Reading a Form 5500 in ten minutes

A Form 5500 can run to many pages. For a first meeting you need only a few of them.

Start here

• Participant counts at the start and end of the year.
• Total assets and how they changed.
• Employer and participant contributions.
• For larger plans, the schedule listing service providers.

Then ask why

Falling participation, flat assets in a rising market or an unusually long provider list are each a question worth asking the sponsor. They are not conclusions.