What is the Annual Funding Notice (“AFN”)?

Section 101(f) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) requires that the administrators of single-employer defined benefit plans furnish an AFN to (a) each participant and beneficiary, (b) each labor organization representing such participants or beneficiaries, and (c) the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (the “PBGC”). The AFN must include, among other things, the plan’s funding percentage, a statement of the value of the plan’s assets and liabilities, a description of how the plan’s assets are invested as of specific dates, and a description of the benefits under the plan that are eligible to be guaranteed by the PBGC. The Department of Labor issued a model AFN in Field Assistance Bulletin 2009-01.

What is the AFN Distribution Due Date?

The AFN is required to be distributed no later than 120 days after the close of each plan year. For calendar year plans, the 2009 filing deadline is April 30, 2009. For small plans, the AFN must be provided no later than the date the Form 5500 is filed and not later than the Form 5500 filing deadline (including extensions). Generally, plan is a “small plan” if it had 100 or fewer participants on each day during the plan year preceding the year to which the AFN relates.

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