Tag Archive for: SEP IRA

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The Dos and Don’ts of Aggregating Required Minimum Distributions

“I have a 72-year-old client who is retired.  He has numerous retirement savings arrangements, including a Roth IRA, multiple traditional IRAs, a SEP IRA and a 401(k) plan. Can a distribution from his 401(k) plan satisfy all RMDs that he is obliged to take for the year?

ERISA consultants at the Retirement Learning Center (RLC) Resource Desk regularly receive calls from financial advisors on a broad array of technical topics related to IRAs, qualified retirement plans and other types of retirement savings and income plans, including nonqualified plans, stock options, and Social Security and Medicare. We bring Case of the Week to you to highlight the most relevant topics affecting your business.

A recent call with an advisor in Minnesota is representative of a common question involving required minimum distributions (RMDs) from retirement plans.

Highlights of Discussion

No, your client may not use the RMD due from his 401(k) plan to satisfy the RMDs due from his IRAs (and vice versa). He must satisfy them independently from one another. Participants in retirement plans, such as 401(k), 457, defined contribution and defined benefit plans, are not allowed to aggregate their RMDs [Treasury Regulation 1.409(a)(9)-8, Q&A 1]. If an employee participates in more than one retirement plan, he or she must satisfy the RMD from each plan separately.

With respect to your client’s IRAs, however, there are special RMD “aggregation rules” that apply to individuals with multiple IRAs. Under the IRA RMD rules, IRA owners can independently calculate the RMDs that are due from each IRA they own directly (including savings incentive match plan for employees (SIMPLE IRAs, simplified employee pension (SEP) IRAs and traditional IRAs), total the amounts, and take the aggregate RMD amount from an IRA (or IRAs) of their choosing that they own directly (Treasury Regulation 1.408-8, Q&A 9).

RMDs from inherited IRAs that an individual holds as a beneficiary of the same decedent may be distributed under these rules for aggregation, considering only those IRAs owned as a beneficiary of the same decedent.

Roth IRA owners are not subject to the RMD rules but, upon death, their beneficiaries would be required to commence RMDs. RMDs from inherited Roth IRAs that an individual holds as a beneficiary of the same decedent may be aggregated, considering only those inherited Roth IRAs owned as a beneficiary of the same decedent.

403(b) participants have RMD aggregation rules as well. A 403(b) plan participant must determine the RMD amount due from each 403(b) contract separately, but he or she may total the amounts and take the aggregate RMD amount from any one or more of the individual 403(b) contracts. However, only amounts in 403(b) contracts that an individual holds as an employee (and not a beneficiary) may be aggregated. Amounts in 403(b) contracts that an individual holds as a beneficiary of the same decedent may be aggregated [Treasury Regulation 1.403(b)-6(e)(7)].

Conclusion

In most cases, individuals who are over age 72 are required to take RMDs from their tax-favored retirement accounts on an annual basis. There is some ability to aggregate RMDs for IRAs and 403(b)s, but one must be careful to apply the rules for RMD aggregation correctly. Failure to take an RMD when required could subject the recipient to a sizeable penalty (i.e., 50 percent of the amount not taken).

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Don’t Forget About the Benefits of a Qualified Charitable Distribution for 2022

“I have an 84-year-old client with a multi-million dollar IRA.  As you can well image, his required minimum distribution (RMD) for the year is quite large. Do you have any suggestions on how he might reduce the tax impact of such a large RMD?”

ERISA consultants at the Retirement Learning Center (RLC) Resource Desk regularly receive calls from financial advisors on a broad array of technical topics related to IRAs, qualified retirement plans and other types of retirement savings and income plans, including nonqualified plans, stock options, and Social Security and Medicare.  We bring Case of the Week to you to highlight the most relevant topics affecting your business.

A recent call with a financial advisor from Illinois is representative of a common inquiry related to charitable giving.

Highlights of the Discussion

  • Yes, the first idea that comes to mind is making a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) by December 31, 2022. A QCD is any otherwise taxable distribution (up to $100,000 per year) that an “eligible IRA owner or beneficiary” directly transfers to a “qualifying charitable organization.”(The IRA owner cannot have received the amount.) QCDs were a temporary provision in the Pension Protection Act of 2006. After years of provisional annual extensions, the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 reinstated and made permanent QCDs for 2015 and beyond.
  • What are the benefits of making a QCD? Generally, IRA owners must include any distributions of pre-tax amounts from their IRAs in their taxable income for the year. A QCD
    • Is excludable from taxable income (up to $100,000),
    • May count towards the individual’s RMD for the year,
    • May lower taxable income enough for the person to avoid paying additional Medicare premiums and
    • Is a philanthropic way to support a favored charity.
  • Note that making a QCD does not entitle the individual to an additional itemized tax deduction for a charitable contribution.*
  • An eligible IRA owner or beneficiary for QCD purposes is a person who has actually attained age 70 ½ or older, and has assets in traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, or “inactiveSEP IRAs or savings incentive match plans for employees (SIMPLE) IRAs. Inactive means there are no ongoing employer contributions to the SEP IRA or SIMPLE IRA. A SEP IRA or a SIMPLE IRA is treated as ongoing if the sponsoring employer makes an employer contribution for the plan year ending with or within the IRA owner’s taxable year in which the charitable contribution would be made (see IRS Notice 2007-7, Q&A 36).
  • Generally, qualifying charitable organizations include those described in 170(b)(1)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) (e.g., churches, educational organizations, hospitals and medical facilities, foundations, etc.) other than supporting organizations described in IRC § 509(a)(3) or donor advised funds that are described in IRC § 4966(d)(2). The IRS has a handy online tool Exempt Organization Select Check, which can help taxpayers identify organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions.
  • Where an individual has made nondeductible contributions to his or her traditional IRAs, a special rule treats amounts distributed to charities as coming first from taxable funds, instead of proportionately from taxable and nontaxable funds, as would be the case with regular distributions.
  • Be aware there are special IRS Form 1040 reporting steps that apply to QCDs.
  • Section IX of IRS Notice 2007-7 contains additional compliance details regarding QCDs. For example, QCDs are not subject to federal tax withholding because an IRA owner that requests such a distribution is deemed to have elected out of withholding under IRC § 3405(a)(2) (see IRS Notice 2007-7, Q&A 40 ).

Conclusion

Eligible IRA owners and beneficiaries age 70 ½ and over, including those with inactive SEP or SIMPLE IRAs, should be aware of the benefits of directing QCDs to their favorite charitable organizations.

* Apart from a QCD, IRA owners who take taxable IRA distributions and donate them to charitable organizations may be eligible to deduct such amounts on their tax returns for the year if they itemize deductions (Schedule A of Form 1040).  See IRS Tax Topic 506 and IRS Publication 526, Charitable Contributions for more information

© Copyright 2024 Retirement Learning Center, all rights reserved
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2021 Qualified Charitable Distributions from IRAs

“The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2019 changed the age for taking requirement minimum distributions (RMDs) to age 72.  Did it also change the age for making Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs)?”

 

ERISA consultants at the Retirement Learning Center (RLC) Resource Desk regularly receive calls from financial advisors on a broad array of technical topics related to IRAs, qualified retirement plans and other types of retirement savings and income plans, including nonqualified plans, stock options, and Social Security and Medicare.  We bring Case of the Week to you to highlight the most relevant topics affecting your business. A recent call with a financial advisor from Alabama is representative of a common inquiry related to charitable giving.

Highlights of the Discussion

  • No, the SECURE Act did not change the eligibility age for making a QCD; it remains at 70½. So, any “eligible IRA owner or beneficiary” (defined below) can make a QCD up to $100,000 for 2021 by December 31, 2021.  The contributor must keep records to prove the amount of the QCD  (see Substantiation Requirements in IRS Publication 526, Charitable Contributions).
  • Those who make QCDs before reaching age 72 will not have the added benefit of counting them towards their RMDs, but the QCDs still will be excludable from taxable income and go towards supporting good causes. Because a QCD reduces taxable income, other potential benefits may result, for example, a person may be able to avoid paying higher Medicare premiums. Note that for those who make both QCDs and deductible IRA contributions[1] in the same year may need to limit the portion of a QCD that is excluded from income.
  • An eligible IRA owner or beneficiary for QCD purposes is a person who has attained age 70½ or older, and has assets in traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, or “inactiveSEP IRAs or savings incentive match plans for employees (SIMPLE) IRAs. Inactive means there are no ongoing employer contributions to the SEP IRA or SIMPLE IRA. A SEP IRA or a SIMPLE IRA is treated as ongoing if the sponsoring employer makes an employer contribution for the plan year ending with or within the IRA owner’s taxable year in which the charitable contribution would be made (see IRS Notice 2007-7, Q&A 36).
  • A QCD is any otherwise taxable distribution (up to $100,000 per year) that an eligible person directly transfers to a “qualifying charitable organization.” QCDs were a temporary provision in the Pension Protection Act of 2006. After years of provisional annual extensions, the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 reinstated and made permanent QCDs for 2015 and beyond.
  • Generally, qualifying charitable organizations include those described in §170(b)(1)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) (e.g., churches, educational organizations, hospitals and medical facilities, foundations, etc.) other than supporting organizations described in IRC § 509(a)(3) or donor advised funds that are described in IRC § 4966(d)(2). The IRS has a handy online tool Tax Exempt Organization Search, which can help taxpayers identify organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions. Note that a QCD contributor would not be entitled to an additional itemized tax deduction for a charitable contribution when making a QCD.
  • Where an individual has made nondeductible contributions to his or her traditional IRAs, a special rule treats amounts distributed to charities as coming first from taxable funds, instead of proportionately from taxable and nontaxable funds, as would be the case with regular distributions.
  • Be aware there are special IRS Form 1040 reporting instructions that apply to QCDs.
  • Section IX of IRS Notice 2007-7 contains additional compliance details regarding QCDs. For example, QCDs are not subject to federal tax withholding because an IRA owner that requests such a distribution is deemed to have elected out of withholding under IRC § 3405(a)(2) (see IRS Notice 2007-7 , Q&A 40).
  • There are other charitable giving options aside from QCDs. For example, the Consolidated Appropriations Act extended two temporary tax changes through the end of 2021 to encourage charitable giving by individuals (see Covid Tax Tip 2021-143). They include 1) a limited deduction (up to $600 for married couples) for charitable cash contributions for individuals who do not itemize deductions; and 2) a deduction of up to 100 percent of the taxpayer’s adjusted gross income for certain charitable cash contributions (if properly elected on their 2021 Form 1040 or Form 1040-SR) by those who itemize their deductions.
  • As one can see, the options for charitable giving are many and can be confusing, making consultation with a tax professional a recommended course of action.

Conclusion

Eligible traditional and Roth IRA owners and beneficiaries, including those with inactive SEP or SIMPLE IRAs, should be aware of the benefits of directing QCDs to their favorite charitable organizations.  Law changes and extensions have enhanced other giving options, making professional tax advice essential when making a gifting decision.

 

[1] The SECURE Act also eliminated the maximum age limit for making traditional IRA contributions.

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SEP and SIMPLE IRA Plans and ERISA Fidelity Bonds

“Do SEP and SIMPLE IRA Plans Require an ERISA Fidelity Bond?”

ERISA consultants at the Retirement Learning Center Resource Desk regularly receive calls from financial advisors on a broad array of technical topics related to IRAs, qualified retirement plans and other types of retirement savings and income plans, including nonqualified plans, Social Security and Medicare. We bring Case of the Week to you to highlight the most relevant topics affecting your business.

A recent call with a financial advisor from Florida is representative of a common inquiry related to savings incentive match plans for employees (SIMPLE) IRA plans and simplified employee pension (SEP) plans.

Highlights of Discussion

Generally, yes, but this is a great question with a multi-layered answer depending on the individuals and/or entities that handle the assets of these plans. ERISA Section 412 requires that every fiduciary of an employee benefit plan and every person who handles funds or other property of such a plan be bonded in order to protect the assets of the plan against the risk of loss due to fraud or dishonesty. For this purpose, SEP and SIMPLE IRA plans are considered employee benefit plans. The DOL further explained (albeit somewhat vaguely) its position on the matter in Field Assistance Bulletin (FAB) 2008-4, Q&A 16. With regard to having a fidelity bond, the DOL states: “There is no specific exemption … for SEP or SIMPLE IRA retirement plans. Such plans are generally structured in such a way, however, that if any person does “handle” funds or other property of such plans that person will fall under one of ERISA’s financial institution exemptions” (See DOL Reg. §§ 2580.412-27 and 28).

The logic here is that, typically, employees establish their SIMPLE IRAs and SEP IRAs at banks, trust companies or insurance providers, and such institutions are exempt from the bonding requirement provided they are subject to supervision or examination by federal or state regulators and meet certain financial requirements. The Pension Protection Act added an exemption to the ERISA bonding requirement for entities registered as broker/dealers under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 if the broker/dealer is subject to the fidelity bond requirements of a self-regulatory organization. Consequently, the employees of qualified financial institutions that hold SEP IRA and SIMPLE IRA plan assets need not be covered by an ERISA fidelity bond.

However, there is no exemption from the ERISA bonding requirement for the fiduciaries of employers who handle SEP and SIMPLE IRA plan assets prior to the assets being held in their respective IRAs. When do SEP and SIMPLE IRA contributions become plan assets? In the case of salary reduction (SAR) SEP and SIMPLE IRA employee salary deferrals, such amounts become plan assets as of the earliest date on which they can reasonably be segregated from the employer’s general assets (DOL Reg. 2510.3-102). In contrast, employer contributions generally become plan assets only when the contributions actually have been made to the plan (FAB 2008-01 and Advisory Opinion 1993-14A).

Court cases provide evidence that this is indeed how the DOL enforces the bonding requirement for SAR-SEP and SIMPLE IRA plans. In Chao v. Smith, Civil Action No. 1:06CV0051, the employer failed to remit employee contributions to a SIMPLE IRA plan. In addition to restoring the salary deferrals to the plan, as part of the settlement the employer was required to secure a fidelity bond and keep it active throughout the life of the plan “as required by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.”  Similarly, in Chao v. Harman, Civil Action Number 4:07cv11772,  the DOL sued business executives and trustees of a firm’s SIMPLE IRA plan in Jackson, Michigan, for failing to forward employee contributions to workers’ accounts and obtain a fidelity bond. Finally, the DOL sued an employer with a SAR-SEP plan for mishandling of employee deferrals and lack of a fidelity bond (Chao v. Gary Raykhinshteyn, Civil Action No. 01-60056).

In each case, the DOL made a point to state employers with similar problems who are not yet the subject of an investigation may be eligible to participate in the DOL’s Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP) to correct the errors and avoid enforcement actions and civil penalties as well as any applicable excise taxes.

Since some form of employer contribution is required with a SIMPLE IRA plan, employers who fail to make these contributions have an IRS operational failure and may have the ability to correct the error by following the applicable provisions of the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System in Revenue Procedure 2016-51.

Conclusion

While the DOL offers exemptions from the ERISA fidelity bonding requirement to qualified financial institutions that hold SEP and SIMPLE IRA assets, the agency requires employers who sponsor SEP or SIMPLE IRA plans and other plan fiduciaries who handle plan assets to be covered by an ERISA fidelity bond to prevent against loss as a result of fraud and/or dishonesty.

 

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Forms of SEP plan documents and when to use them

“I have a client that would like to establish a SEP plan. What document options are available and what are the considerations for selection?”

ERISA consultants at the Retirement Learning Center Resource Desk regularly receive calls from financial advisors on a broad array of technical topics related to IRAs, qualified retirement plans and other types of retirement savings plans, including nonqualified plans. We bring Case of the Week to you to highlight the most relevant topics affecting your business.

A recent call with a financial advisor from New York is representative of a common inquiry related simplified employee pension (SEP) plans.

Highlights of Discussion

Employers that sponsor SEP plans must maintain them pursuant to a written document [Internal Revenue Code Section (IRC §) 408(k)(5). There are three document format options for SEP plans: 1) the IRS model form, which is IRS Form 5305-SEP Simplified Employee Pension – Individual Retirement Accounts Contribution Agreement; a prototype document offered by banks, insurance companies, mutual fund companies and other qualified financial institutions or forms providers; or 3) individually designed documents, which are typically written by attorneys. There are several considerations when selecting a SEP plan document including, but not limited to, cost, whether the sponsor maintains other retirement plans and desired design features.

Regardless of the format used, the deadline for establishing a SEP plan for a particular year is the business’s tax return deadline, plus extensions for that year.

EXAMPLE:

Pete’s Partnership operates on a calendar year, and has a five-month filing extension for its 2017 tax return. If the partnership wants a 2017 SEP plan, it has until September 15, 2018, to sign a document to set up the plan.

Form 5305-SEP

The IRS model Form 5305-SEP is available free of charge from the IRS’ website and there is no need to file a completed copy of it with the IRS. The IRS will consider a SEP plan as established using the model form when the sponsor completes and signs the form without modification; each eligible employee (or, as a last resort the SEP plan sponsor on behalf of an employee) establishes a traditional IRA to receive contributions, and the employer gives required notices to all eligible employees.

A SEP plan sponsor may not use the model Form 5303-SEP if any of the following statements are true. The employer

  • Maintains any other qualified retirement plan (except for another SEP or salary reduction SEP plan);
  • Has any eligible employees for whom traditional IRAs do not exist;
  • Uses the services of leased employees;
  • Wants a plan year other than the calendar-year;
  • Wants to exclude members of a controlled group of employers; or
  • Wants a contribution allocation formula that is other than pro rate (i.e., integrated with Social Security or flat dollar).

Prototype SEP

Prototype SEP plan documents are available for a nominal fee from various prototype document sponsors for use when a model form is not permitted and/or the employer wants more flexibility in plan design. By filing IRS Form 5306-A, Application for Approval of Prototype Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) or Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees of Small Employers (SIMPLE IRA Plan), and paying a fee, a prototype document sponsor (e.g., a bank, credit union, mutual fund company, etc.) can receive pre-approval of its plan document from the IRS in the form of an IRS opinion letter. An opinion letter states that a SEP agreement is acceptable in form. The IRS has prepared a Listing of Required Modifications (LRMs), or sample language, to assist document sponsors in drafting an acceptable prototype SEP.

An employer using a prototype SEP plan document, rather than a model, can

  • Use the business’s fiscal year as the plan year rather than the calendar year;
  • Use the services of leased employees;
  • Select a pro rata, integrated or flat dollar contribution allocation formula;
  • Maintain another qualified plan in addition to the SEP plan; and
  • Contribute a top-heavy minimum contribution only when the plan is actually top-heavy.

Individually Designed

An employer can engage an attorney to draft an individually designed SEP plan document that is unique to the employer, and request a letter ruling from the IRS as to its acceptability, if desired. While these employer-specific documents can be more flexible than a model or prototype document, an adopting employer will incur higher costs as a result of drafting, establishment and maintenance fees.

Conclusion

The IRS requires businesses that want SEP plans to execute a written plan document containing the terms of the arrangement. There are three general SEP plan document formats from which to choose. Considerations as to the most appropriate form include, but are not limited to, cost, whether the business maintains other retirement plans and desired design features. Business owners should consult a tax and/or legal advisor regarding their particular circumstances.

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IRAs, SEPs, SIMPLEs and Qualified Charitable Distributions

 

My client has a simplified employee pension (SEP) IRA through his place of employment. He’s wondering if he can make a tax-free, qualified charitable distribution (QCD) from his SEP IRA?

ERISA consultants at the Retirement Learning Center Resource Desk regularly receive calls from financial advisors on a broad array of technical topics related to IRAs and qualified retirement plans. We bring Case of the Week to you to highlight the most relevant topics affecting your business. A recent call with an advisor in South Dakota is representative of a common inquiry involving charitable IRA distributions.

Highlights of Discussion

A QCD is any otherwise taxable distribution (up to $100,000 per year) that an “eligible IRA owner or beneficiary” directly transfers to a “qualifying charitable organization.” QCDs were a temporary provision in the Pension Protection Act of 2006.  After years of provisional annual extensions, the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 reinstated and made permanent QCDs for 2015 and beyond.

With tax rates dropping in 2018 as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, taxpayers may get more “bang for their bucks” on their 2017 tax returns by completing a QCD by December 31, 2017.

Generally, IRA owners must include any distributions of pre-tax amounts from their IRAs in their taxable income for the year. Aside from the benevolent aspect of making a QCD, a QCD is excludable from taxable income, plus it may count towards the individual’s required minimum distribution (RMD) for the year, and may lower taxable income enough for the person to avoid paying additional Medicare premiums. Note that he or she would not be entitled to an additional itemized tax deduction for a charitable contribution when making a QCD. (Apart from a QCD, IRA owners who take taxable IRA distributions and donate them to charitable organizations may be eligible to deduct such amounts on their tax returns for the year if they itemize deductions (Schedule A of Form 1040). See IRS Tax Topic 506 and IRS Publication 526, Charitable Contributions for more information.)

An eligible IRA owner or beneficiary for QCD purposes is a person who has actually attained age 70 ½ or older, and has assets in traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, or “inactiveSEP IRAs or savings incentive match plans for employees (SIMPLE) IRAs. Inactive means there are no ongoing employer contributions to the SEP IRA or SIMPLE IRA. A SEP IRA or a SIMPLE IRA is treated as ongoing if the sponsoring employer makes an employer contribution for the plan year ending with or within the IRA owner’s taxable year in which the charitable contribution would be made (see IRS Notice 2007-7, Q&A 36).

Generally, qualifying charitable organizations include those described in §170(b)(1)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) (e.g., churches, educational organizations, hospitals and medical facilities, foundations, etc.) other than supporting organizations described in IRC § 509(a)(3) or donor advised funds that are described in IRC § 4966(d)(2). The IRS has a handy online tool Exempt Organization Select Check, which can help taxpayers identify organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions.

Where an individual has made nondeductible contributions to his or her traditional IRAs, a special rule treats amounts distributed to charities as coming first from taxable funds, instead of proportionately from taxable and nontaxable funds, as would be the case with regular distributions.

Be aware there are special IRS Form 1040 reporting instructions that apply to QCDs.

Section IX of IRS Notice 2007-7 contains additional compliance details regarding QCDs. For example, QCDs are not subject to federal tax withholding because an IRA owner that requests such a distribution is deemed to have elected out of withholding under IRC § 3405(a)(2) (see IRS Notice 2007-7, Q&A 40 ).

Conclusion

Eligible IRA owners and beneficiaries, including those with inactive SEP or SIMPLE IRAs, should be aware of the benefits of directing QCDs to their favorite charitable organizations.

 

© Copyright 2024 Retirement Learning Center, all rights reserved