SECTION 5. WHAT IS

THE GENERAL SCOPE OF A DETERMINATION LETTER?

(1) Employee Plans Rulings and Agreements (EP Rulings and Agreements) letter rulings and determination letters, etc.: See Rev. Proc. 2015–4, this Bulletin.

(2) Master & Prototype (M&P) and Volume Submitter (VS) plans under § 401(a): See Rev. Proc. 2011–49.

(3) Prototype and Volume Submitter plans under § 403(b): See Rev. Proc. 2013–22.

(4) Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System: See Rev. Proc. 2013–12.

.02 The procedures for obtaining letter rulings, determination letters, etc., on matters within the jurisdiction of the Associate Chief Counsel (Tax Exempt and Government Entities), or within the jurisdiction of other offices of Chief Counsel are contained in the following revenue procedures:

(1) Chief Counsel’s letter rulings, information letters, etc.: See Rev. Proc. 2015–1, this Bulletin.

(2) Technical Advice Requests: See Rev. Proc. 2015–2, this Bulletin.

(3) Chief Counsel’s no-rule positions: See Rev. Proc. 2015–3, this Bulletin.

Scope of this section .01 This section delineates, generally, the scope of an employee plan determination letter. This section also identifies certain qualification requirements that are not considered by the Service in its review of a plan and with respect to which determination letters do not provide reliance. This section applies to all determination letters other than letters relating to the qualified status of group trusts; and certain letters relating solely to the requirements of § 420, regarding the transfer of assets in a defined benefit plan to a health benefit account described in § 401(h). For additional information pertaining to the scope of reliance on a determination letter, see sections 8, 9 and 21 of this revenue procedure.

Scope of determination letters

Nondiscrimination in amount requirement

Governmental plans under § 414(d)

.02 In general, employee plans are reviewed by the Service for compliance with the form requirements (that is, those plan provisions that are required as a condition of qualification under § 401(a)). For terminating plans, the requirements are those that apply as of the date of termination. See Rev. Proc. 2007–44 for further details on the scope of the Service’s review of determination letter applications.

.03 Generally, a plan will not be reviewed for, and a determination letter may not be relied on with respect to, whether a plan satisfies the nondiscrimination requirements of § 401(a)(4), the minimum participation requirements of § 401(a)(26), or the minimum coverage requirements of § 410(b). However, if the applicant elects, a plan will be reviewed for, and a determination letter may be relied on with respect to whether the terms of the plan satisfy one of the design-based safe harbors in §§ 1.401(a)(4)–2(b) and 1.401(a)(4)–3(b) of the regulations (relating to nondiscrimination in amount of contributions and benefits.) A plan will also be reviewed for, and a determination letter may be relied on with respect to, whether a plan’s terms satisfy the applicable requirements of sections 401(k) and 401(m).

.04 A plan will not be reviewed for and a determination letter does not constitute a ruling or determination as to whether the plan is a governmental plan within the meaning of § 414(d). If a determination letter applicant indicates on the application that the plan is a governmental plan within the meaning of § 414(d), the determination letter issued for the plan is predicated on that representation.

Sec. 5.04 Bulletin No. 2015–1 201 January 2, 2015

Church plans under § 414(e)

Tax treatment of certain contributions of § 414(h)

Other limits on scope of determination letter

Affiliated service groups, leased employees and partial terminations

.05 A plan will not be reviewed for and a determination letter does not constitute a ruling or determination as to whether the plan is a church plan within the meaning of § 414(e). If a determination letter applicant indicates on the application that the plan is a church plan within the meaning of § 414(e), the determination letter issued for the plan is predicated on that representation.

.06 A plan will not be reviewed for and a determination letter may not be relied on with respect to whether contributions to the plan satisfy § 414(h). A determination letter does not express an opinion on whether contributions made to a plan treated as a governmental plan defined in § 414(d) constitute employer contributions under § 414(h)(2).

.07 A favorable determination letter does not provide reliance for purposes of §§ 404, 412, 430, 431, 432 and 433 with respect to whether an interest rate (or any other actuarial assumption) is reasonable. A favorable determination letter does not constitute a determination with respect to whether any requirements of § 414(r), relating to whether an employer is operating qualified separate lines of business, are satisfied.

.08 Applicants may elect that the letter include a determination as to whether:

(1) the employer is a member of an affiliated service group within the meaning of § 414(m),

(2) leased employees are deemed employees of the employer under the meaning of § 414(n), and/or

(3) a partial termination has occurred with respect to the plan, and if so, its impact on plan qualification.

Publication 794 .09 Publication 794, Favorable Determination Letter, contains other information regarding the scope of a determination letter, including the requirement that all information submitted with the application be retained as a condition of reliance. In addition, the specific terms of each letter may further define its scope and the extent to which it may be relied upon. Publication 794 can also be found at http://www.irs.gov/Forms-&-Pubs .