May an individual participant(s) be the owner(s) of the annuity contract(s) and still meet the requirements of 457(g)? I have a client that does not want to be the owner of the annuity contract(s).

I dont understand your question. Under IRC 457(g) an eligible deferred comp plan of a government must hold the assets in a vehicle which is not subject to the claims of the govt's creditors such as a trust or custodial account. The funds can be held in an annuity contract if similar restrictions are in place. In individual annuity contracts the employee is the owner of the contract and the assets in the contract are not subject to the claims of the employer's creditors because the er has no interest in the contract. You should check the proposed regs on 457 to see if the use of individual contracts is permitted under 457(g).

mbozek,

I thought that the employer had to be the owner of the EDC plan. Participant ownership of the Govenmental 457 would be impossible. Have a missed something here?

If the individual is made the owner of the contract, it is no longer a 457 arrangement. The individual would have taxable income equal to the value of the contract when it is turned over to the individual, and the individual will be taxed on all contributions made to the contract