Form 5308

(Rev. November 2019)

Department of the Treasury 

Internal Revenue Service 

Request for Change in Plan/Trust Year

(Under section 412(d)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code)

▶ Go to www.irs.gov/Form5308 for the latest information.

OMB No. 1545-0201

File in 

Duplicate

Before you complete this form, read the instructions to see if your request for a change in plan/trust year qualifies 

for automatic approval. Please type or print 

Name of employer (or plan administrator if a multiple employer plan or a multiemployer plan) 

Number, street, and room or suite no. (if a P.O. box, see instructions) 

City or town, state, and ZIP code 

Employer identification number 

Check one or both: 

Change in plan year . . . . . . . . . ▶

Change in trust year . . . . . . . . . ▶

1 Enter amount of user fee submitted ▶ $ 

2 Name of plan and/or trust 3 Plan number (enter each 

digit in a separate block) ▶

4 Present plan and/or trust year ends 5 Permission is requested to change to a plan and/or trust year ending 

6 The above change will require a return for a short period 

beginning , , ending , 

7 Telephone number 

8 Date of latest IRS determination letter (or opinion/advisory letter if the plan is a Master or Prototype/Volume Submitter Plan) 

9 If this change affects the way deductions are taken for the tax year, please explain. 

10 If you do not meet all the requirements for automatic approval for change in plan/trust year listed below, indicate the requirements you 

do not meet by checking the appropriate box(es). Explain on an attached statement why you cannot meet the requirement(s). If you 

cannot comply with item a, your request for approval will not be granted. 

a All actions necessary to implement the change of plan 

year, including plan amendment and a resolution of the 

Board of Directors, if applicable, have been taken on or 

before the last day of the short period. 

b No plan year is longer than 12 months. 

c The requested change will not delay the time when the 

plan would otherwise have been required to conform to 

the requirements of any statute, regulation, or published 

position of the IRS. 

d The trust, if any, retains its exempt status for the 

short period required to effect the change as well as 

for the tax year immediately preceding the short 

period. 

e The trust, if any, has no unrelated business taxable income 

under section 511 for the short period. 

f No change of plan year has been made for any of the 4 

preceding plan years. 

g Defined benefit plan deductions are taken as described in 

section 5 of Rev. Proc. 87-27, 1987-1 C.B. 769. 

Sign 

Here 

Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this application, including any accompanying schedules and statements, and, to the best of my 

knowledge and belief, it is true, correct, and complete. 

▲

Print name ▲Title 

▲

Signature Date 

Do not write in the space below—For IRS Use Only 

Approval Action 

Based solely on the information furnished in this application, the 

requested change in the plan and/or trust year indicated above is 

approved. 

▲

Employee Plans Technical Manager Date 

Person to contact ▶

Phone ▶

Symbols ▶

Disapproval Action 

This application cannot be approved for the following reason: 

Not timely filed 

Other 

▲

Employee Plans Technical Manager Date 

Person to contact ▶

Phone ▶

Symbols ▶

For Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see the instructions. Cat. No. 11834U Form 5308 (Rev. 11-2019) 
Form 5308 (Rev. 11-2019) Page 2 

Instructions 

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless otherwise 

noted. 

Future Developments

For the latest information about developments related to Form 5308 and 

its instructions, such as legislation enacted after they were published, 

go to www.irs.gov/Form5308.

Purpose of Form 

Use this form instead of Form 1128, Application To Adopt, Change, or 

Retain a Tax Year, to request approval to change the plan/trust year of 

certain employee retirement plans. 

Change in funding methods. Do not file Form 5308 to change your 

plan’s funding method. See Rev. Proc. 2017-56, 2017-44 I.R.B. 465 

(automatic approval for certain changes in funding method for 

single-employer plans that are subject to section 430); Rev. Proc. 

2017-57, 2017-44 I.R.B. 474 (requests for approval of changes in funding 

method); and Rev. Proc. 2000-40, 2000-42 I.R.B. 357 (automatic approval 

for certain changes in funding method for multiemployer plans and CSEC 

plans).

Who Must File 

Except as described below, for any employee retirement plan to which the 

minimum funding standards of section 412 apply (such as a defined 

benefit plan, money purchase pension plan, or target benefit plan), in order 

to change the plan year of the plan, the employer or plan administrator 

must file Form 5308 to request approval for the change if automatic 

approval for the change does not apply pursuant to Rev. Proc. 87-27.

Any employees’ trust forming a part of a qualified plan (whether or not 

the trust is part of a plan subject to section 412) must file Form 5308 to 

request approval to change its trust year. 

Exceptions. The following plans do not have to file Form 5308 to 

request approval to change their plan year.

• Profit-sharing plans. 

• Stock bonus plans. 

• Insurance contract plans described in section 412(e)(2). 

• Governmental plans described in section 414(d). 

• Church plans described in section 414(e) that have not made the 

election under section 410(d). 

• Plans that have not, at any time after September 2, 1974, provided for 

employer contributions. 

• Certain plans established and maintained by fraternal benefit societies, 

orders, or associations (see section 412(e)(2)). 

• Certain plans established and maintained by voluntary employee’s 

beneficiary associations (see section 412(e)(2)). 

Automatic approval. Instead of filing Form 5308, a plan or trust is 

granted automatic approval to change its plan/trust year if all the 

following requirements are met.

• All actions necessary to implement the change of plan year, including 

plan amendment and a resolution of the Board of Directors (if 

applicable), have been taken on or before the short period. 

• No plan year is longer than 12 months. 

• The change will not delay the time when the plan would otherwise 

have been required to conform to the requirements of any statute, 

regulation, or published position of the IRS. 

• The trust, if any, retains its exempt status for the short period required 

to effect the change as well as for the tax year immediately preceding 

the short period. 

• The trust, if any, has no unrelated business taxable income under 

section 511 for the short period. 

• No change of plan year has been made for any of the 4 preceding plan 

years. 

• Defined benefit plan deductions are taken as described in section 5 of 

Rev. Proc. 87-27.

See Rev. Proc. 87-27 for more information about changing a plan/

trust year. 

Address 

Include the suite, room, or other unit number after the street address. If 

the post office does not deliver mail to the street address and the plan 

has a P.O. box, show the box number instead of the street address. 

When and Where To File 

File this form in duplicate at this address on or before the last day of the 

end of the short period required to make the change.

Internal Revenue Service 

Attn: EP Letter Rulings 

TE/GE Stop 31A Team 105 

P.O. Box 12192 

Covington, KY 41012-0192

Private delivery services (PDSs). PDSs can’t deliver to the address 

shown above. If you choose to use a PDS, send Form 5308 to this 

address. 

Internal Revenue Service 

Attn: EP Letter Rulings 

7940 Kentucky Drive 

TE/GE Stop 31A Team 105 

Florence, KY 41042 

Go to www.irs.gov/PDS for the current list of designated services.

On each attachment to Form 5308, write “Form 5308” and show the 

plan’s or trust’s name, identifying number, address, and date of filing. 

User Fee 

All applications must be accompanied by the appropriate user fee. 

Applications submitted without the proper user fee will not be 

processed and will be returned to the applicant. 

To determine the proper user fee, see Rev. Proc. 2019-4, 2019-1 

I.R.B. 146, available at www.irs.gov/irb/2019-01_IRB#RP-2019-04, or 

the latest annual update.

Information Requested 

You must furnish all of the applicable information requested. Otherwise, 

your request may not be approved. 

Signature 

An application for a single employer plan must be signed by the 

employer. An application for a plan of more than one employer must be 

signed by the plan administrator. 

If someone else is filing Form 5308 on behalf of a taxpayer, a power of 

attorney must be included specifically authorizing that person to 

represent the taxpayer. Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration 

of Representative, may be used for this purpose. 

Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice 

We ask for information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws 

of the United States. We need it to ensure you are complying with these 

laws, to determine whether you meet the requirements for changing the 

plan/trust year, and to process your request. You are not required to 

request a change in the plan/trust year; however, if you want to request 

such a change, you are required to provide the information requested on 

this form. Section 6109 requires you to provide the requested 

identification numbers. Failure to provide this information timely and in 

accordance with instructions, or providing false information, may delay or 

prevent processing your request and may subject you to penalties. 

You are not required to provide the information requested on a form 

that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act unless the form displays a 

valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a form or its 

instructions must be retained as long as their contents may become 

material in the administration of any Internal Revenue law. Generally, tax 

returns and return information are confidential, as required by section 

6103. However, section 6103 sometimes permits or requires us to 

disclose information. We may give the information to the Department of 

Justice for civil and criminal litigation, to the Department of Labor for 

administration of ERISA, and to other federal agencies as provided by 

law. We may give it to cities, states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. 

commonwealths or possessions to administer their tax laws. We may 

give it to foreign governments under a tax treaty, and to federal and state 

agencies to enforce federal nontax criminal laws and to combat terrorism.

The time needed to complete and file this form will vary depending on 

individual circumstances. The estimated average time is 7 hr., 42 min. 

If you have comments concerning the accuracy of this time estimate 

or suggestions for making this form simpler, we would be happy to hear 

from you. You can send us comments from www.irs.gov/

FormComments. Or you can write to the Internal Revenue Service, Tax 

Forms and Publications Division, 1111 Constitution Ave. NW, IR-6526, 

Washington, DC 20224. Do not send the form to this address. Instead, 

see When and Where To File above.