Individuals are permitted to roll over amounts in one IRA to another IRA only once in a 12 month period. The rollover must be completed within 60 days. A tax lawyer at a major New York law firm recently tripped on this rule to his detriment. The tax lawyer had several different IRAs. He took
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Retirement Plans
Have You Told the IRS that Your “Responsible Party” Has Changed? By Samuel Butler IV
By Stinson LLP on
The bloggers who bring you BenefitsNotes.com are attorneys at Leonard, Street and Deinard. We are proud to announce that we will merge with Stinson Morrison Hecker on January 1, 2014, to form the firm of Stinson Leonard Street. You can learn more about our new firm at http://stinsonleonardmerger.com/.
We welcome guest blogger Sam Butler, …
Another Reason to be Careful if ROBS is Your Business Financing Strategy
By Stinson LLP on
I blogged earlier this year about a tax court decision in which taxpayers used assets in their IRA to finance a new business in a structure sometimes known as ROBS or Rollover for Business Startups. Unfortunately, because of personal guarantees provided by the taxpayers at the time that the business owned by the IRA was …
Best to Save Plan Documents Until All Retirees and Beneficiaries are Dead
By Stinson LLP on
As a result of industry consolidation over the years, employers can find themselves responsible for pension plans of companies long out of existence. A recent federal district court decision imposed a penalty of $4,470 on a plan administrator who delayed providing the widow of a plan participant with the plan document in effect 34 years …
IRS ANNOUNCES 2014 BENEFIT PLAN LIMITS
By Stinson LLP on
The Internal Revenue Service has released the 2014 cost of living adjustments affecting dollar limits on benefits and contributions under qualified retirement plans. http://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/COLA-Increases-for-Dollar-Limitations-on-Benefits-and-Contributions. The following chart summarizes 2014 retirement plan limits and other benefit plan limits. The 2013 limits are also listed for reference purposes:
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2013 |
2014 |
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Elective Deferral Limit 401(k), 403(b), 457(b) |
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You Cannot Take the Embezzler’s 401(k) Plan Balance
By Stinson LLP on
Many employers know that with few exceptions a participant’s benefit in a tax qualified retirement plan is protected from the participant’s creditors. One exception is for court orders, known as qualified domestic relations orders or QDROs, that split a benefit between the participant and a former spouse or dependent in the event of divorce. Another …
Next Stop: IRS Compliance Checks of Non-Governmental 457(b) Deferred Compensation Plans
By Jeffrey Cairns on
Recently the Employee Plans Compliance Unit (EPCU) of the Internal Revenue Service completed an informal compliance check of 401(k) plans conducted via an extensive written questionnaire sent to plan sponsors. The results of the compliance checks are being used to refine the focus of plan examination efforts.
This week, the IRS announced that it is…
The Retirement Toolkit
By Stinson LLP on
My colleague Jeff Cairns recently blogged about a proposed regulation of the Department of Labor (DOL) that will require employers to include on plan statements estimates of the lifetime annuity amount that a participant’s 401(k) balance could buy. The DOL believes this information will help participants plan for retirement. Also to help participants plan for …
Effect on Employers of Same Sex Marriage in Minnesota
By Stinson LLP on
As many of our readers know, on Tuesday, May 14, 2013, Minnesota became the twelfth state to recognize same sex marriages. The effective date of the change is August 1, 2013, which gives employers some time to react to the change and analyze its effect on their employment policies and benefits. We sent an Alert …
Be Careful if ROBS Is Your Business Financing Strategy
By Stinson LLP on
Various promoters have suggested to entrepreneurs that they use the assets in their 401(k) plans or IRAs to finance a new business. These programs are sometimes known by the acronym ROBS, or Rollovers as Business Start-ups. The basic structure involves the entrepreneur’s rollover from a prior employer of the amount in his or her qualified …