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The IRS recently released Notice 2020-62, which updates the safe harbor explanations that may be used to satisfy the  notice requirement for eligible rollover distributions, also referred to as the “Safe Harbor Notices.”  These changes to the Safe Harbor Notices take into account recent statutory changes brought about by the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (“SECURE”) Act of 2019 and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act.

What are the § 402(f) Safe Harbor Notices?

Under § 402(f) of the Code, plan administrators of certain retirement plans are required to provide a written explanation to any recipient of an eligible rollover distribution.  This notice must be provided by 401(k) plans and other qualified plans, 403(b) plans and 457(b) governmental plans within a reasonable period of time before the distribution is to made — generally at least 30 days unless otherwise elected by the recipient.  To assist plan administrators in satisfying this notice requirement, the IRS has published and continues to update two versions of its Safe Harbor Notice, one for distributions from a designated Roth account, and one for distributions from non-Roth accounts.

Plan administrators may satisfy the § 402(f) notice requirement by relying on the Safe Harbor Notices, although they are not required to do so.

What Changes Have Been Incorporated Into the New § 402(f) Safe Harbor Notices?

The Safe Harbor Notices have been revised to reflect the following statutory changes adopted by the SECURE Act and by the CARES Act:Continue Reading What You Need to Know About the New SECURE Act and CARES Act Updates to the § 402(f) Safe Harbor Rollover Notice

On May 12, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) published Notices 2020-29 and 2020-33. Notice 2020-29 is the latest installment in COVID-19 relief guidance targeted at health and welfare benefits. The Notice enables employers to provide flexibility to employees to modify their health coverage and flexible spending account (“FSA”) elections and gives employees until the end of 2020 (but not 2021) to use certain FSA amounts that may otherwise be forfeited. Unlike certain COVID-19 relief related to retirement plans, employers may make the relief under Notice 2020-29 available to all participants, regardless of whether they have suffered a COVID-19-related loss.

Notice 2020-33 allows employers to adopt an indexed maximum carryover amount for health FSAs, beginning with amounts that may be carried over from the 2020 plan year to the 2021 plan year.Continue Reading IRS Empowers Employers to Increase Health Coverage, FSA Election Flexibility During Pandemic; Clarifies HDHP COVID-19 Relief

On April 11, 2020, the Departments of Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services issued joint guidance on certain provisions of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”) and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act relating to health and welfare benefits.  This post analyzes some of the key provisions in the guidance.
Continue Reading Tri-Agency Guidance Clarifies Some FFCRA and CARES Act Health & Welfare Provisions

As reported in our Client Alert, the new Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act includes provisions to increase the use of short-time compensation (STC) programs (also known as work sharing or shared-work programs). Section 2108 of the CARES Act provides federal funding for 100% of the STC paid by states with programs already in place. In addition, Section 2109 provides federal funding for 50% of the STC paid by states that currently do not have formal programs but implement arrangements, and Section 2110 provides grants for implementing and improving STC programs.
Continue Reading The CARES Act and Short-Time Compensation Programs