IRS Permits Self-Certification For Late Rollovers To Qualified Retirement Plans

Generally, an amount distributed from a qualified retirement plan (including an employer-sponsored plan and an IRA) is excluded from income if it is transferred to another plan within 60 days following receipt. In the past, if the 60-day deadline was missed, the IRS required that the taxpayer request a private letter ruling (and pay a fee) to obtain a waiver of the 60-day requirement based on hardship.
Pursuant to recent IRS guidance,1 if the 60-day deadline is missed, a taxpayer can now (as of August 24) self-certify, subject to verification during an audit, eligibility for a waiver of the 60-day rollover requirement. The plan administrator or IRA custodian can rely on the certification in accepting and reporting receipt of the rollover.