Seyfarth Synopsis: On Friday, March 27, 2020, in light of the far-reaching impact of coronavirus, President Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which includes some relief provisions for tax-qualified defined benefit pension plans. Click here to review the executive compensation provision contained in the law; click here to review the
401(k) and 403(b) Hardship Distributions and COVID-19 Declared Disaster Areas
Updated March 28, 2020: Under the IRS safe harbor reason for a hardship related to FEMA, a hardship is available for expenses and losses for employees living or working in affected area at the time of a disaster designated by FEMA for individual assistance with respect to the disaster. It is not clear that FEMA
Coronavirus Update – Senate CARES and Considers Proposed Relief for Retirement Plan Participants
Seyfarth Synopsis: As we have been raising in our series of blog posts and Legal Updates, the impact of the coronavirus is far-reaching, and there are a number of concerns relating to employer-sponsored retirement plans to keep in mind as we navigate this unprecedented situation. One such concern is retirement plan-related disaster relief. Yesterday, Senate
Upcoming Webinar! Employee Benefits in a Time of COVID-19
On Monday, March 23, at 1:00 p.m. Central, Seyfarth partners Diane Dygert, Benjamin Conley, Jennifer Kraft, Kaley Ventura, Jake Downing, and Christina Cerasale are presenting a 1 hour CLE webinar, “Employee Benefits in a Time of COVID-19.”
Keep up with the latest developments and rapidly changing laws and regulations relating to COVID-19 and your benefit
Coronavirus Update – Impact on Employee Benefit Plan Deadlines
Seyfarth Synopsis: The SARS CoV-2 virus (“coronavirus”) has been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization. It’s fair to say that none of us have ever experienced a pandemic, or at least not on this level. So how this outbreak will impact our daily lives is yet to be fully understood, and is
Whistleblowing Hits Employee Benefits World
Seyfarth Synopsis: Recently a “whistleblower” leaked that the IRS had internally announced an upcoming modification to the very popular voluntary correction program (“VCP”) that would have been a significant disincentive for plan sponsors to use the VCP to report and correct plan disqualification errors. The leak went viral and sent benefits counsel and other retirement
Avoid the IRS’s Nuclear Option – Sign that Plan Document!
Seyfarth Synopsis: In a recent Chief Counsel Memorandum (“CCM”), the IRS stated that on audit, agents should pursue plan disqualification for a failure to produce a signed plan document. The IRS was responding to a 2018 Tax Court decision that held that the failure to produce the signed plan document would not subject the plan
Fix a Decade of Document Errors? Yes You Can!
Seyfarth Synopsis: In two months (on March 31, 2020), the window closes for 403(b) plan sponsors to take advantage of the unique opportunity to retroactively amend their 403(b) retirement plans to correct document errors retroactively all the way back to January 1, 2010. After March 31, 2020, 403(b) plans likely will be subject to amendment
Déjà vu: Puerto Rico Plan Limits for 2020 Largely Track U.S. Plan Limits
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Puerto Rico Department of the Treasury (“PR Treasury”) recently announced the limits that apply to Puerto Rico qualified retirement plans in 2020. These limits may look familiar because the PR Code incorporates many of the applicable limits under the U.S. Code by reference. Employers maintaining Puerto Rico-only plans and dual-qualified plans (i.e.
The Required Minimum Distribution Date for Retirement Benefits & the Cuban Missile Crisis
Seyfarth Synopsis: The recently enacted SECURE Act defers the latest commencement of payment of our retirement benefits from age 70½ to age 72. Why now, why was it ever set to a half-birthday convention, and which half of the population benefits more from this change? Oh, and how is the required minimum distribution (“RMD”) rule