On Feb. 9, 2018, Congress passed, and the president signed, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (the “Budget Act”). As we previously discussed here, the Budget Act contains a number of provisions that affect qualified retirement plans. These changes include expanding the type of funds that can be distributed under Code Section 401(k) in the event of a hardship withdrawal, beginning with plan years commencing after December 31, 2018, to include not only a participant’s elective deferral contributions, but also qualified nonelective contributions, qualified matching contributions, and earnings on each of those three contribution sources. While this change applies to 401(k) plans, there is uncertainty whether it will apply to 403(b) plans.
Hardship Withdrawals
The Bipartisan Budget Act’s Impact on Retirement Plans
On Friday, February 9, 2018, Congress passed, and the President signed, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (the “Budget Act”). The Budget Act contains a number of provisions that affect qualified retirement plans. Plan sponsors should consider the impact of the Budget Act on their retirement programs.
- Hardship Withdrawals. The Budget Act relaxes the
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Electronic Self-Certification for Hardship Distributions May Be Insufficient, IRS Says
By Todd Castleton on
The IRS recently has reminded plan sponsors to verify and document that hardship distributions comply with their plan document and the law, according to a recent posting by IRS Director of Employee Plans Examinations Monika Templeman on the IRS website, “Examination Tips for Hardship Distributions.” In some cases, allowing participants to apply for loans or…