IRS Webpage: New Mailing Address for Employee Plans Submissions (Sept. 12, 2019)
Available at https://www.irs.gov/faqs/retirement-plans/new-mailing-address-for-employee-plans-submissions
The IRS has announced a new address that must be used for the mailing and delivery of certain employee plans submissions. Affected submissions include determination letter applications on Form 5300 for individually designed retirement plans (including 401(k) plans); applications on Form 5307 by adopters of modified volume submitter plans; and applications on Form 5310 for determinations upon plan termination. The address for pre-approved plan submissions (see our Checkpoint article) has not changed.
Previously, the IRS often used different addresses for submissions by mail and those made by private delivery services. But the announcement has eliminated that distinction for all of the specified submissions. Effective Sept. 12, 2019 (the date of the announcement), all affected submissions must be sent to the following address, regardless of delivery method:
Internal Revenue Service
7940 Kentucky Drive
MS 31A
Florence, KY 41042
According to the announcement, submissions “recently” sent to a previous address will be forwarded, so submissions already en route should not have to be resubmitted.
In addition to submissions using the affected IRS forms—which also include Forms 5306, 5306-A, 5308, 5310-A, and 5316—the new address must also be used for letter rulings under any of seven specified revenue procedures. Affected letter rulings include those made pursuant to Revenue Procedure 2019-4, the annually updated guidance governing advice issued by the Employee Plans Rulings and Agreements Office of the IRS (see our Checkpoint article), and Revenue Procedure 2003-16, which allows taxpayers to request a letter ruling waiving the 60-day deadline for rollovers in certain hardship situations (see our Checkpoint article). The new address must also be used for requesting nonbank trustee approval letters (see our Checkpoint article).
EBIA Comment: The IRS has not indicated how long it will continue to have submissions forwarded. Ideally, forwarding would continue until the instructions for all affected forms have been updated, but the announcement only refers to forwarding submissions already sent, so that might not occur. This highlights the importance of checking the IRS website for recent developments, as changes sometimes take effect before forms and instructions can be updated. For more information, see EBIA’s 401(k) Plans manual at Sections XIV.D.2 (“Waiver of 60-Day Rollover Rule”), XVIII.H (“Separate Lines of Business: Exception to Controlled Group Rules”), XXVII.I (“Individually Designed Plan: Limited Determination Letter Program”), XXVII.L (“Pre-Approved Plan: Opinion Letter Program”), XXVIII.D (“Selecting or Changing the Plan Year”), and XXXIII.G.2 (“How to File for a Determination Letter on Plan Termination”).
Contributing Editors: EBIA Staff.
