Participants will be notified that the 401(k) plan is being terminated 2-3 business days after 1) the plan termination date specified or 2) the date all required documents have been received, whichever is later.
Once we have received all required documentation, Guideline will send email notifications to all plan participants. The plan termination notice will advise them of the following:
The company is terminating the 401(k) account.
No further contributions to the 401(k) account will be processed, and all assets must be distributed.
Instructions to review their options and how to submit their distribution request.
Confirmation that their money will stay invested in the market until their distribution request has been processed.
Participants who do not take action to distribute their funds within the noted timeframe will have their assets sent to PenChecks. PenChecks is a vendor that specializes in assisting plans with accounts that belong to unresponsive or missing participants, so the plan can successfully terminate.
When will the plan termination process begin?
Guideline will not be able to begin the termination process unless all the required documents are complete and approved. The plan will remain active until Guideline notifies you that the process is underway. Also note, participants will become 100% vested (if not already) once the plan termination procedure starts.