The IRS is temporarily permitting remote signatures from retirement plan participants and beneficiaries and spouses in response to the need for social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Guidance under Notice 2020-42 makes it easier for qualified individuals to receive payments of coronavirus-related distributions and plan loans during local shutdowns and social-distancing practices that make it difficult to find a notary or reach a plan representative.
For the period from Jan. 1, 2020, through Dec. 31, 2020, an individual whose participant election is witnessed by a plan representative or a notary public, live audio-video technology may be used by satisfying these requirements.