FLASH IN THE PLAN: PAPER STATEMENTS FOR 2026

by: Alison J. Cohen, Esq.

You likely provide many disclosures to participants electronically, including participant statements. Effective for the 2026 plan year, pursuant to SECURE 2.0, plan sponsors are now required to provide paper statements to participants. Earlier this year, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) released guidance, explaining the new requirement and how it changes the current electronic disclosure rules.

At a high level, the newly effective rule requires that:

• For plans where participants direct their investments (most 401(k) plans) – one of the quarterly statements
  being distributed per year must be on paper.
• For plans where the trustee directs the investments (most profit sharing plans) – the annual statement
  must be on paper.
• For defined benefit/cash balance plans – the statement required to be distributed at least every three years
  must be on paper.

What About Participants Who Don’t Want Paper?

You can allow participants to elect not to receive the paper statements. But it requires careful coordination and tracking. The plan sponsor or its provider responsible for distributing statements must track the participant population and whether the participant receives paper or electronic statements. (Yes, this is a breeding ground for mistakes if proper records aren’t kept.)

When you apply the confusing new rules provided by the DOL for the electronic delivery of participant statements, each participant falls into one of four categories, with different requirements for each.

Category 1 – Pre-2026 Participants and Others Who Are “Wired-at-Work”: This includes anyone entitled to benefits prior to 2026 who is either a “wired-at-work” employee (i.e., uses e-mail as a regular part of their jobs) or who has affirmatively agreed to electronic delivery. These folks may continue to receive all statements electronically. The only real change is that each participant statement must now include a section explaining that the recipient can get paper copies delivered to them instead of electronic delivery and how they can make that election.

Category 2 – Pre-2026 Participants and Others NOT “Wired-at-Work”: These participants should get a paper notice informing them that they have the right to elect to get the one paper statement per year (cash balance/defined benefit participants will get all statements on paper if they make this election).

Category 3 – Participants entering in 2026+: These participants, beneficiaries, and alternate payees must get a one-time initial paper notice informing them of the right to elect to receive electronic statements. If they do not make an affirmative election to get all statements electronically, the participant must default to receiving one paper statement per year. This requirement applies to everyone entering in 2026 and later, including employees who are “wired-at-work.” So, basically, everyone gets an initial notice.

Category 4 – Participants previously covered under the 2020 “Opt-Out Rule”: One option the DOL previously provided was called the “Opt-Out Rule,” under which there was an initial notice that went to employees advising them about electronic delivery in the future, and then there was a special notice that went out on paper each time an electronic disclosure was provided. This rule is now converted to an “Opt-in” rule for participant statements only. For purposes of this paper statement requirement, everyone must affirmatively elect to opt-in for electronic delivery, unless they fall under Category 1. If they do not, they must get one paper statement per year.

Can you just surrender to the new rules and provide one paper statement per year to everyone? Yes, but many are concerned about providing this information by mail, as it is easily stolen from mailboxes, increasing the potential of cybertheft.

Conclusion

These new rules and requirements apply only to the paper statements. For other notices, such as QDIA and Summary Annual Reports, all of the prior rules apply. This means that plans can continue to distribute notices electronically to the majority of participants. The DOL issued clarification on May 12, 2026, that it will not take enforcement action against plan administrators that comply in good faith until the final regulations are issued. This means that the statement for period ending March 31, 2026, that will be (or has been) issued does not need to comply with these proposed rules which gives everyone time to coordinate the implementation.

These rules are confusing and tricky. This is when it is important to talk and rely on your third party administrator (“TPA”) and other service providers. Find out how they can support you in meeting this obligation.

Talk to Your TPA:

The U.S. Postal Service recently announced changes to the rules relating to how and when they postmark mail which may impact how a plan sponsor may meet certain deadlines. Postmarks will now be done when the mail is received at the regional hub, not at the local office where you drop it off. That could lead to a delay of one or two days between when you drop the mail in the box and when it gets postmarked. Think about other ways to meet the timing deadlines, such as electronic filing, use of Certified Mail, or requesting manual postmarks at your local post office. If you are not certain about your options or the deadlines that apply to your plan, contact your TPA for more information.

Key Dates:

7/31
Forms 5500 and 8955-SSA filing deadline, without extension for calendar year plans (7 months after plan year end)

7/31
Forms 5558 filing deadline to extend Forms 5500 and 8955-SSA due date for calendar year plans (7 months after plan year end)

9/15
Extended employer contribution deposit deadline for partnerships and S-corp entities (6 months after unextended due date)

9/15
Deadline to fund pension contributions (8.5 months after plan year end)

10/01
Deadline to implement deferrals for new 401(k) safe harbor plans for a 2026 short plan year (10/1-12/31)