Form 5310

[Guest ladycpa]

I have a client that is terminating a profit sharing plan effective 12/31/02. He will sign the amendment to terminate ASAP. Do we have to wait until we have the 12/31/02 balance sheet to file the Form 5310 (Line 18), or can we use the 12/31/01 balance sheet, even though 12/31/02 is the proposed termination date?

[Guest pensionadmin]

I have filed with the IRS prior to the plan termination date using assets as of an earlier date--just footnote the date of the assets.

[Blinky the 3-eyed Fish]

Quite often the exact asset value is not available as of the date of plan termination, especially if that date is not at the beginning or end of a month or if there are illiquid assets in the plan. I believe that an estimate of the assets as of that date is sufficient considering there is no useful purpose in knowing an exact value.