One of the many plan changes by Motion Picture Industry Pension and Health Plans (MPIPHP) due to the COVID-19 pandemic, was to approve a one-time hardship withdrawal from your IAP. The Trustees of the Plans have been working to lessen the impact on members. For some, this isn’t something they want to dip into, for others, it is a lifeline. But for everyone, it’s part of your retirement funding. This is not something you want to do lightly. There are consequences down the road, but we have tried to make those as small as possible. Early withdrawal penalties have been waived and the IRS Tax obligation can be amortized over three years, with a tax credit if the money is returned to your IAP within three years. Members who are vested in the Motion Picture Industry Individual Account (“IAP”) as of year ended December 2019 may apply for a one-time only, special early withdrawal, of an amount up to 20% of their 2018 IAP account balance but not to exceed a maximum dollar limit of $20,000. Members must apply for this withdrawal between May 1, 2020 and July 31, 2020 and payments must be completed no later than December 31, 2020, to be reported on a 2020 Form 1099-R for tax purposes. This exception is not an amendment to the IAP’s Trust Agreement; this one-time withdrawal will be subject to the hardship withdrawal provisions within IRS regulations. Members who are requesting the maximum available amount of $20,000 will be allowed to “gross up” their withdrawal to account for federal and state tax withholdings i.e., Members can withdraw $20,000 not inclusive of federal and state tax withholdings. If permitted by law, such a withdrawal will not be taxable if it is repaid to the IAP within three years’ time. The on-line application process for this withdrawal request is as follows: You must be registered on the www.MPIPHP.org website The Participant must complete an on-line IAP Hardship Withdrawal Request. The Participant must sign an affidavit affirming his or her temporary job loss due to the COVID-19-related health emergency; and Payments will be processed in accordance with instructions provided on the IAP Withdrawal Request form. Please note, the application for the withdrawal will not be available for completion until today May 1, 2020. It is already crashing from the volume of requests. The time to process your claim may take a few weeks. They will not “run out” of money, this is your money, in your account contributed for you by the employers for your retirement. This is not a race, this is not a first come, first serve. Sections Local Spotlight