Don’t delay remitting participant contributions

Your participants generally like to see their contributions deposited in the plan’s investments as soon as possible, but remember that it’s also in your best interests to ensure that remittances are made promptly. As a plan sponsor, you must send contributions to your trust account soon after the money is withheld from your employees’ paychecks. Failure to do so could result in legal actions, penalties and taxes.

Timely remittance rules

According to Department of Labor regulations, employee contributions must be invested in the plan on the earliest date that the contributions “can reasonably be segregated from the employer’s general assets.” Unfortunately, this rule is vague and subject to interpretation. Many plan sponsors have been penalized when the earliest date varied from one payroll period to another.

A seven-day safe harbor

A Department of Labor rule allows plans with fewer than 100 participants to take advantage of a seven-day safe harbor. If contributions are remitted to the trust account within seven business days of being withheld from participant paychecks, the plan sponsor will meet the “earliest date” requirement.

How can you avoid late remittance?

To help ensure you’re transmitting contributions in a reasonable time:

  • Submit contributions within seven business days if your plan has fewer than 100 participants.
  • Submit contributions as often as you pay your employees. For example, if you pay your employees every other week, remit their contributions on the same schedule. In other words, don’t combine remittances.
  • Submit contributions when you send payroll tax withholdings to the IRS. If you send payroll taxes within a few days of the pay date, do the same with contribution remittances. You should be able to segregate contributions as quickly as you segregate tax withholdings.
     

For more information

Your third-party administrator can help you learn more about timely remittance.

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