6 Answers To Plan Sponsor Questions About Initial Employee Benefit Plan Audits

Key Takeaways:

• Employee benefit plans may require an initial independent qualified public accountant (IQPA) financial statement audit when participant counts or business changes trigger regulatory requirements.
• Initial audits typically involve additional procedures and documentation to validate opening balances, historical activity, and plan records.
• Monitoring participant counts, coordinating across HR and finance, and preparing documentation early can help you manage audit requirements and identify operational issues.

—

Plan sponsors and human resources (HR) teams may be caught off guard when they learn they must include an initial independent qualified public accountant (IQPA) financial statement audit with their employee benefit plan’s annual Form 5500 filing. That’s because plan sponsors don’t receive a formal notice when an audit becomes required, and the rules, particularly those related to participant counts and plan changes, can be overlooked amid competing