Any contribution made to a designated pension plan, retirement account or other tax deferred investment vehicle where the contribution is made before federal and/or municipal taxes are deducted. In calculating a pretax contribution, the amount of taxes withheld will be reduced, as the basis for the taxable amount will be reduced. Making pretax contributions is beneficial to those who are eligible, as this will reduce the amount of taxes paid at that time. It is always better to defer payments due to the time value of money.
A reduction in the amount of benefit payments received by a member of a retirement plan which may result when the member owes money to the plan. A benefit offset is intended to adjust the retirement benefits the plan member receives, given the overdue contributions the member should have paid in the past. Essentially, the overdue contributions owed by the member are deducted from his or her retirement payments to ensure they are paid to the plan. This type of offset can also occur if the member is receiving retirement benefits from sources other than the plan. The U.S. Social Security Act provides for the withholding of up to 10% of a plan member's benefits to compensate for funds owed to the plan.
Any distribution taken from an IRA, qualified plan or tax-deferred annuity that is paid to a beneficiary that is under age 59.5. Premature distributions are subject to a 10% early-withdrawal penalty by the IRS as a means of discouraging savers from spending their retirement assets prematurely. There are several instances in which the premature-distribution penalty rules are waived, such as for first-time homebuyers, education expenses, medical expenses and Rule 72(t), which states that a taxpayer can take IRA withdrawals before they are 59.5 as long as they take at least five substantially equal periodic payments (SEPPs).
The benefit allocation method is a means of funding a pension plan where a single premium payment is made in order to fund a single unit of benefit for a specified period of time, typically one year (or other specifies unit of time) of recognized service with the employer. A pension plan is a type of retirement plan where an employer makes contributions to a fund that an employee receives upon retirement. The specifics for each company's benefit allocation method would be included in the company's employee benefits plan. With the benefit allocation method, the plan specifies that for each unit of service (each year, for example) an employee will receive a certain amount (either a dollar amount or a specified percentage of salary) towards an employee pension plan. Higher paid employees with longer service typically receive a greater benefit. The employer can then make a payment into a plan such as a deferred annuity on behalf of the employee.
The intent to achieve monetary gain in a transaction or material endeavor. Profit motive can also be construed as the underlying reason why a taxpayer or company participates in business activities of any kind. Profit motive must be determined for some transactions to determine the deductibility of any expenses involved. For taxpayers who participate in rental activities, profit motive must be determined in order to claim rental expenses. The IRS may try to prevent a taxpayer from claiming rental losses if a profit motive cannot be proved. Profit motive can be established by proving that a profit was realized in at least three out of the last five years. Profit motive is also what separates a hobby from a business in the eyes of the IRS; hobby losses are nondeductible because there was no intent to make a profit from any gains.
A beneficiary of trust is a person for whom a trust was created, and who receives the benefits of that trust. In many instances a trust is established to prevent the exhaustion of an estate. A trust for the benefit of a child, for example, may include specifications that would guarantee the parent's estate will not be carelessly diminished and that funds will be available for the benefit of the child. There are two basic categories of a beneficiary of trust. The first form is where the beneficiary is entitled to take ownership and control of the trust and has the right to the income and capital.The second form is where the trustee is given additional duties and powers assigned in the trust deed.
A type of vesting that occurs entirely at a specified time rather than gradually. Until the specified time there is no vesting, at which point the benefit becomes fully vested. For example if an employee contributes to an employer-matched pension plan, the employer's contributions become property of the employee all at once rather than gradually.
An interpretation of statute or administrative rules and their application to a particular set of facts or circumstances. The private letter ruling addresses unusual or complex questions pertaining to a particular taxpayer and his or her tax situation. The purpose of the letter ruling is to advise the taxpayer regarding the tax treatment he or she can expect from the IRS in the circumstances specified by the ruling. Also known as "letter ruling" or "LTR". In other words, if a taxpayer has a tax issue with the IRS, that person, before completing a certain action (i.e. paying the required taxes), can request the IRS to rule on that tax issue. The private letter ruling is the letter the IRS sends back to the taxpayer, which explains the rulings and the rational for the decision. The PLR is specific and applicable to that tax situation and that taxpayer only. Moreover, private letter rulings of other taxpayers cannot be used as precedence by a person requesting a ruling regarding his or her own issue, and in no way binds the IRS to take a similar position when dealing with different taxpayers.