ERISA Fidelity Bond 2026 Compliance Reminder for 401(k) and Employee Benefit Plan Fiduciaries

ERISA Fidelity Bond Compliance Reminder for 2026

RALEIGH, NC, UNITED STATES, January 16, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- As business organizations begin 2026 plan-year compliance reviews, Surety One, Inc. reminds benefit plan architects, sponsors, administrators, and trustees that ERISA-regulated retirement plans and funded welfare plans must maintain an ERISA fidelity bond to help protect plan assets from losses arising from fraud or dishonesty by persons who “handle” plan funds or property.

Under ERISA Section 412, plan officials who handle plan funds generally must be bonded in an amount equal to at least 10% of funds handled by those fiduciaries, subject to a $1,000 minimum and a $500,000 maximum per plan (with a higher maximum applicable to plans that hold employer securities). The purpose of the bond is to protect the plan and its participants from losses caused by the dishonest acts of plan fiduciaries.

“Year after year, we continue to see otherwise sophisticated fiduciaries overlook bonding. Sometimes they confuse it with fiduciary liability insurance, and sometimes they simply assume that a plan with few participants is 'too small to matter'.", per Sharon Poindexter, President. “Bonding is a foundational control intended to protect participant assets. It has to be verified as part of every plan’s annual governance checklist.”

Surety One, Inc. encourages fiduciaries and advisors to confirm that the following points are addressed as part of an annual compliance and governance review: Verify that the bond amount is adequate. Many plans fall out of compliance simply because the plan’s asset levels increased and the bond amount was not updated accordingly. Confirm that the bond is issued by a qualified surety company. Evaluate whether plan status, covered persons, or plan operations changed since the prior year in a way that impacts bonding requirements, including changes in who has access to or authority over plan funds. Also, pick the correct product. Fiduciary liability insurance and an ERISA fidelity bond are not the same. A fidelity bond is designed to protect the plan against losses from dishonest acts, while fiduciary liability insurance responds to allegations of breach of fiduciary duty and related claims.

Surety One, Inc. offers a streamlined application designed for speed and accuracy, including a short-form submission process for standard ERISA fidelity bond placements. The company also supports non-standard plans, including certain retroactive bonding requests, plans with unique asset blends, union, multi-employer, multiple-employer, 403b Plans, and other non-standard plan architectures.

Surety One, Inc. is headquartered in Puerto Rico and operates across the United States, Canada, and the U.S. Virgin Islands and Dominican Republic. Surety One, Inc. places ERISA fidelity bonds through highly rated and Treasury-listed providers. For information and online application access, visit ERISA-Bonds.com or contact a Surety One, Inc. underwriter at (800) 373-2804.

Sharon Poindexter
Surety One, Inc.
+1 800-373-2804
email us here
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