- 7.13.3.1 Overview
- 7.13.3.2 Instructions
- 7.13.3.3 Scanning Applications
- 7.13.3.4 Criteria for Applications
- 7.13.3.5 Application Requirements
- 7.13.3.6 Volume Program (Specimen-Prototype Plans)
- 7.13.3.7 Transfer of Cases
- 7.13.3.8 Case File Assembly
- 7.13.3.9 Input to DTS
- 7.13.3.10 Closing Procedures
- Exhibit 7.13.3-1 EP Master & Prototype (M&P) and Volume Submitter (VS) Programs
- Exhibit 7.13.3-2 Area Office and Post of Duty Codes
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Procedures are provided on the screening, controlling, and closing of cases. EP procedures are provided in IRM 7.13.3.2.
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Instructions for entering applications on EDS will be covered in IRM 7.14, EP/EO Determination System (EDS) Employee Plans User Manual.
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These instructions are for employees in the CSPC’s, Receipt & Control TE/GE Deposit Unit, EP Determination Centralized Site in Cincinnati (EP-DCSC) and Area offices.
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Applications entered on the Letter Information Network User Fee System (LINUS) are controlled on the Batch/Block Tracking System (BBTS). BBTS is a Service Center case tracking system. The TE/GE Deposit Unit receive the cases from the BBTS origination clerk.
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These instructions apply to EP determination case processing and the personnel who perform these functions. The CSPC's Receipt and Control, specifically, TE/GE Deposit Unit, perform the initial stages of processing the files.
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The TE/GE Deposit Unit assigns the DLN and controls determination letter applications on LINUS, processes the user fees, generates the acknowledgment notices and prepares input sheets for EDS case establishments.
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For volume submitter (VS) specimen plans and master & prototype (M&P) plans, the TE/GE Deposit Unit assigns the DLN and enters certain information regarding the application, such as the DLN, on Headquarters Master and Prototype Inventory Control System (HQ-MAPICS) as opposed to LINUS. The TE/GE Deposit Unit processes the user fee for these applications but does not generate the acknowledgement notice. The acknowledgement notice is generated off of HQ-MAPICS and mailed by the VS and M&P coordinators located in Room 5106 of the Cincinnati Federal Office Building.
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The TE/GE Deposit Unit enters the case number assigned by EDS on the determination letter request when the case is accepted by the Data Transcription Subsystem (DTS). No other markings may be made on the request or its attachments during the input and controlling process because such markings may be construed as inappropriate by the courts if the case reaches the litigation stage.
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The TE/GE Deposit Unit boxes and ships determination letter applications via shuttle service to the EP-DCSC for technical processing and final determination.
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Applications requesting EP determination letters are often submitted with a Power of Attorney (POA) attached. POA's may be submitted on—
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Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative, (POA), or
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Form 8821, Tax Information Authorization (TIA).
Note:
Forms 2848 and 8821 are made available as a convenience and their use is not mandatory. The POA or TIA can take other forms; the use of technical language is not necessary.
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Form 2848, Form 8821 or the document used in lieu of these forms must contain the following information:
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Name, EIN and address of the taxpayer. (If the EIN is not on the POA or TIA, obtain the information from the application.)
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Name and address of the designated representative;
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Specific acts to be performed,
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Taxpayer’s signature, either the same signature that is on the application or the signature of an officer of the plan sponsor.
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If any of the items listed in (2)(a) — (d) are missing, process the POA or TIA as follows:
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If the application is complete but the POA or TIA is invalid, annotate the POA/TIA, indicating the missing information and include the invalid POA/TIA in the case file.
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If Form 2848 or 8821 is complete, enter the POA or TIA on the POA screen on LINUS or DTS.
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Employees in the TE/GE Processing Unit's contact with taxpayer will generally be limited to correspondence generated by the function and telephone inquiries related to that correspondence.
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Employees should not provide advice and counsel to taxpayers beyond that required to process their work. Refer any technical questions regarding the applicable principles of law and questions concerning the appeal rights of taxpayers to the designated TE/GE technical personnel or Customer Account Services.
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Tax returns and return information are confidential and may not be disclosed except as authorized by IRC section 6103.
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Employees are prohibited from disclosing returns or return information to unauthorized persons. The Internal Revenue Code provides that both civil and criminal sanctions may be imposed upon employees and others who violate the disclosure provisions of the Code.
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Contact the disclosure officer regarding any questions, problems or concerns about disclosure matters.
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DTS is used to enter determination applications on EDS before shipping case files to the EP-DCSC.
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Under normal workload conditions, applications should be screened within 10 workdays of receipt. Cases should be processed in receipt order. See IRM 7.13.4, Transcription and Case Establishment for DTS procedures.
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HQ-MAPICS is used to enter both advisory letter applications for volume submitter (VS) specimen plans and opinion letter applications for master & prototype (M&P) plans.
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General instructions are provided for EP transcription workflow and requirements. Specific instructions for DTS transcription are found in IRM 7.13.4, Transcription and Case Establishment and IRM 7.14, EP/EO Determination System (EDS) Employee Plans User Manual.
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A request for an EP determination, opinion, or advisory letter is submitted by an employer/sponsor using a particular application form or, in certain cases, by filing a written request with the Service. The applications accepted by EP-DCSC are as follows:
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Form 5300, Application for Determination for Employee Benefit Plan (individually designed plans).
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Form 5307, Application for Determination for Adopters of Master or Prototype, or Volume Submitter Plans.
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Form 5309, Application for Determination of Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). This form must be submitted as an attachment to Form 5300.
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Form 5310, Application for Determination for Terminating Plan.
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Form 6406, Short Form Application for Determination for Amendment of Employee Benefit Plan.
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Group Trust Determination. The request for a determination letter for a group trust is submitted as a letter but is manually input on DTS as Form 9999. The application should generally be established under the name and EIN of the parent company; however, if there is any indication that the parent company has not adopted the plan, seek technical assistance before establishing the case on DTS.
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Volume Submitter (VS) Specimen Plans and Master & Prototype (M&P) Plans. The request for an advisory letter for a volume submitter plan and the request for an opinion letter for a M&P plan will be submitted on Form 4461 (or Form 4461–A, or Form 4461–B) or, in the past for a VS plan, as a letter request but it is always input on HQ-MAPICS as Form 4461 (or 4461–A, or Form 4461-B).
Note:
Form 5310–A, Notice of Merger or Consolidation, Spinoff, or Transfer of Plan Assets or Liabilities, Notice of Qualified Separate Lines of Business, is not an application for a determination letter but is screened on LINUS and DTS.
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Applications are accepted as is or forwarded to the Lead EP Technical Screener at the EP-DCSC. (IRS, FOB Room 5106, Cincinnati, OH 45202).
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However, without basic information (Employer name, address, EIN, plan name, and plan number), the application cannot be controlled and a determination letter cannot be issued until the application is perfected.
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Attempt to locate the missing information on attachments to the application, the envelop or through research on EDS. If the missing information is located, enter it on the appropriate DTS screen.
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If more than one plan (i.e., profit sharing and money purchase) is submitted with one application, only one can be processed. If the user fee clerk or transcriber recognizes this situation, seek the advice of a Lead EP Technical Screener in the EP-DCSC.
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These instructions are for the employees who transcribes the application information. The technical requirements are met if all appropriate line items on the application (or an attachment in the submission package) are completed or if the EP-DCSC has provided guidance on how to input the application if the information is missing.
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Accept all applications even though the submissions do not include some of the attachments required by the DTS.
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Volume submitter specimen plans received with letter requests (in lieu of Form 4461 series) are entered on HQ-MAPICS as Form 4461.
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The following are requirements or processing decisions which cannot be determined by DTS programming. Use these instructions in handling these issues. They are listed in the order in which encountered in the transcription process.
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The EP-DCSC will locally determine when to reject reproductions of applications from practitioners who submit large volumes of applications.
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Any blank items on the application can be filled in on DTS based on the attachments submitted with the application.
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If a determination letter was previously issued for the plan, the applicant must either include a copy of the latest determination letter with the application or, if the determination letter is not available, include an explanation in the cover letter.
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DTS automatically identifies "determination letter" as a required attachment (on the DTS Attachment Screen) when an application is entered as an amendment request.
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If the application does not indicate an answer to question 3(a) the transcriber should input a number 1 and accept the application.
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These forms are now being processed in the Cincinnati, OH. office. Although listed on the Attachment Screen, this (Parts II, Ill and IV of Forms 4461/4461-A/4461-B) is not an attachment but an indication of which part(s) of the application must be completed.
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When possible, check inside the application to complete the application form in order for transcription to DTS to be complete.
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Multiple employer plans submitted on Form 5300 may include a partially completed Form 5300 for each other employer participating in the plan.
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An entity will automatically be established on the EPMF for the employer whose name appears on the fully completed Form 5300, if none exists.
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If any questions arise the TE/GE Deposit Unit should contact the Lead EP Technical Screener to determine if any of the employers reflected on the partially completed Forms 5300 attached to the submission is required to file a separate return.
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For those employers required to file separate returns, establish the entity if it does not already appear on EPMF. To complete Form 9308, EPMF Plan Data Change Request, see Handbook 7.3.3 to establish the entities. See also IRM 7.13.5, Letter Generation for instructions on preparing determination letters for these employers.
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Form 5310, Interested Party Notification, are screened by DTS to determine if interested parties have been properly notified that the sponsor (employer) is requesting a determination letter.
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DTS should always be input as a "yes" answer.
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The applicant will be requested to send in a copy of the interested party notice when the application is resubmitted but DTS does not screen for the notice.
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The Technical Screeners or the Specialists will be responsible for securing the copy of the notice if it is not attached to the submission or if it is deficient.
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Group (Pool) Trust Determination Letter Requests are requested by letter; there is no application developed for this purpose. These requests are established on the Inventory Control Subsystem (ICS) through DTS but they are not screened for completeness. Only the Initial Screen, the Name Screen and the POA Screen are accessible for group trust requests. Specific instructions for establishing group trust requests are as follows:
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Enter 9999 for the Form number.
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Leave the form revision item blank.
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Enter the control date.
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If no EIN is present, enter 99-9999999 to generate a "dummy " EIN.
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Form 5310–A Processing Instructions is filed to give notice of a merger or consolidation, spinoff, or transfer assets or liabilities, or to give notice that the employer wishes to be treated as operating qualified separate lines of business (QSLOB).
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Complete the DTS screens based on the data submitted on the Form 5310–A to establish a record of receipt.
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If the reason for filing, at the top of page 1, is not completed and the reason can not be determined from the information submitted, seek the assistance of the Lead Technical Screener.
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These cases are automatically updated to a closing status (" 08" ) on EDS. They are not part of the determination letter workload and generally require no further action.
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VS and M&P plans are plans containing all necessary qualification requirements submitted by sponsors/practitioners for pre-approval by the Service and subsequent sale to employers. The employer adopts the plan and, if a VS plan, modifies it (to the extent allowed under the VS Program) for his/her specific needs and submits Form 5307 for approval of the modified plan. Under the Service’s current reliance rules contained in Rev. Proc. 2005-6, an employer satisfying certain requirements (including adopting the approved M&P plan or approved VS plan on a word-for-word identical basis) can rely on the opinion or advisory letter issued to the M&P plan or VS plan for most qualification requirements in an equivalent manner to a determination letter; however, once the employer makes any modifications to the M&P plan or VS plan, a determination letter will need to be filed to obtain any type of Service reliance.
Note:
Form 5300 instead of Form 5307 will be required to obtain a determination letter for an employer’s adoption of a M&P plan where the employer has made any modifications to it. Conversely, with an employer’s adoption of a VS plan, the Form 5300 will be required only where the employer modifications are determined by the Service to be substantial.
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There are two categories of specimen-prototype plans:
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master or prototype (M&P), and
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volume submitter.
See Exhibit 7.13.3–1, EP Master & Prototype (M&P) and Volume Submitter (VS) Programs.
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M&P plans are established, controlled, and approved by the Cincinnati, OH Office through use of the HQ-MAPICS system and, when approved, opinion letters are issued.
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The Cincinnati Office also receives and approves "mass submitter" prototype plans. The EP-DCSC receives and approves Forms 4461–B of sponsors who adopt the approved mass submitter plans. After EP-DCSC issues the opinion letter, the employer who adopts the sponsors plan requests a determination letter by submitting Form 5307.
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Forms 4461 and 4461–A are assigned to groups for analysis by the coordinators of the VS and M&P Programs.
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Forms 4461–B that are clerically complete need no further review. These cases automatically transfer to inventory. They are not considered part of the technical workload and should be closed as soon as possible by the coordinators of the VS and M&P Programs.
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VS Practitioners submit volume submitter (VS) specimen plans to EP-DCSC for approval. VS plans are established, controlled, and approved by the Cincinnati, OH Office through use of the HQ-MAPICS system and, when approved, advisory letters are issued. The EP-DCSC issues an advisory letter for each approved volume submitter specimen plan. The practitioner sells the plans to employers for adoption and use.
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Practitioners who sponsor VS plans and sponsoring organizations who sponsor M&P plans are instructed to submit these plans for pre-approval directly to the VS & M&P coordinators in the EP-DCSC. The VS and M&P coordinators are located in Room 5106 of the Cincinnati Federal Office Building.
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Cincinnati will forward application that cannot be worked in EP-DCSC to other Area's based on work plan projections.
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When applications are transferred to Areas for processing:
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Update the inventory control record to status code 58 (Workload Transfer) for Determination cases or status code 60 for Screening cases.
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Use Form 3210, Document Transmittal, to send the application.
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The receiving Area will update the status of cases in unassigned inventory for the Determination cases on EDS to 75 within 1 working day. Screening cases will remain in status code 60.
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When assigned, the Area will update the status of cases on EDS to 52 (Assign to Specialist) or 62 (Screening).
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The transferee Area will update ICS records and process as normal, e.g., if the case is ready for closing, a manager will approve the record for closing.
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After processing, the Area offices will prepare Form 3210 to return the completed case to EP-DCSC.
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The EP-DCSC will ship case files to the Federal Records Center.
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Establish an administrative case file for each complete determination letter application received. This file is comprised of the—
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Application
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Supporting papers, and
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Other materials outlined in the following sections.
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The contents of the administrative case file are divided into two basic categories:
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Information which may be open to public inspection (under IRC section 6103 and 6104) on the right side, and
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information not open to public inspection on the left side.
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Public disclosure is provided for applications filed for documents issued after September 2, 1974.
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Exercise caution to insure that those items not open to public inspection as identified in IRC section 6104(a)(1)(C) and (D) are not disclosed.
Example:
This includes information from which the compensation of any individual may be ascertained and certain information relating to trade secrets, patents, processes, or national defense.
Note:
If the plan has less than 26 participants, only properly identified plan participants may inspect the plan file. Refer request to TE/GE Customer Account Services.
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The right side of the file contains all information open to public inspection. Assemble the information in the file, from top to bottom, as follows:
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Most recent Case Closing Sheet (Form 8671)
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Index of administrative case file, if applicable This will be prepared in every case where a proposed adverse determination letter is issued and will index those items identified in section 601.201(o)(9) of the Statement of Procedural Rules (26 CFR Part 601) as comprising the administrative record.
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Most recent Power of Attorney
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Most recent determination letter
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Opinion, notification or advisory letter
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Most recent application form
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Written correspondence between the Service and the applicant in respect to the request for determination (e.g., as "10 day" letter, withdrawal letter, proposed adverse determination letter, etc.).
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Other documents issued to the applicant by the Service dealing with qualification
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Written comments by interested parties. (Informant letters cannot be disclosed and should not be filed on the right side of the file.)
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Correspondence with interested parties, with respect to the written comments referred to in g., above.
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Amendments on initial qualification.
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Plan and/or group annuity contract.
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Trust instrument.
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Supplemental data filed in support of the application. (This includes statistical analysis such as turnover data, coverage or allocation schedules, balance sheets, and receipts and disbursements statements).
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Miscellaneous materials and correspondence with regard to the application, e.g., specimen copies of individual life insurance contracts and formal announcements to employees.
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Form 5446, Public Inspection Record.
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Arrange each category of material listed above that includes multiple items chronologically, in descending order.
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Form 5446 is used to record the instances when members of the public have examined the case file, as permitted by applicable disclosure regulations.
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The left side of the case file contains, in descending order, all information not open to public inspection. Such information includes:
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Form 8326, Transmittal Sheet and/or Form(s) 5464, Case Chronology Record (if used).
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Form 5621, Technical Analysis Control Sheet.
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A copy of the official report when the Service makes an investigation regarding the facts as submitted by the applicant or in comments submitted by interested parties.
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Workpapers, including reviewers memoranda and responses thereto, and any completed Alert Guideline Worksheets (or locally developed worksheets).
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Reviewer’s memorandum and other Service memoranda or reports, including Form 5402, Appeals Transmittal Memorandum and Support Statement.
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Other miscellaneous materials not disclosable as identified by disclosure regulations, and IRM 11.3.10, Disclosure of Official Information - Employee Plans Information. These materials include pertinent information from pre-ERISA plan files, e.g., the determination letter, worksheets and application.
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Under normal workload conditions, EP applications should be processed within 6 workdays of receipts.
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In general, requests will be processed in the order received.
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Forms 5310 and Forms 5300 with type request 6 (Termination of a collectively bargained multi-employer or multiple employer plan covered by PBGC insurance).
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Applications submitted by the Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC); and
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Any other application for which the Area Manager of the EP-DCSC or his/her delegate indicates expeditious treatment is warranted.
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The Control Date which must be manually entered on DTS is an eight (8) digit entry written in the format MMDDYYYY, with all digits being numerical.
Example:
The date July 3, 1997 will be entered as 07031997.
Note:
Exercise extreme care in entering this item. This date is used to determine the age of the inventory and to start the running of the declaratory judgment period; it cannot be corrected by the screener after exiting the screen.
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The control date is determined as follows:
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If the application mailed to the Service is addressed proper, enter the postmark date. If the postmark is illegible, enter the Service Center received date. However, the control date may never be earlier than the date the application was signed or the date of the cover letter (if the cover letter date is later than the date the application was signed).
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If the application was sent by certified or registered mail, enter the date of certification or registration.
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If the application was delivered to the Service by other than mail, enter the date of actual receipt as evidenced by the date stamp.
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The control date for an application which was rejected as incomplete is the date the completed application was postmarked or received, if not mailed.
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EDS will assign a case number to each application entered. The first 2 digits of the case number will indicate the location of the plan sponsor. See Exhibit 7.13.3–2 for a list of the numeric codes and corresponding locations.
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DTS automatically updates the status of EDS records for completed cases to status 50 (area office receipt) on the EDS ICS.
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Forward all applications to the EP-DCSC.
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Forward VS plans and the M&P plans to the VS & M&P coordinators located in Room 5106 in the Cincinnati Federal Office Building.
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In general, the letter for EP incomplete application is Letter 1012 (DO/CG). Letter Requesting Missing Data/Information.
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All application are accepted. The Technical Screener will determine if an application will be return to applicant.
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If a valid power of attorney is on file and specifies that correspondence is to be sent to the representative, the incomplete application should be returned directly to the authorized representative. A courtesy copy of Letter 1012 (DO/CG) should be sent to the applicant.
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If a valid power of attorney is on file but does not indicate that correspondence may be sent to the representative, the incomplete application will be returned to the applicant with a courtesy copy of Letter 1012 (DO/CG) to the representative.
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If no valid power of attorney is on file, the incomplete application will be sent to the applicant.
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If Letter 1012 (DO/CG) with the incomplete application is returned as undeliverable, an attempt should be made to locate a new address by researching EDS, IDRS, or the administrative file (if any).
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The groups should forward mandatory review cases directly to the Quality Assurance Staff in EP-DCSC. Inform the manager immediately if any mandatory review cases are misdirected to the TE/GE Processing function.
Note:
It is very important that the ICS record be researched and, if necessary, correction made. This may require the assistance of the CS-SP Coordinator.
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The following cases are mandatory review cases:
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Foreign Plans,
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VS plans and M&P plans (2nd level review is done at group level, as opposed to Quality Assurance),
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Proposed adverse determination letters,
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Cases prepared for closing for which interested party comments have been received;
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Termination cases with reversions of more than $5,000,000, termination cases with over 1000 participants and 2% of all other terminations;
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Technical advice cases (see Rev. Proc. 2005-5, 2005–1 I.R.B 170 (revised annually) for a list of issues on which technical advice must be requested) and,
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Cases identified for mandatory review by the group manager.
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If the TE/GE Processing function is responsible for mailing closing letters, ensure that the letters are date-stamped and signed before mailing and that a copy of the letter sent to the employer, the authorized representative and, if applicable, interested parties, are placed in the administrative file.
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All final adverse determination letters (Proposed Adverse Letter 1724 (DO/CG) and Letter 2052 (DO/CG)) must be sent to the applicant by certified or registered mail after approval by Counsel. In addition, copies of these final adverse letters issued by the Appeals Office must be sent to: Division of Plan Standards, Room N 4508, U. S. Department of Labor, 100 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington D. C. 20216.
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Cases are closed on ICS in the groups, Qualify Assurance Staff or Technical Screening Staff.
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Local procedures will provide where completed cases will be stored pending the 60 day user fee holding period.
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Local procedures will also indicate who will date-stamp and mail letters for completed cases.
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Types of cases transmitted to Quality Assurance Staff directly from the group(s), instead of through TE/GE Processing Unit.
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Mandatory review cases
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TE/GE Quality Measurement System (TEQMS). These cases are computer-selected when they are approved on the Manager Approval Screen in ICS.
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Before transferring cases selected for TEQMS review to the Quality Assurance Staff, place the TEQMS tally sheet in the case file or otherwise indicate the case is a TEQMS case.
| Area Office and Post of Duty | |
| Northeast (01) | Brooklyn (Area Manager) Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New Jersey, Ohio, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts |
| Mid-Atlantic (02) | Philadelphia (Area Manager) Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, District of Columbia |
| Great Lakes (03) | Chicago (Area Manager) Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska |
| Gulf Coast (04) | Dallas (Area Manager) Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri |
| Pacific Coast (06) | Los Angeles (Area Manager) Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California, Alaska, Hawaii, Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Montana, North Dakota, New Mexico, Nevada, South Dakota, Utah, Washington |