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What are the ramifications of a company that has a SIMPLE 401k in place, and sets up a normal 401k plan in the same year. I know you cannot have any other plans if you have a SIMPLE 401k. Would that disqualify the entire SIMPLE plan or just the current year contributions? Would it only affect Highly Compensated employees, or everyone? thanks in advance

A participant worked for 12.9 years under an union negotiated plan that provides for $50 per year of credited service. in 2010 at the age of 66 1/2 he transfers to a different job within the same company that has a defined benefit plan which is based on a formula that takes a percentage of his highest 5 years of salary multiples it by the years of credited service offset by the same percentage of his social security times years of credited service. the formula looks like this (1.5% X Average Monthly Earnings X Yrs Credited Service) - (1.5% X Monthly Social Security Benefit X Yrs Credited Service) = Monthly Benefit. the participant is now 73 years of age and wishes to retire. The current plan specifies that after 5 years of vesting service under the new plan all benefits will be calculated under the new plan provisions. (This is referred to an an all service benefit) Under the plan provisions the participant must apply for benefits to establish his retirement date. The plan states that a participant becomes vested the earlier of 5 years of vesting service or attaining his 65th birthday. The plan provides for continued accruals until the actual date of separation. The plan requires an actuarial increase of benefits after December 31st of the year the participant reaches 70 1/2 and for every year following. There are no provisions in the plan for offsets or 'higher of' type calculations. The plan allows for suspension of benefits but none was issued. The plan provides for actuarial increases of benefits at NRA or actual separation form employment, whichever is later. On December 31st, 2013 the participant is still employed and has passed his 70 1/2 date triggering the first actuarial increase and an added year of accrual. The participant was still under a split calculation. i.e. $645 + (1.5% X AME X 4) - (1.5% X SSB X 4) = Benefit. On December 31st, 2014 the participant has 5 years vesting service under the new plan and there should be both an actuarial increase and an added year of accrual. The calculation now becomes (1.5% X AME X 17.9) - (1.5% X SSB X 17.9) + Benefit. The same scenario continues until 2016 when the participant request a retirement date. The first question is how do you deal with the split calculation of December 31st, 2013. Do you do an actuarial increase on the union negotiated plan result starting on December 31st, 2013 or starting on December 31st, 2009? The participant was fully vested and did not accrue any additional benefits form that date. The second question is how do you bring the 2013 adjustments into the later calculations? The all service calculation of 2014 and later is much higher than the fully adjusted benefit of 2013.

I have a company that manages multiple restaurants. Until 2012, they had one plan (#001) covering all of the restaurants and the plan was considered a small plan for the audit requirement. In 2012, they set up multiple smaller plans (#002 - #005) based on the particular location of the restaurant that the employee worked at. So, at 12-31-12, there was a significant amount of "transfers out" to these new plans. The new plans all have the same EIN (just successively numbered plans, 001..002...003, etc.). Each of the plans have an identical plan document and operate under the same plan provisions. This isn't a controlled group issue because the plans all have the same EIN (one employer). I can't locate anything in the regulations that address the audit requirement in this particular situation. It seems that they broke the large plan into smaller plans to keep from having the audit each year. But substance over form says that these plans are essentially one plan... Has anyone ever come across this issue? If you can help shed some light on this, I would appreciate it. Thank you.