CHAPTER 1: In-Service Distributions
- Profit-Sharing Plans
- Hardship Distributions
- Pension Plans
- Employee Stock Ownership Plans
- Qualified Birth or Adoption Distributions
- Emergency Personal Expense Distributions
- Distributions to Domestic Abuse Victims
- Distributions to Individuals with a Terminal Illness
- Qualified Disaster Distributions
- Coronavirus-Related Distributions
CHAPTER 2: Loans
- General Rule: Loans from Qualified Employer Plans
- Treated as Taxable Distributions
- Treatment of Distributions Attributable to Qualified Retirement Plan Loans
- Special Loan Rules for Certain Disaster Victims
- Special Loan Rules for Individuals Affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic
- Loans as Prohibited Transactions
- Spousal Consent for Loans Made by Plans Subject to the Survivor Annuity Requirements
- Federal Truth in Lending Act
CHAPTER 3: QDROs and Other Exceptions to the Anti-Alienation Rules
- General Rules and Definitions
- Form or Amount of Benefits May Not Be Altered
- How QDROs Affect Other Retirement Plan Benefits; Section 415 Requirements
- Alternate Payee’s Retirement Plan Benefits Must Be Clearly Specified
- QDROs Must Specify the Benefit Period and the Retirement Plan
- Retirement Plan Provisions and Written Procedures for Determining the Qualified Status of a DRO
- Procedures to Follow After a Retirement Plan Receives a DRO
- Taxation of Retirement Plan Distributions Made Under QDROs
- Official Guidance on Drafting, Reviewing, and Administering QDROs
- Permitted Offsets of Retirement Plan Benefits
CHAPTER 4: Required Minimum Distributions
- Waiver of Required Minimum Distributions
- Minimum Distribution Requirement in General
- RMDs Beginning During a Participant’s Lifetime (Lifetime RMDs)
- Post-Death RMDs from Defined Benefit Plans
- Post-Death RMDs from Defined Contribution Plans
- Determination of the Designated Beneficiary
- Determining RMD Amounts Under Defined Contribution Plans
- Determining RMD Amounts Under Defined Benefit Plans and Annuity Contracts
- Rollovers and Transfers
- Special Rules
- IRS Field Directive to Employee Plans (EP) Examiners
CHAPTER 5: Corrective Distributions
- Excess Contributions
- Excess Aggregate Contributions
- Excess Elective Contributions
- Excess Annual Additions
CHAPTER 6: Taxable Life Insurance Costs
- Calculation of Taxable Insurance Costs
CHAPTER 7: Bankruptcy
CHAPTER 8: Vesting
- General Vesting Rules
- PPA Changes Effective for Post-2006 Plan Years
- Top-Heavy Rules
- Determination of Top-Heavy Status
- Death Benefits, Rollovers, and Plan-to-Plan Transfers
- Key Employees
- Top-Heavy Vesting Schedules
- Determination of Years of Vesting Service
- Breaks in Service
- Amendments in Vesting Schedules
- Forfeitures and Cash-Out Rules
- Required Vesting upon Plan Termination, Partial Termination, or Complete Discontinuance of Contributions
CHAPTER 9: Administrative Determination of Benefits
- Determining Account Balances in Defined
- Contribution Plans
- Cash-Out Rules
- Underfunded Defined Contribution Plans
- Determining Accrued Benefits in Traditional Defined Benefit Plans
- Determination of Accrual of Service
- Benefit Minimums and Limitations
- Lump-Sum Determination
- Determining Benefits in Non-Traditional Plans
CHAPTER 10: Optional Forms of Benefit and Protected Benefits
- Nondiscrimination Rules Under Code Section 401(a)(4)
- Permissive Aggregation of Certain Benefits, Rights, or Features
- Code Section 411(d)(6) Protected Benefits
CHAPTER 11: QJSA and QPSA Rules
- Overview
- Retirement Plans Subject to Survivor Annuity Requirements
- Transferee, Offset, Frozen, and Terminated Plans
- Applying Survivor Annuity Requirements to Participants
- Annuity Starting Date
- Benefits
- Timing of QJSA Distributions
- Rules Governing the QPSA
- Applying Survivor Annuity Requirements to Plan Loans
- Applying Survivor Annuity Requirements to Unmarried Participants, Surviving Spouses, and Participants Who Have a Change in Marital Status
- Spousal Consent Requirement
- Participant’s Waiver of a QPSA or QJSA
- Notice Requirements
- Subsidized Survivor Benefits
CHAPTER 12: Retirement, Disability, and Death
- Normal Retirement
- Early Retirement
- Late Retirement
- Phased Retirement
- Longevity Annuities
- Suspension of Benefits
- Disability Benefits
- Disability Benefits in Defined Contribution Plans
- Disability Benefits in Defined Benefit Plans
- Death Benefits in Defined Contribution Plans
- Death Benefits in Defined Benefit Plans
- Required Minimum Distribution Rules
CHAPTER 13: Other Termination of Employment Issues
- General Considerations
- ESOPs
- Suspension of Benefits
- Claim for Benefits
CHAPTER 14: Restrictions on Distributions
- Historical Perspective
- Application of Benefit Restriction Rules
- Use of Collateral Agreements
- Code Section 436 Rules on Restricted Distribution
CHAPTER 15: Plan Termination Issues
- General Requirements
- Defined Contribution Plans
- Defined Benefit Plans
- Liquidating Plan Assets
- Surplus Assets
- Distribution of Election Forms
- Final Disclosure Forms
- Abandoned Defined Contribution (Orphan) Plans
CHAPTER 16: The Termination Process for Single and Multiple Employer PBGC-Covered Plans
- Coverage
- PBGC Termination Steps
- Notice of Intent to Terminate
- Preliminary Information for PBGC
- Measurement of Benefit Liabilities
- Insufficiency of Plan Assets
- Actions of Plan Sponsor
- ERISA Section 204(h) Notice
- Information Gathering
- Notice of Plan Benefits
- Final Stages
- When the Plan Has Surplus Assets
- Missing Participants
- Post-Distribution Certification
- Spinoff/Termination Transaction Rules
- Final Returns/Reports
CHAPTER 17: Underfunded Plans
- Underfunded PBGC-Covered Defined Benefit Plans
- Involuntary Terminations
- PPA Requirements for Distress and Involuntary Terminations
- Defined Benefit Plans Not Covered by the PBGC
- Making Contributions to Meet Plan Liabilities
- Underfunded Defined Contribution Plans
CHAPTER 18: Taxation of Periodic Payments
- Understanding Basic Concepts
- Simplified Method of Basis Recovery and Transition Rule
- Fully Taxable Annuity Payments
CHAPTER 19: Taxation of Nonperiodic Payments
- Annuity Starting Date
- Various Types of Taxable Distributions and Transfers
- Lump-Sum Distributions
- Five-Year Forward Income Averaging
- Ten-Year Forward Income Averaging
- Capital Gains Treatment
- Special Lump-Sum Distribution Issues
CHAPTER 20: Additional Taxes
- Additional 10 Percent Income Tax on Early Distributions
- Excise Tax on Failure to Make RMDs
CHAPTER 21: Direct Rollovers
- Direct Rollover Option Required
- Eligible Rollover Distributions
- Section 402(f) Rollover Notice
- Rollover Contributions by Employees Not Yet Eligible to Participate in a Qualified Plan
- Other Direct Rollover Issues
CHAPTER 22: State Income Tax Withholding and FICA and FUTA Treatment
- Survey of State Income Tax Withholding Rules
- FICA and FUTA Treatment of Qualified Plan Distributions
- State “Source” Taxation of Retirement Benefits
CHAPTER 23: Plan Disqualification and Self-Correction Programs
- Disqualification Events
- Alternatives to Plan Disqualification—SCP, VCP, and Audit CAP
- Program Eligibility
- Consequences of Plan Disqualification
CHAPTER 24: Federal Income Tax Withholding
- Federal Income Tax Withholding on Eligible Rollover Distributions That Are Not Rolled Over
- Federal Income Tax Withholding on Periodic and Nonperiodic Payments That Are Not Eligible Rollover Distributions
CHAPTER 25: Distributions In-Kind
- In General
- Optional Form of Benefit Rules
- Operational Rules
- Tax Withholding Requirements
- Rollover Rules
- Treatment of Life Insurance and Annuity Contracts
- Distribution of Employer Securities
CHAPTER 26: Trustee-to-Trustee Transfers
- Retirement Plan Mergers, Consolidations, and Asset Transfers
- Application of the Merger, Consolidation, and Transfer Requirements to Retirement Plan Spinoffs
- Retirement Plan Mergers or Consolidations
CHAPTER 27: Reporting Distributions: IRS Form 1099-R
- Overview
- General Requirements
- Line-by-Line Explanation
- Electronic Filing
- Correcting Form 1099-R
- Combined Federal/State Filing Program
CHAPTER 28: Rollovers
- Review of the Basics
- Challenges in IRA Rollovers
- Advantages and Disadvantages of IRA Rollovers
- Roth IRAs
CHAPTER 29: Lump-Sum Distributions
- Review
- Calculating Taxable Amounts
- Economic Issues
- Impact of Other Taxes
- Advantages and Disadvantages of Lump-Sum Distributions
APPENDIX A: 120 Percent of Federal Mid-Term Rate
APPENDIX B: Pre-GATT Section 417(e) Interest Rates
APPENDIX C: 30-Year Treasury Securities Rates
APPENDIX D: Single Life Table
APPENDIX E: Joint Life and Last Survivor Table
APPENDIX F: Mortality Tables
APPENDIX G: Determination of HCEs
APPENDIX H: Minimum Present Value Segment Rates
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