Each year qualified retirement plans must successfully navigate through a myriad of deadlines and due dates. One of the most important deadlines for most plan types relates to the Department of Labor’s annual filing of the Form 5500. Each Form 5500 must accurately reflect the characteristics and operations of the plan or arrangement being reported. The requirements for completing the Form 5500 will vary according to the type of plan or arrangement. This filing is due by the end of the 7th month following the end of the plan year; for calendar plan years this is July 31st. A plan may obtain a one-time extension of time to file a Form 5500 annual return/report (up to 2½ months) by filing IRS Form 5558, Application for Extension of Time To File Certain Employee Plan Returns, on or before the normal due date, thereby making the extended due date October 15th for calendar year plans.

Download PDF With the ever increasing need for complete disclosure; managing and maintaining all of the documents, forms, testing results, tax filings, etc. has become a daunting and exhaustive task.  In addition, the regulatory agencies charged with auditing and investigating retirement plans continue to raise their expectations with respect to the formal policies and procedures…

The recently enacted Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (“Budget Act”) included some unanticipated provisions that directly affect retirement plans. One such provision relates to the availability and amount of hardship withdrawals made under 401(k) plans. The following summarizes the impact of these new rules.