A “gotcha” can happen to small plans – those exempt from filing a Form 5500 for a certain year. To qualify, a plan must be both (a) entitled to use… read more →
Small retirement plans must submit annual financial returns to the IRS by using Form 5500-EZ. Generally, these plans cover only owners, partners, and their spouses. Technically, they are Non-Title I… read more →
Trends are a fact of life any more, and the pace of change continues to accelerate. Whether fashion, music, or technology, being a trend setter seems to bring rewards. On… read more →
The theme of the 1983 International Design Conference at Aspen, Colorado was “The Future Isn’t What It Used To Be”. It is remembered because of an historic speech given there… read more →
For some pension plans, the cost of compliance just got more expensive. Background In 1974, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation was created as a quasi-public organization as part of ERISA.… read more →
The IRS means business on plan compliance. Each year we take over the administration of a handful of retirement plans with significant compliance issues. Here is a sampling from just… read more →
The Principal Financial Well-Being Index for the third quarter of 2013 contains some interesting information about small to medium businesses. It was conducted nationwide during the first three weeks of… read more →
High taxation was identified this year in the 2013 Lloyd’s Risk Index as the top risk by North American business executives. Greater than cyber-risk. Greater than the lack of customers… read more →
A common misconception is that defined benefit plans have become obsolete. Consider a statement from my fellow actuary, Mike Clark (Contingencies, Sep/Oct 2012, p. 42): “It’s been said that the… read more →
We still hear concern from employers and advisors concerning fully insured (412(e)) retirement plans. For a while, there was speculation that the IRS would take an active role in such… read more →