My understanding has always been that the Section 415 limits are independent for a participant who works for two unrelated employers. To clarify, Employer A has a plan and the HCE participant has a $55,000 Section 415 limit for 2018 in the plan. Unrelated Employer B (no controlled group or affiliated service group) has a plan and the same HCE participant has a $55,000 Section 415 limit for 2018 in the plan. There is no combined limit. At the 2018 ASPPA conference, I was in a session that was addressing this issue and the presenter said that even if the employers are unrelated BUT there is common ownership of more than 50% between the unrelated employers, then there was a combined 415 limit. I am unable to locate anything in any of my research. Does anyone know anything about this? Did I mishear what was said? Does anyone have a reference that I can read? Is this in the EOB?

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Non-publicly traded ESOP large plan is terminating. Plan is a 12/31 year end. Plan terminating amendment was prepared by ERISA attorney who provides the document and executed by the client (6/17/18) to terminate the plan as of 6/30/18. Included in the amendment was a change in definition of compensation. It defines compensation as the 12 months immediately prior to 6/30/18 (7/1/17 -- 6/30/18), therefore, using full year compensation for the allocation. Removed the hours requirement and stated the contribution would be allocated to all eligible employees who were employed on 6/30/18 based on full year compensation. Anyone else have experience with this type of change? The 7/1/17-12/31/17 compensation was already the basis of allocation for the 2017 plan year. Can this same compensation be used as part of the basis of allocation for the 2018 plan year?

We put in a good number of brand new 401(k) plans in 2018, with effective dates of 1/1/2018. Therefore nobody in those plans had an account balance at 12/31/2017. If a 73 year-old employee made salary deferrals in 2018 to his employer's new plan and then quit during the year, must he take a RMD before 12/31/2018? What would the distribution be based upon, because there was no balance at 12/31/2017? Same issue if it was a working owner of the business: a 73 year-old owner installs a new 401(k) plan in 2018 and makes salary deferrals. He's still working at 12/31/2018, but because he's the owner, he would normally have to take a RMD by 12/31/2018. What would it be based upon, because there was no balance at 12/31/2017?

I know that a QDRO can be used to collect back child support from a participant's 401k account. The participant is now deceased and the ex-spouse does not currently have a QDRO for the back child support. Another person (none of the children) is named as the beneficiary under the 401k. Can the ex go get the QDRO now, post-death, and apply it to the 401k plan and require us to hold off paying out to the beneficiary while she goes and tries to get one?

I inherited a plan that runs 10/1/2017 through 9/30/2018. Which year determines max compensation? 2017 or 2018?

Participant died mid-year. S-corp owner. Rightly or wrongly (and I have no opinion) "he" is receiving no W-2 income for 2018, but his ESTATE received a check for his accumulated wages or whatever that is being classified as W-2 income, paid to the estate. Is this compensation considered as W-2 paid to "him" for plan purposes?

I have a plan that's a closed MEP. The participating employers have common ownership but it's not a control group. One of the participating employers is leaving the plan, effective as of the last day of the plan year. Is this considered a partial plan termination? Should the employees who are part of the leaving employer be accelerated to 100% vesting?

Client owns an S-Corp and sets up an S-ESOP with 20 eligible participants/employees. Value of S-ESOP stock is $20k when sold to ESOP Trust and loan is established to be paid off within 5 years. 100k shares outstanding. Assume 6 yr step vesting. ESOP Loan paid off by yr [3] TPA informs me that stock is allocated proportionately to payoff of ESOP loan. By year 4 all of the 100k stock has already been allocated to the above-referenced 20 participants. [1] What happens when 3 new employees begin work in year 4 and begin to vest by year 6? [2] How do you properly allocate shares/benefit to new employees? Is TPA correct? I'm informed by the TPA that the only way to provide a benefit to the 3 new employees is if -- and when -- the original 20 ee's retire/leave and then forfeit their allocated stock shares. At such time those retired shares (proper terminology?) can be allocated to the 3 new employees. [3] Can Plan Sponsor issue additional stock for allocation? Or is the TPA correct?

Participant turned 70‑1/2 this year and died in late November. His RBD is 4/1/19. Spouse wants to roll over the entire account now. I believe the RMD must be taken first. Others in my office are sticking to the RBD of 4/1 and she can roll out the entire amount. Who is correct? Cites?