SECTION 11. SUBMISSION

PROCEDURES FOR VCP

.01 General rules . (1) A VCP submission must satisfy the requirements of this section 11.

(2) Beginning April 1, 2019, all VCP submissions must be filed using the www. pay.gov website, as described in this section 11. On the www.pay.gov website, applicants (generally, either a Plan Sponsor or a representative authorized pursuant to a valid Form 2848 as provided in section 11.08) will file a VCP submission and pay applicable user fees online. From January 1, 2019, through March 31, 2019, an applicant may file a VCP submission with the IRS either by using the www.pay.gov website in accordance with section 11.03 of this revenue procedure or by filing a paper VCP submission in accordance with the procedures in sections 10 and 11 of Rev. Proc. 2016–51. However, paper VCP submissions postmarked after March 31, 2019, will be returned to the applicant. (3) A VCP submission must include a description of the failures, a description of the proposed methods of correction, and other procedural items set forth in this section 11.

.02 Submission of model forms . (1) Applicants may submit Form 14568 (Model VCP Compliance Statement) and attach separate narrative documents that describe the qualification failures, correction methods, and other items described in section 11.04. (2) Schedules 1 through 9 to Form 14568 (Forms 14568-A through 14568-I) provide descriptions of common qualification failures and standardized correction methods that may be submitted in lieu of the separate narrative documents described in section 11.02(1). Even if an applicant does not submit the Form 14568, the applicant may include Schedules 1–9, as applicable, as part of the VCP submission to satisfy the requirements of this revenue procedure relating to the description and correction of identified failures and related changes in administrative procedures.

(3) Applicants who submit the Form 14568 series should complete the forms digitally and combine all submission doc

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uments into a single PDF (Portable Document Format) file that includes the completed forms. See sections 11.03(2) and 11.04. (4) Multiple schedules may be included in a single VCP submission.

(5) A schedule may be submitted only if its content applies, without modification, to the applicant’s situation.

(6) If an applicant submits the Form 14568 or any of its applicable schedules, the applicant must submit the current versions of Form 14568 and Forms 14568-A through 14568-I, as applicable, which are available on the IRS website ( https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/ correcting-plan-errors-fill-in-vcp-submission- documents ). The IRS reserves the right to modify the Form 14568 series to improve usability, reflect changes in law, or create additional schedules by adding new forms to the Form 14568 series.

.03 Mandatory Submission Process us- ing the www.pay.gov website . Pursuant to section 11.01, for filings submitted on or after April 1, 2019, applicants must use the www.pay.gov website to file a VCP submission with the IRS and pay the applicable user fee. The submission process requires the following actions:

(1) Read the instructions to Form 8950 . Prior to using the www.pay.gov website, the applicant should read the instructions to Form 8950, Application for Voluntary Correction Program (VCP) Submission Under the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System. The instructions are located at https://www.irs. gov/pub/irs-pdf/i8950.pdf .

(2) Combine required items into PDF file . The applicant must convert all applicable items required in section 11.04 into PDF documents and combine them into a single PDF file that follows the suggested ordering of documents in section 11.11. If the combined PDF file exceeds 15 MB, the applicant must remove some documents (or parts of documents) so that the PDF file does not exceed 15MB. Applicable documents that cannot be included in the PDF file because of the size limitation must be faxed to the IRS as described in section 11.03(7).

(3) Create a pay.gov account . The applicant must create a pay.gov account on the www.pay.gov website. Using the

pay.gov account, the applicant must complete and sign Form 8950, Application for Voluntary Correction Program (VCP) Submission Under the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System.

(4) Upload and attach PDF . After completing and signing the Form 8950 on the www.pay.gov website, the applicant must upload the single PDF that contains copies of all submission documents required by this section 11. See section 11.03(7) for instructions for faxing VCP submission documents that are not included in the PDF file due to the 15 MB limitation.

(5) Pay the applicable user fee . Submit the applicable user fee using the payment methods available on the www.pay.gov website.

(6) Payment confirmation . The www. pay.gov website will generate a payment confirmation notice after the VCP submission has been filed. The Pay.gov Tracking ID on this receipt will serve as the IRS control number for the VCP submission. The confirmation may be emailed to the pay.gov account holder, with copies to other email addresses that the account holder chooses to provide. The applicant should retain a copy of the payment confirmation notice. If a payment confirmation is not generated by the www.pay.gov website, then the VCP submission process has not been successful and the applicant should contact IRS customer account services at (877) 829-5500.

(7) Required documents not part of up- loaded PDF due to size limitation . If there are required VCP submission documents that cannot be part of the submitted PDF file due to the www.pay.gov attachment file size limitation, the applicant must fax these documents to the IRS using fax number (855) 203-6996. Include the EIN, applicant name, plan name, and Pay.gov Tracking ID (the IRS control number) on the fax coversheet. This fax number is to be used only to supplement VCP submissions filed with the IRS on the www.pay. gov website. A fax used to submit documents that cannot be part of the submitted PDF file due to the www.pay.gov 15 MB limitation must include the IRS control number in order for the documents to be associated with the appropriate submission in a timely manner and to avoid significant delays in case processing.

(8) Subsequent changes or revisions . If an applicant needs to revise or amend a filed VCP submission (or any of its attachments) before it is assigned to an IRS representative, the applicant should not file a new submission. Instead, the applicant should call the VCP Status Inquiry Line at (626) 927-2011 (not a toll-free number). The IRS will assist the applicant to determine how the revised documents should be submitted.

.04 PDF file submission contents . The single PDF file described in section 11.03(2) and this section 11.04 that is uploaded to the www.pay.gov website must include the following information:

(1) Identification of failures . A complete description of the failures, the years in which the failures occurred, including closed years (that is, years for which the statutory period has expired), and the number of employees affected by each failure.

(2) Explanation . An explanation of how and why the failures arose, including a description of the administrative procedures applicable to the failures in effect at the time the failures occurred.

(3) Proposed method of correction . A detailed description of the method for correcting the failures that the Plan Sponsor has implemented or proposes to implement. Each step of the correction method must be described in narrative form. The description must include specific information needed to support the proposed correction method. This information includes, for example, the number of employees affected and the expected cost of correction (both of which may be approximated if the exact number cannot be determined at the time of the request), the years involved, and calculations or assumptions the Plan Sponsor used to determine the amounts needed for correction.

(4) Earnings or actuarial adjustments . A description of the methodology that will be used to calculate Earnings or actuarial adjustments on any corrective contributions or distributions (indicating the computation periods and the basis for determining Earnings or actuarial adjustments, in accordance with section 6.02(4)).

(5) Computations . Specific calculations for each affected employee or a representative sample of affected employees. The sample calculations must be sufficient to

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demonstrate each aspect of the correction method proposed. For example, if a Plan Sponsor requests a compliance statement with respect to a failure to satisfy the contribution limits of § 415(c) and proposes a correction method that involves elective deferrals (whether matched or unmatched) and matching contributions, the Plan Sponsor must submit calculations illustrating the correction method proposed with respect to each type of contribution. As another example, with respect to a failure to satisfy the ADP test in § 401(k)(3), the Plan Sponsor must submit the ADP test results both before the correction and after the correction.

(6) Former employees or beneficiaries . The method(s) that will be used to locate and notify former employees and beneficiaries, or an affirmative statement that no former employees or beneficiaries were affected by the failures or will be affected by the correction.

(7) Change in administrative proce- dures . A description of the measures that have been or will be implemented to ensure that the same failures will not recur.

(8) Plan document . A copy of the entire plan document or the relevant portions of the plan document. For example, in a case involving an improper exclusion of eligible employees from a profit-sharing plan with a cash or deferred arrangement, relevant portions of the plan document include the eligibility, allocation, and cash or deferred arrangement provisions of the plan document (including an adoption agreement, if applicable), along with applicable definitions in the plan. In the case of a SEP or a SIMPLE IRA Plan, the entire plan document should be included in the PDF document. For submissions limited to Plan Document Failures defined in section 5.01 and 5.02 for which an applicant has adopted a Pre-approved Plan that uses an adoption agreement format, as provided in Rev. Proc. 2015–36, section 4.04 and Rev. Proc. 2017–41, section 4.07(3), a completed copy of the signed and dated adoption agreement is all that is necessary to be included in the PDF document; it is not necessary to include a copy of the entire plan document.

(9) Request for excise tax relief (§ 4972, 4973, 4974, or 4979) or addi- tional tax relief under § 72(t) . If excise tax or additional tax relief is sought, a specific

request for that relief should be included in the submission, along with explanations, where applicable, supporting such request.

(10) Loan failures and income tax re- porting relief . A specific request for relief must be made if the applicant wants relief from reporting a corrected participant loan as a deemed distribution or wants to report the loan as a deemed distribution in the year of correction instead of the year in which the deemed distribution occurred.

(11) Transferred Assets . If a submission includes a failure that relates to Transferred Assets and the failure occurred prior to the transfer, a description of the transaction (including the dates of the employer change and the plan transfer).

(12) 403(b) Plans . In the case of a 403(b) Plan submission, a statement that the Plan Sponsor has contacted all other entities involved with the plan and has been assured of cooperation in implementing the applicable correction, to the extent necessary. For example, if the plan’s failure is the failure to satisfy the requirements of § 403(b)(1)(E) regarding elective deferrals, the Plan Sponsor must, prior to making the VCP submission, contact the insurance company or custodian with control over the plan’s assets to assure cooperation in effecting a distribution of the excess deferrals adjusted for Earnings thereon. The VCP submission must also contain a statement as to the type of employer (for example, a tax-exempt organization described in § 501(c)(3)) that is making the VCP submission.

(13) Group Submissions . For a group submission, a copy of the relevant portions of the plan document(s).

(14) Orphan Plans . If the plan is an Orphan Plan, information that establishes that the applicant is an Eligible Party, as defined in section 5.03(2). In addition, the applicant should indicate whether relief from full correction or from the user fee is being requested and the support for such relief. See sections 4.08 and 6.02(5)(f).

(15) Plan Sponsor Authorization . If the Plan Sponsor is authorizing an individual to represent it before the IRS, sign and file a VCP submission on its behalf, or inspect and receive confidential information, a Form 2848, or Form 8821, Tax Informa

tion Authorization, as applicable. See section 11.08.

(16) Penalty of Perjury . If the Plan Sponsor is authorizing an individual to sign and file the VCP submission (including any subsequent material modifications of such submission), on its behalf, the following declaration: “Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have exam- ined this submission, including accom- panying documents, and, to the best of my knowledge and belief, the facts pre- sented in support of this submission are true, correct, and complete.” The declaration must be signed by the Plan Sponsor, not the Plan Sponsor’s representative. This paragraph does not apply to Anonymous Submissions. See section 10.09 for rules relating to penalty of perjury declarations for Anonymous Submissions.

.05 User fee due at the time of VCP submission using the www.pay.gov web- site . Except as provided in sections 4.08 and 11.06, the user fee set forth in Appendix A of Rev. Proc. 2018–4 (and its annual successors) must be paid on the www.pay.gov website as part of the VCP submission process. If the appropriate user fee is not paid, the VCP submission will not be processed.

.06 Additional user fee due for Group Submissions . In the case of a Group Submission, the initial user fee (described in Rev. Proc. 2018–4 (and its annual successors)) must be paid when the submission is first made to the IRS on the www.pay. gov website. Any additional user fee amount (also described in Appendix A of Rev. Proc. 2018–4 (and its annual successors)) is due at the time the compliance statement is signed by the Plan Sponsor and returned to the IRS, or when agreement has been reached between the IRS and the Plan Sponsor regarding correction of the failure(s). The payment of this additional user fee must be made using the www.pay.gov website and the pay.gov version of Form 8951, Additional User Fee Payment for Open Application for Voluntary Correction Program (VCP) Under the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS).

.07 Additional amounts due for certain submissions. In the case of a SEP or a SIMPLE IRA Plan, a sanction may be imposed pursuant to a closing agreement over and above the specified user fee in

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limited circumstances. See section 6.11(5) (b) for details. Also, in any case involving § 72(t), a sanction may be imposed pursuant to a closing agreement. See section 6.09(6). .08 Power of attorney requirements . (1) To appear before the IRS in connection with a submission, the Plan Sponsor’s authorized representative must comply with the requirements of section 6.02(11) and (12) of Rev. Proc. 2018–4 (and its annual successors) and include a Form 2848. A Form 2848 that designates a representative who is not qualified to sign Part II of the Form 2848 (for example, an unenrolled return preparer) will not be accepted. However, a Plan Sponsor may authorize an individual, such as an unenrolled return preparer, to inspect or receive confidential information using Form 8821 (see Form 8821 and Instructions). The Form 2848 and Form 8821, as applicable, must be included in the PDF file uploaded to the www.pay.gov website. See sections 11.03(2) and 11.04.

(2) A Plan Sponsor may designate an authorized representative to file a VCP submission with the IRS using the www. pay.gov website as described in this section 11. If the Plan Sponsor is authorizing an individual to sign and submit a VCP submission on its behalf, the Plan Sponsor must specifically indicate the scope of such authorization on the Form 2848. In order to properly authorize such individual, the Plan Sponsor should check the box in line 5a for “Other acts authorized” on Form 2848 and include as a description “signing and filing of the Form 8950 and accompanying documents as part of a VCP submission.” This option is not available for individuals listed on a Form 8821. See section 11.04(16) requiring a penalty of perjury declaration signed by the Plan Sponsor to be included in the application. See also section 10.09 for special rules relating to power of attorney requirements for Anonymous Submissions.

.09 Acknowledgement of filing . For submissions filed on the www.pay.gov website, the IRS will not mail an acknowledgement letter to an applicant or its authorized representative that has filed a VCP submission (or non-VCP submission for a § 457(b) plan, as permitted by section 4.09). However, when a VCP submis

sion is filed through the www.pay.gov website, a “Payment Confirmation–Application for Voluntary Correction Program” is generated when the VCP submission is successfully filed. The Pay.gov Tracking ID on this receipt serves as the IRS control number for the filed VCP submission and should be considered an official acknowledgement. See section 11.03(6).

.10 Maintenance of copies of submis- sions . Plan Sponsors and their authorized representatives should maintain copies of all correspondence submitted to the IRS with respect to their VCP submissions.

.11 Assembling the submission . The IRS will be able to process a VCP submission more quickly if the documents in the PDF uploaded on the www.pay.gov website, as described in section 11.03(2) and 11.04, are presented in the following order:

(1) Plan Sponsor’s Penalty of Perjury

Statement. (2) Power of Attorney (Form 2848) or

Tax Information Authorization (Form 8821). (3) Applicable cover letter. (4) The following narrative information:

• Description of the failures (if the failures relate to Transferred Assets, include a description of the related employer transaction).

• An explanation of how and why the failures occurred. This information may be provided using an applicable schedule in the Form 14568-A through 14568-I series.

• Description of the method for correcting failures, including Earnings methodology (if applicable) and supporting computations (if applicable). This information may be provided using an applicable schedule in the Form 14568-A through 14568-I series, including required enclosures.

• Description of the method(s) used to locate or notify former employees or beneficiaries affected by the failures or corrections. If no former employees or beneficiaries are affected by the failures or corrections, then affirmatively state that fact when addressing this issue. This description may be provided using an applicable schedule in the Form 14568-A through 14568-I series.

• Description of the administrative procedures that have been or will be im

plemented to ensure that the failures do not recur. This description may be provided using an applicable schedule in the Form 14568-A through 14568-I series.

• Whether a request is being made in order for participant loans corrected under this revenue procedure to not be treated as deemed distributions under § 72(p) and the supporting rationale for such request. Alternatively, whether a request is being made for participant loans corrected under this revenue procedure to be treated as deemed distributions under § 72(p) in the year of correction. In either case, this request may be provided using an applicable schedule in the Form 14568-A through 14568-I series, including required enclosures.

• Whether relief is being requested from imposition of the excise taxes under § 4972, 4973, 4974, or 4979, or the 10% additional income tax under § 72(t), and the supporting rationale for such relief. This request for relief may be provided using an applicable schedule in the Form 14568-A through 14568-I series, including required enclosures.

• If the plan is an Orphan Plan, the supporting rationale relating to a request for relief from the user fee.

(5) If the VCP submission includes ei ther Form 14568, Model Compliance Statement and/or any schedule (Forms 14568-A through 14568-I), any required information and enclosures, and any related schedules. (6) Supporting computations relating to

correction, including computations for Earnings (if applicable). (7) Relevant plan document language, or

plan document (if applicable). (8) Copy of opinion, advisory, or deter mination letter (if applicable). (9) Any other items that may be relevant

to the VCP submission.