking if the interns they have would be considered Long Term Part Time Employees. So this is a good question. These interns are W-2 employees. I would think that we cannot exclude interns, unless they work less than 500 hours per year in the look back years? I have no clue who they are or what hours they have worked, she only said "we do exclude interns and our interns stay on forever..." Would interns fall under the "long term part time employee" category, or can they still be excluded?

In my case, husband who is 100% owner of his company and the only employee, set up the plan in 2018. in 2019, wife, who is 100% owner of her company and the only employee, became a participating ER of husband's plan. The plan document does have the proper documentation that her company is a participating ER, as you indicated in your comment. So it sounds like the plan would need to be amended to remove her company for participating; she can then set up her own plan to receive these assets and buy real estate to her hearts content... Would this be a distributable event? Almost like a plan termination? I know nothing about how to set up a spin off at this point, if that is what is needed. In my case, it might be cheaper for this couple to keep the plan as it is when it becomes a multiple ER plan in 2024 and she can buy out side assets held by the plan. In my co-worker's case, the wife's company is the sponsor and her husband who owns his company 100% is the only employee; her company has employees, so it would be better for him to spin off to his own plan, and we just don't know what that entails...

The plan does allow for the RE investment, but what she was trying to do with this third party was remove assets from the current plan, create a new plan and have that plan hold the RE investment. I did just start a new topic about how to "unadopt" into a sponsor plan, as I was talking with a co-worker who is faced with the same problem, except in her client's plan, the sponsor of the plan has employees, while the spouse who is an adopting er, doesn't. In my case, where it is just two companies where the owners are the only employees, it might be fine to leave it as is and let it be an multiple ER plan. But I keep telling the broker that she can buy RE in the current plan, but I think they don't quite understand that the property would be owned by the plan not the person, and that she can't take assets out of the plans as described above. I think I need a drink! 😂

Both I and another co-worker have plans that are a control group where 1 spouse's company sponsors the plan and the other spouse's company is an adopting er. With SECURE 2.0, the control group link (minor children) will go away and thus the plan will become a multiple employer plan. It may, however, be better for the spouse that is an adopting/participating employer to stop participating in the current plan and start up their own retirement plan for 2024 and beyond. Would this just require an amendment to "unparticipate" in the plan they are currently in?