Simplify your Retirement Plan with a MEP 401k for your Business
The Alliance of State Retail Associations 401(k) Plan provides a superior retirement plan, cost savings and allows you to spend less time on plan administration.
JOINING A MEP HAS ITS ADVANTAGES
A strong retirement benefit program can help businesses of all sizes gain a competitive edge to attract and retain talent —but it can also mean added costs and responsibility.
A multiple employer plan (MEP) may be an attractive option for organizations seeking to ease the administrative burden, fiduciary risk, and expense of offering a quality retirement plan.
WHAT IS A MEP?
A MEP is a retirement plan sponsored by one entity for unrelated organizations that share a common business interest.
HOW IT WORKS
•The MEP sponsor is the “lead” plan and can serve as the plan administrator and fiduciary
•“Adopting employers” elect to join the MEP
•At any time, adopting employers are easily integrated into the plan hosted by the sponsor and tracked on the Transamerica platform
Most importantly, the MEP sponsor is responsible for handling the administrative and fiduciary responsibilities related to your retirement plan, so you can focus on what matters most: running your business.
ADOPTING EMPLOYERS
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF A MEP
1
Administrative relief, as the MEP sponsor and a professional service team take over the majority of day-to- day tasks
2
Reduced liability, as fiduciary support and most responsibility is assumed by professional plan administrators
3
Ability for adopting employers to retain many of their customized plan features
6
Time savings for organizations by offloading many plan-related tasks
4
Support with investment selections and performance oversight
7
Potential cost savings compared to operating a single employer plan
5
Access to participant communications and plan education support
EFFICIENCIES FOR ADOPTING EMPLOYERS
Administrative relief and reduced fiduciary responsibility are two primary benefits for adopting employers.
COMPLIANCE TESTING
The plan’s service providers handle all aspects of compliance testing, including preparing census data and providing documentation to the recordkeeper.
INCREASED NEGOTIATING POWER
By aggregating assets under a single plan, MEP adopters may achieve economies of scale typically enjoyed by much larger plans. This has the power to lower investment and administrative fees and improve service levels for participants.
FORM 5500
You no longer need to complete a Form 5500. A service provider on the plan files one form covering all adopting employers.
AUDIT
Your organization can offload the required audit, which will be handled at the plan sponsor level.
SIMPLE ADOPTION AND TRANSITION
As part of our commitment to provide excellent service, Transamerica’s adoption and transition process helps adopting employers get started on the right foot.
Led by our experienced, dedicated team, all transitions begin with a thorough plan review, followed by a customized transition strategy designed specifically for your organization. We keep you in the loop with regular transition meetings and document the process from start to finish with a detailed project plan.
We support adopting employers with all the key participant communications needed including an announcement email and newsletter summarizing the details participants need to know, required legal notices, and more.
A TEAM IN YOUR CORNER WHEN NEEDED
Within the Retail401k MEP, professional service firms are hired to take on certain fiduciary and administrative roles on your behalf. These providers are legally obligated to carry out plan responsibilities with the highest degree of prudence, good faith, honesty, integrity, service, and undivided loyalty to the retirement plan participants. Support team members may include:
PLAN ADMINISTRATOR 3(16)
The plan administrator performs all functions necessary to keep your plan compliant and is responsible for
the plan’s day-to-day operations such as authorizing benefit payments, processing participant distributions, and signing and filing the Form 5500 for traditional closed MEPs.
THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATOR (TPA)
As part of its critically important role, the TPA will help you with plan design to ensure your selected plan provisions meet the needs of your organization. It also provides ongoing compliance services such as completing mandatory testing and administration needs for your plan. And, of course, your TPA is always available to answer questions and to support you locally.
INVESTMENT MANAGER 3(38)
The named 3(38) fiduciary is responsible for selecting and monitoring the funds in the investment lineup in accordance with the Investment Policy Statement for the plan.
MEP ADVANTAGE VIDEO
Video brings it all together! Click below to get a great overview of the advantages of the Alliance of State Retail Associations multiple employer plan, a type of pooled provider arrangement.
CONTACT US
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