Can a money purchase plan be amended after the end of the plan year to

[Guest Clain]

Can a money purchase plan be amended after the end of the plan year to reduce the contribution to be made to the plan?

[R. Butler]

Generally no. When did the plan year end? Employer may be able to request a waiver of minimum funding standards, but the request must be made timely. Such a request is time consuming to complete and is costly.

[Kristina]

One can not reduce a benefit to which a participant is entitled after the participant has earned the benefit. One can amend a contribution formula in a MPPP if no one has yet earned that benefit. If this is a standardized prototype all participants have earned the benefit as of the first day of the plan year. If this plan has a last day requirement, no one earned the benefit until the last day. If this plan has a 1000 hour requirement, no one will likely earn the benefit before May, but hours records must be checked.

Amending after the plan year is not acceptable.