Secular Trust [402(b)] (nonexempt Trust)
Non qualified plan of deferred compensation whose goal is to compensate key employees without having to provide similar benefits to rank and file employees. The trust is irrevocable, and funds placed in it are protected against claims made by the company's creditors. Even though funds in this trust are not in the employee's possession, they are deemed by the Internal Revenue Service to have been constructively received by the employee. The company is allowed to take an income tax deduction for the funds it contributed to the trust, even though these funds have not been distributed to the employee while he or she has current taxable income. At the time funds from the trust are actually distributed, the employee is taxed only to the extent that these distributions are from earnings of the trust or from current trust income, which will allow the employee to pay taxes owed as the result of the company's contributions to the trust. The employer is not taxed on the trust income: the employee pays all taxes on this income. For example, assume that the company is in the 34% tax bracket and contributed $40,000 to the trust on behalf of John Employee, who is in the 28% tax bracket. The result is that John Employee will have an $11,200 tax liability ($40,000 x 28%) and the company will incur a $13,600 tax deduction ($40,000 x 34%). In order that John Employee will have the necessary funds to pay the taxes owed, the company usually will bonus him the $11,200 required, which of course is tax deductible as a business expense for the company.
Popular Insurance Terms
Endorsement to a property insurance policy providing all risks coverage for insured property. Excluded properties include residences, farms, and manufacturing properties. This endorsement ...
Assistance program for the financially needy. Medicaid, also referred to as Title XIX of the Social Security Act, was enacted in 1965 at the same time as medicare. It is a joint ...
Fee charged to a policyowner when a life insurance policy or annuity is surrendered for its cash value. This fee reflects insurance company expenses incurred by placing the policy on its ...
In insurance, company revenues from underwriting and investment. Insurance companies make money first, by underwriting good risks so that their premium dollars cover claims losses and ...
Portion of the death benefit in a life insurance policy paid upon the insured being diagnosed as having a terminal illness that will result in death within a year. ...
Group appointed by President Nixon in 1971 to study workers compensation laws under the authorization of the occupational safety and health act (OSHA). It issued sweeping recommendations to ...
Legal status giving an insurance company all rights to an insured's property. The abandonment clause is usually found in marine insurance and not in other property insurance policies such ...
Physical, moral, or financial circumstance of a life insurance applicant that sets him or her apart from a physically, morally, and financially sound standard applicant. The underwriting ...
Legal procedure through which a court determines the rightful claimant (of two or more claimants making the same claim) against a third party. Insurance companies use interpleader if claims ...

Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.