Menu
- News
- Press Releases
- Thought Leadership
- Consolidation Corner
- 401k Consolidation
- Auto Enrollment
- Auto Portability
- Automatic Rollovers
- Cashout Leakage
- Cybersecurity
- DEI, ESG & Social Responsibility
- ERISA Advisory Council
- Lifetime Plan Participation
- Managed Portability
- Missing Participants
- Mandatory Distributions
- Mobile Workforce
- Plan Termination
- Portability Services Network
- Public Policy
- Retirement Income
- Retirement Plan Portability
- Retirement Research
- Roll-In
- Safe Harbor IRA
- Saver's Match
- Uncashed Checks
- Events
Safe harbor IRA blog posts
Automatically Moving Mandatory Distributions Forward
The mandatory distribution-to-Safe Harbor IRA plan feature as commonly utilized today was conceived in 2001 and launched in 2005 with good intentions, and for valid reasons. A mobile workforce, combined with a lack of retirement savings portability, had created a burgeoning problem for plan sponsors.
Safe Harbor IRAs Are Not Always Safe
Plan sponsors can help themselves and their participants over the long term by rolling balances of $5,000 or less from inactive participants into safe harbor IRAs. However, for various reasons discussed below, many safe harbor IRAs do not live up to their name and could leave sponsors with unexpected fiduciary liability.
How to Make Mandatory Distributions More Fiduciary Friendly
Mandatory distributions from employer-sponsored plans are a creation of regulation's specifically, a section of ERISA that allows plan sponsors to distribute accounts with less than $5,000 out of a qualified plan and into a safe harbor IRA.
Reduce Plan Fees by Increasing Account Balances
Plan costs can be lowered by increasing average balances, and average balances can be increased through auto portability, says RCH President & CEO Spencer Williams.
Why Dump Mandatory Distributions in a Landfill When You Can Recycle?
Mandatory distributions of small 401(k) accounts when participants separate from service provide many benefits for plan sponsors, including lower administrative costs and higher average account balances.
5 Retirement Plan Resolutions For 2015
New Year's resolutions are not just for dieters and exercisers. The start of a new year is an ideal time for retirement plan sponsor to assess the effectiveness of their plan. Virtually all plan sponsors have areas that are ripe for improvement. Here are five resolutions to make and keep in 2015 to ensure you have a smoothly-running, cost-effective plan than succeeds at preparing employees for retirement.