DOL Seeks Public Comment on Proposal to Protect Consumers from Conflicts of Interest in Retirement Advice

Tuesday, April, 14, 2015 / Published in Employee Benefit Plans, Forms and Procedures, News and Press Releases, Retirement - 401(k), 403(b)
On April 14, 2015, the U.S. Department of Labor has released a proposed rule that they believe will protect 401(k) and IRA investors by mitigating the effect of conflicts of interest in the retirement investment marketplace. Read More

IRS Modifies EPCRS to Make it Easier to Correct Automatic Contribution and Other Salary Deferral Failures

Monday, April, 06, 2015 / Published in Employee Benefit Plans, Forms and Procedures, News and Press Releases, Retirement - 401(k), 403(b)
The Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (“EPCRS”) sets forth a comprehensive system of correction programs for sponsors of retirement plans that are intended to satisfy the requirements of § 401(a), 403(a), 403(b), 408(k), or 408(p) of the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”), but that have failed to meet those requirements for a period of time. Read

Voluntary Correction Program: Did You Complete Your Correction?

Wednesday, April, 01, 2015 / Published in Employee Benefit Plans, Forms and Procedures, News and Press Releases, Retirement - 401(k), 403(b)
The Employee Plans Compliance Unit (EPCU) conducted a Voluntary Compliance Follow-Up project to determine if plan sponsors completed the corrections they agreed to in their Voluntary Correction Program (VCP) compliance statements. Read More

It’s Up to Plan Sponsors to Track Loans, Hardship Distributions

Wednesday, April, 01, 2015 / Published in Employee Benefit Plans, Retirement - 401(k), 403(b)
Recently, the IRS posted guidance for Plan sponsors on loans and hardship distributions. Even if you use a third party administrator (TPA) to handle participant transactions, you’re still ultimately responsible for the proper administration of your retirement plan. Read More

FASB Considering Employee Benefit Plan Simplifications

Thursday, February, 12, 2015 / Published in Employee Benefit Plans
In January 2013 the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and staff met with members of the AICPA’s Employee Benefit Plan (EBP) Expert Panel and members of the AICPA Employee Benefit Plan Audit Quality Center (EBPAQC).  Read More

Avoid IRS Scrutiny – Review Your Form 5500 for Errors

Wednesday, February, 11, 2015 / Published in Employee Benefit Plans, Forms and Procedures, Retirement - 401(k), 403(b)
Errors Recently the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS) posted what it finds as common Form 5500 errors and how to avoid them and IRS Scrutiny. In many Employee Plans Compliance Unit (EPCU) projects, the IRS find mistakes when plan sponsors enter incorrect information on their Form 5500 series returns or information reports. Read More

What is the Audit Requirement for Benefit Plans?

Wednesday, January, 21, 2015 / Published in Employee Benefit Plans, Forms and Procedures, Retirement - 401(k), 403(b)
We get this question a lot. The instructions to the Form 5500 give the technical answer. However, below is a quick summary of those requirements. Every situation is unique and for 2023 Form 5500s, the DOL just updated the rules. Read More