"A tax manager just came to me with some questions for a 401a plan -- which I know nothing about. He spent a good amount of time looking things up and seemed to have gotten conflicting answers: -- Do employees contribute to these? -- Is participation mandatory? How would it be mandatory? -- Is there an employee contribution limit? Are there catch-up contributions? -- Is there some kind of employer match on these?"

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"A customer has had a defined contribution plan for a while, participation is open to all employees if they work the threshold 1000 hours. Now, the customer wants to cut back on who can participate based on their job types. The customer understands it can't change the rules for present employees. But for John Doe who is hired next year in a job classification that will be cut, I'm not sure how the plan can be revised to maintain the present participants and prospectively cut job classes. I've drafted a web of the 1,000 Hour Rule and its implications if not followed; I've looked at non-discrimination rules; I've looked at the general plan amendment rules. I'm stumped. What other rules should I read to figure out this goal? So far it looks like the plan cannot be amended to prohibit future participants based on their job classification, but I have to imagine there is some mechanism that allows it."

"When a participant seeks one's spouse's consent to name a primary beneficiary other than the spouse (or to elect against a survivor annuity), a consent has no effect unless 'the spouse's consent is witnessed by a plan representative or a notary public[.]' ... Although ERISA does not preclude a notary from using electronic means to furnish the notary's certificate of a notarial act, a notary must witness the spouse signing the consent....

"Until recently, most service providers advised plan administrators that this calls for a spouse to sign a consent in the notary's physical presence. Under [a 2022 IRS proposed regulation], a notary may witness the spouse's signing with physical presence, or by using live audio-video technology and meeting all requirements and conditions under the proposed rule and the State law that applies to the notary.... That notice states: 'Prior to the applicability date of the final regulation, taxpayers may rely on the rules set forth in this notice of proposed rulemaking.' ... 

"BenefitsLink neighbors, in your experience: Are plans' fiduciaries accepting a notary's certificate if the certificate shows the notary did the witnessing not by physical presence but rather by audio-video technology?"

"We have a new 1 person plan who failed to file a Form 5500 despite crossing the $250k threshold that requires it. I was looking at the DFVCP program, but one-person plans don't qualify for it. Is there a correction program for plans that file Form 5500-EZ? Trying to figure out how to get them back in compliance."