Art of the Qualified Plan Audit

Nervous apprehension tends to overwhelm new 401(k) audit clients who don’t know how involved they will need to be in the document production for the audit. Often, they are hopeful that one or more of their service providers will “take care of everything” as they promised. The bottom line is that the extent of the … Continued

Posted By Stacey Snyder, CPA, QKA, TGPC If you’re preparing for your first 401(k) plan audit, you may be wondering what information the auditor will need for the audit. In order to help you prepare, we have created a template of an audit information request which conveys the overall level of detailed verification required in … Continued

Posted By: Stacey Synder, CPA, QKA, TGPC Profit-sharing plans give employers the option to make contributions to a retirement saving account for the benefit of their employees. These contributions may be made at the discretion of the company and do not need to be based on the actual profits of the company. Traditional profit-sharing plans … Continued

Posted By: Stacey Snyder, CPA, QKA, TGPC If you’ve just been informed that your 401(k) plan needs an audit, you probably have many questions if you have never been through a 401(k) audit. Hopefully by answering the five Ws (Who? What? When? Where? Why?), we’ll cover most of your questions. WHO? – Who Audits a … Continued

On April 19th, the IRS issued an update to the EPCRS which expands the Self-Correction Program (SCP) to cover certain plan loan failures.

As mentioned in my previous blog, EPCRS: How to Correct Improper Exclusions of Employees from a 401(k) Plan, the IRS implemented and recently revised the Employer Plan Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS),

Our lives are filled with limits; speed limits, credit limits, time limits, and a number of different retirement plan limits.

The Department of Labor just sent a letter to plan administrators emphasizing the importance of selecting a quality auditor.

As explained in Timeliness of Deposits, the Department of Labor (DOL) has set deadlines for which salary deferrals must be deposited into the plan. If these deadlines are not met, a prohibited transaction under Section 4975 will have occurred and Form 5330 must be filed and excise taxes paid for each year or part of the year that the prohibited transaction is outstanding.

Inheriting a retirement account, whether in a qualified plan or an IRA, can lead to complicated decisions regarding the treatment of the account.