QJSA waiver required every year on RMD?

[John A]

Must a DC plan that is subject to QJSA rules (such as a money purchase plan) get spousal consent every year a Required Minimum Distribution is paid, or can the spousal consent for the first year cover all subsequent Required Minimum Distriubtions?

[R. Butler]

I'm fairly certain QJSA not required every year, but see Notice 97-75.

[Appleby]

Spousal consent is NOT required for mandatory distributions, including Required Minimum Distributions

[KJohnson]

JOHN,

SPOUSAL CONSENT IS NOT REQUIRED FOR A RMD, BUT I THINK THAT IF YOU DON'T GET CONSENT TO AN ALTERNATIVE DISTRIBUTION FORM, THE RMD MUST BE PAID IN THE FORM OF A QJSA. YOU MAY WANT TO LOOK AT THIS LINK IN THE OLD PLAN DISTRIBUTIONS Q&A'S.

http://www.benefitslink.com/cgi-bin/qa.cgi...d=122&mode=read

HOW I HAVE ALWAYS HANDLED THIS IS TO GIVE THE PARTICIPANT AND SPOUSE SPECIFIC NOTICE THAT IF THEY WAIVE THE QJSA FOR THE FIRST RMD, THEY HAVE WAIVED THE QJSA FOREVER AND THEY ARE "LOCKED INTO" RMD'S BASED ON THE "REGULAR" DEFINED CONTRIBUTION METHOD. THAT WAY THEY HAVE ALREADY "ELECTED OUT" OF THE QJSA AND I DON'T THINK THERE IS AN ISSUE PROSPECTIVELY.

YOU MAY WANT TO LOOK AT 401(a)(9)-8 Q&A 4 in the new proposed regs which covers the rare instance where someone's benefit is still "immeidately distributable" and also must receive an RMD (this would now seem to cover the rare instance of a 5% owner in a plan that defined NRA as the latter of 65 or 5 Years of Service who reaches age 70 1/2 without the requisite five years) This reg provides that you can still must distribute the RMD, but it should be in the form of a QJSA unless you get consent otherwise.

Where benefits are not "immediately distributable" (ie. they have reached NRA) you can always distribute in a QJSA without any spousal consent if your Plan so provides. Alternate forms, however, still require consent. However, I think that once benefits are not 'immediately distributable" and someone reaches their required beginning date, unless you obtain consent the same rule mentioned above applies, you must distribute the RMD in a QJSA form.

[John A]

Thanks, KJohnson. My question should have specified consent to pay in a form other than the QJSA form, rather than consent to pay at all. And I think you answered my question. As long as the waiver form is clear about what the spouse is waiving, the plan would not need to get consent each year to pay the RMD in a payment form other than a joint and survivor type.