"For some time now (both before and after the shutdown), I have had technical difficulties getting an EIN issued online. Roughly nine times out of ten I will get the message 'Apply for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) online is currently unavailable We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Please refresh your browser or try again later.' The most frustrating part is that you have to complete the entire application process before getting this message. The few times a number was issued, it just seemed random. I have tried deleting cookies, using different browsers, and applying at different times of the day. Are any of you having similar difficulties? Do you have other suggestions or insights that could help?"

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"Company A maintains a SIMPLE IRA in 2024 & 2025; several employees of Company A create their own Company B in 2025. Company A maintained a SIMPLE IRA (I'm not sure if the SIMPLE IRA is still active); Company B established a 06/01/25 effective date SH 401(k) Plan (short initial Plan Year). Company A & B have different EINS with no ownership crossover. I understand that when an employer establishes a mid-year 401(k) Plan that the deferral limit is adjusted based on the # of days/365 of each arrangement. Because these are two unrelated employers, my thinking is that this does not apply to this scenario, so all EEs can contribute the total $23.5k between the two arrangements if they would like (a maximum of $16.5k being attributable to the SIMPLE IRA).

• Do you agree that the deferral limit for the Company B 401(k) Plan does not need to be pro-rated based on the number of days it was in existence vs. the SIMPLE IRA?
• Since catch-up contributions are separate to each Plan, can a 50+ participant who contributed $10k to the SIMPLE IRA under Company A defer an additional $24.5k to the Company B 401(k) Plan? ($6.5k SIMPLE deferrals, $3.5k SIMPLE catch-up, $17k 401(k) deferrals, $7.5k 401(k) catch-up)
• If the Company B employees are still employees of Company A and participating in the Company A SIMPLE IRA, does that matter? Or is it just a consideration in that both the non-catch up deferrals to each arrangement count towards their overall 402(g) limit?
• As I write this out, I imagine that a relevant consideration is whether Company B and Company A constitute an ASG. If they do, would their contributions be subject to the adjusted deferral limits based on the days/365 of each arrangement?'

"We use FT Williams. We tried to help a client file a 5330 to pay the excise tax for an over contribution. FT Williams tells us the filing rejected because the form was late and money was due. They however don't give us any insight how to get the payment and filing done in the correct order. If anyone has done this successfully we could use some insights on how to do this. This was so much easier with the old paper forms."