DOL Releases Advance Copies of 2023 Form 5500 and Form 5500-SF

Published December 13, 2023

The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) released advance informational copies of the 2023 Form 5500 Annual Return/Report and related instructions, and Form 5500-SF and instructions.

Pension and welfare benefit plans required to file an annual return/report regarding their financial conditions, investments and operations generally satisfy that requirement by filing the appropriate Form 5500 form, including any required schedules and attachments, under the all-electronic EFAST2 system.

The "Changes to Note" section of the 2023 instructions for each of the forms highlights important modifications to the forms, schedules and instructions. Changes are summarized below:

  • Schedule DCG for Defined Contribution Group Reporting Arrangements: 
    • For 2023, Form 5500 and the filing instructions have been revised to add a new filing option – Defined Contribution Group (DCG) Reporting Arrangements. To be eligible to file as a DCG, all plans in the DCG must be individual account plans or defined contribution plans that have the same trustee; the same one or more named fiduciaries; the same plan administrator under ERISA and the Code; the same plan year; and provide the same investments or investment options for participants and beneficiaries. 
  • Schedule MEP for Multiple-Employer Pension Plans: 
    • A new Schedule MEP (Multiple-Employer Pension Plan Information) is added to consolidate SECURE Act related and other multiple-employer plan reporting in one schedule, including ERISA section 103(g) participating employer information and aggregate account information. 
    • For 2023, questions intended to satisfy the SECURE Act’s reporting requirements for pooled employer plans and questions to link the Form PR (Pooled Employer Registration) and the Form 5500 for each plan operated by a pooled plan provider are also found on the Schedule MEP. 
  • Revised Small Plan Audit Participant Count Method: 
    • Both Form 5500 and Form 5500-SF, and their instructions, are revised to reflect a change in the methodology for counting the number of participants used to determine when a defined contribution pension plan may file as a small plan, including determining eligibility for the conditional waiver of the independent qualified public accountant (IQPA) audit requirement.
    • Beginning with 2023 plan year filings, a defined contribution pension plan counts participants with account balances at the beginning of the plan year, except for new plans which use the number of participants with account balances at the end of the plan year. 
  • Schedule H Administrative Expense Transparency:  
    • Schedule H is updated to add new breakout categories to the “Administrative Expenses” category of the Income and Expenses section of the Schedule H balance sheet. This change provides a better picture of plan expenses, particularly those related to service providers including fee categories related to contract administration, recordkeeping, audit fees, investment advisory and management, trustee and custodial, actuarial, legal, valuation/appraisal and other expenses. 
  • Schedule MB Regarding Asset Reporting for Plans Receiving Special Financial Assistance: 
    • Schedule MB is revised to add Notes that clarify how to report special financial assistance for multiemployer plans.
  • Schedule R: 
    • Several new IRS tax compliance questions are being added to Schedule R beginning with the 2023 plan year reports. The changes add questions in three major areas: nondiscrimination testing, ADP testing and pre-approved plan letters. 
  • Schedule SB Target Normal Cost Reporting Clarifications: 
    • Schedule SB is revised to include the following: 
      • Change Schedule SB, line 6 (Target Normal Cost), and its instructions, to address a possible, albeit unlikely, situation in which the amount reported on line 6c would not be consistent with IRS regulations and the statute if the calculation was done in accordance with the instructions, 
      • Change the current instructions for line 26a to revise a line reference, and 
      • Change the current instructions for the Schedule SB, line 26b attachment (projected benefit payments), for situations where a plan assumes some, or all, benefits are paid in a lump sum, and uses the annuity substitution rule (26 CFR 1.430(d)– 1(f)(4)(iii)(B)) to determine the funding target.

Advance copies of the 2023 Form 5500 series are for informational purposes only and cannot be used to file a 2023 Form 5500 series Annual Return/Report.