Employers will now have additional options to address participants’ unspent contributions to dependent care or health flexible spending accounts (FSAs) resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (H.R. 133, P.L. 116-260), signed into law on December 27, 2020, provides temporary relief for employees that were unable to
Articles Discussing General Topics In Employee Benefits.
Surprise Medical Billing Protections Coming for Participants in 2022
Beginning in 2022, employer-sponsored health plans will be required to pay providers certain emergency and out-of-network charges that would have otherwise been balance billed to participants.
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021: Employer-Sponsored Health and Welfare Plan Components
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, generally provides the annual funding for the federal government and, in almost 5,600 pages, contains several important rules giving further COVID-19 relief, including the expansion of eligibility for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Employee Retention Tax Credit.
Consolidated Appropriations Act Requirements to Increase Health Plan Transparency
The Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA), 2021, which was signed into law December 27, 2020, includes provisions designed to increase transparency in employee health benefit plans in four key areas.
The IRS Released the Final Regulations for Plan Loan Offset Rollovers
The IRS released final regulations on the provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“TCJA”) that added Section 402(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, effective January 1, 2018, special rollover relief for qualified plan loan offset (“QPLO”) amounts.
As per our initial blog on the TCJA change, distributing a
Public Company Nonqualified Plan Amendments May Be Required by December 31: The Law of Unintended Consequences Strikes Again
The Internal Revenue Code is famously complicated, and changes to discrete parts of the code—such as those adopted by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA)—have a notorious history of leading to unpredictable and unintended consequences. One such consequence may require prompt action by publicly-traded companies to mitigate
Does Your Nonqualified Plan Need to be Amended by December 31, 2020?
Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”), which disallows the deduction by any publicly held corporation with respect to certain compensation paid to a covered employee over $1,000,000, was amended by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“TCJA”). One change made to Section 162(m) of the Code as
New FINRA Rule Limits Registered Persons From Being Named Customer’s Beneficiary
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has announced that it has adopted a rule to limit a registered person from being named a customer’s beneficiary, executor, or trustee or from holding a power of attorney or similar position of trust on behalf of a customer. The new rule becomes effective February 15, 2021.
IRS Releases 2021 Benefit Plan Limits and Thresholds
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced cost-of-living adjustments that affect limitations on qualified retirement plans and health plans. The increases take effect on January 1, 2021, and are modest when compared to prior years.
2021 Cost of Living Adjustments for Retirement Plans
The Internal Revenue Service recently announced its cost-of-living adjustments applicable to dollar limitations on benefits and contributions for retirement plans generally effective for Tax Year 2021 (see IRS Notice 2020-79). Most notably, many of the retirement plan limitations, including the limitation on annual salary deferrals into a 401(k) or 403(b)
Don’t Miss Out: Deadlines are Upon Us
Deadlines are a large part of employee benefit plan administration. The past 12 – 18 months have contributed to potential confusion about standard deadlines and added new deadlines plan administrators will not want to overlook. During this period, the IRS created a one-time window deadline, published extensions for some plans’
Reopening Health Plan Elections Mid-Year? IRS Leaves it up to Employers
On May 12, 2020, the IRS issued guidance temporarily suspending long-standing federal regulations that limit when an employee can make mid-year changes to employer-sponsored health coverage.
Under the normal IRS rules, employees elect health coverage before each plan year during open enrollment, and may not change those elections except
IRS and DOL Issue Sweeping Deadline Relief for Benefit Plan Participants and Plan Sponsors
In accordance with emergency powers granted in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and US Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued guidance temporarily extending a number of benefit plan-related deadlines and providing other relief for participants and plan sponsors having difficulty complying with these
IRS Reverses Course on Employee Retention Credit for Qualified Health Plan Expenses
The IRS has changed its position and will allow employers to receive a tax credit for paying health care plan premiums for employees on furlough.
What is the American Health Care Act?
What We Know Late in the evening on March 6, 2017, the House Republican leadership introduced a budget reconciliation bill that repeals certain parts of the Affordable Care Act and offers new provisions that would affect employer-sponsored health coverage. The […]
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