The IRS released Rev. Proc. 2011-49 today (Oct. 5, 2011). Rev. Proc. 2011-49 is the update to Rev. Proc. 2005-16, and officially supersedes Rev. Proc. 2005-16.
Rev. Proc. 2005-16 contained the specifics on applying for EGTRRA opinion/advisory letters during the last 6-year cycle. Rev. Proc. 2011-49 contains the specifics on applying for PPA opinion/advisory letters for the next 6-year defined contribution prototype and volume submitter cycle.
It states:
The 12-month applicable on-cycle submission period for non-mass submitter sponsors and practitioners, word-for-word identical adopters, and M&P minor modifier placeholder applications will end on January 31, 2012. Section 18.02(1) of Rev. Proc. 2007-44, 2007-2 C.B. 54, provides that the 9-month applicable on-cycle submission period for sponsors and practitioners maintaining defined contribution mass submitter plans will end on October 31, 2011. Section 23 of this revenue procedure extends the submission deadline to submit applications for opinion and advisory letters for sponsors and practitioners maintaining defined contribution mass submitter plans from October 31, 2011 to January 31, 2012.
This is good news for TPA firms because they now have another 3 months to decide which document provider they want to use for their defined contribution plan documents, including 401(k) plan documents, for the next 6-year plan document cycle.
This is also good news for plan document providers who are waiting for the IRS to issue the updated Defined Contribution List of Required Modifications (DC LRMs) needed to actually write their plan documents.
