Compliance

Designing and implementing a custom retirement plan is the beginning, not the end, of a long-term project. At Pension Services, Inc., we understand that compliance is the rule we all live by. A plan that falls out of compliance, or ignores an important legal nuance, can quickly be transformed from a corporate asset into a liability.

Our highly trained ‘A’ team– attorneys, actuaries, administrators, and accountants– are on the alert to keep track of changes in regulations and policy, as well as demographic and financial trends. We work closely with the client and client’s staff to make sure that a plan is kept current and compliant.

Some of our responsibilities include:

  • providing actuarial services
  • maintaining individual participant records
  • preparing IRS, DOL and PBGC forms
  • preparing benefit statements for participants
  • bringing plan documents current
  • calculating benefit levels for each year
  • conducting employee and/or professional seminars
  • processing participant terminations and retirements
  • providing information as needed
  • consulting with those involved on matters of plan operation.

At PSI, we understand that retirement planning is an adjunct to your main area of business, not the central focus. We strive to make the process as seamless as possible for busy executives who can’t afford to neglect their responsibilities to employees’ and management’s future.

In a field where the laws, regulations, and guidelines are changing constantly, it is critical to have a dedicated staff that is closely aware of every rule and nuance. At PSI, we work together with the client’s accounting and legal staff, to keep all parties apprised of pension guidelines and changes to the regulatory framework.

Our clients trust that our staff operates as an extension of their own. This means keeping the client abreast of general compliance testing, minimum distributions, maximum compensation limits, average deferral and average contribution percentages, maximum profit-sharing, minimum coverage, limits on annual additions, and more.

We understand that our services do not end with the design and implementation of an effective retirement plan. From the design stage to termination, compliance is built into the relationship: A detailed understanding of IRS testing requirements; and familiarity with terms such as cross-tested, age-weighted allocation, new comparability, or top-heavy minimums . . . are all in a day’s lingo at PSI.

There was a time within memory when management’s obligation to employees began and ended with a bonus at holiday time. Those days are long gone. Today’s competitive workplace, regulatory environment, and legal complexity all work to demand specialization– in retirement planning as in most aspects of business.

A good retirement plan is a key weapon in the business arsenal, helping a client to stay competitive in the labor market and to retain top talent. It can also be a valuable tool for managers to retain more of their earnings and provide for a secure future. In this area, as in most areas of contemporary business, it pays to stay on top of the game. Compliance is the watchword of retirement planning.