When the IRS ended its determination letter program, it said it anticipates making exceptions based on program capacity to work on additional applications, and the need for rulings in certain areas.
For example, the Council proposes to develop an alternative means of compliance by which the introductory portion of the SPD–referred to as the “Quick Reference Guide”–would be delivered annually to participants automatically, and the entire SPD or any full part of the SPD would be made available upon request.
A plan sponsor using pre-approved plan documents to restate a plan for the plan qualification requirements included on the 2012 Cumulative List will be required to adopt the plan document by April 30, 2020.
A memo says examiners should not challenge a 403(b) plan for violation of the RMD standards for the failure to commence or make a distribution to a participant or beneficiary to whom a payment is due, if the plan sponsor has taken certain steps.
“I read in an Ask the Experts column that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) requires plan sponsors to retain plan documentation for at least six years, and, in many cases, much longer than that.
“I work for a firm that recently took over as third-party administrator (TPA) for the retirement plans of a large private tax-exempt 501(c)(3) hospital.
The agency is required to adjust these amounts annually for inflation, but the agency says its goal is to encourage compliance, not to penalize plans that inadvertently forget to file information.
The agency also issued information about how to obtain or re-establish an employer identification number (EIN) for a retirement plan trust.
A final rule provides a new table for determining expected retirement ages for participants in pension plans undergoing distress or involuntary termination with valuation dates falling in 2018.
The updated mortality improvement rates and static tables apply for purposes of calculating the funding target and other items for valuation dates occurring during calendar year 2019.
One applies to multiemployer benefit plans and the other applies to single-employer benefit plans.
The agency began issuing these lists when it ended the determination letter program for individually designed retirement plans.
Among its list for retirement plans are projects for which guidance has been long-awaited from the agencies.