Posted over 7 years ago

401k Participant Loan Offset Explained

A 401k participant loan offset only applies when the 401k participant separates from employment or if the plan is terminated by the employer. A loan offset happens when the 401k participant's balance in the plan is reduced by the outstanding loan balance at time of the direct-rollover to an IRA or a solo 401k plan.

For example, John terminates employment and has a vested balance of $50,000 with an outstanding 401k participant loan of $20,000 and requests a full direct-rollover of of his 401k to an IRA. His direct rollover amount is $30,000 ($50,000 - $20,000).

However, if John can come up with the loan offset amount of $20,000 and deposit those funds into an IRA or solo 401k plan by his tax filing deadline, including extensions, for the tax year that the offset distribution occurred, he will avoid having to pay taxes on the $20,000 because it will also count as a non-taxable rollover.