Plan Entry Date

[Guest CharlieLaur]

Plans excludes union employees from participating. The plan’s normal entry dates are 1/1 & 7/1.

Effective 11/1/2005, six union employees become non-union. All six employees have previously satisfied the statutory eligibility requirements, that is, they all have completed more than one year of service and are over age 21.

I am currently having a discussion with the attorney who prepared the plan document as to when these six former union employees would enter the plan --- is it 11/1/2005 or 1/1/2006?

Our non-standardized prototype plans contains language which clearly indicates that these employees would enter the plan on 11/1/2005 if the plan was using one of our prototypes. However, the document for this plan is silent on when these former union employees would enter the plan. We have not been able to find anything in writing in the regulations, etc… which specifically addresses this issue.

Does anyone both know the answer to this question and have a citation to support your answer?

Thanks!

[Jim Chad]

Page 2.41 of the ERISA Outline (2004 version, my 06 version has not arrived yet) Sal says

..the employee must become a participant by the later of:

1. the statutory entry date described in IRC 410(a)(4) or

2. the date the employee satisfies the other eligibilty conditions(e.g. eligible job classification) imposed by the Plan.

If 2 above is the later date, the employee must enter the Plan no later than that date, even if such date is not an otherwise scheduled entry date.