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5500 Preparer's Manual for 2012 Plan Years
The premier resource in the field of Form 5500 preparation, 5500 Preparer's Manual will help you handle the required annual Form 5500 filings for both pension benefits and welfare benefit plans.
The IRS has reminded employers entitled to use the pre-approved plan six-year cycle of the April 30, 2010 deadline to adopt the final approved version of the defined contribution pre-approved plan and submit applications for determination letters, if applicable.
Employers entitled to use the six-year remedial amendment cycle described in Rev. Proc. 2007-44 must generally adopt either a master and prototype (M&P) or volume submitter (VS) defined contribution plan approved by the IRS for EGTRRA and other plan qualification requirements on the 2004 Cumulative List by April 30, 2010, for the plan's restatement to be eligible for retroactive correction and reliance. April 30, 2010, is also the filing deadline for employers who have adopted an M&P or VS defined contribution plan and need to file a determination letter request for reliance (i.e., where the employer makes certain changes to the document) or otherwise wish to file a request for a determination letter.
An employer who adopts an M&P plan and makes changes to the pre-approved plan document (other than choosing adoption agreement options and amending a plan as described in sections 5.02 and 19.03 of Rev. Proc. 2005-16) must generally file a Form 5300.
The IRS will review an M&P plan that has been modified and submitted for a determination letter based on the Cumulative List in effect for the year the determination letter is filed. In this case, the employer must follow the normal filing procedures for Form 5300 as described in Rev. Proc. 2010-6 and must ensure that any modifications (including interim amendments for changes in qualification requirements on the post-2004 Cumulative Lists) are adopted in the form of separate amendments and are not incorporated into the underlying M&P plan document.
Unlike an employer who adopts an M&P plan, an employer who adopts a VS plan and makes changes to the pre-approved plan document may file an application for a determination letter by using either Form 5307 or Form 5300, depending on the extent of the changes. If a Form 5307 is filed, it will be reviewed based on the Cumulative List that was used to review the underlying VS plan. The IRS will require a Form 5300 when the VS adopter makes changes to the plan that are too extensive or complex or otherwise incompatible with the purposes of the VS program. A Form 5300 application will be reviewed based on the current Cumulative List. In addition to the normal filing requirements applicable to either Form 5300 or Form 5307, the employer may submit VS changes as separate amendments or incorporate them into the plan document and must include a list describing each VS change if the changes are incorporated.
The IRS has also reminded employers that it will not accept faxed determination letter applications. Employers who timely executed Form 8905, Certification of Intent to Adopt a Pre-approved Plan, must attach it to the application.
Source: IRS Retirement News for Employers, Volume 6/Winter 2010.
For more information on this and related topics, consult the CCH Pension Plan Guide, CCH Employee Benefits Management, and Spencer's Benefits Reports.
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