Basic Notice Requirements (SPD ● SMM ● Plan Documents) In This Section: Summary Plan Description > Summary of Material Modifications > Summary Annual Report > Plan Documents > Notice of Adverse Benefit Determination > Domestic Relations Order and Qualified Domestic Relations Order Notices Document Type of Information Provide To Provided By When Due Summary Plan Description (SPD) Provides plan participants and beneficiaries with information about their rights, benefits, and responsibilities under the plan and how it works, including: Eligibility requirements and when employees begin to participate; Description of benefits and how service and benefits are calculated; When participants have a right to benefits under the plan; When payment is received and in what form;  How to file a claim for benefits; and Statement of rights available to plan participants under ERISA (model language is available) Participants and beneficiaries (Plan participants and beneficiaries, as well as the DOL, also have the right to obtain a copy of the SPD upon request—see "Plan Documents," below, for requirements.)   Plan administrators of all non-exempt¹  defined contribution plans   To new participants: Within 90 days of employee becoming covered by the plan To beneficiaries: Within 90 days after first receiving benefits  (New plans have 120 days after becoming subject to ERISA to distribute the SPD.) The SPD must be current within 120 days prior to the date of distribution, and must be accompanied by any summary of material modification or change in information required to be included in the SPD which has not been incorporated into the document being furnished. An updated SPD must be furnished every 5 years if changes are made to SPD information or the plan is amended. Other- wise, it must be furnished every 10 years. Summary of Material Modifications (SMM) Describes material modifications to the plan and changes to information required to be included in the SPD, such as changes related to vesting rules or eligibility requirements for participation and plan benefits. Participants and beneficiaries   (Plan participants and beneficiaries, as well as the DOL, also have the right to obtain a copy of the SMM upon request—see "Plan Documents," below, for requirements.) Plan administrators of all non-exempt defined contribution No later than 210 days after the end   of the plan year in which the change is adopted (timely distribution of an updated SPD may satisfy this requirement) Summary Annual Report (SAR) Narrative summary of the Form 5500 annual financial report (note that model language is available) Participants and beneficiaries Plan administrators of plans subject to Form 5500 annual reporting requirements Either annually within 9 months after the end of the plan year, or, when an extension of the due date for filing Form 5500 has been granted by the IRS, 2 months after the extended due date, whichever is later Plan Documents Instruments under which the plan is established or operated, including the latest updated SPD, any SMMs, the latest Form 5500, and other documents Participants and beneficiaries (and upon request) The U.S. Department of Labor also has the right to obtain copies upon request Plan administrators of all non-exempt defined contribution plans   Copies must be furnished no later than 30 days after a written request The plan administrator also must make copies available for examination by participants and beneficiaries at its principal office Notice of Adverse Benefit Determination (Claim Denial) Information regarding any denial (in whole or in part) of a claim for benefits under the plan, including: The specific reason for the denial; Reference to the specific plan provisions on which the decision is based; Whether additional information is needed to decide the claim, what that information is, and why it is needed; and A description of the plan's procedures and deadlines for submitting an appeal. A model notice is available.   Claimants (participants, beneficiaries, or authorized representatives) Plan administrators of all non-exempt defined contribution plans Within a reasonable period of time, but not later than 90 days after receipt of the claim by the plan (If the plan administrator determines that special circumstances require an extension of time for processing the claim, written notice of the extension must be furnished to the claimant prior to the termination of the initial 90-day period. The extension notice must indicate the special circumstances requiring an extension of time and the date by which the plan expects to render the benefit determination.) Domestic Relations Order (DRO) and Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO) Notices Notice of receipt of a DRO providing  child support, alimony payments or marital property rights to a spouse, former spouse, child or other dependent of a participant (including the plan's procedures for determining qualified status), and a separate notice as to whether the DRO is qualified (creating the right of such individuals to receive all or a portion of the benefits payable to the participant) Plan participants   Alternate payees (spouse, former spouse, child, or other dependent of a participant named as a beneficiary in a DRO) Plan administrators of all non-exempt defined contribution plans Notice of Receipt of DRO: Promptly upon receipt of the DRO   Notice of Qualification Determination: Promptly after determination is made (but the plan administrator is given a reasonable time after receipt of the DRO to determine whether it is qualified)       ¹The term “non-exempt” in this calendar means those plans that are subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of Title I of ERISA. In general, ERISA does not apply to plans established or maintained by government entities or churches for their employees, or plans which are maintained solely to comply with workers’ compensation, unemployment, or disability laws. ERISA also does not cover plans maintained outside the United States primarily for the benefit of nonresident aliens or unfunded excess benefit plans.