Articles — Ascensus

Qualified Retirement Plans: What is a Protected Benefit?

Plan sponsors should evaluate their plans for protected benefits when they make a discretionary amendment or when there is an acquisition or merger of plans.

Understanding Nondeductible Contributions to Qualified Retirement Plans

Nondeductible employee contributions, otherwise known as after-tax contributions, are available in qualified plans like 401(k), 403(b), or money purchase pension plans. Depending on the plan design, individuals can increase their qualified plan Roth assets by making nondeductible contributions and then rolling over (i.e., converting) the assets to a designated Roth account within the plan.

expert, Employer PlanAscensusFebruary 17, 2022Compliance & Operations, Qualified Retirement Plan, Q&A

Contributing to an HSA With a Qualified HSA Funding Distribution From an IRA

A qualified HSA funding distribution allows HSA owners to directly move their Traditional or Roth IRA assets to their HSA as a regular contribution. Qualified HSA funding distributions are not deductible, however, and cannot be treated as a prior-year contribution.

expert, HSAAscensusJanuary 20, 2022Compliance & Operations, HSA, IRA, Contribution, Q&A

Understanding Qualified Domestic Relation Orders (QDROs)

A qualified domestic relation order, or QDRO, is generally issued in connection with the payment of child support, alimony, or the division of marital property from a qualified retirement plan, 403(b) plan, or governmental 457(b) plan assets.

SEP Plans Made Simple: Your Questions Answered

A simplified employee pension (SEP) plan offers many advantages not available with qualified retirement plans. Even though a SEP plan may be easier for an employer to maintain, questions from both employers and employees still arise.

expert, IRA, Employer PlanAscensusDecember 16, 2021Compliance & Operations, IRA, SEP Plan, SIMPLE IRA Plan

Understanding Ownership Attribution for Retirement Plans

When each spouse owns 100 percent of their own business, are their businesses considered separate employers or a single employer for qualified retirement plan purposes? What situations involving spouses could cause businesses to be treated as a single employer?

expert, Employer PlanAscensusDecember 16, 2021Compliance & Operations, Retirement Plan, IRS

Separate Accounting and Its Effect on Beneficiary Options

What is separate accounting? How are IRA assets moved to separate accounts? Is there a deadline to establish separate accounts? Who is a designated beneficiary and why is knowing that important?

IRA, expertAscensusNovember 18, 2021Compliance & Operations, IRA, Beneficiary, Distribution, Q&A

ERISA vs Non-ERISA 403(b) Plans

What is the difference between ERISA and non-ERISA 403(b) plans? Does ERISA apply to the 403(b) plans established by religious organizations? What are the implications of being subject to Title I of ERISA?

Employer Plan, expertAscensusNovember 17, 2021Compliance & Operations, 403(b) Plan, Q&A

How Federal Withholding Requirements Apply to IRA Distributions

Are IRA owners always allowed to waive federal withholding on IRA distributions? What are the withholding requirements for nonresident aliens? Do the withholding rules apply to Roth IRA distributions?

IRA, expertAscensusOctober 21, 2021Compliance & Operations, IRA, Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, Distribution, Withholding, Q&A

Retirement Plan Vesting and Vesting Schedules Explained

What is vesting as it relates to a defined contribution retirement plan? How is vesting applied in defined contribution retirement plans? What are the possible vesting schedules?

Employer Plan, expertAscensusOctober 21, 2021Compliance & Operations, Retirement Plan, Contribution, Distribution, Q&A

Transfers Are Nonreportable; No Such Thing as Prior-Year Conversion; 12-Month Limit Only for IRA-to-IRA Rollovers

What should your clients do if an IRA-to-IRA transfer they’ve done is reported to the IRS? Are clients allowed to do prior-year conversions? Does an IRA-to-IRA rollover after a conversion of those same assets violate the one-per-12-month rule?

IRA, expertAscensusSeptember 16, 2021Compliance & Operations, IRA, Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, Conversion, Distribution, Form 1099-R, Form 5498, Rollover, Transfer, Q&A

Understanding the Owner-Only 401(k) Plan

What is an owner-only 401(k) plan? How much can be contributed to an owner-only 401(k) plan? What makes an owner-only 401(k) plan appealing?

Employer Plan, expertAscensusSeptember 16, 2021Compliance & Operations, 401(k) Plan, Contribution, Eligibility, Q&A

Life Expectancy Payments as a Beneficiary Distribution Option

What are beneficiary life expectancy payments and how are they calculated? Whose distribution period do we use? Are life expectancy payments an option for all beneficiaries?

expert, IRAAscensusAugust 19, 2021Compliance & Operations, IRA, Beneficiary, Distribution, Q&A

Sorting Out Hardship Distributions

Confused about the rules for hardship distributions from employer-sponsored retirement plans after the recent legislative and regulatory changes? What changes were made to the safe harbor hardship distribution standard? Can hardship distributions be taken from any asset source in the plan?

Employer Plan, expertAscensusAugust 19, 2021Compliance & Operations, Retirement Plan, Distribution, Eligibility, Q&A

Post-RMD Age Contributions and Qualified Charitable Distributions

Can IRA owners who are age 72 or older and still working offset their required minimum distributions by the amount of IRA contributions they make? Do IRA owners now have to be age 72 or older to take qualified charitable distributions?

Eligible Rollover Distributions

What is an eligible rollover distribution? What are the tax consequences if an eligible rollover distribution is rolled over? Are there any eligible rollover distributions that may be rolled over beyond the 60-day window?

Marital or Dependent Status May Affect HSA Contribution Limit, Qualified Medical Expenses

What is the maximum amount an unmarried couple with family HDHP coverage can contribute to their HSAs? Can a child listed as a dependent for HDHP coverage purposes but not claimed as a tax dependent still use HSA assets to pay medical expenses? How does divorce affect the HSA contribution limit?

HSA, expertAscensusJune 17, 2021Compliance & Operations, HSA, Contribution, Distribution, Eligibility, Q&A

Spousal Consent Requirements Differ Between Retirement Plans and IRAs

Does a married plan participant need to obtain spousal consent when requesting a qualified retirement plan distribution? Do IRAs have the same spousal consent requirements? Do spousal consent requirements apply to plan participants joined in civil unions that aren’t defined as marriage?