SECTION 3. ORGANIZATION OF REVENUE PROCEDURE; SIGNIFICANT CHANGES

.01 Organization of this revenue procedure .

(1) Sections 1 through 4 set forth the purpose, background, organization, significant changes, and definitions for this revenue procedure.

(2) Sections 5 through 8 set forth the rules regarding Remedial Amendment Periods, the Remedial Amendment Cycle system, and plan amendment deadlines for Qualified Pre-approved Plans and for Section 403(b) Pre-approved Plans.

(3) Sections 9 through 24 set forth the procedures for a Provider to apply for an Opinion Letter confirming that the form of the Provider’s plan satisfies the Qualification Requirements or Section 403(b) Requirements.

(4) Section 25 sets forth the procedures for an Adopting Employer of a Qualified Pre-approved Plan or a Section 403(b) Pre-approved Plan to apply for a determination letter regarding the Adopting Employer’s plan.

(5) Sections 26 through 29 set forth miscellaneous provisions, including provisions regarding the effect on other documents, the effective date, and public comments.

.02 Examples of significant changes from prior revenue procedures . In consolidating the prior revenue procedures (which set forth rules for qualified pre-approved plans and § 403(b) preapproved plans) into this revenue procedure, numerous changes were made to conform, clarify, and update the rules. The following are some examples of those changes.

(1) For all Pre-approved Plans .

(a) The Remedial Amendment Period for Disqualifying Provisions or Form Defects is clarified to expire at the same time as the deadline for the adoption of Interim Amendments, as set forth in section 7. See section 6.03(1).

(b) The end of the Remedial Amendment Period for Discretionary Amendments made by an Adopting Employer (not by a Provider) is changed. See section 6.03(2).

(c) The Interim Amendment rules are updated to provide that, if an Adopting Employer does not correct a failure to timely adopt an Interim Amendment within two years after the time period set forth in section 7, then the Adopting Employer’s plan will be treated as an individually designed plan at the end of that two-year period. See section 6.04.

(d) The Interim Amendment deadline is changed to match the individually designed plan Remedial Amendment Period deadline. See section 7.01(1)(a) and (2)(a).

(e) The plan amendment deadline for a Governmental Plan is changed to provide additional time beyond the deadline for a plan that is not a Governmental Plan only to the extent any action is required to be taken by the Adopting Employer in order to adopt the amendment. See section 7.01(2).

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(f) The eligibility of an employer to adopt a Pre-approved Plan for a Cycle is changed to require that, for a plan that was not in existence in the immediately preceding Cycle, the plan must have been submitted for an Opinion Letter for the Cycle before the employer adopts it. See section 11.01(1).

(g) For a starter 401(k) deferral-only plan described in § 401(k)(16) or a safe harbor deferral-only plan described in § 403(b)(16), ⁵ an Adopting Employer’s reliance is updated to include those sections. See section 12.01(6) and 12.02(6).

(h) The circumstances under which a Pre-approved Plan will be treated as an individually designed plan, and the consequences of such treatment, are updated and clarified. See section 13.05.

(i) The rules for issuing an Opinion Letter are clarified to provide that an Opinion Letter will not be issued for amendments made between Submission Periods. Instead, a Provider must submit a restated plan that incorporates the amendments during the next Submission Period. See section 14.15.

(j) The scope of review for an Opinion Letter is clarified and updated. See section 17.01(1) and (2).

(k) The application filing address is updated. See section 24.

(l) The rules for an Adopting Employer applying for a determination letter are clarified and updated. See section 25.

(2) For Qualified Pre-approved Plans .

(a) The number of unaffiliated Providers required to be associated with a Mass Submitter is changed to better match the rules for a Mass Submitter with respect to a Section 403(b) Preapproved Plan. See section 4.01(10).

(b) The number of employer-clients a Provider must have is changed to better match the rules for a Provider with respect to a Section 403(b) Pre-approved Plan. See section 4.01(15).

(c) The Qualification Requirements are clarified to include § 409 for ESOPs. See section 4.02(3).

(d) The rules relating to a Cycle for a Qualified Pre-approved Plan are changed to match the rules relating to a Cycle for a Section 403(b) Pre-approved Plan. Accordingly, each Cycle is no longer a fixed six years, and each Cycle now ends at the end of the Employer Adoption Window (with the result that the Submission Period may begin after the first day of a Cycle). See section 5.02.

(e) The required provisions for a Qualified Pre-approved Plan that is a pension plan and not a Governmental Plan are changed to require that the plan must have a normal retirement age that is not less than age 55. See section 9.02(13).

(f) The effect of an amendment with respect to which a closing agreement under the Audit Closing Agreement Program or a compliance statement under the Voluntary Correction Program of the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS) has been issued is clarified to match the rules for a Section 403(b) Pre-approved Plan and provide that reliance on the Opinion Letter will not be lost. See section 13.02(8).

(g) The application procedures for an Opinion Letter are changed to no longer require attachments required in prior Cycles. See section 14.03, which no longer has the requirement.

5 Section 121 of Division T of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Pub. L. 117-328, 136 Stat. 4459 (2022), known as the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022, added §§ 401(k)(16) and 403(b) (16) to the Code, effective for plan years beginning after December 31, 2023.

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