This page has not been translated. Please go to PBGC.gov's Spanish home page for more information available in Spanish.
Esta página no ha sido traducida. Por favor vaya a la página principal del sitio de español de PBGC para ver información disponible en español.
Guidance Document Database
The documents listed below are PBGC’s guidance documents. The contents of these documents do not have the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract, and are not meant to bind the public in any way. These documents are intended only to provide clarity to the public regarding existing requirements under the law or agency policies.
If you would like to comment on an existing guidance document, please submit your comment, including your contact information, to the General Counsel at GuidanceComments@pbgc.gov or at Regulatory Affairs Division, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, Office of the General Counsel, 445 12th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20024-2101.
Title | Issuance Date | Agency Identifier (indexed field) | Topics | Summary | Posted Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Opinion Letter 77-145 | 5-24-1977 | PBGC Op Let 77-145 | Professional service employer plan, Coverage | Employer providing consulting services in bio-mechanics, forensic physics, traffic reconstruction, injury analysis, and automotive and traffic safety is a Professional Services Employer and is exempt under Title IV. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 82-37 | 12-9-1982 | PBGC Op Let 82-37 | Employer, Multiemployer, Withdrawal Liability | Addresses the definition of employer in the context of building cleaners at an office building. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 76-12 | 1-27-1976 | PBGC Op Let 76-12 | Individual account plan | Amendment of a plan from a defined benefit plans to an individual account plan results in the plan’s termination. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 86-10 | 4-10-1986 | PBGC Op Let 86-10 | Joint employers, Multiemployer, Withdrawal Liability | Addresses calculation of withdrawal liability for a "joint employer” that is no longer required to contribute. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 76-56 | 4-21-1976 | PBGC Op Let 76-56 | Coverage | Plan must be communicated to eligible participants to be tax qualified and a Title IV covered plan. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 76-03 | 1-8-1976 | PBGC Op Let 76-3 | Allocation of assets, Termination | Plan administrator must allocate assets to participant receiving early retirement benefits and may not allocate assets to participants whose benefit claims had been fully satisfied prior to termination of plan. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 74-25 | 11-8-1974 | PBGC Op Let 74-25 | Nonresident aliens, Coverage | Plan of Canadian company with mostly Canadian participants is not covered under Title IV. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 84-04 | 4-20-1984 | PBGC Op Let 84-4 | Benefit guarantee | Benefits which became vested solely on account of termination are not guaranteed. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 81-9 | 4-30-1981 | PBGC Op Let 81-9 | Successor liability | Asset purchaser assuming some pension plans not successor corporation to the seller with respect to plans left with the seller; purchaser is liable for plans it assumed; liability to PBGC is not limited by any agreement between seller and purchaser as to the amount of liability purchaser was willing to assume. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 89-05 | 8-1-1989 | PBGC Op Let 89-05 | Termination, Multiemployer, Withdrawal Liability | This opinion letter addresses whether an QPSAs and other benefits are nonforfeitable after termination of a multiemployer plan such that they should be considered in determining withdrawal liability. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 94-02 | 7-26-1994 | PBGC Op Let 94-02 | Interest, Multiemployer, Premiums, Penalties | Whether interest and penalties assessed by PBGC for the late payment of premiums respecting a multiemployer plan can be paid from plan assets. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 90-02 | 4-20-1990 | PBGC Op Let 90-02 | Multiemployer, Withdrawal Liability | Addresses (1) the calculation of annual withdrawal liability payments where an employer contributes to a multiemployer plan under multiple collective bargaining agreements requiring different contribution rates (the "contract-by-contract" approach); (2) using the contract-by-contract approach to calculate an employer's required contribution rate following plan termination by amendment; (3) whether alternate interest rates may be used to calculate the value of benefits under the plan following a mass withdrawal; (4) the correction of prior errors in valuation when calculating withdrawal liability. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 83-07 | 3-21-1983 | PBGC Op Let 83-07 | Expenses, Multiemployer | Addresses a request to use employer contributions, PBGC financial assistance, and other monies received by a plan to pay union dues for retirees and beneficiaries. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 80-10 | 6-9-1980 | PBGC Op Let 80-10 | Professional service employer plan, Coverage | Food broker is not a professional individual for purposes of the Professional Service Employer plan exemption. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 78-25 | 10-31-1978 | PBGC Op Let 78-25 | Governmental plan, Coverage | Plan is a Governmental plan; water authority created by statute; board appt by town's council, funded by water assessments, fund pays for plan including deficits upon termination, participants are water authority's employees |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 76-52 | 4-14-1976 | PBGC Op Let 76-52 | Sale of division, Reportable events | Sale of divisions resulting in more than 20% reduction in number of plan participants is a reportable event. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 74-08 | 12-23-1974 | PBGC Op Let 74-8 | tax qualification, Premiums | A plan is covered for purposes of premium payments on the later of the date of establishment or the effective date. |
2-28-2020 |
Opinion Letter 91-06 | 8-19-1991 | PBGC Op Let 91-06 | Multiemployer, Withdrawal Liability | Addresses trustees’ ability to adopt alternative withdrawal liability rules under ERISA sections 4219 and 4224 that modify an employer's withdrawal liability payment terms to take into account an employer's financial condition. |
2-28-2020 |
PBGC Premium Filings for CSEC Plans for 2019 and 2020 Plan Years | 1-3-2020 | PBGC TU 20-1 | Premiums | Guidance for cooperative and small-employer charity (CSEC) plans on filing premiums for 2019 and 2020 plan years that reflect the premium changes under the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act). |
2-28-2020 |
Disaster Relief | 7-2-2018 | 83 FR 30991 | Disaster relief | PBGC's disaster relief is available when the Internal Revenue Service issues disaster relief for taxpayers that includes filing extensions for the Form 5500 series. Also, for premium filings no late payment interest charges will be assessed for the disaster relief period. |
2-28-2020 |
Use of Alternative Dispute Resolution | 4-12-1999 | 64 FR 17696 | Mediation, Arbitration | Provides that PBGC will use, where appropriate, alternative dispute resolution. |
2-28-2020 |
Disaster Relief Announcements Archive | 6-28-2018 | PBGC Web 012 | Disaster Relief Announcements Archive | PBGC disaster relief announcements from 2013-2018. |
2-28-2020 |
4010 Financial Information Reporting Waiver | 10-16-2019 | PBGC TU 19-1 | Annual reporting | Guidance on compliance with the annual financial and actuarial information reporting requirements under Section 4010 of ERISA. PBGC adopted a rule addressing the issue effective 3/5/2020. (See 29 CFR part 4010.) |
2-28-2020 |
4262 IFR Final Posted | 7-9-2021 | PBGC SFA 21-01 | Special financial assistance, Multiemployer | Sets forth the requirements for special financial assistance applications and related restrictions and conditions pursuant to the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. |
7-9-2021 |
SFA Assumptions Guidance - Updated July 11, 2022, Superseded as of January 3, 2023 | 7-11-2022 | PBGC SFA 22-07 | Special financial assistance, Multiemployer | Provides guidelines for changes to certain assumptions that multiemployer plans may use for purposes of determining eligibility for special financial assistance (SFA) and the amount of SFA. |
7-11-2022 |