Midyear Premium Increases and Cafeteria Plan Rules
COVID-19-Related Guidance Allows Employees to Revise 2020 Health Insurance Elections
COVID-19 Impact for Health & Welfare Plans (Troutman Sanders and Pepper Hamilton COVID-19 Issues for Employers Podcast Series)
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - COVID-19 Edition; New Opportunities for Health Flexible Spending Arrangements and Cafeteria Plans
Compliance Issues Associated with Section 125 Plans
The IRS and Social Security Administration have announced cost-of-living increases for retirement plans and other employee benefit plans for 2024....more
We are pleased to present our annual End of Year Plan Sponsor “To Do” Lists. This year, we present our “To Do” Lists in four separate Employee Benefits Updates. This Part 1 covers year-end health and welfare plan issues....more
A recent memorandum from the IRS Office of Chief Counsel serves as a helpful reminder to check in on cafeteria plan administration and ensure all processes—including claims substantiation for medical expenses and dependent...more
On April 28, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) Office of Chief Counsel issued a Chief Counsel Advice (“CCA”) explaining the requirements for claim substantiation for health and dependent care flexible spending...more
Final Regulations under Section 36B of the Internal Revenue Code - On October 11, 2022, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Final Regulations under Code Section 36B relating to eligibility for the Affordable Care...more
Most employers allow employees covered by the employer-sponsored group health and welfare plans to pay their share of the cost through pre-tax payroll deductions. In order to do this the employer must maintain a written...more
In the first article of this Health FSA series, we covered how to determine if an employer’s Health FSA is discriminatory. In the second and final article of this series, we’ll cover what employers should consider if their...more
Each year, employers are faced with a number of year end deadlines related to employee benefits as well as new requirements facing them in the coming year. This article is meant to provide a brief summary of those issues....more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has published Notice 2021-26 to provide answers regarding the taxability of benefits received in 2021 and 2022 under a dependent care assistance program (DCAP) that permits carryovers or...more
Yesterday the IRS released Notice 2021-26, which clarifies that if eligible dependent care benefits would have been excluded from income if used during either the prior tax year (2020 or 2021), these benefits remain...more
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA) contained temporary relief measures aimed at addressing unused contributions to health flexible spending accounts (FSA) and dependent care assistance programs (DCAP). On...more
On February 18, 2021, the IRS issued Notice 2021-15, which provides guidance with regard to a number of provisions of the temporary changes to the rules related to the operation of health and dependent care flexible spending...more
Much of the previous relief that had been granted to cafeteria plans during the COVID-19 pandemic was set to expire after 2020. In late December, though, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA), which...more
In Notice 2021-15, the IRS provides many answers to questions regarding the temporary special rules introduced as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA) for health flexible spending accounts (health FSAs) and...more
On February 18, 2021, the IRS issued Notice 2021-15, clarifying temporary special rules for cafeteria plans, health flexible spending accounts (FSAs) and dependent care assistance programs (DCAPs) that were included in the...more
On February 18, 2021, the IRS issued Notice 2021-15, clarifying temporary special rules for cafeteria plans, health flexible spending accounts (“FSAs”), and dependent care assistance programs (“DCAPs”) that were included in...more
You might recall that in December 2020, Congress passed the year-end funding bill known as the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA), which contained provisions that provide significant flexibility for flexible spending...more
On February 18, 2021, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued clarifying guidance on the temporary special rules for health flexible spending arrangements (FSAs) and dependent care assistance programs (DCAPs) under Internal...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently issued Notice 2021-15 to clarify certain aspects of the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 (the Act), and to extend cafeteria plan election flexibility in 2021...more
President Donald Trump signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (the Omnibus Bill) on December 27, 2020. The Omnibus Bill has received a great deal of media coverage due to its massive size (nearly 6,000...more
As part of the COVID-19 relief package passed by Congress earlier this week, the federal government expands on earlier relief issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for health and dependent care flexible spending...more
Summary - COVID-19 has dominated the agenda for health and welfare benefits in 2020. From suspended deadlines to mid-year election changes to enhanced cost-free coverage, the pandemic has resulted in significant changes to...more
On October 26, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Notice 2020-79, which sets forth the 2021 cost-of-living adjustments affecting dollar limits on benefits and contributions for qualified retirement plans. The...more
Carlton Fields tax attorney Lowell Walters discusses IRS Notice 2020-29, which permits 2020 cafeteria plan election changes, and what it means for group health plan sponsors with employees affected by COVID-19....more
There has been a recent flurry of regulatory guidance issued affecting employee benefit plans. Most of the guidance addresses challenges specifically created by the COVID-19 pandemic, while other guidance is applicable...more