" 'Fringe benefits' may be excluded to determine 414(s) compensation. My question is what types of compensation can reasonably be treated by the employer as being 'fringe benefits'? I don't see that the IRS has a clear definition of 'fringe benefits'. For example, Pub 15-B, which provides guidance on how certain fringe benefits are taxed, simply states, 'A fringe benefit is a form of pay for the performance of services.' 'Fringe benefits' seems to be a business term. Thus, it would seem that almost any form of wages other than regular pay can arguably be considered by an employer as a 'fringe benefit' in interpreting their 401(k) plan document. Take 'paid leave' for example. Can the employer adopt a written policy regarding whether to include 'paid leave' as compensation under the Plan or exclude 'paid leave' as 'fringe benefits'. The issue can go either way. But adopt a policy and then be consistent in how you apply the policy. Thoughts?"

"My ex-husband died 4 years ago. He had a TBI for 12 years. I got a letter from the fire department he worked for telling me contact his previous employer because the pension company saw his obituary and they wanted to contact family for his pension. We were married while he worked for this previous employer and then moved to Florida. He never contacted them again. We were divorced and no QDRO was completed. I read some ERISA regulations that stated that the wife is beneficiary unless signs a notarized paper go give it someone else. Documents, such as, who is beneficiary must be kept indefinitely by company while other documents only kept 7 years. They say they have no documents, of course. I was told 3 different stories from the previous employer: [1] Wife gets pension, if divorced and no QDRO filled out then ex-wife gets pension. [2] Will go through his estate and give to his daughters. [3] I appealed the decision and now they say that no one gets his pension. This sounds a little fishy. How can they just keep his pension funds?? Supreme Court Case Egelhoff vs Egelhoff decision sided with ex-wife to receive pension money since it came under ERISA and she was his wife at the time he worked for company and no QDRO or changes made to beneficiary. So, my question is -- how can my ex-husband's previous employer and the pension company legally not disperse his pension? The company searched me out because I did not know him being entitled to this pension."

"Will a Court sign a Qualified Domestic Relations Order if it is only signed by one party and the party refuses to sign?"

"We have a client who gives premium incentives to the employees for getting a physical- I know that's fine. But now they want to require spouses to have a physical if they are on the plan as well-- and 'require' them to do so to be on the plan. Can they do that? I know they can probably give an additional premium discount, but can they require the physical for them to be enrolled? That seems extreme, but I need to know the rules so we can forward it to them."

"Does anyone have any insight on Curaechoice? It appears to be a medical provider network entity that contracts directly with employers. Also, I've read a few articles regarding these entities as well, some pro and some against these type of contracts. Does anyone know whether there is any IRS guidance on these entities? From what I can tell, as long as the entities are following employee benefits laws, there should not be any issues."

"We have a situation whereby the client is attempting to get information to us about a potential first time 5500 filing. We could file an extension to be on the safe side. Is there a problem with then not filing the 5500 if it ends up there is no filing requirement?"