Plan Design & Document Services

New Plan Installation

• Meet with the Employer to determine plan design and all provisions desired and applicable for accomplishing objectives
• Draft Plan document, Summary Plan Description, and supporting documentation, as needed
• Provide employee notices, as needed
• Setup plan on TPA database and administration systems
• Assist as needed in establishing plan accounts with investment provider.
• Review data gathering procedures and lines of communications with contact at the Employer’s office
• Communicate distribution, contribution deposit and ongoing administrative procedures with contact.

Plan Takeover Of An Existing Plan

• Gather and review previous year’s reports and testing for compliance and completeness
• Assist as needed in establishing plan accounts with investment provider
• Prepare Blackout Notice, if needed to facilitate changes in investments
• Prepare any other letters required to terminate services of prior administrative firm
• Coordinate fund transfers with investment providers, if applicable
• Review data gathering procedures and lines of communication with contact at the Employer’s office
• Communicate distribution, contribution deposit and ongoing administrative procedures with contact
• Setup plan on TPA database and administration systems
• Review current Plan document for compliance and completeness
• Restate Plan document in accordance with Employer’s objectives associated with takeover using our IRS-approved, HMA-sponsored prototype or volume document
• Provide employee notices, as needed

Annual Administration

Administrative Services – Core Plan Compliance

• Gather census data from the Employer (preferred via electronic medium)
• Gather asset information from investment provider(s)
• Determine employee eligibility for purpose of plan compliance and calculations
• Determine contribution amounts and applicable limits on participant and plan level
• Determine any forfeiture amounts available to reduce contributions or pay plan expenses
• Perform core compliance testing annually
• Obtain verification of contribution dates and amounts
• Prepare Form 5500 and related schedules
• Prepare Summary Annual Report for disclosure to employees
• Provide all required employee notices for compliance with rules for Safe Harbor 401(k), Quarterly Benefit Statements for participant-directed defined contribution plans, and Annual Benefit Statements for pooled defined contribution plans
• Prepare Employer valuation reports
• Notify the Employer of the ERISA bonding requirement at the 10% level
• Notify the Employer of the fact that it may be required to hire a certified public accountant to audit the Plan and provide the required audited financial statements to the Plan on a timely basis to be filed with the 5500 Annual Report for Large Plan filers or for Small Plan filers who have non-qualified plan assets that may cause the independent audit requirements to become applicable. The Employer shall be responsible for making arrangements to obtain this independent accountant’s opinion as needed.

Optional Administrative Services (Provided If Needed To Meet The Employer’s Objectives)

• Manual data entry and/or challenges with collection of timely, accurate, and complete data
• Asset reconciliation of financial information provided by investment providers
• Preliminary or alternative calculations and/or compliance testing

Additional Defined Benefit Plan Services/ Actuarial *

• Calculation of annual funding requirement
• Calculation of Adjusted Funding Target Attainment Percentage (AFTAP)
• Annual Funding Notice
• Actuarial Certification on Schedule SB
• PBGC premium calculation and preparation of annual filing
• FAS 132 Report

* In carrying out these Defined Benefit Plan services, TPA engages the services of an enrolled actuary to review and certify the Plan’s Schedule SB.

Administrative Services – Advanced Legal Plan Compliance Issues

It is our firm’s policy to refer to ERISA counsel if any of these services are needed.

• Compliance.  Representation of Employer/Plan Sponsor in IRS/DOL Plan Audit
• Compliance.  Correction of a Nondiscrimination Test Failure
• Compliance.  Plan correction to preserve IRS tax-qualified status.  Employee Plan Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS)
• Compliance.  Plan correction of missed or late Form 5500 filings.  Formal submission under Department of Labor’s Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance (DFVC) Program
• Compliance.  Plan correction of late 401(k) or Loan payment deposits, informally or formally under the Department of Labor’s Voluntary Fiduciary Compliance Program (VFCP)
• Plan Documentation and Amendments.  Prepare signature ready compliance amendments as required for IRS tax qualification; Prepare discretionary amendments to meet Employer’s plan design requests; offer Plan document restatement services in conjunction with ongoing requirements for IRS tax qualification.
• Plan Mergers
• Plan Termination

Administrative Services – Participant Distributions & Loans

• Distributions.  Processing of distributions on termination of employment, including hardship distributions, in-service distributions, Required Minimum Distributions
• Distributions.  Calculate participant vesting
• Distributions.  Preparation of distribution forms and tax disclosure forms, including Forms 1099R and 945
• Distributions.  Coordination of distributions with investment provider
• Participant Loans.  Preparation of Participant Loan documents
• Participant Loans.  Participant Loan maintenance  

Services Not Included

In addition to the services we provide, it is important to indicate services which we do not provide.  Hilde Minkel & Associates is acting as a service provider and not in any fiduciary capacity.  Specifically, we are not retained as Trustee or Plan Administrator, nor are we retained for any investment or individual tax advice.

Hilde Minkel & Associates does not provide any services, or take responsibility for any outcome as a result of, testing in connection to IRC Section 414(b),(c),(m),(n) or (o) with respect to the affects, results, coverage requirements thereof and discrimination issues which arise from such determination of a Controlled Group of Business, Affiliated Service Group, Management Organization, or any other required aggregation of businesses.  Hilde Minkel & Associates strongly advises you to seek legal ERISA council for such determination.