On August 3rd, 2022, IRS Notice 2022-33 extended the remedial amendment periods for qualified plans, 403(b) plans, governmental plans, and 457(b) plans to adopt certain, but not all, required plan amendments relating to the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (the “SECURE Act”), the Bipartisan American Miners Act of 2019 (the “Miners Act”), and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”) for three years as summarized in the table below.
Extended Plan Amendment Deadlines for the SECURE Act, Miners Act, and CARES Act |
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Non-government qualified plans; 403(b) plans not maintained by public schools; and IRAs |
December 31, 2025, for calendar year plans |
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Governmental plans and 403(b) plan maintained by a public school |
90 days after the close of the third regular legislative session of the legislative body with authority to amend the plan that begins after December 31, 2023 |
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457(b) governmental plans |
The later of a) 90 days after the close of the third regular legislative session of the legislative body with authority to amend the plan that begins after December 31, 2023, or b) the first day of the first plan year beginning more than 180 days after the date of notification by the IRS that the plan was administered in a manner inconsistent with the requirements of Section 457(b) |
Absent additional IRS guidance, some amendments are still required by December 31, 2022, for certain calendar year plans.
Some required amendments from the SECURE Act that were extended include increasing the required minimum distribution (RMD) starting age from 70 ½ to 72, modifying RMD rules for beneficiaries (including to limit the availability of the “stretch IRA”), mandatory eligibility for long-term part-time employees in certain plans, penalty-free withdrawals for certain birth or adoption distributions, and more. The only required amendment from the CARES Act that has been extended is the RMD waiver for 2020.
By way of background, when new legislation is enacted or existing laws are changed, qualified plans, such as certain retirement plans and IRAs, must comply with those new laws or changes. Oftentimes, the plans must be amended in order to comply with the changes and avoid disqualification. The Internal Revenue Code generally provides a remedial amendment period to amend the plan retroactively to the effective date of the new law or change of law and operate the plan as if the amendment were in effect.
This article was written for general informational purposes and summarizes tax and employee benefits laws. As such, it should not be relied upon for compliance with the Internal Revenue Code or ERISA.
Should you have questions about required plan amendments, please contact your BrownWinick attorney or one of our employee benefits attorneys, as listed below: