When Is the Form 5500 Filing Deadline?
Master the Form 5500 process. Get clear insights into timely submission and compliance for your employee benefit plan.
Form 5500 is an annual report on the financial health and operations of employee benefit plans. It ensures plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) meet government regulations. The information provides transparency to federal agencies, including the Department of Labor (DOL), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC).
Entities Required to File
Most employee benefit plans subject to ERISA must file a Form 5500 annually. This includes retirement savings plans like 401(k)s, 403(b)s, and defined benefit plans, as well as welfare plans such as medical, dental, life insurance, and disability benefits. The specific Form 5500 series version depends on the number of participants at the beginning of the plan year.
Plans with 100 or more participants file the standard Form 5500. For smaller plans with fewer than 100 participants, Form 5500-SF (Short Form) is used. Form 5500-EZ is for one-participant plans, which typically cover a business owner and their spouse, or partners and their spouses, with no other common-law employees. Form 5500-EZ is required if total plan assets exceed $250,000 at the end of the plan year.
Certain plans are exempt from Form 5500 filing requirements. These include governmental plans, church plans, and some unfunded or fully insured small welfare plans.
Standard Filing Deadlines
The standard due date for filing the Form 5500 series is the last day of the seventh calendar month after the plan year ends. For instance, a calendar-year plan, which operates on a January 1 to December 31 year, has a filing deadline of July 31 of the following year. This consistent rule applies across different plan types and filing versions within the 5500 series.
For plans operating on a fiscal year, the deadline adjusts accordingly. For example, a plan year ending on March 31 has a filing deadline of October 31. If the due date falls on a weekend or a legal holiday, the deadline shifts to the next business day.
Obtaining an Extension
Plan administrators can obtain an automatic 2½-month extension for filing Form 5500 series returns by submitting Form 5558, Application for Extension of Time To File Certain Employee Plan Returns. This form must be filed with the IRS on or before the original due date of the Form 5500. For a calendar-year plan, this means Form 5558 would typically need to be filed by July 31.
Upon timely filing of Form 5558, the extension is automatically granted. This pushes the new filing deadline to the 15th day of the third month after the original due date. For a calendar-year plan, this effectively extends the deadline from July 31 to October 15. The Form 5558 does not require a specific reason for the extension. While Form 5558 has historically been filed via paper, starting January 1, 2025, it can also be filed electronically through the EFAST2 system.
Consequences of Late Filing
Failing to file Form 5500 by the deadline can result in very severe penalties imposed by both the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The DOL can assess daily penalties for late filings. These penalties can reach up to $2,586 per day, with no maximum limit for continuous non-compliance.
The IRS also imposes penalties for delinquent Form 5500 series returns. For returns required to be filed after December 31, 2019, the IRS penalty is $250 per day, up to a maximum of $150,000 per plan year. These penalties accrue quickly. Programs like the DOL’s Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program (DFVCP) exist to allow plan administrators to voluntarily submit overdue reports with reduced penalties. However, timely filing is always recommended to avoid these financial burdens.