SECTION 8. EMPLOYER

RELIANCE ON M&P AND VOLUME SUBMITTER PLANS

Scope .01 Rev. Proc. 2011–49 describes the procedures for requesting opinion letters and advisory letters on M&P and VS plans and the extent to which adopting employers of such plans may rely on favorable opinion or advisory letters without having to request individual determination letters.

Modifications to Revenue Procedure 2011–49

.02 Rev. Proc. 2011–49 is hereby modified as follows with respect to determination letter applications filed on or after May 1, 2012:

(1) An adopting employer of an M&P plan (whether standardized or nonstandardized) may not apply for a determination letter for the plan on Form 5307.

(2) An adopting employer of a VS plan may not apply for a determination letter for the plan on Form 5307 unless the employer has modified the terms of the approved plan and the modifications are not so extensive as to cause the plan to be treated as an individually designed plan.

(3) An application for a determination letter for an M&P or VS plan that is filed on Form 5300 is treated as an application for an individually designed plan, requiring the plan to be restated to take into account the Cumulative List in effect when the application is filed, unless the employer is filing the application solely for one or more of the following reasons:

(a) The employer has modified the terms of the M&P plan by adding overriding language necessary to coordinate the application of the limitations of section 415 or the requirements of section 416 because the employer maintains multiple plans.

(b) The plan is a pension plan and the normal retirement age under the plan is lower than 62. In this case, a determination letter is required for reliance that the plan’s normal retirement age satisfies the requirements of section 1.401(a)–1(b)(2) of the regulations.

Sec. 8.02 January 2, 2014 212 Bulletin No. 2014–1

Reliance equivalent to determination letter

SECTION 9. DETERMINATION LETTER FILING PROCEDURES FOR VOLUME SUBMITTER PLANS

(c) The employer seeks a determination as to whether there has been a partial termination of the plan, the employer is a member of an affiliated service group under section 414(m), or the employer is a recipient of services of leased employees under section 414(n).

(d) The plan is a multiple employer plan.

(e) The employer is required to obtain a determination letter to comply with published procedures of the Service (for example, in conjunction with a request for a minimum funding waiver).

In the situations described in subparagraphs (a) through (e), the plan does not have to be restated for the Cumulative List in effect when the application is filed and will be reviewed on the basis of the Cumulative List that was considered in issuing the opinion or advisory letter for the plan. An employer that submits an application for a determination letter for an M&P or VS plan on Form 5300 for one or more of the reasons described in subparagraphs (a) through (e) should identify the reason in a cover letter to the application and include a copy of the opinion or advisory letter.

Section 9 of this revenue procedure describes the procedures for requesting determination letters on VS plans where the employer has made limited modifications to the language of the approved specimen plan.

.03 If an employer can rely on a favorable opinion or advisory letter pursuant to Section 19 of Rev. Proc. 2011–49, as modified by this revenue procedure, the opinion or advisory letter shall be equivalent to a favorable determination letter. For example, the favorable opinion or advisory letter shall be treated as a favorable determination letter for purposes of section 21 of this revenue procedure, regarding the effect of a determination letter, and section 5.01(4) of Rev. Proc. 2013–12, 2013–4 I.R.B. 313, as updated, regarding the definition of “favorable letter” for purposes of the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System.

Scope .01 This section contains procedures for requesting determination letters for adopting employers of VS plans where the employer has made limited modifications to the approved specimen plan.

Determination letter for adoption of volume submitter plan

.02 An application filed on Form 5307, must include any interim plan amendments unless the VS plan authorizes the practitioner to amend on behalf of the adopting employer. The Service may, however, request evidence of adoption of interim amendments during the course of its review of a particular plan. With respect to determination letters for adopting employers of VS plans:

(1) An application for a determination letter for an employer’s adoption of an approved VS plan where the employer has made limited modifications to the language of the approved specimen plan must be sent to the address provided in section 6.15. For VS plans involved in plan mergers, see section 6.08 of this procedure.

(2) The application for a determination letter must include the following:

(a) Form 8717, User Fee for Employee Plan Determination Letter Request (or the payment confirmation from www.pay.gov as described in section 6.09);

Sec. 9.02 Bulletin No. 2014–1 213 January 2, 2014

Timing of Determination Letter Applications for Adopting Employers of Pre-Approved Plans