A late Form 5500 can cost $2,739 a day, and the DOL’s clock has no ceiling.
The Department of Labor can assess up to $2,739 for each day a Form 5500 is late, with no maximum, and the IRS adds its own daily penalty on retirement plans. A voluntary correction program caps the cost at a few thousand dollars if you file before the DOL contacts you.
Who files a Form 5500, and when it is late.
Form 5500 is the annual report that ERISA requires of most employer-sponsored benefit plans. It is late the day after the due date, and the daily penalties begin on that date.
Who Has to File
ERISA plans with 100 or more participants at the beginning of the plan year, and any plan that holds assets in a trust. A plan with fewer than 100 participants that is unfunded, fully insured, or a combination is exempt from the filing. Participants are covered employees plus COBRA participants and covered retirees, not dependents.
When It Is Due
The last day of the seventh month after the plan year ends, which is July 31 for a calendar-year plan. Form 5558 adds up to two and a half months, to October 15 for a calendar-year plan, if it is filed by the original due date.
How It Is Filed
Form 5500 and Form 5500-SF must be filed electronically, using EFAST2-approved software or the DOL’s IFILE system. Completed filings are public.
Which Plans File
Group health, dental, vision and other welfare plans that meet the participant test, and most retirement plans. Several welfare benefits can be filed together under a single wrap plan.
What the Report Shows
Plan identification, participant counts, and financial and insurance details, including the Schedule A that lists insurance carriers and the commissions paid. Completed filings are public.
How Days Are Counted
Daily penalties count calendar days from the due date. A calendar-year plan whose report is due July 31 and arrives 90 days late is filed on October 29.
Two agencies can fine a late Form 5500, and one program offers a way out.
The Department of Labor assesses civil penalties under ERISA Section 502(c)(2). The IRS has its own penalty on retirement plan returns. The Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program, or DFVCP, replaces the open-ended DOL penalty with a small flat one.
DOL: $2,739 Per Day
Up to $2,739 for each day the report is late, counted from the original due date, with no maximum. The DOL did not adjust civil penalties for inflation in 2026, so the 2025 amount still applies.
IRS: $250 Per Day
For returns due after 2019, the IRS penalty is $250 per day up to $150,000 per plan year, plus interest. It applies to retirement plan returns under IRC 6652(e). Health and welfare plans face the DOL penalty.
DFVCP: $10 Per Day
The program charges $10 per day. Per filing, the cap is $750 for a small plan and $2,000 for a large plan. Per plan across multiple years, the cap is $1,500 for a small plan and $4,000 for a large plan.
Who Cannot Use It
Plans that have already been notified of a failure to file, or that received a notice of intent to assess a penalty, are not eligible. The program does not cover amended filings or Form 5500-EZ filers, and it does not relieve IRS or PBGC penalties.
What a late Form 5500 costs in dollars.
These are illustrations, using the penalty amounts shown on this page.
A Plan 90 Days Late
The DOL ceiling is up to $246,510 (90 days at $2,739), with no cap. Through the DFVCP, 90 days at $10 is $900, which a small plan caps at $750 and a large plan pays in full.
A Retirement Plan, Same Delay
The IRS adds $250 per day, or $22,500 for 90 days, which is under the $150,000 plan-year cap. The voluntary program does not relieve the IRS penalty.
A Small Plan, Three Years Behind
Three late small-plan filings could each reach the $750 cap, but the per-plan cap across years is $1,500. That is a fraction of the open-ended DOL exposure for the same period.
Six steps once you know you are late.
The program rewards speed, because the daily charge runs until it reaches the cap and eligibility ends when the DOL notifies you.
Confirm the Filing Duty
Count participants at the start of each plan year and check whether the plan is funded. An unfunded or fully insured plan under 100 participants may not need to file at all.
Gather the Data
Collect the plan year, plan document, carrier contracts, participant counts and the insurance information the Schedule A requires. Carriers can supply their portion.
File Each Late Year
File a Form 5500 or 5500-SF through EFAST2 for every year you want relief for. Relief is requested year by year, and each year needs its own report.
Calculate and Pay
The DOL provides an online calculator and payment system for the program. Pay the flat amount it computes rather than waiting for an assessment.
Keep the Proof
Save the filing confirmations and the payment receipt for each plan year. They are your record if the DOL or a buyer asks about compliance later.
Set the Calendar
Put the plan year, the seventh-month due date and the Form 5558 date on a compliance calendar. We can help you with the filing, including late and back Form 5500s.
The fine is only the first cost.
A late filing also changes what you can do about it, because the cheap option closes once the DOL has noticed.
A Notice Closes the Cheap Door
Program eligibility ends when the plan administrator has been notified of the failure to file. After a notice of intent to assess, the open-ended daily penalty is the one in play.
Extensions Do Not Reset the Clock
If a Form 5558 extension is granted but the filing reaches EFAST after it expires, penalties are calculated from the original due date.
The Administrator Pays
ERISA assesses the penalty against the plan administrator, which for most employer plans is the employer. It is not a vendor problem you can hand back.
The questions employers ask about late Form 5500 filings.
Six short answers. This is general information, not tax advice.
We Have Fewer Than 100 Participants. Are We Exempt?
Usually, if the plan is unfunded, fully insured or a combination, counted at the start of the plan year. The exemption is from the filing only. The summary plan description is still required, and failing to supply requested plan documents within 30 days can carry a penalty of up to $110 per day.
How Do We Count Participants?
Covered employees plus COBRA participants and covered retirees, not dependents. The count is taken at the beginning of the plan year, so a group that grew during the year can still be exempt for that year.
What if It Is Already Late?
File through the DFVCP before the DOL notifies you. The $10 daily charge keeps running until it reaches the cap, so the sooner you file, the less it costs.
Does the Program Help With IRS Penalties?
No. The DOL states that the program does not relieve IRS or PBGC penalties, so a retirement plan can still owe the IRS amount separately.
Can a DOL Penalty Be Reduced?
After a notice of intent to assess, the administrator can respond with a statement of reasonable cause explaining the failure and what was done to correct it. The regulations at 29 CFR 2560.502c-2 and 2575.502c-2 set the framework and the adjusted amounts.
Can You Help With a Late Filing?
Yes. We can help you with the filing, including late and back Form 5500s, and we help keep you ERISA compliant going forward. Send us the plan details and we will tell you where you stand.
Does a Fully Insured Plan Still File?
Yes, if it has 100 or more participants at the start of the plan year. The carrier supplies the Schedule A data, but the plan administrator is responsible for the filing.
Can We Get an Extension After the Deadline?
No. Form 5558 has to be filed on or before the original due date, so it cannot cure a deadline that has already passed. Late filers use the voluntary program instead.
Who Is Responsible for the Filing?
The plan administrator, which for most employer plans is the employer. The administrator signs and is responsible for the accuracy of the report, even when a vendor prepares it.
Where the rules and figures come from.
Every figure on this page comes from the statute, regulation or agency guidance below. Penalty amounts are indexed each year, so confirm the current figures before relying on them.
29 U.S.C. 1132
ERISA Section 502(c)(2): civil penalty for failure to file the annual report.
DOL Notice, 91 FR 31358
The Department of Labor made no civil penalty adjustment in 2026.
26 U.S.C. 6652
Subsection (e): IRS failure to file penalty on retirement plan returns.
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