Important Reminders

Plan amendments required by changes in the law. If you must revise your qualified plan to conform to recent legislation, you may choose to get a determination letter from the IRS approving the revision. Generally, master and prototype plans are amended by sponsoring organizations. However, there are instances when you may need to request a determination letter regarding a master or prototype plan that is a nonstandardized plan you maintain. Your request should be made on the appropriate form (generally Form 5300 or Form 5307). The request should be filed with Form 8717 and the appropriate user fee.

You may have to amend your plan to comply with tax law changes made by the following laws.

• Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, Public Law 103-353.
• Uruguay Round Agreements Act, Public Law 103-465.
• Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996, Public Law 104-188.
• Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, Public Law 105-34.
• Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998, Public Law 105-206.
• Community Renewal Tax Relief Act of 2000, Public Law 106-554.

You generally need to make these amendments by February 28, 2002. Plans directly affected by the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States have until June 30, 2002, to make these amendments. In cases of substantial hardship resulting from the terrorist attacks, the IRS may grant additional extensions of time up to December 31, 2002, to make the amendments.

For more information about these extensions, see Revenue Procedure 2001-55 in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2001-49.

Photographs of missing children. The Internal Revenue Service is a proud partner with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Photographs of missing children selected by the Center may appear in this publication on pages that would otherwise be blank. You can help bring these children home by looking at the photographs and calling 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678) if you recognize a child.