Phil Pavarini is a licensed insurance producer and is compensated when a bond is placed through this site. This page is general information, not legal, tax or fiduciary advice, and it is not a substitute for reading your plan document or contract or for advice from your own counsel. Figures shown are current as of the date on this page.
Before the list, the thing that matters most about it: ERISA bonding is federal. Section 412 is a federal statute and 29 CFR part 2580 is a federal regulation. The 10 percent formula, the $1,000 floor, the $500,000 cap, the no-deductible rule and the exemptions are identical in Anchorage and in Miami.
No state imposes its own version of this requirement, and no state changes the amount. If you find a page claiming that a particular state has different ERISA bond rules, it is wrong, and it is usually wrong because somebody generated fifty pages from a template.
What the records below do is route the application and pricing for a given state. Use whichever matches where the plan sponsor sits. The requirement you are satisfying is the same one either way.
The general record#
For any state not listed separately below, this is the one to use.
State records#
- Alaska
- Arkansas
- California
- District of Columbia
- Georgia
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Maine
- New Hampshire
- New York
- North Dakota
- Oklahoma
- Texas
- Washington
Each entry above is driven by the bond links registry. Change a destination there and this list follows. Remove one and its line disappears rather than becoming a dead link.
Know the amount you need? Apply for this bond, or read the full bond details.
Which state is the right one#
Use the state where the plan sponsor is located, meaning the employer that maintains the plan. Not where the recordkeeper is, not where the trustee bank is, and not where an individual participant happens to live.
A multi-state employer uses the state of the entity that sponsors the plan. A controlled group with one plan uses the sponsoring entity. If two entities each sponsor their own plan, each plan is bonded separately and each follows its own sponsor.
Because the requirement itself does not vary, getting this wrong is a routing inconvenience rather than a compliance failure. The bond that results is the same bond.
What does vary by state, and it is not much#
Two things, neither of which changes what you have to carry.
Which carriers are admitted. Surety companies are licensed state by state, so the set of companies able to write in a given state differs. For a federally required bond the company also needs to be on the Treasury Department’s Circular 570 list. This affects who issues the bond, not the bond.
Premium tax and fees. Small state-level charges can move the total by a few dollars. On a purchase this size the difference is not worth thinking about.
That is the complete list. Anything else presented as a state-specific ERISA bonding rule is a template that got away from someone.
Common questions
Do ERISA bond requirements vary by state?
No. ERISA section 412 is federal and applies identically in every state and the District of Columbia. The 10 percent formula, the $1,000 minimum, the $500,000 maximum, the no-deductible rule and the exemptions do not change at a state line. Any page describing state-specific ERISA bond rules is describing something that does not exist.
Which state should I use to apply?
The state where the plan sponsor is located, meaning the employer that maintains the plan. Not the recordkeeper, not the trustee, and not an individual participant. If your state is not listed separately, use the general record, which covers all other states.
We have employees in twelve states. Does that change anything?
No. One plan needs one bond, and the bond follows the plan rather than the participants. Where your employees live has no effect on the section 412 requirement or on the amount.
Does anything about this bond actually differ by state?
Only which surety companies are admitted to write in that state, and small differences in premium tax and fees. For a federally required bond the surety also has to appear on the Treasury Department’s Circular 570 list. None of that changes the coverage you receive or the amount you are required to carry.
Is there a state fidelity bond requirement on top of the federal one?
Not for retirement plans. Some states impose bonding on specific licensed occupations, and public sector plans have their own state law framework, but there is no state-level parallel to ERISA section 412 for private employer plans. Private sector retirement plans are governed by federal law, and ERISA preempts most state regulation of them.
Get the bond filed today
Answer a few questions and see pricing for this bond. A standard ERISA fidelity bond is usually written without a personal credit check and is often issued quickly, because the bond protects the plan rather than guaranteeing your performance.
Apply for this bondFull bond details