Terminating a SEP Plan & Starting a New One

I have a client who has a SEP/Profit Sharing Plan for his construction business. He and his two partners each have about $900,000 in the plan ($2.7 million total). The three of them have a desire to pull their $900,000 out of the plan and roll it to an IRA so that each of them can do their own thing with their retirement money. They also have about 10 employees who participate in the plan and have relatively small account balances. if they terminate the plan, they want all employees to receive the full value of their accounts, even if they are not fully vested yet. I’ve reviewed the plan document and it does not allow in service distributions, so the only way these three owners can each pull out all of their money is to terminate the plan. But each of them also has a desire to work for a few more years and continue to make maximum annual contributions to a plan. They have asked me if there is a way for them to terminate the existing plan, roll their money out, and then start up a new plan for future contributions. I’ve done a lot of research and can’t find anything that addresses this issue. Any feedback or reference to articles or publications on this issue would be greatly appreciated.



The following is a copy of Sec 408(k)(4). 408(k) addresses SEP IRA accounts:

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
(4) Withdrawals must be permitted
A simplified employee pension meets the requirements of this
paragraph only if –
(A) employer contributions thereto are not conditioned on the
retention in such pension of any portion of the amount
contributed, and
(B) there is no prohibition imposed by the employer on
withdrawals from the simplified employee pension.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

If in service distributions are not allowed, this may be another type of plan, but does not appear possible as a SEP IRA.



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