Form 1-C Comprehensive Premium Filing

Payment of Premiums (29 CFR part 4007)

2018 CPF Instructions Nov 13 Links

Payment of Premiums (29 CFR part 4007)

OMB: 1212-0009

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Comprehensive Premium Filing
Instructions for 2018 Plan Years
DRAFT

Contents
Introduction and What’s New ............................................................................................

Who Must File ..................................................................................................................

When to File......................................................................................................................

How to File .......................................................................................................................

How to Count Participants ................................................................................................

How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits ...................................................................

Spinoffs, Mergers and Consolidations ...............................................................................

Data to be Submitted .......................................................................................................

Description of Data Elements ............................................................................................

Late Payment Charges ......................................................................................................

Correcting Errors, Credit Balances and Reconciling Estimates..............................................

Recordkeeping Requirements and PBGC Audits .................................................................

Appendices


Appendix 1 – Definitions.....................................................................................................



Appendix 2 – Contact information .....................................................................................



Appendix 3 – Online Premium Filing with My PAA.............................................................



Appendix 4 – Common Filing Errors ...................................................................................



Appendix 5 – Paperwork Reduction Act Notice..................................................................

Introduction and What’s New
Introduction
Payment of premiums to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is required by sections 4006 and
4007 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and PBGC’s Premium Regulations (29
CFR Parts 4006 and 4007).
There are two kinds of annual premiums: the Flat-rate Premium, which applies to all plans, and the Variable-rate
Premium, which applies only to Single-employer Plans.
Every covered plan under ERISA section 4021 must make a premium filing each year. The due dates are
described in the “When to File” section.
Electronic filing is mandatory for all plans. My Plan Administration Account (My PAA) is a secure Web-based
application that enables pension plan professionals to electronically submit premium filings to PBGC in
accordance with PBGC’s regulations. Electronic filings may be prepared using My PAA’s data entry screens or
with compatible private-sector software. See “How to File” section for more information. For more information
on e-filing options, see Appendix 3.
This document provides information for plans paying premiums for plan years beginning in 2018, including
instructions for each data element that must be reported.
Plan years beginning before 2018
If you are filing for a previous year or amending a filing for a previous year, you must follow the instructions for
that year (available from the “Premium Payment Instructions and Addresses” webpage). However, because
contact information and information about electronic funds transfers change periodically, the most recent
information should be used instead of the information included in an instructions booklet for a prior plan year.
Defined terms
Appendix 1 provides definitions for terminology used this document. In general, the defined terms are
capitalized to signal the reader to refer to Appendix 1 for more information. The convention of capitalizing the
defined terms is not followed for a few defined terms such as “participant,” “we,” “you,” and “your.”
What’s New
The filing requirements for 2018 are almost identical to the filing requirements for 2017. Here are the key
changes to note for 2018:


Changes in single-employer premium rates:
– The flat-rate premium is $74 per-participant, up from $69; the variable-rate premium is $38 per $1,000 of
unfunded vested benefits capped at $523 times the number of participants, up from $34 capped at $517
times the number of participants.
The flat-rate premium for Multiemployer plans remains at $28 per-participant.



We expanded the examples in the section about how to determine premiums in a year when a plan is
involved with a Spinoff, Merger or Consolidation.



We expanded the section about short plan years to provide additional information for plans expecting to
distribute assets during the 2018 plan year pursuant to a standard termination.



We added a list of common filing errors (see next page) and provided details about those errors in a new
Appendix.
Page 1

Introduction and What’s New

Changes to payment instructions
Instructions about where and how to send premium payments (both electronically and by U.S.
mail) were recently changed (as of the date these instructions were posted, the most recent
change took place in 2016, but we expect additional changes in 2018). Examples of things that
may change include:


The mailing addresses for paper checks (both for U.S. Mail for other delivery services);



The wire transfer instructions for electronic payments initiated with your financial institution
(ACH or Fedwire); and



The PBGC Company ID that must be provided to your financial institution if your account has
an ACH Debit Block. This affects both payments made within My PAA and payments made
via the pay.gov website.

Because the payment instructions are always subject to change, we encourage you to review our
“Premium Payment Instructions and Addresses” webpage each year before sending payment.
Payments not received timely because they sent were sent to outdated addresses or because of
a debit block may be subject to late payment charges.

Common filing errors


Incorrect Identifying Information



Sending Payment without Properly Identifying Plan



New Plans Failing to do a First Year Filing



Small Plan Lookback Rule Inconsistencies

Appendix 4 provides detailed information about these errors.

Page 2

Who Must File
All Covered Plans Must File
The Plan Administrator of each pension plan covered under ERISA section 4021 is required to annually file the
prescribed premium information and pay the premium due in accordance with PBGC’s Premium Regulations and
instructions.
Most private-sector defined benefit plans that meet tax qualification requirements are covered. If you are
uncertain whether your plan is covered, you should promptly request a coverage determination. Note that a
request for a coverage determination does not extend the due date for any premium that is finally determined
to be due.
If your plan is covered, you must make a premium filing even if no premium is owed.
Short Plan Years
Premium filings are required for short plan years regardless of the reason why the plan year covers fewer than
12 full months. Unless the plan qualifies for premium pro-ration (see below), a full year’s premium is owed for a
short plan year.
Premium proration

In some cases, plans qualify to pay a prorated premium for a short plan year. For example, if a short plan year
covers nine months (i.e., 75% of a full year) and the plan is eligible for premium proration, the calculated
premium would be reduced by 25%.
Premiums are not pro-rated for short plan years created as the result of a mid-year Merger or Consolidation. In
other words, if a plan ceases to exist during the plan year because all if its assets and liabilities are transferred to
another PBGC-insured plan, a full year’s premium is owed for the final plan year of the plan ceasing to exist.
Premiums are pro-rated for short plan years if that short plan year:
 Is the first year of a New Plan;
 Is created by:

an amendment that changes the plan year 1;

distribution of plan assets pursuant to plan termination; or

the appointment of a trustee for a Single-employer Plan under ERISA section 4042.

 Includes a portion of time in which the plan was not covered by PBGC, unless such period of non-coverage

began after the first day of the plan year 2 .
1F

Note that the short year need not have ended by the time you pay a prorated premium, but if the plan year
turns out to be longer than you anticipated, you will have to make up any premium underpayment, which will be
subject to interest and penalties. This happens fairly regularly with respect to plans that are expecting to
distribute plan assets pursuant to a standard plan termination near the end of the year because it often takes
longer than expected to complete the distribution.

1
2

An amendment is not considered to change the plan year if the plan merges into or consolidates with another plan or otherwise ceases

its independent existence either during the short plan year or at the beginning of the full plan year following the short plan year.
A Newly Covered Plan with a coverage date after the first day of the Premium Payment Year qualifies to pay a prorated premium. A
plan that ceases to be a covered plan before the end of the plan year does not qualify for proration.

Page 3

Who Must File
Alternate approach for plans anticipating a final distribution of assets
To avoid the possibility of late payment charges arising if the final distribution takes longer than expected, if you
are anticipating a short final plan year as the result of distribution of plan assets pursuant to a standard plan
termination, but the distribution hasn’t been completed by the premium due date, you may file without regard
to the anticipated short plan year. With this approach, you would:


Report that the premium filing is for the full plan year



Not report that the premium filing is the final filing for the plan



Pay the entire premium, without proration and without regard to the Variable-rate Premium exception for
plans distributing assets during the plan year (For information about exemption, see instructions for line 7c
in the “Description of Data Elements” section)

With this approach, it will not be necessary to amend the premium filing if it turns out the distributions are
completed before year end. Rather, after Form 501 (Post-Distribution Certification) is processed, PBGC will
automatically prorate the premium, apply the Variable-rate premium exemption and close out the premium
account. Any overpayment will be available for refund. The refund can be requested via email or in MyPAA.

Page 4

Who Must File
One Plan or More Than One?
If several unrelated employers participate in a program of benefits wherein the funds attributable to each
employer are available to pay benefits to all participants, then there is a single Multiemployer or Multipleemployer Plan and the Plan Administrator must file and pay premiums for the plan as a whole. Separate filings
and premiums cannot be submitted for each individual employer.
If several employers participate in a program of benefits wherein the funds attributable to each employer are
available only to pay benefits to that employer’s employees, then there are several plans (one for each
employer) and the Plan Administrator must file and pay premiums separately for the plan of each individual
employer.
If separate plans are maintained for different groups of employees, regardless of whether each is maintained by
the same employer or by employers that are part of the same controlled group, then the Plan Administrator(s)
must file and pay premiums separately for each plan.
When Filing Obligation Ceases
You must continue to make premium filings and pay premiums through and including the plan year in which any
of the following occurs:


Plan assets are distributed in satisfaction of all Benefit Liabilities pursuant to the plan’s termination.



A trustee is appointed for the plan under ERISA section 4042.



The plan disappears by transferring all its assets and liabilities to one or more other plans in a Merger or
Consolidation.



The plan ceases to be a covered plan under ERISA section 4021.

The following examples illustrate when the filing obligation ceases:
Example 1 – A calendar-year plan terminates in a standard termination with a termination date of September
29, 2017. On April 6, 2018, assets are distributed in satisfaction of all Benefit Liabilities. The Plan Administrator
must file and make the premium payments for the 2017 and 2018 plan years. There is also an obligation to file a
post-distribution certification (Form 501) as part the standard termination process. See § 4041.29 for additional
information.
Example 2 – A plan with a plan year beginning July 1 and ending June 30 terminates in a distress termination
with a termination date of April 27, 2018. On July 6, 2018, a trustee is appointed to administer the plan under
ERISA section 4042. Premium filings and payments must be made for this plan for both the 2017 and 2018 plan
years, because a trustee was not appointed until after the beginning of the 2018 plan year.

Page 5

When to File
Introduction
This section describes when premium filings are due. A filing includes both the submission of required data and
the payment of any required premium. In general, if a filing is not made by the due date, late payment charges
will apply. Late payment charges include both interest charges and penalty charges. See “Late Payment Charges”
section for more information on the ramifications of missing a deadline.
Normal Premium Due Date
The Normal Premium Due Date applies unless:


The plan is a New or Newly Covered Plan (including plans created as the result of a mid-year spinoff from
another plan),



The plan year changed since last year, or



All assets are distributed during the Premium Payment Year pursuant to a standard termination.

The Normal Premium Due Date is the 15th day of the 10th full calendar month in the plan year (e.g., generally
October 15th for calendar-year plans). 3 If the Normal Premium Due Date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or Federal
Holiday 4, the due date is automatically extended to the next business day 5.
2F

The following table shows the Normal Premium Due Dates for plan years beginning in 2018:
2018 Normal Premium Due Dates

4
5

Premium Payment
Year Begins

Normal Premium
Due Date

Premium Payment
Year Begins

Normal Premium
Due Date

1/1/2018

10/15/2018

1/2 - 2/1/2018

11/15/2018

7/02 - 8/1/2018

5/15/2019

2/2 - 3/1/2018

12/17/2018*

8/2 - 9/1/2018

6/17/2019*

3/2 - 4/1/2018

1/15/2019

9/2 - 10/1/2018

7/15/2019

4/2 - 5/1/2018

2/15/2019

10/2 - 11/1/2018

8/15/2019

5/2 - 6/1/2018

3/15/2019

11/2 - 12/1/2018

9/16/2019*

6/2 - 7/1/2018

4/15/2019

12/2 - 12/31/2018

10/15/2019

The actual due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or Federal Holiday, so the date shown above is the
first business day following the actual due date.

The due date is the 15th day of the 10th full calendar month that begins on or after the first day of the Premium Payment Year. In
situations involving a short plan year, this due date may not be “in the plan year.”
This extension does not apply to state or local holidays such as Patriots Day in Massachusetts or Emancipation day in the District of
Columbia.
See “Late Payment Charges” section for information on how late charges are determined if payment is made after an automatically
extended due date.

Page 6

When to File
Due Date for Special Situations
In the situations noted below, premiums may be due on a date other than the Normal Premium Due Date:


The plan is a New or Newly Covered Plan,



The plan year changed since last year, or



All assets are distributed during the Premium Payment Year pursuant to a standard termination.

The due dates for these situations are described below. For all of these situations, if the adjusted due date falls
on a Saturday, Sunday or Federal Holiday, the due date is automatically extended to the next business day.
New and Newly Covered Plans
In some cases, these first time filers cannot have their filings ready by the Normal Due Date. For example,
consider a calendar year plan that is adopted November 1st with an effective date retroactive to January 1.
Because the plan was adopted after the Normal Premium Due Date (October 15th), a later due date is warranted.
This rule applies even if the New Plan was created as the result of a mid-year spinoff from another plan.
To accommodate such plans, the due date for New and Newly Covered Plans is the latest of:


The Normal Due Date,



90 days after the date of the plan’s adoption,



90 days after the date on which the plan became covered by Title IV of ERISA, or



In the case of a Small Plan that is also a Continuation Plan, 90 days after the UVB Valuation Date.

These rules are illustrated in the following examples:
Example 1 – Plan B, a calendar-year plan was adopted August 1, 2018 with a retroactive effective date of
January 1, 2018. Plan B is not a Continuation Plan or a Small Plan. The due date for Plan B’s first premium filing
is October 30, 2018 (90 days after August 1, 2018) because that date is later than the Normal Premium Due Date
(October 15, 2018).
Example 2 – The situation for Plan C is identical to Plan B (see Example 2) except that the plan was adopted one
month earlier, July 1, 2018. The due date for Plan C’s first premium filing is October 15, 2018, the Normal
Premium Due Date because that date is later than 90 days after the adoption date.
Example 3 – A professional service employer maintains Plan D, a calendar plan year plan. From plan inception
through September 30, 2018, Plan D never had more than 25 active participants, and was not a covered plan
under ERISA section 4021. On October 1, 2018, a few employees were hired and became covered by the plan
resulting in a total active participant count of 26 and therefore, the plan became a covered plan on that date.
Plan D will continue to be a covered plan regardless of how many active participants the plan has in the future.
Note that the Premium Payment Year begins on January 1, 2018, even though the plan did not become covered
until after that date. The due date for the plan’s first premium filing is December 31, 2018 (90 days after
October 1, 2018 is a Sunday; December 31 is the first business day) because the date is later than the Normal
Premium Due Date (October 15, 2018).
See “Spinoffs, Mergers, and Consolidations” section for additional examples of how these types of transactions
affect due dates.

Page 7

When to File
Plans Changing Plan Years
For a plan that changes its plan year, the filing due dates for the short year are unaffected by the change in plan
year. However, for the first plan year under the new cycle, the due date is whichever is later:


The Normal Premium Due Date, or



30 days following the date on which a plan amendment changing the plan year was adopted.

The following examples show the due dates for plans changing plan years:
Example 1 – By plan amendment adopted on December 1, 2018, a plan changes from a plan year beginning
January 1 to a plan year beginning June 1. This results in a short plan year beginning January 1, 2018, and ending
May 31, 2018. Premiums for the short plan year are due October 15, 2018, the Normal Premium Due Date.
For the plan year beginning June 1, 2018, the premiums are due by the Normal Premium Due Date (March 15,
2019) because that is later than 30 days after the date the plan amendment changing the plan year was adopted
(December 31, 2018).
Example 2 – By plan amendment adopted on January 6, 2019, and made retroactively effective to April 1, 2018,
a plan changes from a plan year beginning on March 1 to a plan year beginning on April 1. For the March 1, 2018
- March 31, 2018 short plan year, the premium is due December 17, 2018. For the new plan year beginning April
1, 2018, the due date is 30 days after the adoption of the plan amendment changing the plan year (February 5,
2019) because that is later than the Normal Premium Due Date (January 15, 2019).
Assets Distributed Pursuant to a Standard Termination
For the Premium Payment Year in which all plan assets are distributed pursuant to standard termination, it’s
possible that the employer will be out of business or plan records and personnel will not be available by the
Normal Premium Due Date. To streamline the final premium payment with the other activities related to a
standard termination, the due date for a plan in this situation is the earlier of:


The Normal Premium Due Date (i.e., the date premiums would have been due had the plan not been
terminated), or



The date when the post-distribution certification 6 is filed with us.
5F

Disaster Relief
When the Internal Revenue Service provides relief to taxpayers that are unable to meet the filing deadline as a
result of a major disaster (e.g., a hurricane), PBGC also provides relief to affected plans. See the applicable
guidance PBGC’s Disaster Relief webpage for information on what relief has been granted, how to determine if
your plan is eligible for this relief, and how to claim the relief.
Additional Information
You can find detailed rules about filing due dates in PBGC’s premium payment regulation (29 CFR Part 4007).

The post-distribution certification (Form 501) is a document required to be submitted to PBGC as part the standard termination process
See § 4041.29 for additional information.

Page 8

How to File
General
To make a complete premium filing, you must report certain required data and submit any required premium
payment by completing and submitting a comprehensive premium filing.
A list of the data that must be reported is included in the “Data to be Submitted” section. For simplicity, the
required data elements are shown in a traditional “form” format. The purpose of the “form” is to provide a
comprehensive list of data that must be submitted electronically. These instructions are written as if they
related to the illustrative form (see “Description of Data Elements” section). The “form” is for illustrative
purposes only.
Filing Method
Premium filings are submitted electronically through PBGC’s e-filing application, My Plan Administration
Account (My PAA).
You may prepare the filing directly using My PAA’s data entry screens. Alternatively, you may use approved
private-sector software to prepare a filing and then “import” the data into My PAA’s editing screens or “upload”
the filing via My PAA. Approved private- sector software is able to place your filing in an electronic file in an
“XML” format that meets PBGC specifications.
Depending on how you choose to prepare electronic filings (My PAA data entry screens or private-sector
software), the order in which the questions are asked may differ from the order shown on the forms. In
addition, in some cases, the software may perform certain calculations instead of requiring that you manually
enter each required data element.
Appendix 3 provides an introduction to My PAA. The “Online Premium Filing (My PAA)” section of PBGC’s
website provides detailed, and often more up to date, information about My PAA.
Paying Premiums
Although e-filing of premium information through My PAA is mandatory, premium payments may be made
either within My PAA or outside of My PAA. If you choose to pay within My PAA, you may pay by an electronic
funds transfer using Automated Clearing House (ACH). If you pay outside of My PAA, you may pay by
electronic funds transfer (ACH or Fedwire), paper check or on-line via www.pay.gov. Pay.gov is a free, and userfriendly Federal website from which you can make secure electronic payments directly to many Federal
Agencies, including PBGC. We recommend using Pay.gov to minimize the potential for errors (e.g., incorrect
account numbers).
Note re: debit blocks - If you are sending payment electronically, be sure to provide the PBGC Company ID to
your financial institution before you submit your payment so they may authorize PBGC to debit your account.
Without this authorization, your financial institution may reject the processing of your payment. A debit block is
the most common reason for failed ACH payments, and the most common reason late premium payment
penalties are assessed.
Currently, PBGC has two Company ID numbers, one for payments made within My PAA, and one for payments
made outside of My PAA. Please refer to the payment instructions in My PAA or on PBGC.gov for up to date
information.
Additional information on payment options is included in Appendix 3.
Page 9

How to Count Participants
General
Plan participants must be counted because Flat-rate Premiums are based on the number of participants, as are
both caps on the Variable-rate Premium (MAP-21 Cap and Small Employer Cap). In addition, the number of
participants affects whether variable-rate premiums are based on current or prior (i.e., “lookback”) year
measurements. The date on which participants are counted is called the “Participant Count Date.”
Participant Count Date
The Participant Count Date is the last day of the plan year preceding the Premium Payment Year except as
follows:


If the plan is a New Plan, the Participant Count Date is the first day of the Premium Payment Year (i.e., the
effective date).



If the plan is a Newly Covered Plan, the Participant Count Date is the first day of the Premium Payment Year.
This is the case even if the plan wasn’t covered under ERISA section 4021 on that date.



If the plan is the Transferee Plan in a Merger (i.e., the continuing plan) or the Transferor Plan in a Spinoff
and the transaction meets the conditions described below, the Participant Count Date is the first day of the
Premium Payment Year. A plan Merger or Spinoff is covered by this rule if:
-

a Merger is effective on the first day of the Transferee Plan’s premium payment year, or a Spinoff is
effective on the first day of the Transferor Plan’s premium payment year, and

the Merger or Spinoff is not de minimis, as defined in the regulations under section 414(l) of the Code
with respect to Single-employer Plans, or in PBGC’s regulation under ERISA section 4231 (29 CFR Part
4231) with respect to Multiemployer Plans.

The following examples illustrate the determination of the Participant Count Date.
Example 1 – An ongoing plan changes its plan year from a calendar year to a plan year that begins June 1,
effective June 1, 2018. The Participant Count Date for the:


January 1, 2018 – May 31, 2018 plan year is December 31, 2017,



June 1, 2018 – May 31, 2019 plan year is May 31, 2018.

Example 2 – A new calendar-year plan is adopted February 18, 2018, retroactively effective as of January 1,
2018. The Participant Count Date is January 1, 2018.
Example 3 – A new calendar-year plan is adopted January 1, 2018, effective April 1, 2018. The Participant Count
Date is April 1, 2018.
Example 4 – A calendar-year plan that was not a covered plan under ERISA section 4021 becomes covered on
May 31, 2018. The first day of the Premium Payment Year is January 1, 2018, and the Participant Count Date is
January 1, 2018.
See “Spinoffs, Mergers, and Consolidations” section for additional examples of how these types of transactions
affect the Participant Count Date.

Page 10

How to Count Participants
Participant
For premium purposes, “participant” means an individual (whether active, inactive, retired, or deceased) with
respect to whom the plan has Benefit Liabilities as of the Participant Count Date. Beneficiaries and alternate
payees are not counted as participants. However, a deceased participant will continue to be counted as a
participant if there are one or more beneficiaries or alternate payees who are receiving or have a right to receive
benefits earned by the participant.
An individual is not counted as a participant after all Benefit Liabilities with respect to the individual are
distributed through the purchase of irrevocable commitments from an insurer or otherwise. In addition, a nonvested individual is not counted as a participant after:


A deemed “zero-dollar cashout,”



A one-year break in service under plan rules, or



Death.

Cashouts
If the plan has a separate cashout provision for zero benefits, terminated non-vested participants are deemed to
be cashed out as of the date specified in the deemed cashout provision or, if no date is specified, as of the
employment termination date. If the plan provides that zero benefit amounts will be deemed to be paid as soon
as possible, terminated non-vested participants will also be deemed to be cashed out as of the employment
termination date.
If the plan does not have a separate cashout provision for zero benefits, but does have a mandatory cashout of
small benefit amounts (e.g., benefits $5,000 or less), terminated non-vested participants are deemed to be
cashed out in the same manner as terminated vested participants. If the plan is silent as to the timing of actual
cashouts of terminated vested participants, the plan is deemed to read “as soon as practicable” and the
terminated non-vested participants are deemed to be cashed out immediately upon termination of
employment. If the plan specifies a date as of which actual cashouts of terminated vested participants take place
(e.g., on the first day of the next month), that rule would also apply to deemed cashouts of terminated nonvested participants. These rules do not apply if, despite plan language, the plan has an obvious pattern or
practice of delaying distributions for long periods.
Example – Suppose a calendar-year plan provides that if a participant terminates employment and the
participant’s vested benefit has a value of $5,000 or less, the plan will pay the vested benefit to the participant
in a lump sum as of the first of the month following termination of employment. Suppose further that no plan
provisions specifically address payment of benefits upon termination of employment by non-vested participants.
If a participant with a non-vested accrued benefit terminates employment on December 15, 2017, the
participant will be included in the Participant Count as of December 31, 2017 (because the cashout is deemed to
occur on January 1, 2018, the first of the month following termination of employment). If, as is typically the case
for a calendar-year plan, the plan’s Participant Count Date for 2018 is December 31, 2017, a Flat-rate Premium
must be paid for this participant for 2018.

Page 11

How to Count Participants
Breaks in Service
A non-vested individual ceases to be a participant for premium purposes when the individual incurs a one-year
break in service under the plan.
If the break in service occurs in a service computation period that coincides with the plan year preceding the
Premium Payment Year, we treat the individual as not being a participant for purposes of determining the
premium for the Premium Payment Year.
Example 1 – A calendar-year plan with five-year vesting provides that a participant who performs 500 or fewer
hours of service in a service computation period incurs a one-year break in service as of the last day of the
computation period. The plan also provides that the annual service computation period begins on the
anniversary of a participant’s date of hire. Consider an employee who was hired on December 1, 2011, and
terminates employment on February 1, 2017. Further assume that this participant does not perform more than
500 hours of service during the December 1, 2015 – November 30, 2017 computation period. This participant
incurs a one-year break in service on November 30, 2017. Since the break occurred before December 31, 2017
(the Participant Count Date for the 2018 premium), the individual would not be included in the Participant
Count for 2018.
Example 2 – A calendar-year plan provides that a participant who performs 500 or fewer hours of service in a
service computation period incurs a one-year break in service as of the last day of the computation period. The
plan also provides that the annual service computation period is the calendar year. Consider a non-vested
employee who does not perform more than 500 hours of service during the 2017 calendar-year computation
period. This participant incurs a one-year break in service on December 31, 2017. Although the break occurs on
the Participant Count Date for the 2018 premium, the individual would not be included in the Participant Count
for 2018.
Comparison to Form 5500
The Participant Count for the Premium Payment Year and the number of participants reported for item 6 of
Form 5500 for the plan year preceding the Premium Payment Year (e.g., the 2018 premium filing and the 2017
Form 5500) are generally determined as of the same date (i.e., the last day of the plan year preceding the
Premium Payment Year). However, the two counts may differ. For example:


For premium purposes, individuals who are earning or retaining credited service but with respect to whom a
plan has no Benefit Liabilities are not counted as participants. But individuals who are earning or retaining
credited service are considered to be participants for purposes of item 6 of the Form 5500, even if the plan
has no Benefit Liabilities with respect to them.



There is a difference in the break-in-service rules that apply when counting participants for premium
purposes and for purposes of item 6 of Form 5500. For purposes of item 6 of Form 5500, whether a nonvested individual is excluded from the count because of a break in service depends upon the plan language;
under the provisions of most plans, the instructions for item 6 would require that a separated non-vested
individual be counted as a participant until the individual has incurred five or more consecutive one-year
breaks in service. For premium purposes, on the other hand, a non-vested individual is excluded from the
count because of a break in service when the individual has incurred a one-year break in service under the
terms of the plan.

Page 12

How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits
General
“Unfunded vested benefits” (UVBs) is the term used to describe the underfunding measure on which the
Variable-rate Premium is based. For Variable-rate Premium purposes, unfunded vested benefits means
the excess, if any, of the Premium Funding Target, over the fair market value of plan assets. This section
describes how and when the Premium Funding Target and fair market value of plan assets are
determined for this calculation.
Which year’s UVBs
In general, Variable-rate Premiums are based on UVBs for the Premium Payment Year. However, Small
Plans are subject to a Lookback Rule, under which the Variable-rate Premium for the Premium Payment
Year is based on UVBs for the plan year preceding the Premium Payment Year - for example, under the
Lookback Rule, the 2018 Variable-rate Premium is based on UVBs for 2017 (the Lookback Year).
The lookback rule first applied for 2014 plan years. At that time Small Plans were given automatic
approval to permanently opt out of the Lookback Rule (i.e., to use current year UVBs to determine the
Variable-rate Premium). Most Small Plans chose to do so. Those plans must continue to use current
year UVBs to determine the Variable-rate Premium unless and until they seek and receive permission
from PBGC to start using the Lookback Rule in the future (or unless the plan ceases to be a Small Plan).
Information about how to seek such permission is covered later in this “Which year’s UVBs” section.
New and Newly Covered Small Plans
The Lookback Rule doesn’t apply to New and Newly Covered Small Plans because such plans don’t have
a covered prior year to look back to. So, special rules apply. If a New or Newly Covered Plan is Small
and:


Was created as the result of a non de minimis Spinoff 7 or Consolidation (i.e., “Continuation Plans”),
the Variable-rate Premium for the Premium Payment Year is based on UVBs for that same year.
These plans do, however, get more time to complete their filings (see “When to File” section).



Is not a Continuation Plan, the plan is exempt from the Variable-rate Premium for its first year of
filing. Note that such a plan could be either a newly established plan or a plan resulting from a
de minimis Spinoff. The exception applies in either case.

These plans will be permitted to opt out of using the Lookback Rule without first seeking PBGC
permission, the first time the Lookback Rule would otherwise apply.
Opting out of the Lookback Rule Starting with 2018


Not the first opportunity to opt out - If a Plan had the opportunity to opt out of the Lookback Rule in
the past but chose not to, PBGC permission is required to opt out for 2018. See next page for
information on how to seek such permission.



First opportunity to opt out - If the 2018 plan year is the first year for which a plan has the
opportunity to opt out of the Lookback Rule, the plan may do so without first seeking permission
from PBGC. For example, permission to opt out is not required if:
–

The plan was not a Small Plan for any year after 2014, but because of a decrease in Participant
Count, is Small Plan for 2018;

See the regulations under section 414(l) of the Code with respect to Single-employer Plans.

Page 13

How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits
–

The plan was a New or Newly Covered Small Plan that was also a Continuation Plan for 2017 and
was thus, required to use current year UVBs to determine its 2017 Variable-rate Premium;

–

The plan did not have to calculate nor report UVBs for any year after 2014 because it was
exempt from the VRP or eligible for the Small-employer Cap and chose to pay the cap and not
report UVBs.

Small Plans reporting UVBs for the first time are cautioned to be careful to ensure the data reported
in the Variable-rate Premium section of the filing are entered correctly because if the reported UVB
Valuation Date 8 is within the Premium Payment Year, we will expect all future filings to be
completed using current year UVBs to determine the Variable-rate Premium.
7F

Note for small plans with year-end valuation dates – It is not practical for a small plan with a
year-end valuation date to opt out of the Lookback Rule. For example, consider a small plan with a
calendar year plan year. Opting out of the Lookback Rule would mean measuring UVBs on
December31st, two and half months after the October 15th due date.
Requesting permission to use (or not use) the Lookback Rule
As noted above, PBGC permission is required if:


a small plan that had the opportunity to opt out of the Lookback Rule in the past but chose not to,
wants to opt out starting with 2018, or



a small plan that opted out of using the Lookback Rule in the past, wants to start using the Lookback
Rule starting with 2018.

In either case, to request permission, send an email with “Request re: Lookback Rule” in the subject line
to premiums@pbgc.gov at least 60 days before the due date. In the email, you must identify the plan
and explain the reason the plan wants to change its previously established process for determining
UVBs. PBGC will reply to acknowledge receipt of such requests. If you do not receive an
acknowledgement within two business days, please call PBGC at 1 (800) 736-2444 to confirm that your
request was received.
PBGC will review such requests based on the facts and circumstances and will grant such requests only
for good cause in appropriate circumstances. PBGC will not grant requests made solely to reduce
premiums.
If you do not receive a determination within 30 days of making the request, please call us at the 800
number shown above, as you will need the determination to make a timely premium filing.
Measurement date
Unfunded Vested Benefits are measured on the funding valuation date (i.e., the measurement date for
determining the minimum required contribution) for the applicable plan year (i.e., either the Premium
Payment Year or the Lookback Year, depending on whether the Lookback Rule applies). Regardless of
whether the Lookback Rule applies, this date is called the UVB Valuation Date to distinguish it from the
Participant Count Date (see “How to Count Participants” section).
So, for plans using the Lookback Rule, the UVB Valuation Date is the valuation date used to determine
the minimum required contribution (i.e., “the funding valuation date”) for the Lookback Year. For all
other plans, the UVB Valuation Date is the funding valuation date for the Premium Payment Year.
8

See (line (7)(c)(3) of the illustrative form in the “Data to be submitted” section.

Page 14

How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits
Examples
The following examples illustrate these rules:
Example 1 – Plan A, a calendar year plan, is not a Small Plan and therefore, in accordance with ERISA 303
must have a beginning of year valuation date. Plan A’s Variable-Rate Premium for 2018 is based on
UVBs for 2018 (i.e., the Premium Payment Year) measured as of 1/1/2018. This result is not dependent
on whether the plan is a Continuation Plan.
Example 2 – Plan B is a pre-existing Small Plan and is therefore is subject to the Lookback Rule. Plan B
has a calendar year plan year and a beginning of year valuation date. Plan B did not submit a request a
PBGC regarding the Lookback Rule. If Plan B did not opt out of the Lookback Rule for 2017, its Variablerate Premium for 2018 is based on UVBs for the plan year beginning in 2017 measured as of 1/1/2017.
If Plan B opted out of the Lookback Rule for 2017, its Variable-rate Premium for 2018 is based on UVBs
for the plan year beginning in 2018 measured as of 1/1/2018.
Example 3 – Plan C is a New Small Plan with a calendar year plan year and a beginning of year valuation
date. Plan C was created as the result of a non de minimis Spin-off on 1/1/2017 and is therefore
considered a Continuation Plan for 2017. As a Continuation Plan, Plan C is not subject to the Lookback
Rule for 2017 (because there is no prior year to look back to). That means UVBs are measured as
1/1/2017 9.
8F

Example 4 – Plan D is a pre-existing Plan which has a calendar year plan year and a beginning of year
valuation date. Plan D had a participant count of 102 for 2017, but due to attrition, its 2018 participant
count is 98. Thus, Plan D is now subject to the Lookback Rule. That means Plan D’s Variable-rate
Premium for 2018 is based on UVBs for the plan year beginning in 2017 (i.e., the “Lookback Year”
measured as of 1/1/2017), the same UVBs that were used to determine the 2017 VRP. Alternatively,
Plan D may opt out of the Lookback Rule, in which case, its Variable-rate Premium for 2018 will be based
on UVBs for the plan year beginning in 2018 measured as of 1/1/2018.
Premium Funding Target
The Premium Funding Target is the liability measure underlying the UVB calculation. It is determined the
same way the funding target is determined under ERISA section 303 (minimum funding requirements)
except that only vested benefits are included, and a special premium discount rate structure is used.
With the exception of the discount rate, all other assumptions must be identical to those used to
determine the minimum required contribution under ERISA section 303. In lieu of using the special
premium discount rates, you may make an election (irrevocable for five years) to use smoothed
discount rates, similar to, and in some cases identical to, the rates used to determine the minimum
required contribution. Different terminology is used to describe the Premium Funding Target depending
on whether this election is in effect.


Standard Premium Funding Target – This term describes the Premium Funding Target that applies
unless the above-noted election is in effect. The discount rates used to determine the Standard
Premium Funding Target are the ERISA section 4006(a)(3)(E)(iv)) segment rates for:
-

In the case of a Small Plan using the Lookback Rule, the month before the month in which the
Lookback Year begins.

Assuming the participant count remains below 100, Plan D will be subject to the Lookback Rule for 2018. That means that Plan
D’s Variable-rate Premium for 2018 will also be based on UVBs for 2017 measured as of 1/1/2017. But, Plan D can opt out of
the Lookback Rule starting with 2018.

Page 15

How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits
-

In the case of any other plan, the month before the month in which the Premium Payment Year
begins.

The ERISA section 4006(a)(3)(E)(iv) segment rates are based on the same bond yields as used to
determine the segment rates for the ERISA section 303 funding target. However, unlike ERISA 303
segment rates which are averaged over 24 months, the segment rates used to determine the
Standard Premium Funding Target are not averaged. These “spot” segment rates are published by
IRS each month and are also posted on the “Interest Rates and Factors” section of the Practitioners
Page on PBGC’s website.


Alternative Premium Funding Target – This term describes the Premium Funding Target if the
election described above is in effect. The Alternative Premium Funding Target is determined using
the discount rates that would have been used to determine the ERISA section 303 funding target 10
for the Premium Payment Year (or, for a plan using the Lookback Rule, the Lookback Year) if not for
the Interest Rate Stabilization Rules. Thus, if an election is made under:
9F

ERISA section 303(h)(2)(D)(ii) to use the full yield curve instead of the three segment rates for
purposes of determining the minimum required contribution, that same yield curve is used to
determine the Alternative Premium Funding Target; or

ERISA section 303(h)(2)(E) to use one of the four months preceding the valuation date as the
“applicable month,” instead of the month containing the valuation date, for determining which
month’s rates to use, that same month’s rates, determined without regard to the Interest Rate
Stabilization Rules, are used to determine the Alternative Premium Funding Target.

Until an election is officially revoked, it remains in place. An election to use the Alternative Premium
Funding Target cannot be revoked for five calendar years. Similarly, once an election is revoked, the
plan cannot make another election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target for five full years.
The following example illustrates the rules on making and revoking an election to use the Alternative
Premium Funding Target.
Example – Plan A first makes an election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target for a plan year
that begins on April 1, 2018. In this case, the Alternative Premium Funding Target must be used to
determine unfunded vested benefits for all plan years beginning before April 1, 2023. The plan may
revoke the election first effective for any plan year beginning on or after April 1, 2023, but unless the
election is revoked, it will remain in place.
This is the case even if the plan year subsequently changes. For example, if the plan year is changed to
the calendar year first effective January 1, 2023, the Alternative Premium Funding Target must be used
for the short plan year April 1, 2022 – December 31, 2022 and for the January 1, 2023 – December 31,
2023 plan year. The first plan year for which the Plan Administrator may revoke the election is the 2024
plan year.

Note that this will not be the case if the plan is not yet subject to PPA for funding purposes, or if an election is made under
PPA 2006 section 402, to use an 8.25% discount rate to determine the funding target for funding purposes. See “Plans Subject
to Special Funding Rules” later in this section.

Page 16

How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits
The election (or revocation) must be made by the premium filing due date. An election to use (or
revoke) the Alternative Premium Funding Target is made as part of the comprehensive premium filing. If
an election (or revocation) is not made as part of the comprehensive filing, it may be made as part of an
amended filing only if the amended filing is made on or before the due date.
Vested Benefits
Only vested benefits are taken into account when determining the Premium Funding Target. For this
purpose, a benefit does not fail to be considered vested solely because it is not protected under Code
section 411(d)(6) and thus may be eliminated or reduced by the adoption of a plan amendment or by
the occurrence of a condition or event. Such a benefit is vested for premium purposes (if the other
requirements for vesting have been met) so long as the benefit has not actually been eliminated or
reduced. In addition, certain benefits payable upon a participant’s death do not fail to be considered
vested solely because the participant is still living. The benefits to which this rule applies are a qualified
pre-retirement survivor annuity (QPSA), a post-retirement survivor annuity such as the annuity paid
after a participant’s death under a joint-and-survivor or certain-and-continuous option, and a benefit
that returns a participant’s accumulated mandatory employee contributions.
Also, a participant’s pre-retirement lump-sum death benefit (other than a benefit that returns
accumulated mandatory employee contributions or a QPSA paid as a lump sum) is not vested if the
participant is living. Similarly, a disability benefit is not vested if the participant is not disabled. The
following examples illustrate these concepts:
Example 1 – Under Plan A, if a participant retires at or after age 55 but before age 62, the participant
receives a temporary supplement from retirement until age 62. The supplement is not a qualified social
security supplement (QSUPP) as defined in Treasury Reg. §1.401(a)(4)-12, and is not protected under
Code section 411(d)(6). The temporary supplement is considered vested, and its value is included in the
premium funding target, for each participant who, on the UVB Valuation Date, is at least 55 but less
than 62, and thus eligible for the supplement. The calculation is unaffected by the fact that the plan
could be amended to remove the supplement after the UVB Valuation Date.
Example 2 – Plan B provides a QPSA upon the death of a participant who has five years of service, at no
charge to the participant. The QPSA is considered vested, and its value is included in the premium
funding target, for each participant who, on the UVB Valuation Date, has five years of service and is thus
eligible for the QPSA. The calculation is unaffected by the fact that the participant is alive on that date.
Estimated Premium Funding Target
If the Premium Funding Target is not known by the due date, an estimated Variable-rate Premium may
be paid on the due date. Doing so triggers a requirement to submit an amended filing at a later date to
reconcile the actual Variable-rate Premium with the estimate. In the event the actual Variable-rate
Premium is greater than the estimate, penalties for late payment will be waived if the estimate meets
certain criteria and the reconciliation filing is made by the end of the sixth calendar month that begins
on or after the premium filing due date (generally April 30th after year end for calendar year plans). For
additional information, see “Automatic Penalty Waiver for Certain Late Variable-Rate Premiums” in the
“Late Payment Charges” section.

Page 17

How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits
Fair Market Value of Plan Assets
The asset measure underlying the UVB calculation is determined the same way assets are determined
under ERISA section 303 except without regard to any averaging method. For premium purposes, the
market value of assets is measured on the UVB Valuation Date and adjusted to account for contribution
receipts using the same methodology as is used for funding purposes.
Adjustments for prior year contributions
If contributions for the plan year prior to the Premium Payment Year (or, in the case of a plan using the
Lookback Rule, the plan year preceding the Lookback Year) are made after the UVB Valuation Date, the
market value is increased to reflect the value of such contributions discounted to the UVB Valuation
Date. The discount rate for this purpose is the ERISA section 303(h)(2)(A) effective interest rate for the
plan year for which the contributions were made (as reported in item 5 of Schedule SB). For example,
consider a calendar year plan with a January 1, 2017 UVB valuation date.
Contributions made in 2018 for the 2017 plan year are included in the January 1, 2018 asset value.
Such contributions are discounted from the date made to January 1, 2018 using the 2017 effective
interest rate. Such contributions are included only to the extent made by the date of the premium filing.
Adjustments for current year contributions
If contributions for the Premium Payment Year (or, in the case of a plan using the Lookback Rule, the
Lookback Year), are made before the UVB Valuation Date, the market value is decreased to exclude the
adjusted value of these current year contributions. For this adjustment, such are increased to the UVB
Valuation Date using the ERISA section 303(h)(2)(A) effective interest rate for the plan year for which
they were made. This can happen only if the UVB Valuation Date is after the beginning of the plan year.
Comparison to asset value reported on Schedule SB
In the case of:
 a Small Plan using the Lookback Rule, the asset value reported is generally the same as the market

value of assets required to be reported in the Schedule SB for the Lookback Year (item 2a).

 any other plan, the asset value reported here is generally the same as the market value of assets

required to be reported in the Schedule SB for the Premium Payment Year (item 2a).

The amounts would differ only if a premium filing is made before the premium due date and prior year
contributions are made after the premium filing is made (and thus not included in assets).

Page 18

How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits
Summary
The following table summarizes the various dates and assumptions that are used to determine Variablerate premiums for 2018. Although Participant Count Date is not used to determine the Variable-rate
premium, it is included in the table so that all of the variables affecting premium calculations are
contained in one summary. Please review the column that relates to your plan.
Summary 11
10F

If Lookback Rule Applies

If Lookback Rule Does Not Apply

Standard Premium
Funding Target

Alternative Premium Funding
Target

Standard Premium
Funding Target

Alternative Premium
Funding Target

Last day of
2017 plan year

UVB Valuation
Date

Funding valuation
date for 2017

Funding valuation
date for 2018

Benefits reflected
in Premium
Funding Target

Vested portion of
benefits included in
2017 funding target

Vested portion of
benefits included in
2018 funding target

Spot segment rates for
month before 2017 plan
year begins

Whatever would have been
used for funding purposes for
2017 if Interest Rate
Stabilization Rules had not
applied 12

Spot segment rates for
month before 2018 plan
year begins

Whatever would be used
for funding purposes for
2018 if Interest Rate
Stabilization Rules did not
apply11

Participant Count
Date

Assumptions
• Discount rates

11 F

• All other
assumptions

Whatever was used
for funding purposes
for 2017

Whatever is used
for funding purposes
for 2018

At-risk status

Whatever status was
in effect for funding
purposes for 2017

Whatever status is
in effect for funding
purposes for 2018

• 4% of liability
portion of load

If the plan was at-risk for
2017 for funding
purposes, 4% of what
the Standard Premium
Funding Target would be
if the plan wasn’t at-risk.
Otherwise, N/A.

If the plan was at-risk for
2017 for funding
purposes, 4% of what
the Alternative Premium
Funding Target would be
if the plan wasn’t at-risk.
Otherwise, N/A.

If the plan is at-risk for
2018 for funding
purposes, 4% of what
the Standard Premium
Funding Target would be
if the plan wasn’t at-risk.
Otherwise, N/A.

If the plan is at-risk for
2018 for funding
purposes, 4% of what
the Alternative Premium
Funding Target would be
if the plan wasn’t at-risk.
Otherwise, N/A.

• Per-participant
portion of load

The same amount
included in the liability
for funding purposes
for 2017

The same amount
included in the liability
for funding purposes
for 2018

At-risk load

11
12

Table entries assume plan is not a New or Newly Covered Small Plan. The terms “funding” or “for funding purposes” in this table
mean amounts determined under ERISA Section 303. References to 2017 or 2018 relate to the plan year beginning in such year.
This is not the case for plan that are not subject to PPA for funding purposes or plans made elections under section 402 of PPA
which the funding target is determined using an 8.25% discount rate. See “Plans Subject to Special Funding Rules” on next page.

Page 19

How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits
Plans Subject to Special Funding Rules
Plans covered by any of the special funding rules listed below must determine UVBs in the same manner
(and using the same discount rate basis) as all other plans. This includes:
 The Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act, Public Law 113-97, dealing with

certain defined benefit pension plans maintained by more than one employer.

 Section of 402(b) of the Pension Protection Act of 2006, Public Law 109-280, dealing with certain

frozen plans of commercial passenger airlines and airline caterers.

In particular, under Section 402 of PPA 2006, certain plans may elect to use an 8.25% discount rate
for funding purposes and other plans may elect to use an 8.85% discount rate. These rates may not
be used to determine UVBs, even if the Alternative Premium Funding Target is elected.

Page 20

Spinoffs, Mergers and Consolidations
General
This section provides additional guidance for plans involved in a Spinoff, Merger, or Consolidation. Plans
considering any of these transactions are encouraged to read this section carefully before finalizing the
transaction because decisions that have little impact on funding requirements can have a significant
impact on the amount of premium due and the due date. For example, with respect to a non de minimis
Spinoff to a New Plan, the aggregate premium due for both plans will generally be less if the Spinoff
occurs at the beginning of the plan year. Also, when combining two plans, aggregate premium amounts
will differ depending on, for example, whether Plan A is merged into Plan B, Plan B is merged into Plan
A, or the two plans are consolidated into a New Plan C.
Note that as the result of one of these transactions, a plan could become a Small Plan for the first time
or cease to be a Small Plan. Filers are cautioned to review the Lookback Rule provisions in either of
these situations (See “How to Determine UVBs” section).
Information about Spinoffs, Mergers and Consolidations are reported by all PBGC-covered plans
involved in the transaction as part of the Comprehensive Premium Filing in items that request
information about “Transfers from other plans” and “Transfers to other plans”. See “Description of Data
Elements” section, items 14 and 15.
Spinoffs
A “Spinoff” is a transaction in which a plan (the Transferor Plan) transfers a portion of its assets and/or
liabilities to another plan (the Transferee Plan). The Transferee Plan may be a New Plan, created by the
Spinoff, or it may be a pre-existing plan.
If the Spinoff is not de minimis and the Transferee plan is a New Plan, it is, by definition, a Continuation
Plan. All of the special rules applicable to New Plans and Continuation Plans apply. For example, for the
plan’s first plan year:
 Depending on when the transaction occurs and the plan’s UVB Valuation Date, the due date might

be later than the Normal Due Date (see “When to File” section).



The applicable Participant Count Date for purposes of determining the Flat-rate Premium is the first
day of the premium payment year (see “How to Count Participants” section).



The Standard Premium Funding Target is used to determine the Variable-rate Premium unless the
plan makes a timely election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target. This is the case even
if the Transferor Plan had an election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target in effect or
revoked such an election fewer than five years prior to the Spinoff.



If the plan is a Small Plan, the Lookback Rule does not apply because there is no prior plan year to
look back to. The Lookback Rule will automatically apply for the plan’s second year of existence,
unless the plan opts out of using that rule (See “How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits”).

Mergers
A “Merger” is a transaction in which a plan transfers all of its assets and liabilities to an existing plan
and, as a result, ceases to exist. In essence, the Transferor Plan becomes part of the Transferee Plan.

Page 21

Spinoffs, Mergers and Consolidations
If, as the result of a Merger, a plan ceases to exist, in addition to reporting information about the
transaction, note that the fact that the filing is the last filing for the plan must also be reported. 13 (See
“Description of Data Elements” section, items 13).
12F

Consolidations
A “Consolidation” is a transaction in which two or more plans transfer all of their assets and liabilities to
a New Plan and, as a result, cease to exist (because the Transferor Plans become part of the new
transferee plan). It differs from a Merger because in a Merger, the Transferee Plan existed before the
transaction. In a Consolidation, the Transferee Plan is a New Plan that is created in the Consolidation.
Thus, the plan that exists after a Consolidation follows the premium filing rules for New Plan.
If, as the result of a Consolidation, a plan ceases to exist, in addition to reporting information about the
transaction, note that the fact that the filing is the last filing for the plan must also be reported. (See
“Description of Data Elements” section, items 13).13
Examples
The following examples illustrate the effect of these transactions on premiums. For purposes of these
examples, assume all plans have been covered by PBGC since inception and that none of the affected
plans are Small Plans (which means they all have beginning of year valuation dates and none of them
use the Lookback rule for determining unfunded vested benefits).
Example 1 (Beginning of Plan Year Spinoff to a New Plan) — Plan B is created at the beginning of 2018 as
the result of a non de minimis Spinoff from Plan A (a plan with a calendar year plan year). Plan B will also
have a calendar year plan. Plan A made an election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target in
2010; such election is still in effect.
For 2018, premiums for these plans are determined as follows:


Due date — Premiums for both plans are due October 15, 2018.



Participant Count Date:
-

Plan A: Because the Spinoff occurred at the beginning of Plan A’s plan year, Plan A’s 2018
Flat-Rate Premium is based on the participant count on the first day of the plan year (January 1,
2018) instead of the last day of the prior year (December 31, 2017). See special rule re:
beginning of year non de minimis Spinoffs in “How to Count Participants” section.

Plan B: Because Plan B is a New Plan, its Participant Count Date is also the first day of the plan
year (January 1, 2018).

Note – if the Spinoff had been de minimis, the special Participant Count Date rule would not apply
(i.e., Plan A’s Participant Count Date would have been December 31, 2017). Because Plan B’s
Participant Count Date is January 1, 2018, that means both plans would have owed Flat-Rate
Premiums on behalf of the participants that were spun off from Plan A to Plan B.

If a plan ceases to exist because of a merger or consolidation and the transaction occurs after the premium filing is
submitted, please contact PBGC via email at premiums@pbgc.gov, so we can update our records. Absent this
notification, PBGC will likely contact the plan (that no longer exists) to inquire about why the subsequent year’s filing isn’t
submitted.

Page 22

Spinoffs, Mergers and Consolidations


UVB Measurement Date — Both plans measure Unfunded Vested Benefits as of January 1, 2018.



Premium Funding Target:
-

Plan A: The Alternative Premium Funding Target is used unless the election is revoked as part of
the 2018 Comprehensive Premium Filing.

Plan B: As a New Plan, the Variable-Rate Premium must be determined using the Standard
Premium Funding Target unless the Plan makes a timely election to use the Alternative Premium
Funding Target (as part of its 2018 filing).



Proration — Neither plan qualifies to pro-rate its 2018 premium.



Reporting on Comprehensive Premium Filing — Plan A reports the Spinoff in the “Transfers to other
plans” item and Plan B reports the Spinoff in the “Transfers from other plans” item.

Example 2 (Mid-year Spinoff to a New Plan) — Plan B is created on July 1, 2018 as the result of a Spinoff
from Plan A. Plan B’s first plan year will be a short plan year (i.e., July 1, 2018 – December 31, 2018).
Plan A made an election in 2010 to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target that is still in effect. For
2018, premiums are determined as follows:




The Spinoff has no effect on Plan A’s 2018 premium obligation. That means:
-

Due Date: October 15, 2018.

Flat-rate Premium: Based on the participant count as of December 31, 2017. There is no
adjustment for participants who are spun off later in the year.

Variable-rate Premium: Unfunded Vested Benefits are:
o

Measured as of January 1, 2018. There is no adjustment for the assets and/or liabilities
that are spun off later in the year.

Determined using the Alternative Premium Funding Target unless the Plan makes a timely
election to revoke the prior election (as part of its 2018 filing).

Plan B is subject to special rules because it is a New Plan. For example:
-

Due date: April 15, 2019 (i.e., the 15th day of the 10th full calendar month after July 1, 2018).

Flat-rate Premium: Based on the participant count on July 1, 2018. The fact that some of these
participants may have been included in the participant count for Plan A’s 2018 Flat-rate
premium has no bearing on Plan B’s Flat-rate Premium.

Variable-rate Premium: Unfunded Vested Benefits are:
o

Measured on the same date used to determine funding requirements for Plan B’s first
(short) plan year.

Determined using the Standard Premium Funding Target unless the Plan makes a timely
election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target (as part of its 2018 filing).

Page 23

Spinoffs, Mergers and Consolidations
-



Proration: Because the first plan year is a short plan year and the plan was created as the result
of a Spinoff, the 2018 premium is prorated. There are six months in the short plan year (July 1,
2018 – December 31, 2018), so the plan owes 50% (i.e., 6/12) of the otherwise determined
premium. Note that for proration purposes, a partial month is treated as a full month. So, had
the Spinoff had occurred on July 25th instead of July 1st, the result would be the same.

Reporting on Comprehensive Premium Filing — Plan A reports the Spinoff in the “Transfers to other
plans” item. Plan B reports the Spinoff in the “Transfers from other plans” item.

Example 3 (Mid-year Spinoff to a pre-existing plan) — Plans A and B are both calendar year plans. Both
plans made an election in 2015 to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target that is still in effect. On
July 1, 2018, Plan A spun off assets and liabilities for participants in Location XYZ to Plan B.
In this scenario, the Spinoff has no effect on the amount of premium owed or the due date for the 2018
plan year of either plan. Plan A reports the Spinoff in the “Transfers to other plans” item and Plan B
reports the Spinoff in the “Transfers from other plans” item.
Example 4 (Beginning of year Merger) — Plans A and B are both calendar year plans. On January 1,
2018, Plan B merges into Plan A. The merger is not de minimis.
The Merger’s impact on 2018 premiums is as follows:


Because the Merger (1) was non de minimis and (2) occurred at the beginning of Plan A’s plan year,
Plan A’s 2018 flat-rate Premium is based on the participant count on the first day of the plan year
(January 1, 2018) instead of the last day of the prior year (December 31, 2017). (See special rule re:
beginning of year Mergers in “How to Count Participants” section).



Plan B is not required to submit a 2018 Comprehensive Premium Filing because the plan ceased to
exist on what would have been the first day of Plan B’s 2018 plan year. In other words, the Merger
is deemed to be effective before the 2018 plan year begins.



Plan A reports the Merger in the “Transfers from other plans” item. Because the Merger did not
occur until after the due date for Plan B’s 2017 Comprehensive Premium Filing, PBGC expects that
Plan B would not have reported that 2017 would be its “Final Filing” as part of its 2017 filing. As
long as Plan A properly reported the Merger in its 2018 filing, it is not necessary to amend Plan B’s
2017 filing to indicate that it’s the final filing.

Note – if the Merger had been de minimis, the special Participant Count Date rule would not apply (i.e.,
Plan A’s Participant Count Date would have been December 31, 2017). Because Plan B owes no
premium for 2018, that means neither plan would have owed Flat-Rate Premiums on behalf of the former
Plan B participants that were merged into Plan A at the beginning of 2018.
Example 5 (Mid-year Merger) — Plan A is a calendar year plan. Plan B has a plan year that begins on
March 1. On February 1, 2018, Plan B merges into Plan A.
The Merger’s impact on 2018 premiums is as follows:

Page 24

Spinoffs, Mergers and Consolidations


The Merger has no effect on Plan A’s premium obligation. Among other things, that means the Flatrate Premium is based on the participant count as of December 31, 2017 (i.e., the Plan B participants
that merged into Plan A on February 1, 2018 are not included).



Plan B is not required to submit a Comprehensive Premium Filing because the plan ceased to exist
before its 2018 plan year would have begun (i.e., before March 1, 2018).



Plan A reports the Merger in the “Transfers from other plans” item.



Because the Merger did not occur until after the due date for Plan B’s 2017 Comprehensive
Premium Filing, PBGC expects that Plan B would not have reported that 2017 would be its “Final
Filing” as part of its 2017 filing. As long as Plan A properly reports the Merger in its 2018 filing, it is
not necessary to amend Plan B’s 2017 filing to indicate that it’s the final filing.

Example 6 (Mid-year Merger) — Plan A is a calendar year plan. Plan B has a plan year that begins on
October 1. Plan B merges into Plan A on December 1, 2018. The Merger’s impact on premiums is as
follows:


Plan A: The Merger has no effect on the amount of Plan A’s 2018 premium. Because the Merger
occurs after the due date for Plan A’s 2018 Comprehensive Premium Filing, Plan A will not report the
Merger in in the “Transfers from other plans” item until the 2019 filing.



Plan B: Although Plan B’s 2018 plan year is a short plan year (October 1, 2018 – November 30,
2018), Plan B’s 2018 premium is not pro-rated because the short plan year was created as the result
of a mid-year Merger. In its 2018 Comprehensive Premium Filing, Plan B reports the Merger in the
“Transfers to other plans” item and in the “Final Filing” item.

Example 7 (Consolidation) - On March 1, 2018, three plans (A, B, and C) were consolidated into a New
Plan D and thus ceased to exist. Prior to the Consolidation, Plan A had a calendar year plan year. Plan B
and C’s plan years began on March 1 and October 1, respectively. Neither Plan A, B or C was a Small
Plan. Plan D has a calendar year plan year.
2018 premiums are determined as follows:


Plan A – The Consolidation has no effect on the amount of the 2018 premium owed or the due date.
Despite the short plan year (January 1, 2018 – February 28, 2018), the plan does not qualify for
premium pro-ration.



Plan B – Because the plan ceased to exist on what would have been the first day of Plan B’s 2018
plan year, Plan B is not required to submit a 2018 Comprehensive Premium Filing. In other words,
the Consolidation is deemed to be effective before the 2018 plan year begins.



Plan C – Because the Consolidation occurred before Plan C’s 2018 plan year began, Plan C is not
required to submit a 2018 Comprehensive Premium Filing. Although the Consolidation occurs
during Plan C’s 2017 final short plan year (October 1, 2017 – February 28, 2018), it has no effect on
the due date or the amount due for 2017 (i.e., the plan does not qualify for premium pro-ration).



Plan D – Because Plan D is a New Plan and, because it was created as the result of a Consolidation, it
is also a Continuation Plan. Like all New Plans, Plan D owes premiums for its first (short) plan year of
coverage March 1, 2018 – December 31, 2018. Because the short plan year was created as the
result of a Consolidation, the premium is prorated.

Page 25

Spinoffs, Mergers and Consolidations
The Participant Count Date is March 1, 2018. The fact that 2018 Flat-rate Premiums for some, or all,
of those participants might have been paid by Plan A or Plan B has no impact on Plan D’s Flat-rate
Premium.
The Variable-rate Premium must be determined using the Standard Premium Funding Target unless
the Plan makes a timely election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target (as part of its 2018
filing).


Other reporting
-

Plans A reports the Consolidation in item 15 (Transfers to other plans) of its 2018 filing and
indicates that its 2018 filing will be the last filing in item 13.

Plan B does not report the Consolidation because it occurred after the 2017 filing was due.

Plan D reports all three transfers in item 14 (Transfers from other plans) of its 2018 filing.

Page 26

Data to be Submitted
Form is for Illustrative Purpose Only
2018 PBGC Comprehensive Premium Filing

Amended filing

Disaster Relief (enter code) _ _ - _ _

Part I – General Plan Information
1 Plan sponsor information
a Name ___________________________________________________________________________________________________
b Six-digit business code _ _ _ _ _ _ _

c First six digits of CUSIP number _ _ _ _ _ _

2 Plan administrator information
a Name ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
b Address line 1 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
c Address line 2 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
d City _________________________

e State ______

f Zip _______________

g Country (if not U.S.) _____________

h Contact person
(1) Name (for “attention” line of mailings) ______________________________________________________________
(2) e-mail address ___________________________________________________ (3) Phone number: _ _ _ -_ _ _ - _ _ _ _ ext _ _ _ _ _
i Alternative phone number for Insured Plans List on pbgc.gov: _ _ _ -_ _ _ - _ _ _ _ ext _ _ _ _ _
3 Additional plan contact (optional)
(1) Name ___________________________________________________________________________________
(2) e-mail address ___________________________________________________ (3) Phone number: _ _ _ -_ _ _ - _ _ _ _ ext _ _ _ _ _
4 Plan information
a Plan name

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

b Premium payment year information:
(1) This filing is for the premium payment year commencing _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _ and ending _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _.
(2) For the premium payment year, is the plan a “small plan” (see definitions section of instructions)?

Yes

(3) If the plan year commencement date has changed since the most recent PBGC filing as a result of a plan amendment changing the plan year, enter the date
the plan year change was adopted _ _/_ _/_ _ _ _ .
(4)

Check box if plan qualifies to pay a prorated premium for this premium payment year (i.e., if plan has less than a full year of coverage).

c Employer Identification Number and Plan Number information:
(1) EIN and PN: EIN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ PN _ _ _
(2) If the EIN and PN are not both the same as on the most recent premium filing, enter EIN and PN from most recent premium filing:
EIN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ PN _ _ _. Otherwise, skip to item 4c(3).
(3) If the EIN and PN are not both the same as on the 2017 Form 5500, enter EIN and PN from 2017 Form 5500 and provide explanation: Otherwise, skip to
item 4d. EIN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ PN _ _ _. Explanation _____________________________________________________________________________________
d Plan effective date _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _
e Plan type:
f

Multiemployer

Single-employer (including multiple-employer plans)

Check box if plan is a new or newly covered plan and provide the following information:
(1) Adoption date _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _

(2) Date coverage began on _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _.

(3) Is the plan a “continuation plan” (see definitions section of instructions)?

Yes

Page 27

Data to be Submitted
Part II – Flat-Rate Premium Information
5 Flat-rate premium
a Participant count date: Month ___ Day ___ Year ____
b Flat-rate premium calculation
(1) Applicable rate (Single-employer plans enter $74; Multiemployer plans, enter $28)

______________

(2) Participant count as of participant count date
Active: ___________

Terminated vested _____________

Retirees and beneficiaries: _______________

Total:

(3) Flat-rate premium (item 5b(1) x item 5b(2))

______________
______________

Part III – Variable-rate Premium Information
Multiemployer plans — Skip to Part IV
Complete item 6 only if the plan is electing, or revoking an election, to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target instead of the Standard Premium Funding Target;
otherwise skip to item 7.
6 Alternative Premium Funding Target Election or Revocation
a

Election - Check box to elect to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target instead of the Standard Premium Funding Target. The election will be effective —
and the plan will be required to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target — beginning with this premium payment year and for all subsequent plan years
unless and until the election is subsequently revoked.

Revocation - Check box to revoke a prior election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target. The revocation will be effective — and the plan will be
required to use the Standard Premium Funding Target — beginning with this premium payment year and for all subsequent plan years unless and until a new
election is subsequently made.

Note — Elections or Revocations must remain in place for at least five years.
7 Variable-rate premium (VRP)
a VRP exemptions – If an exemption applies, check applicable box and skip to item 8.
New or newly covered small plan other than a continuation plan

No vested participants

Standard termination with a final distribution during the premium payment year

412(e)(3) plan

Standard termination with a proposed termination date in a prior year (proposed termination date: _ _ /_ _ /_ _ _ _)
b VRP small employer cap qualification –
Check box if this plan qualifies for the small employer cap applicable to certain plans of small employers (those with
25 or fewer employees). If box is checked, items 7c through 7g may, but need not, be omitted.
c Assumptions and methods used to determine premium funding target
(1) Premium funding target method:
(2) Discount rate(s):

1st

Standard

segment ____%

Alternative
2nd segment ____%

3rd segment ____%

N/A, full yield curve used

(3) UVB valuation date: Month ___ Day ___ Year ____
d Premium funding target as of UVB valuation date –

Check box if the reported premium funding target information is an estimate.

(1) Attributable to active participants

_____________

(2) Attributable to terminated vested participants

_____________

(3) Attributable to retirees and beneficiaries receiving payment

_____________

(4) Total premium funding target (item 7d(1) + item 7d(2) + item 7d(3))

_____________

e Market value of assets as of UVB valuation date

_____________

f Unfunded vested benefits (excess, if any, of item 7d(4) over item 7e, rounded up to the next $1,000)

_____________

g Uncapped variable-rate premium (item 7f x 0.038)

_____________

h Maximum VRP
(1) MAP-21 cap ($523 x item 5b(2))

_____________

(2) Small employer cap, if applicable ($5 x item 5b(2) x item 5b(2)) – Omit this item if plan is not eligible for this cap

_____________

(3) Maximum variable-rate premium — If the plan qualifies for the small employer cap, the lesser of item 7h(1) and 7h(2). Otherwise,
item 7h(1).

_____________

i Variable-rate premium — If the plan qualifies for the small employer cap and item 7g was omitted, item 7h(3). Otherwise, the lesser
of item 7g and item 7h(3).

Page 28

_____________

Data to be Submitted
Part IV – Total Premium Information
8 Premium proration (If the plan does not qualify for premium proration, skip to item 9)
a Number of months (complete and partial) in the short plan year

______________

b Total premium before reflecting proration (item 5b(3) + item 7i, if applicable)

______________

9 Total premium — If the plan does not qualify for premium proration, item 5b(3) + item 7i, if applicable. If the plan qualifies for premium
proration, item 8b x item 8a ÷ 12.

______________

Part V – Payment Information
10 Premium credit
a Payments made previously for this premium payment year

______________

b Outstanding credit from the plan year immediately preceding the premium payment year

______________

c Total (item 10a + item 10b)

______________

11 Amount due (excess, if any, of item 9 over item 10c)

______________

12 Treatment of overpayment
a Excess, if any, of item 10c over item 9
b Treatment of balance (select one):
c Information for ACH refund:

______________
Credit towards next year’s premium
Refund by check
Refund by electronic funds transfer (ACH). If you select this option, complete item 12c.
Type of account

Checking

Savings

Bank routing number _______________________
Account number ___________________________

Part VI – Miscellaneous Information
13 Final filing – If this is the last filing for this plan, enter the date of event _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _ and check box that best describes why filing obligation is ceasing:
Merger/Consolidation
Trusteeship
Distribution pursuant to termination
Cessation of covered status
14 Transfers from other plans – If another plan transferred assets or liabilities to this plan since the most recent comprehensive premium filing, provide the following
information with respect to each plan from which assets or liabilities were transferred (if transfer involved a new or newly covered plan, see instructions).
EIN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ PN _ _ _ Date of transfer _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _ Type of transfer:

Merger

Consolidation

Spinoff

Other

EIN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ PN _ _ _ Date of transfer _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _ Type of transfer:

Merger

Consolidation

Spinoff

Other

15 Transfers to other plans – If this plan transferred assets or liabilities to another plan since the most recent comprehensive premium filing, provide the following
information with respect to each plan to which the assets or liabilities were transferred (if transfer involved a new or newly covered plan, see instructions).
EIN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ PN _ _ _ Date of transfer _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _ Type of transfer:

Merger

Consolidation

Spinoff

Other

EIN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ PN _ _ _ Date of transfer _ _ /_ _ / _ _ _ _ Type of transfer:

Merger

Consolidation

Spinoff

Other

16 Participation freeze – If, as of the beginning of the premium payment year, this plan is closed to new entrants, enter the date the plan became closed to new
entrants _ _/_ _/_ _ _ _ .
17 Accrual freeze – If, as of the beginning of the premium payment year, benefit accruals under this plan are partially or totally frozen, enter the date the freeze
became effective_ _/_ _/_ _ _ _ and check box that best describes the nature of the freeze:
For all participants, both pay and service are frozen

For all participants, service is frozen, pay is not

For some participants, both pay and service are frozen

For some participants, service is frozen, pay is not

Other (enter explanation)________________________________________________________________________________

Page 29

Data to be Submitted
18. Risk transfer activity – Do not complete this item if this is the last filing for this plan
a Lump Sum Windows: If the plan provided one or more Lump Sum Windows during the time period described in the instructions, report the number of persons
eligible to elect a lump sum under any such window and the number who elected a lump sum:
(1) Persons eligible to elect lump sum _______

(2) Persons who elected lump sum _______

b Annuity purchases: If, during the time period described in the instructions, the plan purchased annuities for a group of people, report the number of persons
for whom an annuity was purchased:
(1) Persons not in pay status when annuity was purchased: _______

(2) Persons in pay status when annuity was purchased: _______

19 Amended filing – Complete this item only if this is an amended filing
a If either the first or last day of the premium payment year reported in this amended filing (item 4b(1)) differs from what was reported in the filing that is being
amended, provide the dates that were reported in the original filing:
Date premium payment year commenced _ _ /_ _ /_ _ _ _ Date premium payment year ended _ _ /_ _ /_ _ _ _.
b If the EIN and PN reported in this amended filing (item 4c(1)) are not both the same as what was reported in the filing that is being amended, enter the EIN and
PN from the original filing: EIN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ PN _ _ _.
c If the reason for amending the filing is other than reconciling an estimated Variable-rate Premium and the total premium reported in this amended filing
(item 9) is less than the amount reported in the filing that is being amended, provide an explanation of why an amended filing is necessary:
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Part VII – Certifications
20 Certification of Plan Administrator – The plan administrator must sign and complete this item.
I certify under penalty of perjury, to the best of my knowledge and belief, that all the information in the filing is true, correct and complete and has been determined
in accordance with PBGC's premium regulations and instructions, except that if the filing reports an estimated premium funding target, the estimate is reasonable,
takes into account the most current information available to the enrolled actuary, and has been determined in accordance with generally accepted actuarial
principles and practices, and that if I received variable-rate premium information certified by an enrolled actuary for this filing, the variable-rate premium
information in the filing is the same as the variable-rate premium information certified by the enrolled actuary.
Name of person signing: First name _______________ Last name _____________________________
____________________________________________
E-mail address

_ _ _ -_ _ _ - _ _ _ _ ext _ _ _ _ _ _
Telephone

___________________________________________
Signature

_ _ /_ _ /_ _ _ _
Date

21 Certification of Enrolled Actuary – An enrolled actuary must sign and complete this item unless the plan is (1) a multiemployer plan, (2) exempt from the variablerate premium, or (3) eligible for the small employer cap, paying the maximum VRP and not reporting the uncapped VRP.
I certify under penalty of perjury, to the best of my knowledge and belief, that the variable-rate premium information in the filing is true, correct and complete and
has been determined in accordance with PBGC's premium regulations and instructions; except that if the premium funding target is estimated, the estimate is
reasonable, takes into account the most current information available to me and has been determined in accordance with generally accepted actuarial principles
and practices.
Name of person signing: First name _______________ Last name _____________________________

_____________________________________________
Firm

_ _ _ -_ _ _ - _ _ _ _ ext _ _ _ _ _ _
Telephone

_____________________________________________
E-mail address

_ _ -_ _ _ _ _
Enrollment number

____________________________________________
Signature

_ _ /_ _ /_ _ _ _
Date

Page 30

Description of Data Elements
Overview
This section provides a description of each required data element presented in the same order as the “form”
used to illustrate the data elements (see “Data to be Submitted” section). Item numbers are presented solely to
facilitate understanding. The My PAA screens do not include item numbers. If you are using private-sector
software, item numbers may or may not be included. We recommend you review these instructions with a copy
of the “form” in front of you.
Note for plans with more than one plan year beginning in 2017 or 2018:
References in these instructions to the 2017 plan year (and to filings for the 2017 plan year) should be
considered to refer to your plan’s most recent complete plan year. For example, a plan that changes its plan
year could have two plan years beginning in calendar 2018. When such a plan makes its premium filing(s) for its
second 2018 plan year, the references in these instructions to the 2017 plan year (and to filings for the 2016
plan year) should be considered to refer to the plan’s first 2018 plan year (and to filings for that plan year),
because that is the plan’s most recent complete plan year. Similarly, if your plan had two plan years beginning in
calendar 2017, the references in these instructions to the 2017 plan year (and to filings for the 2017 plan year)
should be considered to refer to the plan’s second 2017 plan year, which is the plan’s most recent complete plan
year.
Note about reporting dollar amounts
With the exception of total premium, premium credits, the amount due PBGC, and the amount of any
overpayment, money amounts reported should be in dollars only (no cents). Unfunded vested benefits are
rounded up to the next $1,000.
Amended Filing
Check this box only if this filing is an amendment to a previously submitted filing for the 2018 plan year.
Note that a Variable-rate Premium reconciliation filing (in which you provide final Premium Funding Target
information after having reported an estimated Premium Funding Target) is considered an amended filing. If you
amend a comprehensive filing for a reason other than reconciling an estimated Variable-rate Premium and the
amended filing shows a lower premium than the amount that was reported in the filing that is being amended,
you must provide an explanation of the specific circumstances or events that caused the reduction. See the
“Correcting Errors, Credit Balances and Reconciling Estimates” section for more information.
Note – If you are amending a filing for a plan year that did not begin in 2018, the rules in this document do not
apply.
Disaster Relief
If your plan is eligible for disaster relief, you must enter a code that relates to the particular disaster that
affected your ability to file timely. Information about these codes are available on the applicable guidance
accessible via PBGC’s Disaster Relief webpage.

Page 31

Description of Data Elements
Instructions for Part I – General Plan Information
1 Plan sponsor information
a Report the name of the Plan Sponsor.
b Business Code – Report the six-digit code that best describes the nature of the employer’s business. If more
than one employer is involved, report the business code for the predominant business activity of all
employers. A list of business codes can be found in the instructions to Form 5500 and in the “Premium
Filings” section of the Employers and Practitioners Page on PBGC’s website. Because codes for the
Premium Payment Year may not be available at the time you submit this filing, you may report the relevant
code for either the Premium Payment Year or the prior year. http://www.pbgc.gov/documents/PrincipalBusiness-Activity-Codes.pdf
c CUSIP number – If a CUSIP number has been assigned to publicly traded securities of the Plan Sponsor or
any member of the Plan Sponsor’s controlled group, report the first six digits of the CUSIP number.
Otherwise, leave this item blank.
A CUSIP number is a nine-digit number assigned to the publicly traded securities of a Plan Sponsor (or
member of the Plan Sponsor’s controlled group) under the securities numbering system of the Committee
on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures. The first six digits of the CUSIP number identify the
securities issuer, the next two digits identify the specific securities issue, and the last digit is a check digit.
2 Plan administrator information
a-g Report the name and address of the Plan Administrator. Note that this is the address where we send
official correspondence to the plan (e.g., an invoice for late payment charges).
h

Report the name, e-mail address, and phone number of the person we should contact if we have any
questions concerning this filing. We will send official correspondence to the “attention of” this person at
the address reported in (b)-(g). In addition, unless a different phone number is provided in item 2i, the
phone number reported in 2h will be posted on PBGC’s Is My Pension Insured list as the number plan
participants should call if they have questions about their plan.

If you would prefer plan participants with questions about their plan call a phone number other than the
one reported in item 2h, report the phone number you would like them to use. If this item is left blank,
the Insured Plans List on PBGC’s website will show the phone number reported in item 2h.
To keep our records current and enable us to send correspondence to the correct address, you should inform
us of address changes as soon as they occur. You may do so by contacting us either in writing or by e-mail.
See Appendix 2 for contact information.

3 Additional plan contact (optional)
Although official correspondence related to premium filings is directed to the Plan Administrator (see item 2),
some plans choose to provide contact information for another individual as well. In general, the contact
person identified in this section will be used for questions that aren’t important enough for official
correspondence. PBGC may also contact this individual if official inquiries to the Plan Administrator go
unanswered.

Page 32

Description of Data Elements
4 Plan information
a Plan name – Report the complete name of the plan as stated in the plan document. For example, “The ABC
Company Pension Plan for Salaried Personnel.”
b Premium Payment Year information
(1) Report the date the Premium Payment Year commences and the date it ends. If you are filing for the first
year of a New Plan, the Premium Payment Year commencement date (“PYC”) should be the plan
effective date.
(2) Check the appropriate box to indicate whether the plan is a Small Plan for the Premium Payment Year
(See definition of Small Plan in Appendix 1).
(3) If the plan year commencement date has changed since the most recent PBGC filing as a result of a plan
amendment changing the plan year, enter the adoption date of the plan year change.
(4) Check the box if plan qualifies to pay a prorated premium for this Premium Payment Year (see “Who
must File” section for rules related to pro-ration.
c Employer Identification Number (EIN) and Plan Number (PN) information
(1) Report the nine-digit EIN of the Plan Sponsor and the three-digit PN of the plan.
(2) If the EIN and PN for this filing do not both match exactly the EIN and PN reported in the most recent
premium filing, report both the EIN and PN that were reported in the most recent premium filing. If this
is the first premium filing for this plan, leave this item blank.
Please note the following exceptions that apply only if this is an amended filing:


If item 4c(2) was reported incorrectly in the original filing (i.e., the filing that is being amended),
provide the correct information in the amended filing.



If item 4c(2) was reported correctly in the original filing, provide the same information in the
amended filing.

(3) If the EIN and PN for this filing do not both match exactly the EIN and PN reported in the 2017 Form
5500, report both the EIN and PN that were reported in the 2017 Form 5500, and attach an explanation.
If a 2017 Form 5500 was not required, leave this item blank.
d Plan effective date – Report the date the plan became effective.
e Plan type – Indicate whether the plan is a Multiemployer Plan or a Single-employer Plan.
f Information for New or Newly Covered Plans – If this is a New or Newly Covered Plan, check the box and
complete the rest of item 4f.
(1) Adoption date – Enter the date the plan was adopted
(2) Coverage date – Enter the date the plan became covered under Title IV. If the plan has had one or more
periods of coverage, report the earliest date in the Premium Payment Year when the plan was covered
under Title IV — not the date when the plan became covered in a prior year. If another plan transferred
assets or liabilities to this New or Newly Covered Plan, be sure to complete the “Transfers from other
plans” item (see item 14).
(3) Continuation Plan – Check the box to indicate whether this New or Newly Covered Plan meets the
definition of a Continuation Plan (see definition).

Page 33

Description of Data Elements
Instructions for Part II – Premium Information
5 Flat-rate Premium
a Report the Participant Count Date. See “How to Count Participants” section for special rules relating to New
Plans, Newly Covered Plans, Mergers and Spinoffs.
b Flat-rate Premium calculation
(1) Applicable rate – Enter the per-participant flat premium rate. For 2018, the rate is $74 for
Single-employer Plans and $28 for Multiemployer Plans.
(2) Participant count – Report the number of participants covered by the plan on the Participant Count Date
separately for active participants, terminated vested participants, retirees and beneficiaries receiving
payment, and in total. See “How to Count Participants” section.
(3) Flat-rate Premium – Report the product of the Participant Count and the applicable premium rate. If the
plan year is a short plan year, the required Flat-rate Premium may be a prorated portion of this amount;
however, the amount reported in this item must reflect a full year’s premium.
Note that you must make a premium filing even if the Flat-rate Premium is $0. This may happen, for example,
if your plan is a New Plan that grants no past service credits, so that there are no Benefit Liabilities on the
Participant Count Date. A plan with no Benefit Liabilities has no participants for premium purposes.
Instructions for Part III – Alternative Premium Funding Target Election/Revocation
This Part applies only to Single-employer Plans. Multiemployer Plans should skip to Part IV.
6 Alternative Premium Funding Target Election / Revocation
To be valid, an election must be made in accordance with these instructions and must be filed with PBGC on
or before the deadline.
a Election - Check this box to make an election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target first effective
for this Premium Payment Year.
b Revocation - Check this box to revoke a prior election to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target that
was in effect for the plan year immediately preceding the Premium Payment Year.
You may elect to use the Alternative Premium Funding Target to determine unfunded vested benefits instead
of the Standard Premium Funding Target. Once an election is made, it remains in effect for all subsequent
plan years unless and until it is subsequently revoked. You may revoke a prior election only if the Premium
Payment Year begins at least five years after the beginning of the plan year for which the election was first
applicable.
Similarly, if you revoke an election, you may not make a new election to use the Alternative Premium Funding
Target until five years have passed.
If you are not sure if an election is in effect or when an election first took effect, you find it by viewing your
account history in My PAA.
See “How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits” section for more information on elections and
revocations.

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Description of Data Elements
7 Variable-rate Premium
This item relates to Variable-rate Premium information and applies only to Single-employer Plans.
In general, for 2018 the Variable-rate Premium is $38 per $1,000, or fraction thereof, of unfunded vested
benefits as of the UVB Valuation Date, but no more than $523 times the number of participants (i.e., the MAP21 Cap). For certain plans of small employers, the Variable-rate Premium may be capped at an amount lower
than the MAP-21 CAP (see item 7b).
Some Single-employer Plans are exempt from the Variable-rate Premium; others may have a Variable-rate
Premium of $0. In either case, this section must be completed in accordance with the following instructions.
a Exemptions – A Single-employer Plan may claim an exemption from the Variable-rate Premium if it meets
the requirements for any of the exemptions described below:


New or Newly Covered Small Plans other than Continuation Plans – Your plan qualifies for this
exemption if it is a New or Newly Covered Plan and a Small Plan, but not a Continuation Plan. See
Definitions section for more information about these terms.



Standard termination — closing out in current year – Your plan qualifies for this exemption if it makes a
final distribution of assets in a standard termination during the Premium Payment Year.
You may claim this exception in anticipation of a full distribution by plan year-end even if that hasn’t
happened by the time you submit the filing. However, if you fail to complete the final distribution by
the end of the year, the exemption will not apply. In that case, you will need to amend the filing
accordingly and late payment charges will be assessed on any Variable-rate Premium owed and paid
after the applicable due date.
To avoid the possibility of late payment charges arising if the final distribution takes longer than
expected, consider the alternative approach described in the “Short Plan Years” part of the “Who Must
File”.



Standard termination — proposed termination date in a prior year — Your plan qualifies for this
exemption if notices of intent to terminate in a standard termination were issued in accordance with
ERISA section 4041(a)(2), setting forth a proposed termination date before the beginning of the
Premium Payment Year.
To qualify for this exemption, it is not necessary that the plan make a final distribution of assets during
the Premium Payment Year. However, this exemption is conditioned on the plan’s ultimately making a
final distribution of assets in full satisfaction of its obligations under the standard termination. If that
doesn’t happen, the premium that would otherwise have been required will be due retroactive to the
applicable due date.



Plans with no vested participants – Your plan qualifies for this exemption if the plan has no participants
with vested benefits as of the UVB Valuation Date.



Section 412(e)(3) plans (formerly called 412(i) plans) – Your plan qualifies for this exemption if the plan
is described in section 412(e)(3) of the Code and regulations thereunder on the UVB Valuation Date.

If an exemption applies, check the applicable box to indicate which exemption applies and skip to item 8. If
more than one exemption applies, check all applicable boxes.

Page 35

Description of Data Elements
b Small-Employer Cap qualification – If the plan qualifies as a small-employer plan, the Variable-rate Premium
may be capped at an amount lower than the MAP-21 Cap.
Determining whether a plan qualifies for the Small-Employer Cap – For this purpose:


a plan is a small-employer plan if the aggregate number of employees of all contributing sponsors of the
plan and all members of the contributing sponsors’ controlled groups, as of the first day of the Premium
Payment Year, is 25 or fewer,



the aggregate number of employees is determined in the same manner as under section 410(b)(1) of the
Code, taking into account the provisions of section 414(m) and (n) of the Code, but without regard to
section 410(b)(3), (4), and (5) of the Code, and



employees are counted as of the first day of the Premium Payment Year, not as of the Participant Count
Date or the UVB Valuation Date.

Note that a plan with 25 or fewer participants does not necessarily qualify for the Small-Employer Cap
because the eligibility criterion is based on employees, not the Participant Count. For example, if a plan has
15 participants, but there are more than 25 employees (taking into account all employees of all contributing
sponsors of the plan and all members of their controlled groups), the plan does not qualify for the cap.
Also note that a plan with more than 25 participants might qualify for the cap. For example, consider a
contributing sponsor with 20 employees, all of whom are participants in a plan. If the plan also covers 15
former employees who are either terminated vested or retired, there are 35 participants in total. This plan
would qualify for the cap (assuming there are no other contributing sponsors and no controlled group
members).
Reporting requirements – If your plan qualifies for this cap, check the box to report that fact.
If your plan qualifies for this cap, instead of calculating and reporting both the uncapped Variable-rate
Premium and the maximum Variable-rate Premium and then paying the lesser of the two amounts, you may
report and pay only the maximum Variable-rate Premium.
If you choose to not report the uncapped Variable-rate Premium, omit all items 7c through 7g and go
directly to item 7h. Note that if you choose to pay the maximum Variable-rate Premium without
determining whether it is less than the uncapped Variable-rate Premium, you may pay a larger Variable-rate
Premium than required.
c Assumptions and methods used to determine Premium Funding Target
(1) Premium Funding Target method – Report whether you are using the Standard Premium Funding Target
or the Alternative Premium Funding Target to determine unfunded vested benefits by checking the
applicable box (i.e., “Standard” or “Alternative”). Note that:


The standard method must be used unless an election to use the alternative method is in effect.



If an election to use the alternative method is in effect, you must use the alternative method. This is
the case only if a valid election:



–

is made as part of a timely filing for the Premium Payment Year by checking the election box in
item 6 of Part III, or

–

that was made in a prior year has not yet been revoked.

Filers are encouraged to review prior filings or to review the Account History on My PAA to confirm
whether an election to use the alternative method is in effect.
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Description of Data Elements


Checking the alternative box in item 7(c)(1) does not constitute an election. See item 6 instructions.

For additional information on Premium Funding Target methods, see “How to Determine Unfunded
Vested Benefits” section.
(2) Discount rates – Report the discount rates used to determine the Premium Funding Target. For
information on which rates to use, see “How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits” section.
(3) UVB Valuation Date – Report the UVB Valuation Date for the Premium Payment Year. In the case of a
Small Plan using the Lookback Rule, this date must be the valuation date for the Lookback Year. For any
other plan this date must be the valuation date for the Premium Payment Year. Note for Small Plans For information about whether you should be using the Lookback Rule, see “How to Determine
Unfunded Vested Benefits” section.
d Premium Funding Target as of UVB Valuation Date
Report the Premium Funding Target (dollars only) calculated as described in the Premium Funding Target
part of the “How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits” section. Report the amount separately for (1)
active participants, (2) terminated vested participants, (3) retirees and beneficiaries receiving payment, and
(4) the total premium funding target ((1)+(2)+(3)).
Estimated Premium Funding Targets – If the Premium Funding Target (and thus, the Variable-rate Premium)
being reported in this filing is an estimate, check the box to report that fact. If you file on an estimated basis,
you must ultimately make a reconciliation filing using the actual Premium Funding Target (by amending this
filing). In the reconciliation filing, in addition to reporting the actual Premium Funding Target data, be sure
to indicate that the reported amount is no longer an estimate by making sure the “estimate” box is no
longer checked. See “Correcting Errors, Credit Balances and Reconciling Estimates” section for more
information. See also the “Late Payment Charges” section for information on the automatic late payment
penalty relief that may be available to plans paying estimated Variable-rate Premiums by the due date and
later reconciling.
e Market value of assets – Report the fair market value of plan assets (dollars only) as of the UVB Valuation
Date adjusted to reflect contribution receipts as described in the “How to Determine Unfunded Vested
Benefits” section.
f Unfunded vested benefits – Report the excess (rounded up to the next $1,000), if any, of the Premium
Funding Target over the fair market value of assets.
g Uncapped Variable-rate Premium – Report the product of 0.04 and the amount of unfunded vested benefits.
h Maximum Variable-rate Premium
(1) MAP-21 Cap – Report the product of the Participant Count and $523.
(2) Small Employer Cap – Report the product of $5 and the Participant Count squared. If the plan does not
qualify for the Small Employer Cap, this item must be left blank.
(3) Maximum Variable-rate Premium – If the plan qualifies for the Small Employer Cap, report the lesser of
the Small Employer Cap and the MAP-21 Cap. Otherwise, report the MAP-21 Cap.
i Variable-rate Premium – Report the lesser of the maximum Variable-rate Premium and the uncapped
Variable-rate Premium. If the plan qualifies for the Small Employer Cap and chooses not to report uncapped
Variable-rate premium data, report the maximum Variable-rate Premium.
If this is a short plan year of coverage, the required Variable-rate Premium may be a prorated portion of this
amount; however, the full year’s premium amount must be reported in this item.
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Description of Data Elements
Instructions for Part IV – Total Premium Information
8 Premium proration (If the plan does not qualify for premium proration, skip to item 9.)
a Number of months in the short plan year – Report the number of months (complete and partial) in the short
plan year. For this purpose, each plan month (i.e., each month in the plan year) generally begins on the
same day of each successive calendar month. For example, if the plan year begins on July 1, the first day of
each successive calendar month is the beginning of a new month; similarly, if the plan year begins on
January 15, the second plan month begins on February 15, the third plan month on March 15, etc. Thus, if a
short final year begins on January 1 and ends on June 1, there would be six (full or partial) months in the
short year. (The last (partial) month, beginning (and ending) on June 1, would count as a full month for
purposes of prorating the premium.) Similarly, if a short first year begins on July 31 and ends on December
31, there would also be six (full or partial) months in the short year.
There are two special rules when a plan year begins at or near the end of a calendar month:


If the plan year begins on the last day of a calendar month, successive plan months begin on the last
day of successive calendar months. For example, if the plan year begins on November 30, successive
plan months begin on December 31, January 31, the last day of February (the 28th or 29th), March 31,
etc.



If the plan year begins on the 29th or 30th of a calendar month other than February, the plan month
beginning in February begins on the last day of February. For example, if the plan year begins on
November 29, successive plan months begin on December 29, January 29, the last day of February (the
28th or 29th), March 29, etc. If the plan year begins on December 30, successive plan months begin on
January 30, the last day of February (the 28th or 29th), March 30, April 30, etc.

Counting months for New Plans – The short first year of a New Plan is treated as beginning on the
Participant Count Date (i.e., the plan effective date).
Counting months for Newly Covered Plans – Although the Premium Payment Year for a Newly Covered Plan
is, most likely, a full year, premiums are due only for the portion of the year the plan is covered by PBGC.
Therefore, for purposes of prorating the premium for the first year of coverage, a Newly Covered Plan’s first
year of coverage is treated as beginning on the date when the plan becomes covered under ERISA section
4021
Counting months for terminating plans – The (short) plan year of a terminating plan’s final year is treated as
ending on:


for a Multiemployer Plan that distributed all its assets pursuant to ERISA section 4041A, the date the
distribution is completed; or



for a Single-employer Plan, the earlier of:
-

the date on which the distribution of the plan’s assets in satisfaction of all Benefit Liabilities was
completed; or

the date that a trustee for the terminating plan was appointed under ERISA section 4042.

b Total premium before proration – Report the sum of the Flat-rate Premium and, if applicable, the Variablerate Premium.

Page 38

Description of Data Elements
9 Total premium


If the plan does not qualify for premium proration, report the sum of the Flat-rate Premium and, if
applicable, the Variable-rate Premium.



If the plan qualifies for premium proration, multiply the total premium before reflecting proration by the
number of months (complete and partial) in the short plan year and then divide by 12. Round to two
decimal places after completing the calculation.

If this amount includes cents, report the exact amount (dollars and cents), not a rounded amount.
Instructions for Part V – Payment Information
10 Premium credit
Report the total amount of premium credits available to offset the premium due. Premium credits include:


Any payments made for 2018 (including an estimated Variable-rate Premium when amending the filing
to reconcile the estimate; see “Correcting Errors, Credit Balances and Reconciling Estimates” section),
and



Any overpayment of the 2017 premium filing for which a refund was not requested and that has not
been applied to amounts due. A plan account history is available on My PAA. You should review the
account history to confirm that a 2017 overpayment is available.

If this amount includes cents, report the exact amount (dollars and cents), not a rounded amount.
11 Amount due
If the total premium due exceeds the total premium credit, subtract the total credit from the total premium
and report the result as the amount due. This is the amount you owe PBGC. See Appendix 3 for information
on payment options.
If this amount includes cents, report the exact amount (dollars and cents), not a rounded amount.
12 Treatment of Overpayment
a If the total premium is less than the total premium credit, subtract the total premium from the total credit
and report the result as an overpayment. If this amount includes cents, report the exact amount (dollars
and cents), not a rounded amount.
b If you have an overpayment, you must choose whether to have the overpayment credited towards the
next year’s premium for the plan or refunded (by electronic funds transfer or check). Report your choice
by checking the appropriate box.


Credit - If you choose to use the overpayment as a credit towards next year’s premium for the plan,
you should claim the overpayment amount as a credit on the next year’s premium filing for the plan.

Refund - If you choose to have the overpayment refunded, the quickest way to receive your refund is to select
the electronic funds transfer option, which we strongly recommend. To facilitate an ACH electronic funds
transfer, indicate whether the account is a checking account or savings account, and provide the bank routing
number and account number to which the refund is to be credited.
Instructions for Part VI – Miscellaneous Information
Page 39

Description of Data Elements

13 Final premium filing
If this is the last premium filing for this plan, indicate the reason: (1) that the plan merged or consolidated
with another plan, (2) that the plan was trusteed under ERISA section 4042, (3) that the plan completed a
distribution pursuant to termination, or (4) that the plan ceased to be a covered plan.
Report the date of the event that led to the cessation of the requirement to file. If the reason this is the last
premium filing is because:


the plan merged or consolidated into another plan, report the effective date of the Merger or
Consolidation;



the plan terminated in an involuntary or distress termination, report the effective date of the
trusteeship;



there was a distribution of assets pursuant to a termination:



for a Single-employer Plan that completed a standard termination, report the date on which the
distribution of the plan’s assets in satisfaction of all Benefit Liabilities was completed (the same date
reported on PBGC Form 501 in item 3a), or

for a Multiemployer Plan that distributed all its assets pursuant to ERISA section 4041A, report the
date the distribution is completed; or

the plan ceased to be covered by Title IV of ERISA, report the date coverage ceased (i.e., the date
reported in PBGC’s response to a request for a coverage determination).

See also “Failure to report a filing as the final premium filing” in the “Correcting Errors, Credit Balances and
Reconciling Estimates” section.
14 Transfers from other plans
Pre-existing plans – If another plan transferred assets or liabilities to this plan since the date of the most
recent comprehensive premium filing (or, if this is a filing for a plan year beginning in 2018, since the date of
the 2017 “final filing”), report the EIN and PN of the plan from which the assets were transferred (i.e., the
“Transferor Plan”).
New Plans – If this plan is a New Plan and another plan transferred assets or liabilities to this plan in
conjunction with the creation of this plan, report the EIN and PN of the plan from which the assets were
transferred.
Newly Covered Plans – If this plan is a Newly Covered Plan and another plan transferred assets or liabilities
to this plan on or after the date this plan became covered and before the date the premium filing is made,
report the EIN and PN of the plan from which the assets were transferred.
In all cases, report the date of the transfer and check the box that best describes the type of transfer (see
definitions of Merger, Spinoff, and Consolidation). For this purpose, the date of transfer is the date the
transfer went into effect.
The section on “Mergers, Spinoffs, and Consolidations” contains examples of how this item is completed in
various scenarios.

Page 40

Description of Data Elements
Note that the date of a transfer is determined based on the facts and circumstances of the particular
situation. (For transfers subject to section 414(l) of the Code, report the date determined under 26 CFR
1.414(l)-1(b)(11).)
If the transfer is the result of something other than a Merger, Spinoff, or Consolidation, for example, a
reciprocity arrangement where assets and liabilities are transferred between two plans when an employee
changes locations or changes status (e.g., from Salaried to Hourly and as a result becomes covered by
another plan), check the “Other” box. Also check the “Other” box if you have no way of determining
whether the Transferor Plan ceased to exist in connection with a Merger or Consolidation into your plan.
If more than one Transferor Plan is involved, provide the above information with respect to each Transferor
Plan.
15 Transfers to other plans
Pre-existing plans – If this plan transferred assets or liabilities to another plan since the date of the most
recent comprehensive premium filing, report the EIN and PN of the plan to which the assets were
transferred (i.e., the “Transferee Plan”). In addition, report the date of transfer and check the box that best
describes the type of transfer.
New Plans – If this plan is a New Plan and this plan transferred assets or liabilities to another plan on or after
the earlier of the Plan Adoption Date and the effective date, and before the date the premium filing is made,
report the EIN and PN of the plan to which the assets were transferred and the type of transfer.
Newly Covered Plans – If this plan is a Newly Covered Plan and this plan transferred assets or liabilities to
another plan on or after the date the plan became covered and before the date the premium filing is made,
report the EIN and PN of the plan to which the assets were transferred and the type of transfer.
In all cases, if more than one Transferee Plan is involved, provide the above information with respect to each
transferor plan. See instructions to item 14 for more information on what is to be reported for “date of
transfer.”
The section on “Mergers, Spinoffs, and Consolidations” contains examples of how this item is completed in
various scenarios.
16 Participation freeze
If, as of the beginning of the Premium Payment Year, participation is limited to participants who were
covered by the plan as of a specified date (i.e., the plan is closed to new entrants), enter the date the plan
became closed to new entrants.
17 Benefit accrual freeze
If, as of the beginning of the Premium Payment Year, the plan is partially or totally frozen for benefit accrual
purposes, enter the date the freeze became effective and indicate the nature of the freeze by reporting
whether (1) both pay and service are frozen for all participants, (2) both pay and service are frozen for some
participants, (3) for all participants, service is frozen, but pay is not, (4) for some participants, service is
frozen, but pay is not, or (5) some other type of accrual freeze is in effect (in which case you must provide a
description of the freeze).

Page 41

Description of Data Elements
If more than one description applies (for example, if pay and service are frozen for employees at location X
and only service is frozen for employees at location Y), select “Other” and provide a description.
If more than one freeze has occurred, report the date and nature of the most recent freeze.
18 Risk transfer activity – Do not complete this item if this is the final filing for the plan.
a Lump Sum Windows – If the plan provided one or more Lump Sum Windows during the premium payment
year or the prior premium payment year, enter the requested information with respect to individuals
eligible to elect a lump sum under the window. For this purpose:


Disregard any Lump Sum Window for which the time period for electing a lump sum ended less than 60
days before the premium filing is made.



Disregard any Lump Sum Window for which the requested information was reported in the premium
filing for the prior premium payment year.



Disregard lump sums offered:
– In the course of routine plan operations,
– In conjunction with a plan termination,
– Upon a participant’s separation from service, or
– As part of an incentive program to encourage active participants to retire early (commonly called an
early retirement window).



Disregard lump sums paid under mandatory cash out provisions.



A person eligible for a Lump Sum Window whose offer letter is undeliverable may be excluded from the
“Eligible to elect a lump sum” count.



If the exact counts are not readily available, reasonable estimates based on readily available plan
records may be reported.

b Annuity Purchases - If the plan purchased annuities for a specified group of individuals during the premium
payment year or the prior premium payment year, enter the requested information with respect to that
group of individuals. For this purpose:


Disregard annuities purchases made less than 60 days before the premium filing is made.



Disregard annuities purchases for which the requested information was reported in the premium filing
for the prior premium payment year.



Do not include annuity contracts:
– Purchased in the course of routine plan operations,
– Purchased in conjunction with a plan termination, or
– That remain an asset of the plan (commonly called a “buy-in”).



If the exact counts are not readily available, reasonable estimates based on readily available plan
records may be reported.

19 Amended filings – Complete this item only if this is an amended filing.
Page 42

Description of Data Elements
a If either the first day or the last day of the premium payment year reported in this amended filing (item
4b(1)) differs from what was reported in the original filing (i.e., the filing that is being amended), provide
the dates that were reported in the original filing.
b If the EIN and PN reported in this amended filing (item 4c(1)) are not both the same as what was reported
in the original filing (i.e., the filing that is being amended), report the EIN and PN from the original filing.
c If this is an amended filing for a reason other than reconciling an estimated Variable-rate Premium and
the amended filing shows a lower premium than the amount that was originally reported, you must
provide an explanation of the specific circumstances or events that caused the reduction.
Instructions for Part VII – Certifications
20 Plan Administrator Certification
All of the information reported in this filing must be certified by the Plan Administrator. Follow the
certification instructions for the electronic filing method that is used to make the filing. Be sure to provide
the Plan Administrator’s name, the telephone number, and the certification date. If the Plan Administrator
has an e-mail address, that address must also be reported.
21 Enrolled Actuary Certification
An enrolled actuary must certify the Variable-rate Premium calculation unless:


The plan is a Multiemployer plan (and thus, there is no Variable-rate Premium).



The plan is a Single-employer Plan and is either:
-

exempt from the Variable-rate Premium, or

omitting the variable rate premium information in items 7c through 7g because the plan is eligible
for the Small Employer Cap and is paying the maximum Variable-rate Premium.

Be sure to provide all of the required information related to the enrolled actuary (i.e., name, firm, telephone
number, enrollment number, and if the enrolled actuary has an e-mail address, email address).
The actuary must follow the certification instructions for the electronic filing method that is used to make
the filing.

Page 43

Late Payment Charges
General
If you file a premium payment after the due date, we will bill the plan for late charges. The late charges include
both interest and penalty charges. The charges are based on the outstanding premium amount due on the due
date. If your due date is extended because it falls on a weekend or federal holiday, and your premium payment
is filed after the extended due date, interest and penalty will be computed from the actual (unextended) due
date. PBGC also may assess penalties under ERISA section 4071 for failure to timely provide premium-related
information.
Late Payment Interest Charges
The late payment interest charge is set by ERISA, and we cannot waive it. Interest accrues at the rate imposed
under section 6601(a) of the Code (the rate for late payment of taxes) and is compounded daily. These rates are
published by IRS quarterly and are also posted on the “Interest Rates and Factors” section of the Employers and
Practitioners Page of PBGC’s website.
Late Payment Penalty Charges
Late payments are generally subject to a penalty of 2½% of the late amount per month (or partial month) late,
but no more than 50% of the late amount. However, in the event a plan discovers and corrects an
underpayment before PBGC sends written notice that there is or may be a premium delinquency, the 2½% rate
is reduced to ½% and the cap is reduced from 50% to 25%.
The written notices mentioned above include, but are not limited to:
 Past Due Filing Notice (PDFN) — This notice is sent if we expect to receive a premium filing from the Plan but

do not. These notices are sent to the Plan Administrator and address reported on the most recent filing.

 Notice of Filing Error (NFE) — This notice is sent if an initial review of a premium filing indicates an error or

inconsistency that must be corrected before the filing can be processed. If you receive a Notice of Filing
Error, you must amend your filing to correct the error. If we do not receive an amended filing within 30 days,
we will send a PDFN (see above).

 Statement of Account (SOA) — If we receive a filing, but the payment is late or less than the reported

amount owed, we will send a Statement of Account. A SOA is, in essence, an invoice for premium, penalty,
and interest amounts owed to PBGC. To ensure that the amount due does not increase, the premium and
interest must be paid within 30 days of the SOA's issue date.

 Notice of a Premium Compliance Evaluation (PCE) — This notice is sent if we select your premium filing to

assess the accuracy of the reported information. See the Premium Filings page on our web site for further
information.

Penalty Waivers
Case-by-Case Waivers
If you receive a Statement of Account (“SOA”) that includes a penalty charge, but you believe there is a reason
why all or a portion of the penalty should be waived (e.g., reasonable cause), you may request a
waiver. Information about what constitutes reasonable cause as well as information about other situations
where a penalty waiver might be warranted can be found in § 21 of the appendix to PBGC’s premium payment

Page 44

Late Payment Charges
regulation, 29 CFR Part 4007, available on the “Law and Regulations” page of the Employers and Practitioners
Page of PBGC’s website.
The instructions and timeframe for requesting a waiver will be provided in the SOA. Be sure to follow the
instructions carefully. Requests that are submitted late will not be considered.
Hardship (i.e., “Statutory”) Waivers
If, before the filing due date, you can show substantial hardship and that you will be able to pay the premium
within 60 days after the filing due date, you may request that we waive the late payment penalty charge. If we
grant your request, we will waive the late payment penalty charge for up to 60 days. To request a waiver,
contact PBGC at least 30 days before the filing due date. Be sure to include specific information and documents
to demonstrate both that it will be a substantial hardship to make the payment on or before the filing due date
and that you will have the ability to make the payment within 60 days after the filing due date.
Automatic Penalty Waiver for Premiums paid Within Seven Days of Due Date
If the sole reason a late payment penalty charge applies is because a premium was paid after the due date, but
within seven calendar days of the due date, the late payment penalty charge will automatically be waived.
Automatic Penalty Waiver for Certain Compliant Plans
PBGC will automatically waive 80% of the penalties assessed at the 2½% rate if the plan:
 Corrects the underpayment within 30 days of PBGC’s initial notice, and
 Has a good premium compliance history.

For this purpose, a “good premium compliance history” generally means that the plan paid required premiums
timely for the five plan years immediately preceding the premium payment year. In addition, if, during the
5-year period, the plan paid its premium late, but was not required to pay a late payment penalty (e.g., the
penalty was waived), the plan is treated as paying timely for that year.
Automatic Penalty Waiver for Certain Late Variable-Rate Premiums
As explained in the “When to File” section, in rare circumstances (e.g., a mid-year merger or change in actuary),
the Premium Funding Target might not be calculated or finalized by the premium due date. PBGC allows plans
in this situation to file timely and pay an estimated Variable-rate Premium by the due date and then submit an
amended filing at a later date to reconcile the actual Variable-rate Premium with the estimate.
Because a plan’s full Variable-rate Premium (not merely an estimate) is due by the due date, if the full amount is
not paid by that date, the plan will be subject to late payment interest charges and may also be subject to late
payment penalty charges.
If the actual Variable-rate Premium is greater than the estimate, penalties for late payment will be waived if:


the reconciliation filing is made and any additional required Variable-rate Premium paid by the end of the
sixth calendar month that begins on or after the premium due date (generally April 30th after year-end for
calendar year plans), and



by the premium due date, you report:
-

the fair market value of the plan’s assets, and

an estimate of the Premium Funding Target that is certified by an enrolled actuary to be a reasonable
estimate that:
Page 45

Late Payment Charges



takes into account the most current data available to the enrolled actuary;

has been determined in accordance with generally accepted actuarial principles and practices; and

uses the calculation methodology (alternative or standard) in effect for the plan year; and

by the premium due date, you pay at least the amount of Variable-rate Premium determined from the value
of assets and estimated Premium Funding Target so reported.

Note that this waiver applies only to estimated Premium Funding Targets, not estimated asset values. If the
asset value reported in the reconciliation filing differs from what was reported in the original (i.e., estimated)
filing, this automatic penalty relief will be lost. However, PBGC will consider a request for an appropriate penalty
waiver in such a situation and, in acting on the request, will consider such facts and circumstances as the reason
for the mistake, whether assets were overstated or understated, and, if assets were overstated, the extent of
the overstatement.
If you know the final Premium Funding Target by the time the Variable-rate Premium is due, you should pay the
amount owed by that date. If you do so, you will avoid the interest charge and any penalty charge. If you report
that you are making a filing based on an estimated Premium Funding Target, you will be required to make an
amended filing reflecting the actual Premium Funding Target by the date the variable-rate reconciliation filing is
due.
Minimizing Late Payment Charges
If you cannot make a filing by the due date because you are having difficulty determining some of the required
information, you can minimize late payment charges by submitting payment (the amount due or an estimate)
without submitting the certified filing. If you choose to do this, you must pay outside of My PAA, either via
www.Pay.gov, or by check or electronic payment. You should then submit your certified filing as soon as
possible. Additional information on payment options is included in Appendix 3.
PBGC may assess a penalty under ERISA section 4071 for failure to furnish premium-related information by the
required due date. Making a premium payment without an accompanying premium information filing may cause
significant delay in providing a statement of account for the plan. However, when the information filing is
ultimately made, the payment will be credited as of the date it was filed and thus stop the accrual of late
payment charges on the amount paid.
Saturday, Sunday, and Federal Holidays
As explained in the “When to File” section, if your premium filing due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or Federal
Holiday, it is extended automatically to the next business day. However, if your premium payment is filed after
the extended due date, interest and penalties will be computed from the actual (unextended) due date.
Example –The Normal Due Date for a plan with a plan year beginning on March 1, 2018 would normally be
December 15, 2018. Because that day is a Saturday, the due date is Monday, December 17, 2018. If the filing is
made after December 17th, late payment charges, if applicable, will be computed from Saturday, December 15,
2018, not December 17th.

Page 46

Correcting Errors, Credit Balances and Reconciling Estimates
Correcting Errors
Making Payment Without Filing Information
If you make a premium payment without filing the related premium information, file the information as soon as
possible to get proper credit for your payment and minimize any late filing penalty. Follow the instructions in
this document or on PBGC’s website for identifying your payment so that we can associate it with your
information filing.
Filing Information Without Making Required Payment
If you make a filing of premium information without making a required payment, send the payment as soon as
possible to minimize late payment charges. Follow the instructions in this document or in My PAA for identifying
your payment so that we can associate it with your information filing.
Failure to report a filing as the final premium filing
If you make a premium filing that is a “Final premium filing” as described in item 13 of the comprehensive
premium filing instructions, and you do not provide the information required by item 13, you must make an
amended filing if the event referred to in item 13 occurred before you made your original filing, unless —


The event was a distribution of assets pursuant to plan termination and was reported on PBGC Form 501, or



The event was a merger into or consolidation with another plan and was reported on a premium filing for
the surviving plan.

If you make a premium filing that is a “Final premium filing” as described in item 13 of the comprehensive
premium filing instructions, and you do not provide the information required by item 13 because the event
referred to in item 13 has not yet occurred when you make the filing, you are not required to make an
amended filing. However, to avoid the need for correspondence to establish why you are not making any more
premium filings, we recommend that you contact us to report the event, unless —


The event was a distribution of assets pursuant to plan termination and is being reported on PBGC
Form 501, or



The event was a merger into or consolidation with another plan and is being reported on a premium filing
for the surviving plan.

Even if an amended filing is not required, you may want to make one where the plan has made a distribution of
assets pursuant to plan termination, because that event may enable you to reduce the premium through
proration and request a refund as part of the amended filing. Alternatively, because our system automatically
pro-rates premiums for plans in this situation based on the information reported on PBGC Form 501 and
updates the plan’s statement of account to reflect any overpayment, in lieu of submitting an amended filing,
you may request a refund of such overpayment online via My PAA or by sending an email to
premiums@pbgc.gov.
Amending Filings
If, after submitting a filing, you discover an error has been made (e.g., reported information is incorrect), you
must amend the filing to report the correct information even if the correction has no impact on the premium
amount. A filing can be amended by resubmitting the filing with the corrected information. Be sure to indicate
that the filing is an amendment to a previously submitted filing (see “Description of Data Elements” sections).

Page 47

Correcting Errors, Credit Balances and Reconciling Estimates
In the amended filing, report all of the required information, including information that was correct in the
original filing (i.e., the filing that is being amended). Include as credits all the credits you previously claimed
increased by the amount you paid with your most recent filing and reduced by any refund you requested.
If the originally reported premium:


was too low, the additional premium due will equal the excess of the revised total premium amount over
the revised total credit. Pay the additional premium due when you submit your amended filing. In this case,
late payment interest charges will apply and late payment penalty charges may apply. You will receive an
invoice for these charges after your amended filing is received. You may include payment of anticipated late
payment charges when you pay the additional premium, but the amount reported on the amended filing
should reflect only the additional premium due.



was too high, the overpayment will equal the excess of the revised total credit over the revised total
premium. You must indicate whether you want the overpayment refunded or applied to the next year’s
premium for the plan. We recommend that small credit amounts be carried over to the next plan year.
Please verify the credit amount by either reviewing the plan’s account history in My PAA or by contacting our
Premium Customer Service Center. Then, simply enter the relevant amount under “Premium Credits “in the
next year’s premium filing. See line 10b on the illustrative form in the “Data to be Submitted” section.
If you prefer a refund by electronic funds transfer (ACH), provide the necessary information in the applicable
section of the amended filing; we will make the transfer through the ACH system.
With either option, the overpayment will appear as an “Amount Overpaid” on your plan’s account history
until it is refunded or used to satisfy a future year’s premium. See section below on Premium Credit
Balances.

Required explanation if premium amount decreases
If you amend a comprehensive filing for a reason other than reconciling an estimated Variable-rate Premium
and the amended filing shows a lower premium than the amount that was originally reported, you must provide
an explanation of the specific circumstances or events that caused the reduction. For example, if your original
comprehensive filing’s Participant Count included employees at a division that is not covered by the plan, you
would explain why the employees were erroneously counted as participants and how the error was discovered.
Amending a prior year’s filing
Note that if you are amending a filing for an earlier year, you must follow the instructions for that year except
that current mailing and electronic funds transfer (EFT) addresses should be used instead of the addresses that
were included in the instructions for the original filing (i.e., the filing that is being amended). Prior year
instructions are available in the “Premium Payment Instructions and Addresses” section of the Employers and
Practitioners Page of PBGC’s website.
Premium Credit Balances
Premium credit balances, whether resulting from an amended filing or any overpayment, are shown on plans’
account histories and can be viewed in My PAA at any time. We recommend you review your plan’s account
history before you file to ensure that any available credits from the prior plan year have been used. If you have
a credit from two or more years prior to the Premium Payment year, you will need to contact the Premium
Customer Service Center in order to use it (See Appendix 2).
Note that an overpayment for one plan cannot be applied to offset an underpayment on another plan.
A plan administrator may request that a premium credit balance be refunded or be credited against the next
year’s premium. Requests must be made within the statutory limitation period (generally six years).
Page 48

Correcting Errors, Credit Balances and Reconciling Estimates
Reconciling Estimates
For plans that filed an estimated Variable-rate Premium, the reconciliation is made by amending the filing that
included the Variable-rate Premium estimate. This reconciliation filing serves to finalize a previously estimated
Premium Funding Target; it does not afford an opportunity to elect to use the alternative method after the due
date for such election (or to revoke a prior election after the due date for such revocation). See the instructions
for item 7d in the “Description of Data Elements” section for additional information on how to reconcile an
estimated Variable-rate Premium.
Failure to reconcile these estimates in a timely manner will result in late payment charges if the estimate to be
reconciled was too low. PBGC may also assess penalties under ERISA section 4071 for failure to reconcile
estimated premium filings by the reconciliation due date.

Page 49

Recordkeeping Requirements and PBGC Audits
Recordkeeping Requirements
Plan Administrators are required to retain all plan records that are necessary to establish, support and validate
the amount of any PBGC premium required to be paid and any information required to be reported. The records
must include calculations and other data prepared by an enrolled actuary, the Plan Sponsor, and an employer
required to contribute to the plan with respect to its employees; or for a plan described in section 412(e)(3) of
the Code, by the insurer from which the insurance contracts are purchased. The records must be kept for six
years after the premium due date.
Records that must be retained include, but are not limited to, records that establish the number of plan
participants and the amount of unfunded vested benefits on which the Variable-rate Premium is based. For this
purpose, the term “records” includes, but is not limited to, plan documents; participant data records; personnel
and payroll records; actuarial tables, worksheets, and reports; records of computations, projections, and
estimates; benefit statements, disclosures, and applications; financial and tax records; insurance contracts;
records of plan procedures and practices; and any other records, whether in written, electronic, or other format,
that are relevant to the determination of the amount of any premium required to be paid or any premiumrelated information required to be reported.
Records retained must be made available or submitted to PBGC promptly upon request. If a record to be
produced for PBGC inspection and copying exists in more than one format, it must be produced in the format
that PBGC specifies.
PBGC Audits
We may audit any premium filing; inspect and copy any records that are relevant to the determination of the
amount of any premium required to be paid and any premium-related information required to be reported; and
require disclosure and demonstration of any system used to determine any premium required to be paid or
premium-related information required to be reported, so that PBGC can assess the system’s effectiveness and
reliability.
If we determine upon audit that the full amount of the premium due was not paid, late payment interest
charges under §4007.7 of the Premium Regulations and late payment penalty charges under §4007.8 of the
Premium Regulations will apply to the unpaid balance from the premium due date to the date of payment (see
“Late Payment Charges” section for more information on penalties and interest for late payment of premiums).
If, in our judgment, the plan’s records fail to establish the number of participants with respect to whom
premiums were required, we may rely on data we obtain from other sources (including the Internal Revenue
Service and the Department of Labor) for presumptively establishing the number of plan participants for
premium computation purposes. Similarly, if, in our judgment, the plan’s records fail to establish the unfunded
vested benefits amount reported in the premium filing, we may rely on data we obtain from other sources for
estimating the unfunded vested benefits for premium computation purposes.
In addition to penalties for late payment of premiums, we may assess a penalty under ERISA section 4071 for
failure to furnish premium-related information by required due dates.

Page 50

Appendix 1 – Definitions
Definitions for terms shown in capital letters throughout the instructions are shown below. New or modified
terms are highlighted in green for emphasis.
“Alternative Premium Funding Target” – see “Premium Funding Target”
“Benefit Liabilities” means all liabilities with respect to employees and their beneficiaries under the plan (within
the meaning of Code section 401(a)(2)). Thus, Benefit Liabilities include liabilities for all accrued benefits,
whether or not vested. In addition, a plan’s Benefit Liabilities include liabilities for ancillary benefits not directly
related to retirement benefits, such as disability benefits not in excess of the qualified disability benefit, life
insurance benefits payable as a lump sum, incidental death benefits, or current life insurance protection (see
Treasury Regulation § 1.411(a)-7(a)(1)).
“Code” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.
“Consolidation” means a transaction in which two or more plans transfer all of their assets and liabilities to a
New Plan and, as a result, cease to exist (because the transferor plans become part of the new Transferee Plan).
It differs from a Merger because in a Merger, the Transferee Plan existed before the transaction. In a
Consolidation, the Transferee Plan is a New Plan that is created in the Consolidation. Thus, the plan that exists
after a Consolidation follows the premium filing rules for New Plans.
“Continuation Plan” means a new plan resulting from a Consolidation or Spinoff that is not de minimis pursuant
to the regulations under section 414(l) of the Code.
“EIN” means Employer Identification Number. It is always a nine-digit number assigned by the Internal Revenue
Service for tax purposes.
“ERISA” means the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (29 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.).
“Flat-rate Premium” means the portion of the premium determined by multiplying the flat premium rate by the
number of participants in the plan on the Participant Count Date.
“Form 5500 Series” means Form 5500, Annual Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan, jointly developed by the
Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Labor, and PBGC.
“Interest Rate Stabilization Rules” means the rules under which the volatility of certain discount rates used for
funding purposes is limited by constraining them within a specified corridor as provided in ERISA 303(h)(2)(C)(iv).
“Lookback Rule” means the provision under which the Variable-rate Premium for the Premium Payment Year is
determined based on UVBs for the plan year immediately preceding the Premium Payment year instead of the
Premium Payment Year.
“Lookback Year” means the plan year immediately preceding the Premium Payment Year.
“Lump Sum Window” means a temporary opportunity to elect a lump sum in lieu of future annuity payments
that is offered to individuals meeting specified criteria who would not otherwise be eligible to elect a lump sum.
“MAP-21 Cap” means the per-participant cap on the Variable-rate Premium as provided in The Moving Ahead
for Progress in the 21st Century Act.
“Merger” means a transaction in which one or more plans transfer all of their assets and liabilities to an existing
plan and, as a result, cease to exist (because the transferor plan(s) become part of the Transferee Plan). It differs
from a Consolidation because in a Consolidation, the Transferee Plan did not exist before the transaction. In a
Merger, the Transferee Plan is an existing plan and follows the rules for preexisting, ongoing plans.

Page 51

Appendix 1 – Definitions
“Multiemployer Plan” (subject to the provisions of ERISA sections 3(37)(E) and (G) and 4303, dealing with
elections to be treated or not to be treated as a Multiemployer Plan) means a plan:


to which more than one employer is required to contribute,



which is maintained pursuant to one or more collective bargaining agreements between one or more
employee organizations and more than one employer, and



which satisfies such other requirements as the Secretary of Labor may prescribe by regulation.

For purposes of determining whether a plan is a Multiemployer Plan or a Single-employer Plan, all trades or
businesses (whether or not incorporated) that are under common control are considered to be one employer.
“Multiple-employer plan” means a plan to which more than one employer contributes that is not a
Multiemployer Plan.
“My PAA” means “My Plan Administration Account,” PBGC’s electronic premium filing application.
“New or Newly Covered Plan” means a plan that is either a New Plan or a Newly Covered Plan. In some cases,
the term “New and Newly Covered Plan” is used for the same purpose.
“New Plan” means a plan that did not exist before the Premium Payment Year. This includes a plan resulting
from a Consolidation or Spinoff. A plan that meets this definition is considered to be a New Plan even if the plan
constitutes a successor plan within the meaning of ERISA section 4021(a).
“Newly Covered Plan” means a plan that becomes covered by title IV of ERISA during the premium payment
year and that existed as an uncovered plan immediately before the first date in the premium payment year on
which it was a covered plan.
“Normal Premium Due Date” means the date premiums are due unless some special situation applies (i.e., a
change in plan year, first time filing, or a standard termination). See “When to File” section.
“Participant” of a plan means an individual (whether active, inactive, retired, or deceased) with respect to
whom the plan has Benefit Liabilities. See “How to Count Participants” section for more information.
“Participant Count” means the number of participants on the Participant Count Date. See “How to Count
Participants” section for more information.
“Participant Count Date” means the date on which participants are counted for purposes of determining the
Flat-rate Premium, the MAP-21 CAP on the Variable-rate Premium, whether the plan is a Small Plan, and, if
applicable, the Small Employer Cap on the Variable-rate Premium. In general, it is the last day of the plan year
preceding the Premium Payment Year, but there are some exceptions. See “How to Count Participants” section
for more information.
“Plan Administrator” means:


the person specifically so designated by the terms of the instrument under which the plan is operated; or



if an administrator is not so designated, the Plan Sponsor.

“Plan Adoption Date” means the date on which a plan was formally adopted.

Page 52

Appendix 1 – Definitions
“Plan Sponsor” is determined as follows:




For a Single-employer Plan with:
-

one contributing sponsor, the Plan Sponsor is the contributing sponsor;

two or more contributing sponsors that are all in a single controlled group, the Plan Sponsor is the
parent of the controlled group or, if there is no parent, the largest member of the controlled group
(whether or not the parent or largest member is a contributing sponsor);

two or more contributing sponsors that are not all in a single controlled group, the Plan Sponsor is
determined as follows: first identify the controlled group, or contributing sponsor that is not in a
controlled group, that has the most participants in the plan. If you identify a contributing sponsor that
is not in a controlled group, the Plan Sponsor is that contributing sponsor. But if you identify a
controlled group, then the Plan Sponsor is the parent of that controlled group or, if there is no parent,
the largest member of that controlled group (whether or not the parent or largest member is a
contributing sponsor).

For a Multiemployer Plan, the Plan Sponsor is the association, committee, joint board of trustees, or other
entity that establishes or maintains the plan.

“PN” means Plan Number. This is always a three-digit number. The employer maintaining the plan assigns this
number to distinguish among employee benefit plans established or maintained by the same employer. An
employer usually starts numbering pension plans at “001” and uses consecutive Plan Numbers for each
additional plan. Once a PN is assigned, always use it to identify the same plan. If a plan is terminated, retire the
PN — do not use it for another plan.
“Premium Funding Target” is the liability measure used to determine the Variable-rate Premium. This is similar
to the funding target that is used to determine the minimum funding requirement except that only vested
benefits are taken into account. The discount rates used to determine this amount vary depending on which
calculation method is used (standard or alternative):


“Standard Premium Funding Target” means a Premium Funding Target determined using the ERISA section
4006(a)(3)(E)(iv) segment rates.



“Alternative Premium Funding Target” means a Premium Funding Target determined using ERISA section
303 (i.e., funding) discount rates, but without regard to the MAP-21 Stabilization Rules. See “How to
Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits” section for additional information related to the election and use of
the Alternative Premium Funding Target.

“Premium Payment Year” means the plan year for which the premium is being paid. For example, since this
document relates to premium filings for plan years beginning in 2018, all references to “Premium Payment Year”
relate to plan years beginning in 2018.
“Premium Regulations” means PBGC’s regulations on Premium Rates and Payment of Premiums (29 CFR Parts
4006 and 4007). The premium filing procedures (including the My PAA electronic filing application, paper
instructions, and forms) are prescribed under and implement the Premium Regulations.
“Schedule SB” means Schedule SB to the Form 5500 Series.
“Single-employer Plan” means any plan that is not a Multiemployer Plan. A Single-employer Plan includes a
Multiple-employer Plan. For purposes of determining whether a plan is a Multiemployer Plan or a Singleemployer Plan, all trades or businesses (whether or not incorporated) that are under common control are
considered to be one employer.

Page 53

Appendix 1 – Definitions
“Small-Employer Cap” means the maximum Variable-rate Premium due for certain plans of small employers,
generally employers with 25 or fewer employees. For these plans, the maximum Variable-rate Premium is the
product of $5 and the Participant Count squared.
“Small Plan” means a plan:


With a Participant Count for the Premium Payment Year of not more than 100, or



With a funding valuation date for the Premium Payment Year, determined in accordance with ERISA section
303(g)(2), that is not the first day of the Premium Payment Year.

“Spinoff” means a transaction in which the transferor plan transfers only part of its assets and/or liabilities to
the Transferee Plan. The Transferee Plan may be a New Plan that is created in the Spinoff, or it may be a
preexisting plan that simply receives part of the assets and/or liabilities of the transferor plan.
“Standard Premium Funding Target” – see “Premium Funding Target”
“Transferee Plan” means a plan that receives assets and/or liabilities from another plan in a transfer (e.g.,
Spinoff, Merger, or Consolidation).
“Transferor Plan” means a plan that gives assets and/or liabilities to another plan in a transfer (e.g., Spinoff,
Merger, or Consolidation).
“UVB Valuation Date” means the date on which UVBs are determined. This date is the plan’s funding valuation
date determined in accordance with ERISA section 303(g)(2) for:


In the case of a plan using the Lookback Rule, the Lookback Year, or



In the case of any other plan, the Premium Payment Year.

”UVBs” means unfunded vested benefits, the term used to describe the underfunding measure on which the
Variable-rate Premium is based.
“Variable-rate Premium” means the portion of the single-employer premium based on a plan’s unfunded
vested benefits.
“We” or “us” refers to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
“You” or “your” refers to the Plan Administrator.

Page 54

Appendix 2 – Contact information
1.

PBGC’s Web site (www.pbgc.gov) contains pension plan information of interest to Plan Administrators
and practitioners, such as electronic premium filing, current and prior premium filing booklets, frequently
asked questions, interest rates, regulations, etc. This information can typically be accessed via the
Employers and Practitioners Page. Note that you can access or subscribe to “What’s New for Practitioners
and Employers” that provides information on recent events.

Submit electronic premium filings (including electronic amended filings) through “My Plan Administration
Account” (My PAA) via the “Online Premium Filing (My PAA)” section of the Employers and Practitioners
Page of PBGC’s website and follow instructions about how to use My PAA for submitting premium
payments.

For all premium-related inquiries and requests, including requests for exemption from the requirement
to file electronically, premium filing questions, requests for instructions, address changes, requests for
refunds (that are not submitted with premium filings), and requests for penalty waivers, contact our
Premium Customer Service Center:
a. Mail (U.S. Postal Service or private delivery service): Send to the address posted on Web site under
Premium Filings.
b. Call: 1-800-736-2444 or 202-326-4242 and select option 2 (premiums). Note – requests for
exemptions from e-filing requirement cannot be made by phone.
c. Fax: 202-326-4250
d. E-mail: premiums@pbgc.gov

For current interest rate information:
a. Call: 202-326-4041
b. See: “Interest Rates and Factors” section on the Employers and Practitioners Page of PBGC’s website.

For assistance on coverage determination or plan termination:
a. Call: 1-800-736-2444 or 202-326-4242
b. E-mail: standard@pbgc.gov
c. Write to:
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
Standard Termination Compliance Division, Suite 930
Processing and Technical Assistance Branch
1200 K Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005-4026

Page 55

Appendix 2 – Contact information
6.

If you have a complaint about the service you have received or still need assistance after calling our
practitioner telephone numbers listed in item 4 (1-800-736-2444 or 202-326-4242), please contact the
Problem Resolution Officer (Practitioners):
a. Call: 1-800-736-2444, ext. 4136 or 202-326-4136
b. E-mail: practitioner.pro@pbgc.gov
c. Write to:
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
Problem Resolution Officer (Practitioners); Suite 610
1200 K Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005-4026

For questions about our Premium Compliance Evaluation Program:
a. Call: 1-800-736-2444, ext. 6855 or 202-326-4161, ext. 6855
b. E-mail: pce@pbgc.gov

For software developers requesting approval of XML files produced by private-sector software for use in
My PAA, follow the submission instructions on the “Software Developer E-filing Resources for Integrating
with PBGC” webpage. The link to this webpage is found in the section titled “Related Information” on the
right side of the “Online Premium Filing with My PAA” webpage.

PBGC’s business hours are 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays.
TTY/TDD users may call the Federal relay service toll-free at 1-800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to any
telephone number.
Note – We cannot accept collect calls.

Page 56

Appendix 3 – On-line Premium Filing with My PAA
Introduction
My Plan Administration Account (My PAA) is a secure, Web-based application that enables you to electronically
submit premium filings, payments, premium refund requests, and requests for reconsideration of late payment
penalties to PBGC. Although electronic filing of premium information is mandatory, payments may be made
either electronically or by paper check.
Information about how to use My PAA may be accessed on PBGC’s website as well as within the My PAA
application itself. Detailed information (e.g., FAQs and Demos) is located in the “Online Premium Filing (My
PAA)” section (accessible via the Employers and Practitioners Page of PBGC’s website).
To use My PAA, you must set up a My PAA account which includes a user ID and password. Each My PAA user
needs only one account, which can include an unlimited number of plans.
My PAA offers three e-filing methods:


You can use My PAA’s data entry and editing screens to create a filing; route it to others for review, editing,
and electronic certification; and submit it electronically to PBGC. Each person who participates in the
electronic processing of the filing must have a My PAA account.



You can use private-sector software that is compatible with My PAA to create a filing, and then import the
filing data into My PAA’s data entry and editing screens for routing, review, editing, electronic certification,
and electronic submission to PBGC. Each person who participates in the electronic processing of the filing
must have a My PAA account.



You can use private-sector software that is compatible with My PAA to create a filing, and then upload the
filing to PBGC via the My PAA application. The filing cannot be routed, reviewed, or edited in My PAA. In
most cases, a paper copy or copies of the filing must be certified outside of My PAA (before the filing is
uploaded) and retained in plan records. Only the person who uploads the filing must have a My PAA
account.

My PAA’s Data Entry and Editing Screens
Entering information
My PAA’s data entry and editing screens walk you through a step-by-step process to create a premium filing. For
example, in the first step you identify the type of plan (Single-employer or Multiemployer) for which the filing is
being submitted, and the plan year. Instructions are provided at each step.
The information entered in each step determines the content of the successive steps. For example, if you
indicate that you are preparing a comprehensive premium filing for a Single-employer Plan, the later steps will
request information needed to determine the amount of the Variable-rate Premium (if applicable). However, if
you indicate that you are preparing a comprehensive premium filing for a Multiemployer Plan, the Variable-Rate
Premium screens will be suppressed.
The required mathematical calculations are automated. For example, My PAA automatically multiplies your
Participant Count by the applicable flat premium rate to generate the Flat-rate Premium.

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Appendix 3 – On-line Premium Filing with My PAA
E-filing team
Multiple people can contribute to a plan’s filing in My PAA’s data entry and editing screens. For example, some
information might be entered by the Plan Administrator and other information by an actuary. The people
authorized to contribute to a plan’s premium filing in My PAA’s data entry and editing screens are those who
have the plan in their My PAA accounts, and are referred to as the plan’s “e-filing team.”
Routing filings
Filings in progress can be routed among e-filing team members through My PAA for input, review, editing, ecertification of information, authorization of payment, and submission to PBGC. The person routing the filing to
another member of the e-filing team can provide comments and instructions for the person to whom the filing is
being routed. My PAA sends that person an e-mail notice (with the comments and instructions) stating that the
filing has been routed for the recipient’s action and that the recipient is now “holding” that filing. After all
information has been provided and certified, and payment (if any) has been authorized, the filing can be
electronically submitted to PBGC by the Plan Administrator or Filing Coordinator.
Using Private-Sector Software with My PAA
Compatibility with My PAA
You can use private-sector software to prepare a premium e-filing, but the software you use must be compatible
with My PAA. That means that the software must be able to place your filing in an electronic file that is in “XML”
format and meets PBGC specifications. The specifications are posted on the “Online Premium Filing (My PAA)”
webpage. Private-sector software providers and developers submit to PBGC sample filings in XML format for
PBGC review and assignment of vendor numbers; you should review PBGC’s Web site or check with your
software provider or developer to find out whether your software is capable of creating an XML file in the
proper format for use with My PAA. If your compatible private-sector software permits, you can create batch
files containing more than one premium filing for use with My PAA.
Importing a filing
A premium filing that has been prepared with compatible private-sector software can be “imported” into My
PAA’s data entry and editing screens. That means that the information in the filing is placed into the data entry
and editing screens and can then be electronically routed, reviewed, edited, certified, and submitted to PBGC as
previously described in the My PAA’s Data Entry and Editing Screens section. To import a filing for a plan, the
plan must be in your My PAA account. My PAA provides instructions for importing filings. My PAA’s import
feature also allows multiple filings to be imported at the same time.
Uploading a filing
A premium filing that has been prepared with compatible private-sector software can also be “uploaded”
through My PAA. That means that the fully-completed filing is submitted directly to PBGC and, therefore, cannot
be reviewed or edited in My PAA before submission to PBGC. My PAA’s upload feature also allows multiple
filings to be uploaded at the same time (i.e., a batch upload).

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Appendix 3 – On-line Premium Filing with My PAA
To upload a filing for a plan, the plan need not be in your My PAA account, but you must have a My PAA account
with at least one plan in it. You must electronically certify in My PAA that you have authority to submit the filing
for the plan, but in most cases the information in the filing must be certified on paper outside My PAA before
the filing is uploaded, and the certified information must be retained in plan records. (The Plan Administrator’s
(or enrolled actuary’s) certification can be made on-line if it is the Plan Administrator (or enrolled actuary) who
uploads the filing.) My PAA provides instructions for uploading filings and for certifying the information in
uploaded filings.
Filing Coordinator
A central role in the e-filing process is played by the “filing coordinator,” who is the person designated by the
plan or Plan Sponsor to be responsible for coordinating the plan’s on-line premium filings. The filing coordinator
for a plan is the one who adds that plan to the account of each other person in the e-filing team and assigns
each e-filing team member one or more filing roles, such as the authority to certify a filing (e.g., as the Plan
Administrator). My PAA provides instructions for becoming a plan’s filing coordinator, adding plans, adding
e-filing team members, assigning roles, etc.
Premium Payment Options
If you owe a premium, there are several ways to submit payment:
 Automated Clearing House (ACH) payment within My PAA: This is an electronic transfer of funds from an

account that you specify by entering your account number and bank routing number. Additional
information about this payment option is available in My PAA. This option is not available if you are
uploading multiple filings at the same time (i.e., batch uploads).



Electronic Payment via Pay.gov: This is a website from which you can make secure electronic payments
directly to many Federal Agencies, including PBGC. It involves entering information about your plan (i.e.,
EIN, plan number, the date the applicable plan year began, information about the account from which
payment will be made) and then authorizing payment. To pay using this option, go to www.pay.gov and
select Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation from the “Find an Agency” List, and then select PBGC’s online
Premium Insurance Payments Form.



Paper Check: You can mail a paper check to our premium lockbox.



Federal Wire and ACH: You can direct your bank to send us a payment.

See the “Premium Payment Instructions and Addresses” section of the Employers and Practitioners Page of
PBGC’s website for additional information about payment options and addresses. Be sure to use the most
current payment addresses for all plan year filings, including prior year filings.

Other Important My PAA Features
Filing receipts
My PAA gives you a filing receipt. For a filing submitted from My PAA’s data entry and editing screens (including
a filing imported into My PAA), the filing receipt shows the date and time that PBGC received the filing, a
confirmation number, and all of the information submitted in the filing.

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Appendix 3 – On-line Premium Filing with My PAA
For an uploaded filing, the filing receipt shows the name of the uploaded XML file, the date and time of receipt
by PBGC, and a confirmation number. This confirmation number must be written on the signed paper copy of
the “form” retained the Plan Administrator’s records. After a filing is uploaded, the uploader can view the
information submitted in each uploaded filing.
In either case, provide the confirmation number to the preparer of the Form 5500 or Form 5500-SF, because
that number is generally reported as part of the Form 5500 filing.
Account history
A member of a plan’s e-filing team may, if authorized by the filing coordinator, view the plan’s account history
on-line through My PAA. The account history shows the results of PBGC’s processing of your premium filings and
payments for each plan year. We recommend that you review the account history after your premium filing is
processed.
Request for Premium Refund
The plan administrator may request that an overpayment of premiums be refunded. The request will be
assigned a service request number, which can be used to track the status of the request on My PAA. We
recommend that you review the account history before requesting a premium refund.
Instructions
My PAA provides full filing instructions and help screens. In addition, PBGC’s website information and “demos”
about how to get started and how to use My PAA. To access the My PAA information, click the “Online Premium
Filing (My PAA)” link from the Employers and Practitioners Page of PBGC’s website.
For More Information
If you have questions about e-filing with My PAA, please contact us. See Appendix 2 for information.

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Appendix 4 — Common Filing Errors
Incorrect Identifying Information
The EIN combined with the plan number are used by the IRS, DOL and PBGC as a unique 12 digit number to
identify the plan. In addition, PBGC uses the Plan’s effective date as an additional confirmation that the
premium filing is for a plan that’s already in our database (based on previously reported information on Forms
5500 and on premium filings.
Unless there has been a change to the Employer Identification Number (EIN) and/or Plan Number, the EIN and
plan number provided on the filing must match what was reported on the most recent premium filing. If there
is a new EIN and/or plan number, both the EIN and plan number from the previous filing must also be reported.
The EIN and PN combination may not be the EIN and PN that were previously used to identify a different plan.
If we receive a filing for a plan that doesn’t indicate that it’s a new plan and we are unable to match the plan to
one that’s already in our database, we will be unable to perform further validations and will send an error notice
accordingly.
Sending Payment without Properly Identifying Plan
We often receive premium payments that do not contain sufficient information to identify the plan and thus, we
cannot credit the payment to the plan’s premium account. When we receive a comprehensive premium filing
indicating the amount owed, but no payment is credited to the account, we send an invoice for the premium,
including late payment charges. This can be avoided by ensuring that the following information be included with
all premium payments:

•
•
•
•

EIN
Plan number
Plan year Commencing Date (PYC)
MyPAA Filing ID (for premium payments)

PBGC premium payments will automatically be credited to the premium account if the identifying information
noted above is included with the payment.
The best way to avoid issues with your premium payment is to submit the payment via PBGC’s online filing
website, MyPAA (https://egov.pbgc.gov/mypaa/) or pay.gov and ensure you enter the correct information into
the on-line voucher.
We encourage you to review our “Premium Payment Instructions and Addresses” webpage each year before
sending payment. Note that payment instructions will be changing in early 2018.
New Plans Failing to do a First Year Filing
A premium filing is required for the first plan year of a new plan even if no premium is owed. In that first
premium filing, be sure to complete item 4f (e.g., check the “new or newly covered plan” box) and provide the
adoption date and the date coverage began.
For a new plan, both the effective date (item 4d) and the participant count date (item 5a) are the first day of the
Premium Payment Year (item 4b(1)).

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Appendix 4 — Common Filing Errors
Small Plan Lookback Rule Inconsistencies
For plan years after 2013, Variable-rate Premiums for small plans are based on unfunded vested benefits for the
prior plan year unless the plan opts out of the Lookback Rule. In most cases, PBGC permission is required to opt
out of the Lookback Rule after 2014. See “How to Determine Unfunded Vested Benefits” for details.
PBGC reviews all small plan filings to ensure that plans that didn’t opt out are, in fact, using the Lookback Rule
and vice versa. PBGC uses the reported UVB valuation date to determine whether the Lookback Rule is used.
For example, if a calendar year plan reports 12/31/2016 as the UVB valuation date in the Comprehensive
Premium Filing for the 2017 plan year, PBGC assumes the plan (1) has a year-end valuation date and (2) is using
the Lookback Rule for purposes of determining its 2017 Variable-rate Premium.
•
•

If our records indicate the plan opted out of using the Lookback Rule in an earlier year, an error letter
will be sent.
If our records indicate that the plan was supposed to using the Lookback rule, PBGC will review the
discount rates reported to have been used to determine the Premium Funding Target to confirm that
those rates are acceptable options for a plan using the Lookback Rule. If that’s not the case, an error
letter will be sent.

Similarly, if a calendar year plan reports 1/1/2017 as the UVB valuation date in the Comprehensive Premium
Filing for the 2017 plan year, PBGC assumes the plan (1) has a beginning of year valuation date and (2) is not
using the Lookback Rule for purposes of determining its 2017 Variable-rate Premium.
•
•

If our records indicate the plan did not opt out of using the Lookback Rule in an earlier year, an error
letter will be sent.
If our records indicate that the plan was not supposed to use the Lookback rule, PBGC will review the
discount rates reported to have been used to determine the Premium Funding Target to confirm that
those rates are acceptable options for a plan that is not using the Lookback Rule. If that’s not the case,
an error letter will be sent.

Please refer to pages 12-19 of the Comprehensive Premium instructions for more details.

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Appendix 5 — Paperwork Reduction Act Notice
We need this information to determine the amount of premium due to PBGC under Title IV of ERISA. You are
required to give us this information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.
OMB has approved this collection of information under control number 1212-0009.
Confidentiality is that provided by the Privacy Act and the Freedom of Information Act.
PBGC estimates that preparation and submission of a premium filing takes 7 hours if UVBs are reported and 3½
hours if they are not. PBGC assumes that most of the work (95 percent) is contracted out at a rate of $350 per
hour. Thus the estimated burden associated with premium filing is about 20 minutes and $2,330 if UVBs are
reported and about 10 minutes and $1,165 if they are not. The actual time will vary depending on the
circumstances of each plan.
If you have comments concerning the accuracy of these burden estimates or suggestions for making the forms
or the electronic filing process simpler, please send your comments to Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation,
Office of General Counsel, Regulatory Affairs, 1200 K Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005-4026.

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File Type	application/pdf
File Title	2007 PBGC ESTIMATED PREMIUM INSTRUCTIONS
Author	CPXXA30
File Modified	2017-11-15
File Created	2017-11-15