US Department of Labor launches online filing system for termination administrators to submit information on abandoned employee benefits plans

WASHINGTON – The Department of Labor today announced its Employee Benefits Security Administration has launched an online system to help qualified termination administrators more efficiently submit information required by the department’s Abandoned Plan Program.

Since 2006, the program has enabled benefit distributions to be made to participants and beneficiaries of individual account retirement plans, such as 401(k) plans, that have been abandoned by their sponsoring companies. It allows qualified termination administrators to wind up a plan’s affairs and provides them with streamlined procedures for distributing benefits.

The new system offers these administrators an online option for submitting required information to the department in addition to existing email and paper-based methods. 

“The online system now offers a user-friendly, one-stop platform that qualified termination administrators can use to submit information needed by our Abandoned Plan Program,” said Assistant Secretary for Employee Benefits Security Lisa M. Gomez. “This new tool will facilitate plan terminations and benefit distributions to the hard-working people owed these funds.”  

Recent updates to the Abandoned Plan Program will allow Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustees and their eligible designees to serve as qualified termination administrators. The existing associated prohibited transaction class exemption, PTE 2006-06, has been amended to permit Chapter 7 trustees and their designees to select and pay themselves for services in connection with terminating and winding up bankrupt companies’ retirement plans. These updates take effect July 16, 2024. 

Access the online filing system.