Form 8955-SSA, the Annual Registration Statement Identifying Separated Participants With Deferred Vested Benefits, is filed by the administrator of a retirement plan covered by the ERISA vesting rules. It lists people who left the employer with a vested benefit still sitting in the plan. It's filed with the IRS on its own, not with Form 5500, and it's due by the last day of the seventh month after the plan year ends.
Everything below comes from the IRS Instructions for Form 8955-SSA (2025), as of October 2026.
Why this form exists
Most of what goes on Form 8955-SSA ends up with the Social Security Administration. The SSA hands it to former employees when they apply for social security benefits, so someone who left a job long ago can be reminded that a vested retirement benefit is still waiting for them. If the plan's information is out of date, that person may come back to the plan administrator to sort out the difference.
Form 8955-SSA replaced Schedule SSA (Form 5500). The schedule shouldn't be filed under any circumstances now, and Form 8955-SSA is used for all years, including late filings for plan years before 2009.
Who must file
Administrators of plans subject to the vesting standards of section 203 of ERISA must file. The instructions give a section 403(b) plan as an example. Government plans, church plans and plans covering only owners and their spouses, or only partners and their spouses, aren't subject to those standards but can choose to file voluntarily.
A Form 8955-SSA isn't needed for a year when there's nothing to report.
When a separated participant has to be reported
| Type of plan | Report the participant when |
|---|---|
| Single-employer plan (including controlled groups and affiliated service groups) | They separate from service covered by the plan and are entitled to a deferred vested benefit |
| Plan with more than one contributing employer | They incur two successive 1-year breaks in service and are, or may be, entitled to a deferred vested benefit |
For a single-employer plan, the latest you can report someone is on the form for the plan year after the year they left. You can report earlier, on the form for the year they left, if you prefer.
You don't have to report a participant who, before the form's due date, is paid some or all of the benefit, returns to covered service or forfeits the whole benefit.
The four entry codes in Part III
| Code | Use it for |
|---|---|
| A | A separated participant with an unpaid vested benefit who hasn't been reported before |
| B | Correcting information on someone reported before |
| C | Someone whose benefit was transferred, other than by rollover, from a previous employer's plan |
| D | Someone reported before who has since been paid out or is no longer entitled to the benefit |
When a benefit moves to a new employer's plan, both sides file: the new administrator uses code C with the previous employer's EIN and plan number, and the old administrator uses code D to remove the person.
Deadline and extensions
- Standard due date: the last day of the seventh month after the plan year ends.
- Form 5558: a one-time extension of up to two and a half months, if filed by the normal due date. Since 1 January 2025 you can file Form 5558 electronically through the Department of Labor's EFAST2.
- Automatic extension: if the plan year and the employer's tax year match, and the employer has an extension for its income tax return, the form is extended to that return's due date. This can't run more than nine and a half months after the plan year ends, and it can't be stretched further with Form 5558.
Electronic filing is often required
A filer must e-file the 2025 Form 8955-SSA if it's required to file 10 or more returns of any type during the calendar year that includes the first day of the plan year. That count includes Forms W-2 and 1099, income tax returns, quarterly Forms 941 and excise tax returns. Here's the trap: a filer who should e-file but sends paper is treated as not having filed at all. You can e-file through the IRS FIRE system or SSA-approved software. Paper forms go to the IRS in Ogden, Utah.
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Filling in Part I and Part III without mistakes
- Enter the plan year's start and end dates in Part I; a plan year can't run longer than 12 months.
- Tick line B if it's an amended registration statement. A correction means filing a full and complete form again, even if only one participant's details were wrong.
- Tick line C and name the extension you're relying on: Form 5558, the automatic extension, or a special one such as a disaster relief extension.
- Report separated participants only on page 2, adding extra page 2s if needed. The SSA no longer processes nonstandard pages, spreadsheets or extra copies of page 1.
- Use whole dollars, rounding 50 cents or more up and dropping anything under 50 cents.
Penalties, as of October 2026
| Failure | Penalty |
|---|---|
| Not filing, or leaving out required participants | $10 per participant per day, up to $50,000 |
| Not reporting a change in plan status or administrator details | $10 per day, up to $10,000 |
| Willfully failing to give participants their individual statement, or giving a false one | $50 per failure |
Those individual statements matter: each affected participant must get a statement with the same information before the form's filing deadline.
The verdict
Form 8955-SSA is easy to forget because it travels separately from the Form 5500 or Form 5500-SF. Put it on the same calendar, use the entry codes consistently as people leave and get paid out, check your return count for the e-file rule, and send leavers their statements. The daily penalty per participant adds up fast on a plan with plenty of turnover.
Frequently asked questions
What is Form 8955-SSA?
It's the annual registration statement a plan administrator files to identify participants who left with deferred vested benefits that haven't been paid.
When is Form 8955-SSA due?
By the last day of the seventh month following the end of the plan year, plus extensions.
Is Form 8955-SSA filed with Form 5500?
No. It's a stand-alone form filed with the IRS, not with Form 5500 or Form 5500-SF.
Who has to e-file Form 8955-SSA?
A filer required to file 10 or more returns of any type during the calendar year that includes the first day of the plan year.
What is the penalty for not filing Form 8955-SSA?
$10 for each participant not reported, multiplied by the days the failure continues, up to $50,000, as of October 2026.
