Retirement

You should contact the Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration of the Department of Labor (PWBA). To find out the location of your local office, call 202-219-8776 or write to the US Department of Labor, PWBA, Division of Technical Assistance and Inquires, Room N-5625, 200 Constitution Ave., N.W. , Washington, D.C. 20210.

If your child's stock was sold through a custodial account and the tax information statement incorrectly reflects your Social Security number instead of your son's Social Security number, you should fill out IRS Form W-9 which is the Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification.
Circle your child's name and his Social Security number on the form. Submit the corrected form to the financial institution that issued the incorrect statement. Instruct them to correct the information on the account and reissue you a corrected tax information statement.

There was be no COLA in 2011. Monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for more than 60 million Americans will increase 3.6 percent in 2012.
The 3.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits that nearly 55 million Social Security beneficiaries receive in January 2012.
Increased payments to more than 8 million SSI beneficiaries will begin on December 30, 2011.
According to officials, the average monthly check for the elderly will increase $43 to $1,229. For the disabled, it will rise $39 to $1,111.

Generally, if the present value of your benefits is less than $5,000, then the old employer may distribute your funds without your consent. If the amount is more than $5,000, you probably have the option to leave your funds in the plan of your former employer.

A pension rollover must be completed by the 60th day following the day on which you received the pension distribution.

A IRA is a retirement account to which up to $5,500 (6,500 if you are 50 or older) can be contributed. The contribution may be deductable or non-deductable depending whether you are covered by your employer's retirement plan and income limitations. There are various types of IRAs; there are traditional, Roth, Simple, and SEP IRAs.

On Form W-2, box 15 will have an X in the box "retirement plan".
You are an active participant in a retirement plan if contributions are made or allocated to your account for the plan year that ends within your tax year.

A Roth IRA is a special, nondeductible IRA. Earnings are tax-deferred and tax-free upon withdrawal if certain requirements are met. (If requirements are not met, taxes and penalties may apply).
Contributions are not tax-deductible. You may continue making Roth IRA contributions after age 70 1/2 if you have earned income.
Your modified adjusted gross income must be below certain limits depending on your tax filing status and you or your spouse must have earned income. You are not required to take mandatory distributions at any age during your lifetime. Non-spouse beneficiaries are subject to minimum distributions rules.

A SIMPLE IRA, or "Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees Individual Retirement Account", is a type of tax-deferred employer-provided retirement plan in the United States that allows employees to set aside money and invest it to grow for later use.
Specifically, it is a type of Individual Retirement Account (IRA) that is set up to be an employer-provided plan. It is an employer sponsored plan, like more well-known plans such as the 401(k) (profit-sharing plans) and 403(b) (Tax Sheltered Annuity plans), but offers simpler and less costly administration rules.
Like a 401(k) plan, the SIMPLE IRA is funded by a pretax salary reduction. Like other salary reduction contributions, these deductions are subject to social security, medicare, and Federal Unemployment Tax Act taxes. Contribution limits for SIMPLE plans are lower than for most other types of employer-provided retirement plans: $12,000 for the current year with a $2,500 catch up contribution, as compared to $17,500 and a $5,500 catch up contribution for convention defined contribution plans (Section 402(g) limit) like 401(k), 401(a), and 403(b) plans.
In 2014 the limitation remains unchanged at $12,000.