FAQ 440: Eligibility--Amendment changed requirements mid-year creating a short year

Problem:

We had a plan with an amendment that took place April 1, 2005 that changes service requirement for participation from 1 year to 6 months and changes the entry date from January 1 and July 1 to quarterly. We have a bunch of new hires in 2005, some of whom will fall under the old requirements, and some of whom will fall under the new requirements. What is the best way to have ASC calculate this?


Solution:

1) Enter the eligibility requirements (age, service, and entry dates) prior to the amendment in the plan specs and run the Eligibility calculations.
2) Change the status code of everyone with an entry prior to the amendment date (4/1/05) to a status "C", which will lock in their entry date. This can be done globally using the Grid's "Set Column Data" feature. Status C participants will not have their entry date changed, even if the plan specs are changed and recalculated.
3) Enter the new eligibility requirements after the amendment in the plan specs, then re-run the Eligibility calculation again. All future entrants should then be calculated under the new eligibility requirements that you coded.