The IRS just announced the 2012 retirement plan benefit limits and we’re finally going to see some (very) modest increases after 3 years of flat rates. What does it all mean for employer-sponsored retirement plans? This post analyzes the practical effects for both defined contribution (DC) and defined benefit (DB) plans, followed by a table […]Read More… from What’s the Impact of 2012 IRS Retirement Plan Limits?
IRS Notice 2011-85 announces the relief and postponed effective date for several items related to hybrid pension plans (e.g., cash balance and PEP plans). The notice is pretty technical (of course), but the IRS also published a nice summary of what’s affected by the relief. Here’s what it means for plan sponsors: The scope of […]Read More… from What’s Important for Plan Sponsors in IRS Hybrid Plan Notice 2011-85
Many successful companies (especially professional firms like medical groups and law firms) are considering whether to increase retirement plan deductions for 2011. This post highlights the action steps to take while there’s still time. Note: We’ll be focusing on cross-tested profit sharing plans and cash balance plans. These plans allow owners to make large tax-deferred […]Read More… from Now is the Time for Retirement Plan Decisions
The Federal Reserve’s “Operation Twist” is intended to boost consumer spending, but it could cause lots of problems for defined benefit pension plans who haven’t adopted a liability-driven investment (LDI) strategy. Here’s what plan sponsors need to consider: 1. If long-term interest rates drop due to “Operation Twist”, then pension liabilities will likely increase and […]Read More… from Fed’s “Operation Twist” Another Reason For Pension Plan LDI
Most large retirement plans don’t worry about the maximum pension deduction limit because the plan benefits (and related contributions) are often well below the IRS limits. However, small- and medium-sized retirement plans can unknowingly run into the limits. This post summarizes important deduction pitfalls to be aware of. Self-employment “earned income” limit [§404(a)(8)]. For self-employed […]Read More… from Common Retirement Plan Deduction Pitfalls
The IRS finally released the 2009 Form 8955-SSA used for reporting participants with deferred vested pension benefits. They also extended the deadline for the 2009 and 2010 filings from August 1, 2011 to January 17, 2012. Here are links to: 2009 Form 8955-SSA (fill-in the box version) Instructions for Form 8955-SSA Employee Plans News with […]Read More… from IRS Releases 2009 Form 8955-SSA and Extends Filing Due Date
The 2010 Form 5500-EZ (with instructions) is now available for “one-participant” retirement plans. Sponsors and practitioners have waited months for the release of these forms. The filing deadline is July 31, 2011 (without extensions) for calendar year plans, or 2 1/2 months later with extensions. The documents are available here: 2010 Form 5500-EZ 2010 Form […]Read More… from Better Late Than Never: IRS Releases 2010 Form 5500-EZ
During the plan termination process, one issue often overlooked is the consequences of investment risk prior to paying out benefits. This can lead to disastrous results. Benefits may be fully-funded when the termination decision is made, but significant contributions will be required if assets are not invested conservatively and a market downturn occurs prior to […]Read More… from Pension Plan Termination Investment Strategies
Many small pension plans are exempt from PBGC pension insurance coverage. These include “substantial owner” plans, where all participants in the plan own (directly or indirectly) more than 10% of the corporation’s stock. This post highlights what happens when the classification of a “substantial owner” plan changes, and what happens next. We often see “substantial […]Read More… from When Small Pension Plans Move In and Out of PBGC Coverage
As we speculated a few weeks ago, the IRS has extended the deadline for plan sponsors to amend their plan documents to comply with certain law changes under PPA and WRERA. Notice 2010-77 essentially just adds a year to the previously extended deadlines from Notice 2009-97. These extensions may be a moot point for many […]Read More… from Explanation of 436 and Hybrid Plan Amendment Extensions
