ADP/ACP Tests

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DWC |

Nondiscrimination Testing: ADP & ACP Tests

The actual deferral percentage (ADP) and actual contribution percentage (ACP) tests are two of several nondiscrimination tests a plan must satisfy in order to remain compliant with IRS rules. Some of ...
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Adam C. Pozek |

It’s About Time – Long Term, Part Time Employees – Part 2

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Adam C. Pozek |

It’s About Time – Long Term, Part Time Employees – Part 1

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Adam C. Pozek |

Finding Balance with Form 5500

It’s rare that updates to the Form 5500 warrant little more than a yawn, if anyone other than those who prepare the forms even notice. That is NOT the case with changes issued by the Department of ...
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DWC |

When Is the Best Time to Set Up a Safe Harbor 401(K) Plan?

Facts We have been thinking about setting a safe harbor 401(k) plan and have heard that there are some pretty stringent timing requirements depending on some of the provisions we select.
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DWC |

Which Financial Details Do I Report On My Year-End Census?

Facts Last week, you explained some the demographic data points that get reported on the annual census. Now, I’ve got some questions on the financial information I’ve been asked to provide to my TPA. ...
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DWC |

Overtime Is Up and Bonuses Are Down: Will This Year's Irregular Compensation Impact our Retirement Plan?

Facts We sponsor a 401(k) plan for our employees and provide a company matching contribution to those who defer. Our plan specifies that in calculating that match, we only consider employee base pay ...
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DWC |

Can We Add a Safe Harbor Provision While Maintaining Flexibility in Contribution Costs?

Facts We currently sponsor a 401(k) plan and have been debating adding a safe harbor provision for 2021. While the idea of buying our way out of the ADP/ACP tests is appealing, we’re nervous about ...
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DWC |

401(k) vs 403(b): Which Is the Best Choice for My Non-Profit?

Facts As the director of a not-for-profit organization, I’m looking at retirement plan options for our employees. The fiscal year ends June 30th and I’d love to implement something to benefit our ...
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DWC |

Can We Suspend our Safe Harbor Contribution Mid-Plan Year?

Facts Given the current uncertainty in the world economy and the unknown ongoing affects of coronavirus, I’m looking at all financial obligations for our company, and for opportunities to reduce ...
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DWC |

Am I Now Required to Include Part-Time Employees in my 401(k) Plan?

Facts As the owner of a beachside hotel, I sponsor a calendar year 401(k) plan for my employees. In the summer we hire many part-time employees to assist with the uptick in guests and activities. Our ...
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DWC |

Are We Required to Make Safe Harbor Contributions for HCEs?

Facts My company sponsors a safe harbor 401(k) plan so that all of the highly compensated employees can maximize their deferrals without worrying about failing the ADP test each year. Although we ...
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DWC |

How Do We Identify Highly Compensated Employees for the First Year Our Company Exists?

Facts We established our company on February 1st of this year, and now we are planning to launch our 401(k) plan. We know there are number of tests and determinations that require us to look at ...
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DWC |

Your Safe Harbor Actually Isn't? We've Got a Fix for That!

We’ve been through a few Corrections of the Quarter together now, and we appreciate you being along for the ride. We feel this is pretty good stuff but, at the heart of it all, we’re pension geeks ...
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DWC |

How Can We Improve ADP/ACP Test Results Without Offering Safe Harbor?

Facts My architectural firm sponsors a 401(k) plan. We have 38 architects and 2 administrative assistants. We currently provide a matching contribution to participants and, some years, a profit ...
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DWC |

What Does Safe Harbor Mean, Exactly?

Facts When we set up our new 401(k) plan last year, we decided not to add a safe harbor provision because we were not in a position to commit to the required contribution. Then we heard our TPA say ...
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DWC |

Top Heavy vs. ADP: What's the Difference?

Facts As a plan sponsor, I do my best to review the annual compliance reports my TPA sends to me, but to be honest, it might as well be written in a foreign language. For example, several of our ...
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DWC |

We Failed the ADP Test! What Did We Do Wrong and How Do We Fix It?

Facts Our TPA just sent us our annual compliance report, and it says we failed testing! This is the first year we’ve failed anything, and now we’re being told that we need to take money out of the ...
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DWC |

How Can We Pass Nondiscrimination Testing with Low Non-HCE Participation?

Facts I am fed up with sponsoring my current retirement plan. My wife and I contribute the maximum amount we can in deferrals each year. Due to low participation by our employees, we fail ADP testing ...
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DWC |

Can We Reduce the Number of HCEs in our Plan?

Facts We set up our company 401(k) plan soon after we started our business. At the time, we were a small tech company with only a couple of employees. Over the years the company has grown ...
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DWC |

What Is a True-Up Matching Contribution?

Facts Our 401(k) plan provides for a matching contribution of 50% of the first 6% deferred by each participant (for a maximum match of 3% of pay per year). We deposit the matching contributions to ...
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DWC |

How Are Corrective Refunds Determined for a Failed ADP Test?

Facts Our 401(k) plan failed the ADP test for the first time this year. We decided to correct the failure by making refunds to the highly compensated employees instead of making additional ...
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DWC |

Decoding the Alphabet Soup: What's With All the Acronyms? | Part 1

Facts People in the retirement plan business sure do like their acronyms. All these letters get thrown around, and I do not know what half of them mean.
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DWC |

What Is the Deadline to Correct a Failed ADP/ACP Test?

Facts Every couple of years, our 401(k) plan fails the ADP/ACP test by a small margin. Since we don’t always fail the test, gathering our year-end census information to send to our TPA sometimes ...
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DWC |

When Can We Change Our ADP/ACP Testing Method?

Facts We have a 401(k) plan that allows for both employee deferrals and a company match. Our annual testing each year is based on the amounts contributed in the previous year. That has allowed us to ...
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