The Internal Revenue Service announced the 2025 cost-of-living adjustments to the dollar limitations for qualified retirement plans and other benefits, and the Social Security Administration announced its own cost-of-living adjustments for 2025. Most of the dollar limits, including the elective deferral contribution limit for 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b) plans, the
New IRS Guidance: Emergency Personal Expense and Domestic Abuse Victim Distributions Under SECURE 2.0
On June 20, 2024, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) released Notice 2024-55 (the “Notice”) offering guidance on two (2) new types of distributions exempt from the 10% early withdrawal penalty: emergency personal expense distributions and domestic abuse victim distributions.
Back to 1975: New Delays to the DOL’s Investment Fiduciary Advice Rule
Two Texas federal court decisions have stalled the U.S. Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) “investment advice fiduciary rule” under Section 3(21) of the Employee Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (the “Fiduciary Rule”) from its September 23, 2024 effective date (see our previous alert).
The DOL’s Final Investment Advice Fiduciary Rule Is Here
In its latest attempt in a fourteen-year old quest to update the circa-1975 definition of a fiduciary who renders “investment advice for a fee or other compensation, direct or indirect” (an “investment advice fiduciary”) under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), on April 25, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor (the “Department”) released final regulations (the “Final Rule”) defining an investment advice fiduciary, as well as amendments to several prohibited transaction class exemptions (“PTE”). This post summarizes the key provisions of the Final Rule and the amendments to the PTEs.
IRS Issues Guidance on Secure 2.0 – What Plan Sponsors Need to Know
In late December 2023, approximately one year after Congress enacted the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0”), the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) released Notice 2024-2 (the “Notice”) providing much needed guidance, in the form of questions and answers, on 12 of the 90 new provisions added by SECURE 2.0.
IRS Announces 2024 Retirement Plan Limits: Modest Increases
The Internal Revenue Service announced the 2024 cost-of-living adjustments to the dollar limitations for qualified retirement plans and other benefits, and the Social Security Administration announced its own cost-of-living adjustments for 2024. Most of the dollar limits, including the elective deferral contribution limit for 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b) plans, the annual compensation limit under 401(a)(17) and the maximum annual contribution limit under Code Section 415(c) will increase from 2023 limits. The dollar limit for catch-up contributions (if age 50 or older) remains the same as the 2023 limit.
IRS Proposes Regulations on Using Forfeitures in Qualified Retirement Plans
Introduction
On February 27, 2023, the Department of the Treasury (“Treasury”) and Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued proposed regulations (the “Proposed Regulations”) relating to forfeitures in tax-qualified defined benefit and defined contribution plans. Forfeitures generally arise when a participant terminates employment before completing the
A Tale of Two Remedies: Preparing Employee Benefits Plans for the Sunset of Covid-19 Relief
On January 30, 2023, the Biden Administration announced that both the COVID-19 National Emergency and the Public Health Emergency (collectively, the “Emergency Declarations”) would end on May 11, 2023, sunsetting nearly three years of extended deadlines and certain mandates related to COVID-19 testing and vaccines applicable to employer-sponsored
Locke Lord QuickStudy: Secure 2.0: Top Changes Affecting Retirement Plans
The Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0”) was signed into law by President Joseph Biden on December 29, 2022 as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023. SECURE 2.0 expands upon the retirement plan provisions contained in the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act
IRS Announces 2023 Retirement Plan Limits – Unprecedented Increases to All Limits
The Internal Revenue Service announced the 2023 cost-of-living adjustments to the dollar limitations for qualified retirement plans and other benefits, and the Social Security Administration announced its own cost-of-living adjustments for 2023. All of the dollar limits, including the elective deferral contribution limit for 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b) plans, the