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Good afternoon to all, We have a profit sharing plan that accumulated quite a few terminated participants who had not been paid out. The plan did not have automatic cash-out provisions until we amended them into it last year. The plan is also very odd in that it has a provision that accounts of terminated participants do not experience gains or losses. The accounts are frozen at the value as of the end of the plan year preceding the date that the person terminated employment. So over the last couple of years, I have been working diligently to find as many of these people as I can and get them paid. One of them has me stumped. The gentleman only worked for the employer for about a year and a half back in the early 90s. However, it was just long enough to get a little contribution that has been sitting in the plan ever since. The amount is just under $400. The employee quit and moved to CA, whereupon he had a fatal automobile accident which also killed his named beneficiary, his wife. We can't find anyone related to him, so far. They were in their 20s when they died and do not seem to have had children. The plan document indicates that the money would go first to the spouse (dead), then the kids (nonexistent) and finally the "estate". It's all very well and good to talk about an estate when a death is recent and the deceased actually had assets. After 25 years, for a couple that likely had nothing, what kind of an "estate" is there to pay the sum to? None. What have the rest of you done with assets under such circumstances? As always, your thoughts are much appreciated.

One of our clients is a large multi-employer profit sharing plan. Participants come and go all the time in this plan, but many times simply drop off the radar screen indefinitely. My questions are, Does the plan have to continue to attempt to deliver statements every quarter even though statements have come back as undeliverable for many many quarters? Is there some obligation to use a locator service to try and get a valid mailing address? This would be with respect to participants that are not subject to force out distributions.

Maybe this is so obvious that no one has bothered to write about it. At least I haven't been able to find anything. Am I correct in my assumption that in an ongoing plan, a missing terminated participant with a Lump Sum value of over $5,000 cannot be "cashed out" to a missing participant IRA? If the LS is $5,000 or less, it is OK to set up a missing participant IRA. Other more obvious situations are: - If a DC plan is terminating, a missing participant IRA is the way to go. - If a PBGC DB plan is terminating, the benefit goes to the PBGC.

I filed a Schedule SSA with the 5500 of a PS 401(k) back in the year 2000, for a missing participant with a balance of $217. Since then, back in the mid-2000's time frame, this plan closed. This girl's $217 was not a thought in my head, and guess what? She has filed for some sort of SS benefits, and they've given her notice that she has $217 in this old, closed plan. What do I tell her? Thank you!!!!!!