Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) Audits

Whalen CPAs audit team gains an in-depth understanding of your employee benefit plan before tailoring an audit to fit your organization and ensure compliance with federal regulations in this highly technical practice area.

Highest-Quality Standards in Benefit Plan Auditing.

As a member of the Employee Benefit Plan Audit Quality Center of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Whalen CPAs is committed to quality and training standards that set our firm apart from other service providers. We adhere to the Center’s membership requirements, including stringent internal controls and inspection.

ERISA Experience and Training.

The audit team at Whalen CPAs has significant experience with employee benefit plan audits and commits considerable resources to training each year.

Auditors of employee benefit plans may encounter issues related to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Department of Labor (DOL) regulations in addition to typical audit concerns – you want an experienced audit team that can navigate these issues for you!

Employee Benefit Plan Audits – Q&A:

Q: When is an employee benefit plan audit required?

A: Generally, federal law requires employee benefit plans with 100 or more participants to have an audit as part of their obligation to file an annual return/report (Form 5500 Series). If an employee benefit plan is required to have an audit, one of the most important duties of the plan administrator is to hire an independent auditor for the plan.

Q: What is the purpose of the audit?

A: A quality audit helps ensure the financial integrity of a plan and protect plan assets. A quality audit also will help a plan administrator carry out the legal responsibility to file a complete and accurate annual return/report for the plan each year.

Q: What types of plans does Whalen CPAs audit?

A: The firm’s audit team provides services to a variety of benefit plans, including:

• 401(k) Plans.
• Profit-Sharing Plans.
• Defined Benefit Plans.
• Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOP).

Q: How is the audit conducted?

A: Whalen CPAs audit approach begins with obtaining an in-depth understanding of each plan and how it operates. The audit is then tailored to the plan’s needs and goals and will include compliance testing to ensure that the plan is meeting the many requirements of Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Department of Labor (DOL) regulations.

The audit team works closely with the plan’s sponsors and the client’s third-party administrator to ensure that fiduciary responsibilities are fulfilled and that the plan’s participants are well served while retaining the objectivity and independence expected from an independent Certified Public Accounting firm.