MARCH 2010 Pension Plan tip of the month…

 

2009 Form 5500 and Required Electronic Filing

 

As of January 1, 2010, all 2009 Plan Year Forms 5500 are required to be filed electronically with the Department of Labor ("DOL").  In connection with the electronic filing, an authorized signer at your company must obtain signing credentials.  If you have not done so already, please have the Form 5500 authorized signer for your company access the EFAST2 website at www.efast.dol.gov, to establish Filing Signer authority for him/her.  Refer to the enclosed screen prints for additional assistance on registering. The DOL defines an authorized signer as the Plan Administrator, Employer, and/or Plan Sponsor. For most plans, one of the Trustees would be the authorized signer. Each authorized signer will be assigned a unique User ID and PIN. The DOL has provided strict guidance that this User ID and PIN cannot be shared with another party.  The User ID and PIN are required to submit the Form 5500 to the DOL.

 

Beginning with Plan Years ending 12/31/2009, you will receive notification via email from your Retirement Plan Consultant that your Form 5500 has been completed and published to Paragon's Form 5500 website. This email will contain a link to Paragon’s Form 5500 website, along with your User Name and Password that will allow access to the website.  This website is separate from the EFAST2 website where you will be registering to obtain filing signer credentials.

 

Plan sponsors will continue to receive the Annual Compliance folder via mail from their Retirement Plan Consultant. Even though the Form 5500 will be signed and submitted electronically, it does not mean that the process is completely paperless. A fully signed copy of the return must be maintained in your files for a minimum of seven years. A signature ready copy of the Form 5500 will be included in the Annual Compliance folder for you to sign and maintain for seven years.

Also, beginning with the 2009 plan year, a retirement plan that does not require a plan audit may qualify to file a more simplified version of the Form 5500 called the Form 5500-SF. All of the additional schedules that have been filed separately in the past will be included in the Form 5500-SF.

 

For Retirement plans that qualify for the Form 5500-SF, Paragon will complete and publish your Form 5500-SF. Once this has been reviewed, the authorized signer will be able to initiate a signing ceremony and submit the Form 5500-SF using the User ID and PIN provided from the EFAST2 website.

 

If your plan does require a plan audit, a DRAFT Form 5500 will be made available to you via hardcopy and can be forwarded to your plan auditor. After the audit is complete, we will publish the Form 5500 and applicable schedules, the Financial Statement and the Auditor's Opinion to the secure website. These documents must be included in your electronic submission to the DOL. Once we have published these files, a signing ceremony can be initiated and the forms submitted to the DOL.

 

Please note that the Schedule SSA will not be included in the electronic filing of the Form 5500 as this form contains social security numbers. Also, at this time, the IRS has not provided a 2009 Schedule SSA. For this reason, you are currently not required to file a Schedule SSA for 2009. Once we have been provided an updated Schedule, we will provide it to you.

 

Your Retirement Plan Consultant will be able available to answer your questions and assist you through this new required process. 

Instructions/Screen Prints for Obtaining EFAST2 Credentials

  1. Go to www.efast.dol.gov and select on the left side the link labeled Register.

  1. To continue the registration process, you will be asked to read and accept a privacy statement.

  1. You will need to input your profile information on the next screen and select Filing Signer. You will then need to select Next.

  1. You will need to select a Challenge Question (either ‘What is your date of birth?’ or ‘Where is your place of birth?’).

 

 

 

 

  1. Please review the Register Summary Page. You can make any changes by selecting Edit. If no changes are required, please select Submit.

 

  1. A Register Confirmation page will now appear and a confirmation email will be sent to your email address. PLEASE SAVE THIS EMAIL FOR FUTURE REFERENCE. Select Ok.

  1.  You will receive an email from efast2@efastsys.dol.gov with a subject line of IMPORTANT: YOUR EFAST2 PIN and USERID. Open this email and it will allow you to obtain your PIN and UserID. Please select the link that is included in your email.

 

  1. Once the link is selected, you will be brought to the Challenge Verification Screen where you will need to answer your Challenge Question.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. You will then be asked to read and accept the PIN Agreement. Activating your PIN indicates that you have agreed to not share your PIN with anyone. Select Accept Agreement.

 

  1.  You will be asked to now read and accept the Signature Agreement.

  1. Once you have accepted the Signature Agreement, the next page will be labeled, Register – Finalize. On this page you will see your EFAST2 profile information. PLEASE NOTE YOUR USER ID AND PIN ARE ON THIS SCREEN. Please keep this information in a secure place.

 

  1. The last step will be to create a Password that will allow you to access the EFAST2 website.