SECTION 16. WHAT ARE

THE DETERMINATION LETTER FILING PROCEDURES FOR GROUP TRUSTS?

Scope

In the case of the termination of a multiemployer plan, there must be a cover letter accompanying the submission that specifies that it is an application for a termination of a multiemployer plan.

.04 In the case of plans subject to Title IV of ERISA, a favorable determination letter issued in connection with a plan’s termination is conditioned on approval that the termination is a valid termination under Title IV of ERISA. Notification by the PBGC that a plan may not be terminated will be treated as a material change of fact.

.05 A plan that terminates after the effective date of a change in law, but prior to the date that amendments related to the change in law are otherwise required, must be amended to comply with the applicable provisions of law from the date on which such provisions become effective with respect to the plan. Because such a terminated plan would no longer be in existence by the required amendment date and therefore could not be amended on that date, such plan must be amended in connection with the plan termination to comply with those provisions of law that become effective with respect to the plan on or before the date of plan termination. Such amendments include any amendments made after the date of plan termination that were required in order to obtain a favorable determination letter. In addition, annuity contracts distributed from such terminated plans must meet all the applicable provisions of any change in law. See section 7 of Rev. Proc. 2022-40.

An application is deemed to be filed in connection with plan termination if it is filed no later than the later of (i) one year after the effective date of the termination, or (ii) one year after the date on which the action terminating the plan is adopted. However, in no event may the application be filed later than 12 months from the date of distribution of substantially all plan assets in connection with the termination of the plan.

.06 An applicant for a terminating plan is encouraged to submit a restatement when applying for a determination letter; however, a restatement for a terminating plan generally is not required.

.01 This section provides special procedures for requesting a determination letter on the status of a group trust under Rev. Rul. 81-100, as clarified and modified by Rev. Rul. 2004-67, Rev. Rul. 2011-1, Notice 2012-6, Rev. Rul. 2014-24, and section 336(e) of the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015, Division Q of Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016, Pub. L. 114-113 (PATH Act).

Required information .02 Beginning June 1, 2023, applicants may submit the Form 5316 application electronically through www.pay.gov. Beginning July 1, 2023, applicants must submit the Form 5316 application electronically on www.pay.gov and may not submit any documents on paper, including the Form 8717. Any Form 5316 application submitted on paper after June 30, 2023, will be returned to the applicant, including any paper checks. Note: When utilizing www.pay.gov, if an applicant receives an email that the payment was dishonored, the applicant must resubmit the application package along with the new user fee. When resubmitting, include the email received regarding the dishonored payment with the submission package. Do not use Form 8717 to submit the user fee.

A request for a determination letter with respect to a group trust is made by submitting a Form 5316, Application for Group or Pooled Trust Ruling, demonstrating how the group trust satisfies the criteria listed in Rev. Rul. 2011-1, together with the trust instrument and related documents.

January 3, 2023 210 Bulletin No. 2023–1