4157 / What information must be disclosed relating to individual expenses under the 404(a)(5) disclosure regulations?

On or before the date on which a participant or beneficiary can first direct plan investments, and annually thereafter, the plan administrator must disclose any fees and expenses that can be charged against the participant’s investment account for services provided on an individual basis. Examples for which this disclosure would apply include loan fees, QDRO processing, or distribution fees.

On a quarterly basis, the plan administrator must provide the participants or beneficiaries an accounting of the dollar amount of the fees and expenses charged against the account for individual services deducted in the preceding quarter, as well as a description of the services provided.

If there are any changes to the disclosed information, the participant or beneficiary must be given notice of the change at least 30 but no more than 90 days before the effective date of the change. However, if circumstances present themselves to prevent disclosing changes to this information within the appropriate time frame, the plan administrator must issue a notice describing the changes as soon as practicable.