On July 25, 2005, the Labor Department released the Advance Form 5500 for Plan Year 2005 reporting. This release is earlier than previous releases of Form 5500s “By making the forms and instructions available early and streamlining them, the filing process will be more efficient for plans and service providers,” said Ann L. Combs, assistant secretary of labor for employee benefits security.

You can find a list of the modifications to Form 5500 under "Changes to Note" in the 2005 instructions. In the press release, the following was pointed out as being of particular notice:

Schedule T (Qualified Pension Plan Coverage Information. This Schedule is no longer needed, but one question has been added to Schedule R (Retiree Plan Information). See Schedule R below.

Schedule A (Insurance Information) Instructions. The Instructions now reflect EBSA guidance issued earlier this year on reporting of insurance fees and commissions.

Schedule B (Actuarial Information) and Instructions. The reporting on investment returns, actuarial assumptions, and the summary of eligibility and benefit provisions used in plan valuations has been improved.

The following modifications affecting welfare plans may be more of an interest to our users:

Form 5500, Lines 6 and 7 (re: number of participants),  The DOL Reg. Section 2510.3-3(d) text which refers to when an individual becomes a participant in a welfare benefit plans has been added. You can also find a tip on how you can determine whether a plan sponsor has established one or more welfare plans for Form 5500 reporting purposes.

Schedule A (Insurance Information) Instructions.  The instructions now include the guidance from the DOL Advisory Opinion 2005-05A (issued earlier this year) on insurance fees and commissions.

401(k) Plans

Some of the modifications affecting 402(k) plans are:

Schedule H (Financial Information) Instructions:  The instructions have been revised to claring that when you are completing line 4a regarding late deposit of participant contributions (delinquent contributions), you should carry over and report the total amount of any delinquent contributions on Schedule H (or Schedule I in the case of a small pension plan) for each year that the contributions remain delinquent "until the violation has been fully corrected".  This includes payment of the delinquent contributions and reimbursement to the plan for lost earnings or profits.

Schedule R (Retirement Plan Information).  The question that requires the plan to indicate whether it meets the ratio percentage or average benefit test (unless the plan meets one of the exceptions under Code Section 410(b)) has been added to Schedule R, but the three-year-testing-cycle exception in Schedule T will not apply to Schedule R. Notice that Line 8 has been changed to identify plan amendments that decrease, as well as increase, the value of benefits.

"ERISA Compliance Quick Checklist" found in Instructions.  A question has been added asking whether the plan gave proper notice to participants for any 'blackout period". This is to alert filers to their duties under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Click here to read News Release.

Click here to view a copy of the Form 5500 and Instructions for Plan Year 2005.