Solution Center Articles

A Newly Expanded Document Suite Provides Flexibility and Growth Opportunities for Document Sponsors

For years Ascensus has provided a full range of defined contribution plans—including 401(k) profit sharing, money purchase pension, and individual 401(k) plans. Last year we expanded our document suite and will further expand in 2024.

Don’t Let IRA Reporting Blunders Keep You Up at Night

No one likes to make mistakes. And let’s face it, it can be embarrassing when tax reporting errors are brought to your attention by a client, or even worse, by an IRS agent.

Solution CenterAscensusFebruary 1, 2024Compliance & Operations, Business Insights, Reporting, IRA

Is Your IRA Program (And Your Team) Ready for a Refresh?

If your organization is like many in the industry, you’ve held off on team training and other onsite visits in recent years. You may have added new team members, but they haven’t been able to experience the face-to-face IRA training that they need.

Maybe it’s time for a refresh for everyone, including your IRA program.

Solution CenterAscensusJanuary 4, 2024IRS, IRA, Reporting, Compliance & Operations, Business Insights

Consumer Education Tools You Need to Succeed

Quality consumer education is one of the most effective marketing tools that you can deploy as part of a successful business strategy.

Stay On Top of IRA Withholding Notice Requirements

Financial organizations that serve as an IRA trustee or custodian are tasked with many responsibilities to maintain compliance. One of those responsibilities, which can carry hefty penalties if an organization is found to be noncompliant by the IRS, involves federal tax withholding requirements on IRA distributions.

Solution CenterAscensusNovember 2, 2023Compliance & Operations, Withholding, Reporting, IRA, Business Insights

Take the Stress Out of Handling IRA Beneficiary Distributions

If your financial organization offers inherited IRAs (sometimes called “beneficiary IRAs”), you probably understand how complex the payout rules have become for these types of IRAs in recent years.

Solution CenterAscensusOctober 5, 2023IRA, Reporting, Business Insights

Your Clients Will Love This Simple Solution to Streamline Your IRA Program

Today’s consumers want easy access to their accounts and when it’s convenient for them.

We get it. And we have the perfect solution to help your clients gain more independence over their IRAs. It will also help lighten the load for you and your staff.

Solution CenterAscensusSeptember 7, 2023IRA, Compliance & Operations, Coverdell ESA, Business Insights

What’s Holding You Back from Growing a Thriving HSA Program?

There’s nothing like health savings accounts (HSAs) on the market today. Your clients can use HSAs to save money for current and future healthcare costs and as a long-term investment vehicle in their overall retirement savings strategy.

Solution Center, HSAAscensusAugust 3, 2023Compliance & Operations, HSA, Business Insights

Don’t Let Prior-Year Tax Reporting Duties Overwhelm You

The 2022 tax season is over for most of us, but your work for this tax year may not be done. Inevitably, a client will walk into your branch carrying her 2022 Form 5498, IRA Contribution Information, to point out an error. So, what do you do?

Is it Time to Focus on Your Professional Development Goals?

We offer training to meet your needs, whether that means in-person training, self-paced online courses, or virtual training, which is a hybrid learning model. Whatever learning method works best, Ascensus has options for you.

Solution Center, HSAAscensusJune 1, 2023HSA

Simple Tools to Build Consumer Satisfaction—and Your Business

Quality consumer education is one of the most effective marketing tools that you can deploy as part of your business strategy.

Feeling Less SECURE About Your Retirement Plan or IRA Knowledge? Call Us.

The passage of both the SECURE Act of 2019 and the SECURE Act of 2022 have brought unprecedented changes in the retirement industry. Your clients have questions—we all do. But are you confident that you have the correct answers or even know where to find them?

Solution CenterAscensusApril 6, 2023Business Insights, IRA, Qualified Retirement Plan

Take The Stress Out of Meeting Your IRA Withholding Notice Requirements

Withholding is a key area of IRA compliance and the penalties associated with failing to timely provide withholding notices to clients are costly. For example, the penalty for failing to timely provide a withholding notice is $100 per failure up to a maximum annual amount of $50,000. Ouch.

Solution CenterAscensusMarch 2, 2023IRA, Withholding, Notices, Compliance & Operations

Our Top 5 Takeaways from Ascend 2022

As we prepare for Ascend 2023, let’s look back at what we learned at Ascend last year from you.

Ring in the New Year Prepared for Your Clients’ Questions

With the New Year fast approaching, your clients will have more questions about their IRAs, retirement plans, and education and health savings accounts. Are you prepared?

Cut Down on These IRA Tax Reporting Errors

Tax reporting season is around the corner, and now is the time when many financial organizations audit their year-end IRA reporting data to catch and correct errors before tax documents are printed and mailed out.

IRA, Solution CenterAscensusNovember 3, 2022Business Insights, Reporting, IRA

The Key to Unlocking a Successful HSA Program

Fall is a perfect time to bring in new HSA clients. Open enrollment begins soon, so why not remind your business clients that you administer HSAs? It may be the motivation that they need to start offering HSAs to their employees.

HSA, Solution CenterAscensusSeptember 1, 2022Business Insights, HSA, Education

Take the Stress Out of Prior-Year Tax Reporting

Although the 2021 tax season is behind us, your work for this tax year may not be done. Inevitably, you will end up with an IRA client walking into your branch carrying his 2021 Form 5498, IRA Contribution Information, to point out an error. So, what do you do?

HSA, Employer Plan, ESA, IRA, Solution CenterAscensusJuly 7, 2022Business Insights, IRA, IRS, HSA, Coverdell ESA, Education

In Person, Virtual, or Online: Training That Fits Your Schedule and Your Needs

We recently surveyed our clients to find out what types of training events they would prefer in 2022: 56 percent of respondents reported that they want on-site or in-person training while 43 percent prefer virtual or online training. Whether you prefer learning in person, virtually or online, we’ve got options for you.

HSA, IRA, Employer Plan, ESA, Solution CenterAscensusJune 2, 2022Business Insights, IRA, HSA, Coverdell ESA, Education

Cycle 3 Restatement: The Time to Act is Now

The Cycle 3 qualified retirement plan restatement deadline is fast approaching. If you’re an employer plan sponsor who has not taken action yet, or if you’ve gone through the restatement process but you’ve forgotten to sign and return documents, this message is for you.