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If you have a question about your retirement
plan, you can start by looking for an answer in the information
that the plan provides. You can request this information from
your
plan administrator, the person who is in charge of running
the plan. Your employer can tell you how to contact your plan
administrator.
Each retirement plan is
required to have a formal, written
plan document that details how it operates and its
requirements. As noted previously, there is also a booklet that
describes the key plan rules, called the
Summary Plan Description (SPD), which should be much easier
to read and understand. The SPD should include a summary of any
material changes to the plan or to the information required to
be in the SPD. In many cases, you can start with the SPD and
then look at the plan document if you still have questions.
In addition, plans must provide you with a
number of notices. Some of the key notices are described in
Table 5.
For example,
defined contribution plans, such as
401(k) plans, generally are required to provide advance
notice to employees when a “blackout period” occurs. A blackout
period is when a participant’s right to direct investments, take
loans, or obtain distributions is suspended for a period of at
least three consecutive business days. Blackout periods can
often occur when plans change recordkeepers or investment
options.
Some plan information, such as the Summary
Plan Description, must be provided to you automatically and
without charge at the time periods indicated below. You may
request a Summary Plan Description at other times, but your
employer might charge you a copying fee. You must ask the plan
if you want other information, such as a copy of the written
plan document or the plan’s Form 5500 annual financial report,
and you may have to pay a copying fee. See Tables 5 and 6.
Many employers provide benefit information on a Web site.
In some cases, plans provide information more
frequently than required by Federal law. For instance, many
large defined contribution plans provide quarterly benefit
statements, and some plans allow participants to check their
statements online or by telephone.
The plan’s annual financial report (Form
5500) is also available (there is a copying fee if over 100
pages) by contacting the U.S. Department of Labor, EBSA Public
Disclosure Facility, Room N-1513, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW,
Washington, D.C. 20210, Tel: 202.693.8673. In addition, if your
plan administrator does not provide you, as a participant
covered under the plan, with a copy of the Summary Plan
Description automatically or after you request it, you may
contact the Department of Labor toll free at 1.866.444.EBSA
(3272) for help.
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Table 5.
Key information your plan administrator must
provide automatically |
|
What |
Description |
When |
|
Summary
Plan Description (SPD) |
A summary
version of the plan document and other
important plan information, in
easier-to-understand language. |
Within 90
days of becoming a participant in the plan,
and an updated copy every 10 years (5 years
if the plan has been amended). |
|
Summary of
Material Modifications |
A summary
of significant plan changes or changes in
the information required to be in the SPD. |
Within 7
months of the end of the plan year in which
the changes were made. |
|
Summary
Annual Report |
A summary
of financial information filed by the plan
on its Form 5500 Annual Return/Report. |
Within 9
months after the end of the plan year or 2
months after the annual report filing
deadline. |
|
Notice of
Significant Reduction in Future Benefit
Accruals |
Notice of
any significant reduction in the rate of
future benefit accruals, the elimination, or
significant reduction in an early retirement
benefit or retirement-type subsidy. Applies
to defined benefit plans and certain defined
contribution plans. |
Within a
reasonable time before the effective date of
the plan amendment. |
|
Blackout
notice |
Notice of
a period of more than 3 consecutive business
days when there is a temporary suspension,
limitation or restriction on directing or
diversifying plan assets, obtaining loans,
or obtaining distributions. Applies to
401(k) or other individual account plans. |
Generally,
at least 30 days before the blackout date. |
|
Notice to
Participants of Underfunded Plan |
Plan For
defined benefit plans that are less than 90%
funded, the notice of the funding level of
the plan and information on PBGC guarantees. |
Within 2
months after the due date for filing the
annual report. |
|
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Table 6.
Key information your plan administrator must
provide upon written request |
|
What |
Description |
Cost |
|
Individual
Benefit Statement |
Statements
of total accrued benefits and total vested
pension benefits, and the earliest date on
which nonvested benefits become vested. |
Free (no
more than once a year) |
|
Plan
Documents |
Documents
that provide the terms of the plan,
including collective bargaining agreements
and trust agreements. |
Reasonable
copying charge |
|
Annual
Report (Form 5500) – most recent report |
Financial
information about the plan that most plans
are required to file with the government
within 7 months of the end of the
plan year. |
Reasonable
copying charge |
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If you are in a
defined benefit plan, you should request an
individual benefit statement once a year and review its
description of the total benefits you have earned and whether
you are
vested in those benefits. Also check to make sure your date
of birth, date of hire, and the other information included is
correct.
Many defined contribution plans, including
401(k) plans, send participants individual benefit statements.
If you receive a statement, check it to make sure all of the
information is accurate. This information may include:
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Salary level
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Amounts that you and your
employer have contributed
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Years of service with the employer
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Home address
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Social Security number
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Beneficiary designation
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Marital status
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The performance of your
investments (defined contribution plan participants)
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Fees paid by the plan
and/or charged to participants. (For more information, see
the Department of Labor brochure A Look at 401(k) Plan
Fees at www.dol.gov/ebsa or call the Department of Labor
toll free at 1.866.444.EBSA (3272).) Check with your plan to
see if this information is included in materials on your
investment options, the benefit statement, the Summary Plan
Description or the plan’s annual report Form 5500. See
Chapter 7 for more information on the fees that your
employer can charge to your account.
Action Items
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Make sure you have
received the plan’s Summary Plan Description and read it for
information on how your plan works.
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Read other documents you
receive from your plan to make sure that you keep up with
any plan changes, and check that the information on your
benefit statement is accurate.
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If you are in a defined
contribution plan, ask for information on the investment
choices available in the plan and find out when and how you
can change your plan account investments.
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If you suspect errors in
your plan information, contact your plan administrator or
the human resources department.
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If there have been changes
in your personal information, such as marriage, divorce or
change of address, contact your plan administrator or the
human resources department.
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Keep your plan documents
in a safe place in case questions arise in the future.
Source:
U.S. Department of Labor
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