DoL Tool Makes it Easier – to Pay Fines

Plan sponsors and plan administrators will now find it easier to pay online civil penalties for delinquent filings of annual reports under the agency’s Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program (DFVCP).

The DFVCP (see  IRS Issues Corrections Program Update ) encourages plan administrators to file already overdue annual reports required under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.   Delinquent filers can avoid potentially higher civil penalty assessments by satisfying the program’s requirements and voluntarily paying a reduced penalty amount.

Pay “Pal?”

The calculator uses the Department of the Treasury’s pay.gov financial management system.    Users now can calculate the amount of civil penalties and pay those penalties online with a credit or debit card as an alternative to paying by check.  This new tool is part of EBSA’s compliance assistance program and is available nationwide.    For more information on the Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program, contact EBSA at 202-693-8360 or visit the agency’s Web site at www.dol.gov/ebsa/Newsroom/0302fact_sheet.html .

Employers and plan administrators can access the new feature that allows them to electronically pay civil penalties at http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/calculator/dfvcpmain.html .  

The U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) also noted that the Pension Protection Act of 2006 required the department to post on its Web site actuarial information of pension plans filed with the Form 5500 annual reports.

That site provides "user friendly ways" for workers and plan officials to search for plan information by such categories as plan name, employer identification number or date, according to the announcement.    

The site is located at http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/actuarialsearch.html