CRPS study guide
CRPS · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist℠ (CRPS®) is a professional designation listed among the certifications offered by the College for Financial Planning®, a Kaplan Company - the school the source describes as the original creator of the CFP® mark and an HLC-accredited institution. The credential is built for financial professionals whose work centers on employer-sponsored retirement plans rather than individual retirement planning alone, and its curriculum is organized around four content areas: plan design and selection; plan implementation and installation; plan administration and operation; and fiduciary, compliance, and client-advisory issues. The CRPS study guide has 4 sections and about 1,532 words.
01Retirement Plan Design and Selection
Plan selection is a matching exercise. The candidate must be able to compare defined contribution plans (401(k), profit sharing, new comparability, ESOP), defined benefit plans and hybrid cash balance plans, and the simpler SEP and SIMPLE IRA formats against employer goals: cost predictability, maximum benefit for the owner, hiring and retention value, administrative burden, and flexibility to skip or vary contributions.
400 words, about 2 min02Plan Implementation and Installation
A qualified plan must be maintained under a written document. Candidates should distinguish an individually designed plan from a pre-approved plan (basic plan document plus adoption agreement), which must be restated on the IRS six-year cycle and kept current for interim law changes via good-faith amendments.
436 words, about 2 min03Plan Administration and Operation
Every administration question resolves to a limit, a test, or a timing rule. Know these by name: the IRC 402(g) elective deferral limit with age-50 catch-up; the 415(c) annual additions limit (generally 100% of compensation or the dollar cap, whichever is less); the 401(a)(17) compensation cap; ADP and ACP nondiscrimination testing; the top-heavy minimum under 416; coverage under 410(b); and the 401(a)(4) general nondiscrimination test.
347 words, about 2 min04Fiduciary, Compliance, and Client Advisory Issues
ERISA 404(a)(1) imposes prudence, loyalty, diversification, adherence to plan documents, and reasonableness of expenses. Identify the named fiduciary, the plan administrator, and the trustee, and remember that fiduciary status can be functional - anyone exercising discretion or control over plan management or assets is a fiduciary, regardless of title.
349 words, about 2 min