If you are not in PBGC’s unclaimed retirement benefits database, you can still locate your pension benefit using the resources below.
PBGC maintains two searchable databases of insured and defined benefit plans:
Ongoing Plans
Use the search Plans Paying PBGC Premiums database to find active, PBGC-insured pension plans. Contact the administrator at the phone number listed. Note: PBGC does not have the authority to assist you in disputes involving ongoing plans. Contact the Department of Labor / Employee Benefits Security Administration for assistance.
Trusteed Plans
Use the search the database of trusteed plans to find plans PBGC has taken over. If you plan is listed, PBGC may owe you a benefit.
Important: Being listed does not guarantee eligibility. Benefits depend on plan participant and service requirements.
Pension plan tracing assistance
If you know your plan name and ID number, contact PBGC’s Office of the Participant and Plan Sponsor Advocate to see if you are eligible for pension plan tracing assistance.
If you do not know the name of your pension plan or have the plan’s identification number, you can obtain this information by sending a written request for a Notice of Potential Private Retirement Benefit Information to the Social Security Administration at:
OCO Office of Earnings Operations
Attention: ERISA Correspondence Group
P.O. Box 33007
Baltimore, MD 21290-3307
A sample request letter is available.
If you do not find your plan in PBGC’s databases, it may be that:
- Your pension plan ended in a standard termination.
- Your pension plan is a multiemployer plan.
- Your plan is not a defined benefit plan.
If you didn’t find your plan on PBGC’s list of trusteed plans or list of ongoing plans but are pretty sure you were in a defined benefit plan, your plan may have ended in a standard termination. Learn more at What to do before contacting PBGC.
If you are not sure whether your plan was a defined benefit plan, there are documents you may have received that can help you. Review Documents to claim a retirement benefit to learn about these documents and how they can help you find a lost benefit.