Missing Participants: Ready or Not, Here I Come!
Most plan sponsors can relate to the trials and tribulations of having missing participants in their retirement plan. At times, it may feel like you are on the losing end of an intense game of hide-and-seek. Your opponents, the missing participants, may not have intended to pick the best hiding spots, but in many cases, they have surely succeeded. Now you are tasked with tracking them down and upping your game to avoid this scenario in the future.
So, what are missing participants, exactly? Missing participants are former employees who left an account balance in a retirement plan and did not keep their contact information up to date. In addition, they may no longer actively manage their accounts. There are a few factors that have led to an increase in the number of missing participants in retirement plans over the years. Unlike the generations of our parents and/or grandparents, employees do not typically work their entire career with one firm anymore. Another contributing factor is the mobilization of the workforce. The ability to work remotely has mobilized employees even more these days. Some have chosen to relocate across the country while others find themselves living in a new locale every few months. Many of us can relate to this, especially over the past 18 months. With these two factors alone, it can be difficult to keep track of plan participants once they leave your firm.
It is important to develop procedures to ensure contact information is up to date and to illustrate the proactive measures employed in this effort. Whatever steps you implement, you should relay to employees and participants why keeping these details current is important and how it can affect them. Ask any employee if they would be okay with losing track of their retirement account - the answer would probably be a resounding no. A few ideas based on the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Best Practices are included below.
Unfortunately, even with the best of plans in place, plan sponsors may still have participants who go missing. So, not only do you need to incorporate procedures for ensuring contact information is up-to-date, but you also need to document procedures for locating participants once they go missing. The DOL provides a list of search methods that should be used to locate missing participants. Some of these methods are included below.
- Send a notice using certified mail through USPS or a private delivery service with similar tracking features.
- Check the records of the employer or any related plans of the employer.
- Send an inquiry to the designated beneficiary or emergency contact of the missing participant.
- Use free electronic search tools or public record databases.
At some point, most plan sponsors will find themselves with participants who have gone missing. It's important to remember plan sponsors have a fiduciary responsibility to follow the terms of the plan document and ensure participants are paid out timely. Having a well-documented, organized process which addresses missing participants, along with proof the process is followed, will prove worthwhile.
More information regarding the Department of Labor's Best Practices can be located on their website.
- Safe Harbor: A Cure For Your Testing Headaches
A crucial requirement for 401(k) plans is that the plan must be designed so it does not unfairly favor highly compensated employees (HCEs) or key employees (such as owners) over non-highly compensated employees (NHCEs). To satisfy this requirement, the IRS requires that plans pass certain nondiscrimination tests each plan year. These tests analyze the rate at which HCE and key employees benefit from the plan in comparison to NHCEs. Failed tests can result in costly corrections, such as refunds to HCEs and key employees or additional company contributions. Luckily for plan sponsors, there is a plan design option - a safe harbor feature, that allows companies to avoid most of these nondiscrimination tests.
To be considered safe harbor and take advantage of the benefits afforded to safe harbor plans, there are several requirements that must be satisfied. Below we will take a look at the key characteristics of a safe harbor plan.
The plan must include one of the following types of contributions. The chosen formula is written in the plan document, and with the exception of HCEs, must be provided to all eligible employees each plan year. Please note that additional options, not covered here, are provided for plans that include certain automatic enrollment features.
- Safe Harbor Match: With this option, the company makes a matching contribution only to those employees who choose to make salary deferral contributions. There are two types of safe harbor matching contributions:
- Basic Safe Harbor Match: The company matches 100% of the first 3% of each employee's contribution, plus 50% of the next 2%.
- Enhanced Safe Harbor Match: Must be at least as favorable as the basic match. A common formula is a 100% match on the first 4% of deferred compensation.
- Safe Harbor Nonelective: With this option, the company contributes at least 3% of pay for all eligible employees, regardless of whether the employee chooses to contribute to the plan.
Unlike company profit sharing or discretionary match contributions, safe harbor contributions must be 100% vested immediately. In addition, the contribution must be provided to all eligible employees, even those who did not work a minimum number of hours during the plan year or who are not employed on the last day of the plan year.
In most cases, an annual safe harbor notice must be distributed to plan participants within a reasonable period before the start of each plan year. This is generally considered to be at least 30 days (and no more than 90 days) before the beginning of each plan year. For new participants, the notice should be provided no more than 90 days before the employee becomes eligible and no later than the employee's date of eligibility. The safe harbor notice informs eligible employees of certain plan features, including the type of safe harbor contribution provided under the plan.
If all safe harbor requirements have been satisfied for a plan year, the following nondiscrimination tests can be avoided.
- Actual Deferral Percentage (ADP): The ADP test compares the elective deferrals (both pre-tax and Roth deferrals, but not catch-up contributions) of the HCEs and NHCEs. A failed ADP must be corrected by refunding HCE contributions and/or making additional company contributions to NHCEs.
- Actual Contribution Percentage (ACP): The ACP test compares the matching and after-tax contributions of the HCEs and NHCEs. A failed ACP must be corrected by refunding HCE contributions and/or making additional company contributions to NHCEs.
- Top Heavy Test: The top heavy test compares the total account balances of key employees and non-key employees. If the total key employee balance exceeds 60% of total plan assets, an additional company contribution of at least 3% of pay may be required for all non-key employees. It is important to note that a plan will lose its top heavy exemption if company contributions, in addition to the safe harbor contribution, are made for a plan year (e.g., profit sharing or discretionary matching contributions).
So, how do you know if a safe harbor plan is a good fit for your company? As discussed above, the primary benefit of a safe harbor plan is automatic passage of certain annual nondiscrimination tests. If your plan typically fails these tests, resulting in refunds or reduced contributions to HCEs and key employees, your company may benefit from a safe harbor feature. Predictable annual contributions also provide a great incentive for employees to save for their retirement. However, if you do not currently offer an annual match or profit sharing contribution to your employees, a safe harbor formula may significantly impact your company's budget. Except for a few limited exceptions, safe harbor contributions cannot be removed during the plan year, so it's important that a company is able to fund these required contributions. As with all things qualified plan related, the key is working with an experienced service provider who can design a plan to suit your company's needs! ■
- Safe Harbor Match: With this option, the company makes a matching contribution only to those employees who choose to make salary deferral contributions. There are two types of safe harbor matching contributions:
- Upcoming Compliance Deadlines for Calendar-Year Plans
- Looking to Maximize Savings? Cash Balance Could Be the Answer!
- How does a cash balance plan work?
- What if I already sponsor a 401(k) profit sharing plan?
- Are cash balance plans a good fit for everyone?
- Cash balance plans sound too good to be true. What’s the catch?
This newsletter is intended to provide general information on matters of interest in the area of qualified retirement plans and is distributed with the understanding that the publisher and distributor are not rendering legal, tax or other professional advice. Readers should not act or rely on any information in this newsletter without first seeking the advice of an independent tax advisor such as an attorney or CPA.