A Summary Plan Description, often referred to as an “SPD”, is a document intended to clearly describe and explain the important provisions of an employee benefit plan. The SPD must be written in such a way that the average employee will understand the benefits, rights and rules of the plan.

The SPD must include items such as the name of the plan, the address of the plan sponsor, the type of plan, the type of plan administration, a description of the participation and eligibility requirements, and a description of the benefits provided under the plan. This list is not exhaustive, but is included to provide guidance as to the type of information that is required content for an SPD.

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) imposes strict deadlines with regard to when an SPD must be provided to participants and beneficiaries. ERISA also imposes a timeline for regular updates and required restatements of an SPD. We have included a brief overview of those rules below.

1. Plan Establishment. When a new plan is adopted, the plan sponsor must provide a copy of the SPD to all participants within 120 days of the plan’s effective date. Thereafter, a plan sponsor must provide the SPD to new participants within 90 days after they become eligible to participate in the plan and to beneficiaries within 90 days after they become eligible to receive benefits under the plan.
2. Periodic Updates. As time passes and changes to the plan are made, an SPD will become out of date. If there are changes to a plan that relate to information required to be included in an SPD, the plan must provide a summary of material modification or “SMM” to participants and beneficiaries receiving benefits from the plan. An SMM must be provided within 210 days after the end of the plan year during which the change to the plan is adopted. A plan could also restate its SPD and provide the full SPD in lieu of providing an SMM. For plans that are changed, ERISA requires the SPD to be fully restated every five years. For plans that have not been changed, the SPD must be fully restated every ten years.
3. Upon Request. ERISA also grants participants the right to request copies of any plan document at any time, including the SPD. Upon such request, a plan sponsor is required to provide copies of the requested materials within 30 days of a written request.

To determine whether your SPD needs to be updated, you should consider when the appliable plan was adopted, what amendments have been made, and whether five years have passed since its last restatement. Updating the SPD is a routine and important task to remain in compliance with ERISA.