E-Filing of Your Form 5500

Posted by David Edman in Blog, Health Benefit Strategies, June 2010 on June 10th, 2010 | No Comments »

From “Employee Benefit News” (EBN), we bring you the latest information on the filing of your Form 5500s.  It is now a requirement that all forms be filed electronically using DOL’s new electronic filing program, EFAST2.  McDermott Will & Emery attorneys Nancy Gerrie and Nataline Nathanson have put together a list of tips on how to navigate your way through the Department of Labor’s new paperless approach:

1. Before a plan can file a Form 5500 using EFAST2, the appropriate individuals must register at the EFAST2 website.  This process involves identifying the party who will complete the Form 5500 and any and all parties who will sign it.  One individual can register for more than one role.  All users are encouraged to register early to avoid last-minute errors.

2. Once an individual registers, he or she cannot go back to choose additional roles, so it is important to understand the roles each person will play before the registration process begins.  The five available roles are Filing Author, Filing Signer, Schedule Author, Transmitter and Third Party Software Developer.

3. The individual who completes the online Form 5500 must register as the Filing Author and the individual who will sign the online Form 5500 must register as the Filing Signer.

4. The credentials an individual uses to register are personal and are not linked to the company.  The registration process assigns a unique identification, personal identification number and password to each user.

5. The Form 5500 can be completed either by the Filing Author or a third-party administrator.  If your TPA typically prepares your Form 5500, verify that the TPA is properly certified to prepare and submit the filing.

6. The Internal Revenue Code permits either the plan sponsor/employer or the plan administrator to sign the filing.  However, the Form 5500 instructions state, “Any Form 5500 that is not electronically signed by the plan administrator will be subject to rejection and civil penalties under Title I of ERISA.”

7. Filings submitted under the EFSAT2 program will be posted on DOL’s website, so all social security information should be excluded from the filings. In addition, if your plan is a defined benefit plan and you maintain a company intranet, you must post certain information from the Form 5500 on the company’s intranet website.

8. Plans are no longer required to attach a copy of the Form 5558 (application for extension of time to file) to the Form 5500 filing. Filers who previously submitted a Form 5558 for the plan year now simply check the appropriate box on line D. Plans must retain a paper copy of the Form 5558, if any, with the plan’s permanent records.

9. Schedule E and Schedule SSA have been removed from the Form 5500. The annual registration statement must now be filed directly with the Internal Revenue Service.

10. Plans will be required to retain a paper copy of the Form 5500, with all required signatures, for their permanent records.

EBN asks if the goal is to save paper and be more green/efficient, why is there a requirement to keep a paper copy?   I’m from the government and I’m here to help….