The Department of Labor (DOL) recently released the updated civil monetary penalties applicable to various employee benefits-related violations under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) for 2025, captured in the reference chart below.
Penalty amount adjustments are effective for civil penalties assessed after January 15, 2025 for violations occurring after November 2, 2015.
Violation |
2024 Penalty Amounts |
2025 Penalty Amounts |
Applicable to Health & Welfare Plans, 401(k) Plans, Or Both? |
Failure or refusal to file an annual report (Form 5500) with the DOL (unless a filing exemption applies) |
$2,670 per day |
$2,739 per day |
Both |
Failure of a multiple employer welfare arrangement (MEWA) to file an annual report (Form M-1) with the DOL |
$1,942 per day |
$1,992 per day |
Health & Welfare Plans |
Failure to furnish plan-related information requested by the DOL |
$190 per day, not to exceed $1,906 per request |
$195 per day, not to exceed $1,956 per request |
Both |
Failure to provide annual notice[1] to employees and information to a State regarding Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage and coordination |
$141 per participant per day |
$145 per participant per day |
Health & Welfare Plans |
Failure to provide Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) |
Up to $1,406 per failure |
Up to $1,443 per failure |
Health & Welfare Plans |
Failure to comply with the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) requirements for health plans |
$141 per participant per day |
$145 per participant per day |
Health & Welfare Plans |
De minimis GINA failures not corrected prior to notice from the DOL |
$3,550 per participant (minimum) |
$3,642 per participant (minimum) |
Health & Welfare Plans |
GINA failures which are not corrected prior to notice from the DOL and are not de minimis |
$21,310 per participant (minimum) |
$21,864 per participant (minimum) |
Health & Welfare Plans |
GINA failure penalty cap on unintentional failures |
$710,310 (maximum) |
$728,764 (maximum) |
Health & Welfare Plans |
Failure to provide auto-enrollment notice |
$2,112 per day for each failure |
$2,167 per day for each failure |
401(k) plans |
Failure to provide notice of blackout period or notice of diversification rights |
$169 per day for each failure |
$173 per day for each failure |
401(k) plans |
Failure to furnish reports (e.g., pension benefit statements) to certain former employees or maintain employee records |
$37 per employee |
$38 per employee |
401(k) plans |
Employers are advised to review their plans and plan practices to ensure compliance with ERISA’s requirements, as outlined above, in an effort to avoid these penalties.
As a reminder, Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) documents must be provided to participants prior to enrollment or re-enrollment in a group health plan. As a result, they are generally distributed to plan participants upon initial plan eligibility, during open enrollment, and upon request.
In addition to applicable DOL ERISA penalties, ERISA group health plans are also generally subject to annually adjusted penalties for HHS-related violations. Click here for more information.
Reach out to your Risk Strategies account team with any additional questions or contact us directly here.
[1] This notice applies to employers with group health plans covering residents of states that provide a premium assistance subsidy under CHIP.