Tech Talk: The Written Plan Requirement

A. What is the “written plan” requirement?

Q. A 403(b) plan must be maintained under a written program which contains all the terms and conditions for eligibility, benefits, limitations, the form and timing of distributions and contracts available under the plan, and the party responsible for plan administration which satisfy Code Section 403(b).The written plan requirement does not mean that the plan must be contained in a single document. For example, the plan can consist of multiple documents that contain the various plan provisions regarding salary reduction agreements, contracts that fund the plan, eligibility rules, how the plan will pay benefits and the nondiscrimination rules. Church plans that do not contain any retirement income accounts are exempt from having a 403(b) written plan.