Frequently Asked Questions

Under ERISA, a controlled group is seen as a single employer. So, if the entities in the controlled group have different benefits the group would have a choice to create: one Wrap Plan Document with multiple Wrap SPDs, or separate plans, each with its own Wrap Plan Document and Wrap SPD.

If you choose one Wrap Plan Document and multiple Wrap SPDs, ERISA requires that each SPD clearly identify on the first page of the text the class of participants and beneficiaries for which it has been prepared and the plan's coverage of other classes. You may wish to use the following sample language:

"This SPD has been prepared especially for the [describe class of employees—e.g., workers at the New York Plant]. The Plan also covers [list all other classes of employees covered by the Plan]."

If you have multiple employers under common control, the additional employers should be listed as Participating Employers when entering your general plan information. There is no need to include the EIN numbers of the Participating Employers under common control. However, should you wish to include this information, the templates can be customized in Microsoft Word.

For plans maintained by one employer or a group of employers under common control who have multiple EINs and are creating one Wrap Plan Document with multiple Wrap SPDs, you should simply pick one EIN to use and use this employer as the Plan Administrator. Typically, it is the EIN of the parent company, but it can generally be any of the EINs.

For employers creating separate Wraps, each entity's EIN would be used for each corresponding Wrap.

One way to address this is to create two separate plans (with different plan numbers) for the two different classes, rather than letting one group know that another has different benefits. 

Another option is to have one plan, but distribute two Wrap SPDs (e.g., one for full-time employees and another for part-time employees) so that employees in each class see only the benefits information that applies to them. In such case, ERISA requires that each SPD clearly identify on the first page of the text the class of participants and beneficiaries for which it has been prepared and the plan's coverage of other classes. You may wish to use the following sample language:

"This SPD has been prepared especially for the [describe class of employees—e.g., hourly employees, workers at the New York Plant, salesmen, employees hired before 2010, etc.]. The Plan also covers [list all other classes of employees covered by the Plan]."