This page is a router, not a conclusion that every retirement plan or tax-qualified arrangement needs a bond. Identify the actual design, then apply Title I, Part 4, property, natural-person handling, exemptions, amount, and form. ERISA's pension and individual-account definitions—not a marketing or tax label—supply the federal-law starting point. 29 U.S.C. §1002(2), (34) 29 U.S.C. §1112
Use the §412 decision sequence
- 1Identify the actual retirement arrangement and confirm an employee pension benefit plan exists.
- 2Test Title I coverage, then Part 4 applicability.
- 3Identify the plan’s funds or other property.
- 4Identify each natural person whose functions constitute handling.
- 5Test exemptions separately for each person or institution.
- 6Calculate each nonexempt handler’s amount and review compliant form, live surety, and current reporting materials.
Choose the guide from the actual design
- Use the defined-benefit guide for traditional defined-benefit and cash-balance plans.
- Use the defined-contribution guide for individual-account designs, including its money-purchase and target-benefit section; use the dedicated 401(k) or profit-sharing guide when that feature drives the question.
- Route an ESOP, stock-bonus label, or actual employer-securities issue to the ESOP guide. Actual holdings, not the design name alone, control the special maximum. 29 U.S.C. §1112
- Use the SEP, SARSEP, and SIMPLE IRA guide for IRA-based employer arrangements, and the multiemployer or MEP/PEP guide for collective or shared-employer structures.
A “qualified plan” under §401(a) can use several of these designs and has no separate §412 rule. Likewise, Keogh or HR-10 is not a bonding category; determine the design and route owner-only census questions to the owner-only guide. IRS Publication 560 29 C.F.R. §2510.3-3(b)–(c)
Facts that change the answer
- Whether an employer or employee organization established or maintained an employee pension benefit plan. 29 U.S.C. §1002
- Whether governmental, church, or another Title I exclusion applies, and whether Part 4 applies. 29 U.S.C. §1003 29 U.S.C. §1101
- Whether the participant census includes common-law employees; a “solo” or Keogh label does not settle that question. 29 C.F.R. §2510.3-3(b)–(c)
- What cash, investments, securities, or other property the plan holds, and which natural persons can cause a loss. FAB 2008-04, Q5–Q8 and Q17–Q21
- Whether an exemption applies to a particular person or institution; it does not automatically exempt other handlers. 29 C.F.R. Part 2580, Subpart F
Example: route the facts before deciding
A corporation calls its arrangement a “qualified retirement plan.” Its document shows a cash-balance benefit, while a separate plan has participant-directed individual accounts. The first routes to the defined-benefit guide and the second to the defined-contribution guide. Qualification alone answers neither plan's §412 result; each still needs its own Title I, property, handler, and exemption review. Internal Revenue Service 29 U.S.C. §1112
Handling is functional and person-specific. Custody, transfer power, disbursement or signature authority, final authority over investments or payments, and supervision of those functions can create a risk of loss. A fiduciary, officer, trustee, or provider title is not dispositive, and controls are relevant to whether handling exists rather than an independent exemption. 29 C.F.R. §2580.412-6 FAB 2008-04, Q5–Q8 and Q18–Q21
Continue with the applicable compliance owner
After selecting the plan-specific route and identifying nonexempt handlers, use the coverage calculation guide for the person-specific amount and the requirements guide for bond form, surety, and filing-year review. 29 U.S.C. §1112 29 C.F.R. §2580.412-11
Methodology and legal boundary
This guide applies the federal ERISA §412 sequence to a plan category; it does not interpret a particular plan document, determine worker status, decide governmental or church affiliation, classify an ambiguous target-benefit design, or approve a bond form or surety. Use current documents, census and authority records, and obtain benefits counsel for unresolved classification facts. 29 U.S.C. §1002 29 U.S.C. §1003 29 U.S.C. §1101 29 U.S.C. §1112