Form 5500 Is Due by August 1 for Calendar Year Plans

Employers that are subject to ERISA and operate on a calendar year basis must file their annual reports (Forms 5500) for 2021 with the Department of Labor (DOL) by August 1, 2022. An employer may extend this deadline by two and one-half months (until October 17, 2022) by filing IRS Form 5558 by August 1, 2022.

An employer must file a Form 5500 for each separate employee benefit plan that it maintains, unless a filing exemption applies. Employers can combine different welfare benefits under a single plan to simplify their Form 5500 reporting obligation.
Small welfare benefit plans (fewer than 100 covered participants) that are unfunded or fully insured (or a combination of unfunded and insured) are exempt from the Form 5500 filing requirement.

Small plans (fewer than 100 participants) that do not qualify for a filing exemption may be able to use a simplified form (Form 5500-SF “Short Form Annual Return/Report of Small Employee Benefit Plan”) for the annual reporting requirement.

How to File

The Form 5500, including required schedules and attachments, must be filed electronically using the DOL’s EFAST2electronic filing system. Employers cannot file the Form 5500 on paper. Under EFAST2, employers may use either approved third-party vendor software or the DOL’s web-based filing system (IFILE) to prepare and submit Forms 5500.

Employers Subject to ERISA

ERISA applies to virtually all private-sector employers that maintain employee benefit plans for their employees, regardless of the size of the employer. This includes corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies, sole proprietorships and nonprofit organizations. ERISA exempts only employee benefit plans maintained by two types of employers – governmental employers and churches.

To view all the reporting requirements, view our Compliance Bulletin.

If you would like to speak with a consultant at HANYS Benefit Services on this or any other topic, please call (800) 388-1963 or via email.

HANYS Benefit Services is a marketing name of Healthcare Community Securities Corp., Member FINRA/SIPC, and a Registered Investment Advisor.

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