On Aug. 3, 2022, the IRS issued Notice 2022-33, which outlined changes to the due dates for plan amendments resulting from the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act), the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES Act) and the Bipartisan American Miners Act of 2019 (Miners Act). Plan sponsors now have additional time to coordinate with their legal counsel and third-party administrators to incorporate the necessary amendments to plan documents required by these Acts.

With the issuance of Notice 2022-33 on Aug. 3, 2022, the IRS heeded pleas for an extension of time to incorporate certain legislative amendments resulting from the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act), the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES Act) and the Bipartisan American Miners Act of 2019 (Miners Act). Plan sponsors of non-governmental qualified retirement plans originally had until the last day of the plan year beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2022 in order to amend their plan documents to reflect the operational changes from these acts (IRAs, governmental plans, and 403(b) plans maintained by public schools had different due dates).

Specifically, the amendments were necessary to reflect the updated operations of the plan to comply with:

1. All provisions of the SECURE Act,
2. Section 104(a) of the Miners Act, which amended the minimum age for in-service withdrawals from a defined benefit pension plan from age 62 to age 59½, and
3. Section 2203(a) of the CARES Act, which provided a waiver of required minimum distributions for defined contribution plans and IRAs for the 2020 plan year.

Note: The extended amendment deadline does not apply to the loan and withdrawal provisions under the CARES Act. As of now, plans that applied the coronavirus-related provisions must still be amended by the last day of the first plan year beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2022 (2024 for governmental plans).

In general, plan sponsors of non-governmental qualified retirement plans (excluding 403(b) plans maintained by public schools) and IRAs now have until Dec. 31, 2025 to incorporate the necessary amendments. Other plans, such as governmental retirement plans, have later extended deadlines. This relief is valuable for plan sponsors who have been waiting on additional guidance from the IRS on several issues addressed in the SECURE Act.