Health and Welfare Plan = VEBA?

[Guest BillClinton]

I'm working on a 5500 for a health and welfare plan. The plan is fully insured and the employer makes all premium payments. I don't think any witholdings are made from employees' paychecks to fund the plan.

The question was raised, how do we know this is not a VEBA? Well I don't know how to determine this.

Could anyone out there help? I appreciate your input.

[Guest PORTE]

I'm pretty sure that it doesn't matter if any withholdings were made from the participants. If there is no trust, (which it seems there isn't as the premiums are paid by the general assets of the sponsor and not to a fund controlled by the Plan or the Sponsor) and there are no assets in the Plan, then there is no VEBA. Hope this helps.

[Ron Snyder]

If the employer's check is made directly to an insurance company, there is no VEBA involved. If the employer's check is made to another entity, it may or may not be a VEBA. Here's how to tell:

A VEBA will have filed with the IRS for a letter of determination. A VEBA is not a VEBA until IRS says so. Until then it is simply a trust or an association.