IRS Issues Draft Guidance and Sample Forms to Streamline Retirement Plan Rollovers
The Internal Revenue Service has issued Notice 2026-49, introducing sample forms and proposed administrative procedures designed to standardize rollovers between workplace retirement plans and individual retirement accounts. Issued in accordance with requirements under Section 324 of the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022—part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023—the guidance addresses long-standing administrative frictions associated with transferring tax-favored retirement funds.
The proposed framework specifically governs rollovers conducted between qualified retirement plans, as well as rollovers between a workplace retirement plan and an individual retirement account. Transactions involving direct account-to-account transfers between individual retirement accounts are explicitly excluded from these procedures and sample forms. For workplace plan sponsors, adopting the newly released forms and procedures is entirely voluntary.
According to administrative details accompanying the notice, the standardized sample documentation aims to reduce burden on plan participants while enhancing safeguards around personal identifying information. For individuals navigating workplace transitions or consolidating retirement assets, standardized transfer paperwork could offer a more consistent administrative experience across different plan providers, provided their plan sponsors elect to implement the suggested procedures.
Along with publishing the sample forms, the regulatory agency indicated that it is evaluating additional guidance aimed at speeding up overall rollover execution. The agency is soliciting public comments on both the proposed rollover procedures and the sample documentation to refine the framework before finalization. Interested parties, including plan sponsors, administrative service providers, and tax professionals, have until October 23 to submit formal comments on the proposed measures.
Source: Journal of Accountancy
