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To check whether a U.S. private-sector defined benefit pension is underfunded, obtain the plan’s latest Annual Funding Notice and read its plan year, valuation date, funded percentage, assets, liabilities, and three-year trend. Then use the plan’s Form 5500 and actuarial Schedule SB or Schedule MB to verify the figures, and ask the plan administrator for written clarification. A percentage below 100% describes a plan-level actuarial shortfall on a stated measurement basis; it is not a forecast of your personal benefit or proof that the plan is about to terminate.
This guide is for participants, retirees, and beneficiaries in single-employer and union multiemployer plans in the United States. Government plans and other arrangements can follow different disclosure and insurance rules, so identify your plan type before applying the steps below.
What kind of retirement plan are you checking?
Start by confirming that you have a defined benefit pension. A defined benefit plan promises a formula-based benefit, such as a monthly annuity, and the plan—not your individual account balance—must be funded to meet its obligations. A 401(k) or similar defined contribution plan instead holds an individual account whose value changes with contributions and investment performance; the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) does not insure defined contribution plans. Your Summary Plan Description (SPD), benefit statement, or other plan material should identify the arrangement and its administrator.
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Also note whether the plan is single-employer or multiemployer. A single-employer plan generally covers workers of one sponsor. A multiemployer plan is collectively bargained and covers employees of multiple employers, often through a union trust. The funding calculations, statutory status labels, and notices differ, so do not apply a multiemployer threshold to a single-employer plan.
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PBGC coverage is not universal. Government plans and some other plan categories are outside PBGC’s insurance program. Use PBGC’s coverage guidance and your SPD to establish which rules apply before drawing conclusions from a funding percentage.
Where do I get the plan’s funding information?
The central document is the latest Annual Funding Notice. PBGC says, “Your plan administrator must give you an annual written notice about the funded status of the plan.” The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) 2025 model for traditional defined benefit plans says the notice is provided each year regardless of whether the plan is well funded or underfunded. If you did not receive it, request a copy from the administrator rather than relying on an old summary or a news report.
Look for the plan name, plan number, sponsor, employer identification number (EIN), plan year, and the date on which the assets and liabilities were valued. Keep the notice with earlier notices so you can compare like-for-like figures. The DOL model notices show a three-year history of funded percentage, asset value, and liability value.
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For supporting records, search the plan’s annual Form 5500 filing through the DOL’s Pension Plan Actuarial Information Search Instructions and the linked EFAST2 filing system. The actuarial schedule is Schedule SB for a single-employer plan and Schedule MB for a multiemployer plan. The DOL instructions note that the separate actuarial search system covers 2008 and some 2009 filings; use current Form 5500 access for recent reports.
How do I read an Annual Funding Notice?
Read the reporting period before looking at the headline percentage. A funded percentage is measured at a stated valuation date; it is not a live, daily reading of the plan’s finances. Follow this sequence.
- Record the plan year and valuation date. Write them down. A notice covering a plan year that ended months ago can describe conditions that have since changed.
- Find the funded percentage. The DOL multiemployer model defines it as plan assets divided by plan liabilities. Under that disclosed basis, 100% means the reported assets and liabilities are equal; below 100% means the asset figure is smaller than the associated liability figure.
- Read the asset and liability amounts behind the ratio. A percentage without its dollar values and definitions is incomplete. Check whether the notice is using actuarial asset values, fair-market values, or another specified basis.
- Read the assumptions and definitions. Discount rates, expected investment returns, mortality assumptions, and other actuarial choices affect liabilities and therefore the ratio. Use the notice’s own explanations when comparing years.
- Compare the preceding two years. The model’s three-year chart lets you see whether the reported percentage and dollar values are improving, deteriorating, or moving unevenly.
Do not convert the ratio into an estimate of your own pension. It is a plan-level measure calculated under stated assumptions, not a personal benefit statement.
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What does “under 100% funded” actually mean?
It means that, on the notice’s measurement basis and valuation date, reported plan assets are less than the corresponding actuarial liabilities. That is evidence of a funding shortfall under that method. It does not by itself show that the employer is insolvent, that payments have stopped, or that every participant will receive a reduction.
Different measures can produce different results. A notice may use an actuarial value of assets that smooths market gains and losses over time. The same notice may also show year-end fair-market value, which moves directly with investment performance and gives a more immediate snapshot. DOL’s multiemployer model explains that actuarial values account for fluctuations over time, while fair-market values fluctuate with markets. Compare actuarial values with actuarial values and market values with market values; do not mix the two columns.
PBGC’s benefit-guarantee calculation also uses assumptions that can differ from the funded percentage in the notice. The DOL single-employer model explains this distinction, and the PBGC plan-funding FAQ provides additional context. A plan can therefore have one reported funding percentage for disclosure purposes and a different measure for a potential guarantee analysis.
What do the multiemployer status labels mean?
Only use these statutory labels for a multiemployer plan and only as the notice defines them. They are not universal ratings for every pension plan.
| Status | Model threshold or test | What the notice may require |
|---|---|---|
| Endangered | Funded percentage below 80% | Trustees must adopt a funding improvement plan. |
| Critical | Funded percentage below 65%, or other financial-distress criteria | Trustees must implement a rehabilitation plan. |
| Critical and declining | A critical plan projected to become insolvent within 15 years, or within 20 years under a special rule | The plan continues a rehabilitation plan; the sponsor may seek approval for amendments that can include benefit reductions. |
The 80% and 65% figures come from the DOL’s 2025 multiemployer model notice. A plan’s legal status can also depend on tests other than the percentage, so read the explanatory section rather than assigning a label from the ratio alone. Check for the plan’s required improvement or rehabilitation plan and for material events affecting assets or liabilities.
For a single-employer plan, do not say that a result below 80% automatically means “endangered” or “critical.” The DOL model describes a separate underfunded-plan notice for certain single-employer situations below 80% when measured using PBGC assumptions. Those assumptions differ from the funded percentage shown in the ordinary notice.
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How should I compare this year with prior years?
Use a consistent comparison worksheet. For each notice, capture the plan year, valuation date, funded percentage, asset value, liability value, asset valuation method, and any status or event explanation.
| Check | Question to ask |
|---|---|
| Timing | Are the valuation dates and plan years comparable? |
| Numerator | Are both asset figures actuarial values, or are both fair-market values? |
| Denominator | Were the liability assumptions and calculation basis changed? |
| Trend | Did the percentage move because assets changed, liabilities changed, or both? |
| Events | Does the notice identify investment losses, contribution changes, benefit changes, employer withdrawals, or another material event? |
A falling percentage is a reason to investigate the explanation, not a stand-alone prediction of failure. A rising percentage can reflect market recovery, contributions, assumption changes, or asset smoothing. The notice’s definitions and footnotes are essential to interpreting the direction.
How do I use Form 5500 and Schedules SB or MB?
Form 5500 is the plan’s annual federal filing and can provide a deeper check on the notice. Search by plan name, sponsor, plan number, or EIN in the DOL filing system. Confirm that the filing is for the same plan and plan year as your notice.
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- Match the valuation date. Make sure the schedule’s actuarial valuation date corresponds to the notice you are reviewing.
- Review funding and compliance fields. Look for the actuarial value of assets, liabilities, minimum required contributions, and any certification or funding-status information supplied in the filing.
- Read attached explanations. A schedule can refer to assumptions, funding methods, or special rules that are explained elsewhere in the filing.
- Flag discrepancies. A different figure may reflect a different date or measurement basis rather than an error. Ask the administrator to reconcile any difference you cannot explain.
Form 5500 is a verification and research tool, not a replacement for your Annual Funding Notice. Recent filings are the relevant source for current years; the DOL’s older actuarial search archive is not a complete substitute.
What should I ask the plan administrator?
Participants have a legal right to request plan funding information in writing, according to PBGC. Written questions create a record and make it easier to obtain a precise answer than a general phone inquiry.
Include the plan’s name and number, sponsor, and EIN if available. Ask the administrator to:
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- send the latest Annual Funding Notice and identify its plan year and valuation date;
- explain the funded percentage, asset value, liability value, and actuarial assumptions used;
- state whether the plan is single-employer or multiemployer and whether any statutory status applies;
- describe any funding improvement or rehabilitation plan and material event disclosed in the notice;
- explain why figures in the notice differ from a Form 5500 filing, if they do; and
- provide the plan’s PBGC coverage information and explain where your individual accrued benefit is shown.
You can adapt this short request:
Please provide the plan’s most recent Annual Funding Notice and the funding information supporting it. Please identify the plan year, valuation date, asset and liability values, funded percentage, valuation assumptions, and any endangered, critical, critical-and-declining, or other funding status. If the plan is covered by PBGC, please identify the applicable coverage information. My identifying plan details are: [plan name], [plan number], [sponsor], and [EIN, if known].
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If the response is unclear, ask a follow-up question that quotes the exact table or paragraph and requests the definition of the measure used. Do not infer a personal benefit amount from a general ratio; request your individual benefit estimate separately.
Does an underfunded plan mean my pension is being cut?
No. Underfunding is a plan-level actuarial condition, not an automatic reduction in your current monthly check. It also does not prove that the employer is terminating the plan or that payments have stopped. PBGC notes that an employer bankruptcy does not necessarily mean the pension plan will terminate.
If a covered plan does terminate and PBGC becomes trustee, PBGC pays benefits subject to legal limits and plan-specific factors. Guarantee limits depend on the law, the timing of termination, the participant’s circumstances, and other details; do not rely on an old dollar figure. Read the notice’s PBGC section and use current PBGC guidance for the applicable rules. The PBGC funding FAQ and participant coverage page explain the distinction between plan funding and guarantees.
A status notice can signal that trustees must take corrective action, but the specific effect on contributions, future accruals, or benefits depends on the plan’s legal documents and any approved amendments. Ask the administrator what, if anything, has changed for your accruals or payment form.
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- Using the wrong plan year. A current-looking PDF may report an older valuation date. Always record both dates.
- Treating a percentage as a personal forecast. The ratio does not calculate your monthly benefit or a termination payout.
- Mixing valuation bases. Actuarial asset values and fair-market values answer different questions.
- Applying multiemployer labels to a single-employer plan. Endangered and critical thresholds in the DOL model are specific to multiemployer rules.
- Assuming bankruptcy equals termination. PBGC says the two events are not synonymous.
- Ranking plans by headline percentages. Different valuation dates, assumptions, and asset methods make simple rankings misleading.
- Relying on an unofficial summary. Use the administrator’s notice and the official DOL filing system, then ask for written clarification.
- Confusing a defined benefit pension with a 401(k). Confirm plan type before using PBGC or Annual Funding Notice guidance.
When should I seek professional help?
Consider an ERISA attorney, a qualified actuary, or a participant-advocacy organization when the administrator will not provide the required notice, gives contradictory valuation explanations, reports a serious status change, proposes benefit amendments, or you are making an irreversible retirement or rollover decision. Bring the SPD, Annual Funding Notices, Form 5500 filing, benefit statements, and the administrator’s written replies. A professional can interpret assumptions and legal rights that a percentage alone cannot reveal.
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For general retirement-plan information, the DOL’s What You Should Know About Your Retirement Plan and its ERISA retirement-plan FAQs provide official background. Those resources do not replace advice about your particular plan.
A practical checklist
- Confirm the arrangement is a U.S. defined benefit plan and identify whether it is single-employer or multiemployer.
- Identify the administrator and obtain the latest Annual Funding Notice.
- Write down the plan year and valuation date.
- Record the funded percentage, assets, liabilities, assumptions, and whether assets are actuarial or fair-market values.
- Compare the current notice with the prior two plan years on the same basis.
- For a multiemployer plan, read any endangered, critical, or critical-and-declining explanation and required improvement or rehabilitation plan.
- Search the matching Form 5500 and Schedule SB or MB in the DOL system.
- Ask the administrator in writing about any unexplained difference, status, event, or personal-benefit question.
- Review PBGC coverage and guarantee information separately from the plan’s funding ratio.
- Save every notice, filing, and response so you can track changes over time.
How we interpret the result
A careful check answers three separate questions: what the plan reported at a particular valuation date, how that report compares with earlier years on the same basis, and what legal protections or corrective actions apply to this plan type. An under-100% ratio answers only the first question: assets were lower than liabilities under the disclosed measure. The administrator’s notice, the matching actuarial filing, and written explanations are the evidence needed for the other two.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I find my pension’s Annual Funding Notice online?
Sometimes. Search the sponsor’s benefits site and the DOL’s Form 5500 filing system, but the filing system does not replace the notice itself. If you cannot locate the notice, request it directly from the plan administrator with the plan name and number.
Why can the funded percentage change even when the plan received employer contributions?
Contributions are only one input. Investment performance, changes in liability assumptions, benefit accruals, demographic experience, and the method used to smooth asset values can all move the reported ratio in the same year.
Does PBGC coverage guarantee my entire promised pension?
No. PBGC guarantees are subject to legal limits and plan-specific factors, including the timing of a termination and your circumstances. Confirm whether the plan is covered and review current PBGC guidance rather than assuming the full plan promise is insured.
What records should I keep after checking the plan?
Keep the SPD, each Annual Funding Notice, relevant Form 5500 and Schedule SB or MB, benefit statements, and all written replies from the administrator. Recording the valuation date beside each percentage prevents misleading comparisons later.
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