Buried within the newly released 2025 Form 1099-R instructions is a reporting change you may have missed, but one that is important to know about if you work with IRAs.
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IRAs and qualified retirement plans (QRPs) are intended to be used for retirement. Therefore, the tax laws and regulations encourage people to leave their money in an IRA or QRP until they retire. If distributions are taken from an IRA (including an IRA holding SEP contributions) or QRP before the account owner reaches age 59½, a 10 percent early distribution penalty tax is assessed on the taxable amount of the distribution, unless a penalty tax exception applies.
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Although multiple employer plans (MEPs) have been around for decades, they haven’t always had a starring role in the retirement industry. That, however, may be changing.
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Power of attorney (POA) legal arrangements are becoming a prevalent tool that retirees use to manage their finances—including their IRA assets. Under such an arrangement, an individual—including an IRA owner—may grant to another the legal authority to act on his behalf in financial or other matters. To reduce liability, financial organizations should create a process for reviewing, accepting, and responding to a POA.
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If a client has received an extension to file his taxes, he may believe that he has an extension to make a prior-year contribution. It is important to understand that a tax filing extension is not an extension to make a prior-year IRA contribution: it is only an extension to file the tax return. But other postponements may apply to some of your clients.
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When a business is acquired or sold, the employer’s business structure may change (e.g., a sole proprietorship may become a corporation); the employer may join or leave a controlled or affiliated service group; or the employer may change for one or more individuals. Such business transactions could affect many aspects of the business’s qualified retirement plan.
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Coverdell education savings accounts (ESAs) provide a unique savings vehicle with the potential to generate tax-free earnings to cover the costs for education.
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The SECURE Act—officially known as the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019—made significant changes to IRA and retirement plan rules, including to the beneficiary payout options. One of the most noteworthy changes involves the 10-year rule, which requires a total distribution of inherited assets by December 31 of the year containing the 10th anniversary of the account owner’s death.
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With tax season upon us, many employers are determining when to fund and deduct the employer contributions that they’ve allocated to their retirement plans. Different contribution deadlines apply based on the type of contribution being made and the business tax return due date.
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The prohibited transaction rules are in place to ensure that IRA transactions are managed in a way that benefits the IRA itself in the long run, rather than providing short-term gains to the IRA owner.
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The Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued a final amendment to the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP), incorporating a Self-Correction Component (SCC) for eligible transactions under the program.
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As you may have already guessed, this is typically the busiest time of the year for many financial institutions. During the next few months, your staff may be juggling different tasks—including preparing the 2024 IRA reporting forms and answering a higher amount of calls from clients.
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An owner must begin taking money out of her 401(k) plan by April 1 of the year following the year in which she attains age 73 (also known as the owner’s required beginning date).
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The Treasury Department announced March 11, 2025, that it will not enforce penalties or fines associated with the beneficial ownership information reporting rule under existing regulatory deadlines pursuant to the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA).
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With the arrival of a new year comes the availability of several SECURE 2.0 provisions that affect how workers can save for their retirement.
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One unique feature to a Coverdell Education Savings Account (ESA) is the requirement that the account terminates when the designated beneficiary reaches age 30. If you don’t stay on top of these accounts, you risk not reporting them correctly to the IRS and possibly losing contact with the designated beneficiary.
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The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued a proposed regulation, providing guidance for employers that are required to include an automatic enrollment provision with their 401(k) or 403(b) plan in order to comply with the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0).
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Final federal withholding regulations were released in Treasury Decision (TD) 10008 on October 21, 2024. They address withholding requirements for payments made outside the United States.
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