Checklist: What Must be Filed Under ERISA and When

Welfare benefit plans must file some reports with the IRS and some reports with the Labor Department. Below are checklists of what reports must be filed, along with deadlines.

     The Following Reports Must be filed with the IRS:

• Annual return/report. Annual return/report filed on Form 5500; due by the end of the 7th month after the end of the plan year (NOTE: PWBA forwards a copy of Form 5500 to the IRS)
• Annual information reports. Annual information report filed on Form 990; required of certain tax-exempt organizations that provide welfare benefits
• Insurance information. Insurance information filed annually on Schedule A of Form 5500 and attached to Form 5500
• Service provider and trustee information. Service provider and trustee information filed annually on Schedule C of Form 5500 and attached to Form 5500 -- required only by plans filing a Form 5500 to provide information on plan trustees, certain providers with the compensation they received, and service providers who were terminated
• Excise taxes on welfare benefits. An excise tax (100% of the disqualified benefit) is imposed on employers that maintain a funded welfare benefit plan that provides a disqualified benefit -- the return for paying this tax is Form 5330 and it is due by the end of the 7th month after the end of the tax year. An excise tax of 30% of excess fringe benefits is imposed if an Internal Revenue Code Sec. 4977 election is in effect -- return for this is made on Form 5330 and is due by the end of the 7th month after the end of the tax year in which the excess fringe benefits were paid to employees.
  
  

  The following reports are filed with the Labor Department:

• Plan description. The plan description must be filed with the DOL upon request -- this is furnished to participants within 120 days after plan is established.
• Summary plan description. The summary plan description (SPD) (often called the plan booklet or plan description booklet) must be filed with the DOL upon request within 30 days of the request by the plan administrator.
• Updated plan description. The updated plan description is filed with the DOL upon request -- it must be furnished to plan participants and beneficiaries every five years (if there are no changes, then it needs to be provided only every 10 years)
• Material modifications or changes to plan. A report of any plan modification or change in information required in the plan description must be filed with the DOL upon request -- is furnished to participants within 60 days after the change is adopted or occurs
• Annual report. An annual report must be provided to the DOL on Form 5500 for large plans (if plan has 100 or more participants) or small plans (if plan has fewer than 100 participants) by the end of the 7th month after the end of the plan year (NOTE: Plan administrator files this with the PWBA, which forwards copies to the IRS).
• Insurance information. Insurance information filed annually on Schedule A of Form 5500 and attached to Form 5500
• Service provider and trustee information. Service provider and trustee information filed annually on Schedule C of Form 5500 and attached to Form 5500 -- required only by plans filing a Form 5500 to provide information on plan trustees, certain providers with the compensation they received, and service providers who were terminated
• Terminal report.  Administrator of a plan that is winding down must file a terminal report (regardless of the number of plan participants) with the DOL.