Art of the Qualified Plan Audit

It has been almost two years since the DOL released the results of its study of the quality of work performed by independent qualified public accountants (IQPAs).

Administrative simplicity or empathy for participants in need? Allowing more than one participant loan in a retirement plan is not a black and white determination.

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),

Keeping two sets of books often means that someone is hiding something from the taxing authorities.

Pre-tax contributions to a 401(k) or 403(b) plan are not taxed when made to the plan but are taxed when the participant receives a distribution of the contributions.

When it comes to IRS audits, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” as Benjamin Franklin so wisely put it.

As a plan sponsor, you may know that, generally, if your plan covers 100 employees or more, your plan is considered a large plan and requires audited financial statements to be attached to the 5500 filing.

We often ask the question, “How does our 401(k) plan stack up?”

Plan administrators probably view the management representation letter as a document they must sign so they likely do so without reading it closely.

Along with the presidential election on Tuesday, November 8, another election that participants should have on their mind is the deferral for their retirement plan.