Vacation, All I Ever Wanted – But Don’t Forget Your July Compliance Deadlines
Congratulations! You made it to summer, that wonderful time of year when things at work (hopefully) slow down a bit and you’re able to take some well-deserved time off. Though before you Go-Go(‘s) (do you see what I did there?), be sure your July employee benefits compliance deadlines are covered.
July 29 – Summary of Material Modifications (SMM) – Were any of your organization’s plans materially amended last year? If so, you may be required to furnish an SMM to participants (or a revised summary plan description). Those SMMs must be provided no later than 210 days after the end of the plan year in which the change was adopted. So, for a 2023 change, the SMM deadline would fall on July 29 (you get an extra day this year because 210 days falls on July 28, a weekend).
July 31 – Form 5500/Form 8955-SSA – If your organization sponsors a calendar year benefit plan with a Form 5500 filing requirement, the Form 5500 (and, if applicable, the audited financial statements and Form 8955-SSA) are due on July 31, 2024. If your Form 5500 is not expected to be ready to go by the deadline, fear not! You can always file an extension on Form 5558 to extend the due date to October 15, 2024. While it was announced last year that Form 5558 would be filed electronically beginning in 2024, electronic filing has been pushed back until 2025, so a paper copy will need to be filed for this year. Many recordkeepers and Form 5500 preparers will prepare and file an extension on the plan’s behalf, so it’s possible they’ve already taken care of this (though of course, confirm this to be sure). Note that the same deadlines apply to Form 5330 if your organization owes any excise taxes related to a plan (e.g., as a result of delinquent participant contributions or delayed distributions of ADP/ACP testing refunds).
July 31 – PCORI Fee and Form 720 Due – For those organizations that sponsor a self-insured health plan, the deadline for the 2024 PCORI filing on IRS Form 720, with the accompanying fee, is July 31, 2024. This deadline applies for plan years that ended during 2023. For those unfamiliar with this, the PCORI fee is an annual fee (currently payable through 2029) paid by health insurers and sponsors of self-insured plans that was instituted by the Affordable Care Act to fund the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI).
Have a great vacation and a happy summer everyone!