SECTION 13. DEFINITIONS

.01 Volume Submitter Plan - A “volume submitter plan” or “VS plan” refers to either a specimen plan of a VS practitioner

or a plan of a client of the VS practitioner that is substantially similar to the VS practitioner’s approved specimen plan.

.02 Specimen Plan - A “specimen plan” is a sample plan of a VS practitioner (rather than the actual plan of an employer). A specimen plan may be a single document that does not use an adoption agreement, or it may consist of a basic plan document and an adoption agreement, within the meaning of section 4.03 and section 4.04, respectively.

.03 Advisory Letter - An “advisory letter” is a written statement issued by the Service to a VS practitioner or VS mass submitter as to the acceptability of the form of a specimen plan and any related trust or custodial account documents under § 401(a) or 403(a).

.04 Trust or Custodial Account Document - A “trust or custodial account document” is the portion of a VS plan that contains the trust agreement or custodial account agreement and includes provisions covering such matters as the powers and duties of trustees, investment authority, and the kinds of investments that may be made.

.05 VS Practitioner - A “VS practitioner” is any person that (1) has an established place of business in the United States where it is accessible during every business day and (2) represents to the Service that it has at least 30 employer-clients each of which is reasonably expected to adopt a plan that is substantially similar to the VS practitioner’s specimen plan. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, the required number of employer-clients reasonably expected to adopt a substantially similar money purchase pension specimen plan is reduced to 10 in the case of a VS practitioner that has specimen plans for two or more separate categories described in section 17.03, one of which is a money purchase pension plan. For example, if a VS practitioner has a money purchase pension specimen plan and no other types of plans, or if a VS practitioner has plans described in two or more categories, none of which is a money purchase pension plan, the employer-client requirement remains at 30. The deadline for timely adoption will be announced by the Service in future guidance.

A VS practitioner may submit any number of specimen plans for advisory letters provided the 30-employer requirement

2011–44 I.R.B. 619 October 31, 2011

have an individually designed plan merely because the employer amends administrative provisions of the trust or custodial account document (such as provisions relating to investments and the duties of trustees), provided the amended provisions are not in conflict with any other provision of the plan and do not cause the plan to fail to qualify under § 401(a). For this purpose, an amendment includes modification of the language of the trust or custodial account document and the addition of overriding language.

.05 Other Provisions Required in Adoption Agreements - Each VS plan must contain a dated employer signature line. The employer must sign the adoption agreement when it first adopts the plan and must complete and sign a new adoption agreement if the plan has been restated. In addition, the employer must complete a new signature page if it modifies any prior elections or makes new elections in its adoption agreement. The signature requirement may be satisfied by an electronic signature that reliably authenticates and verifies the adoption of the adoption agreement, or restatement, amendment or modification thereof, by the employer. The adoption agreement must state that it is to be used with one and only one specimen plan. In addition, the adoption agreement must contain a cautionary statement to the effect that the failure to properly fill out the adoption agreement may result in failure of the plan to qualify under § 401(a) or 403(a). If the VS practitioner has the authority to amend the plan on behalf of employers who have adopted the plan, as described under section 15.03 below, the adoption agreement must also contain a statement that provides that the practitioner will inform the adopting employer of any amendments made to the plan or of the discontinuance or abandonment of the plan.

.06 Practitioner Telephone Numbers — VS plan adoption agreements must include the VS practitioner’s name, address, and telephone number (or a space for the address and telephone number of the practitioner’s authorized representative) for inquiries by adopting employers regarding the adoption of the plan, the meaning of plan provisions, or the effect of the advisory letter.

(or 10, if applicable) is separately satisfied with respect to each specimen plan. For this purpose, where an adoption agreement format is used, each adoption agreement is treated as one specimen plan. The Service reserves the right at any time to request from the VS practitioner a list of the employers that have adopted or are expected to adopt the VS practitioner’s specimen plans, including the employers’ business addresses and employer identification numbers. Notwithstanding the preceding two sentences, any person that has an established place of business in the United States where it is accessible during every business day may sponsor a specimen plan as a word-for-word identical adopter of a specimen plan of a VS mass submitter, regardless of the number of employers that are expected to adopt the plan.

By submitting an application for an advisory letter for a specimen plan under this revenue procedure (or by having an application filed on its behalf by a VS mass submitter), a person represents to the Service that it is a VS practitioner, as defined in this section 13.05. If the VS practitioner’s specimen plan permits the VS practitioner to amend the VS plan on behalf of adopting employers, as permitted by section 15, the VS practitioner also agrees to comply with any requirements imposed on sponsors of M&P plans by this procedure. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in the loss of eligibility to sponsor specimen plans and the revocation of advisory letters that have been issued to the VS practitioner.

.06 VS Mass Submitter — A “VS mass submitter” is any person that (1) has an established place of business in the United States where it is accessible during every business day and (2) submits advisory letter applications on behalf of at least 30 unaffiliated practitioners each of which is sponsoring, on a word-for-word identical basis, the same specimen plan. For purposes of determining whether 30 unaffiliated practitioners sponsor on a word-for word basis the same specimen plan, the VS mass submitter is treated as one of the 30 unaffiliated practitioners. For purposes of this definition, affiliation is determined under § 414(b) and (c). Additionally, the following will be considered to be affiliated: any law firm, accounting firm, consulting firm, etc., with its partners, members, associates, etc. A VS mass submitter will be

treated as a VS mass submitter with respect to each specimen plan for which the 30 unaffiliated practitioner requirement is separately met.