The Employer's Open Enrollment Compliance Checklist
Open enrollment is where benefits compliance quietly succeeds or fails. Here are the notices, documents and deadlines that protect you.
Why open enrollment is a compliance moment
Open enrollment isn't just about elections — it's the window when most required disclosures are due. Miss them and you risk employee notices, corrective filings, or penalties. The good news: every item below is preventable with a simple calendar and the right templates.
Required notices to distribute
Depending on your plan and size, you may owe employees several notices at or around enrollment:
- Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) — standardized plan summaries for easy comparison.
- Medicare Part D Creditable Coverage notice — due before October 15 each year.
- CHIP notice, WHCRA, NMHPA and HIPAA notices as applicable.
- Summary Plan Description (SPD) and any Summary of Material Modification (SMM) when the plan changes.
Filings and documentation
Keep your plan documents current and your filings on schedule — including Form 5500 where required and the related Summary Annual Report. Maintain records of what was distributed, to whom, and when. Documentation is your best defense if anything is ever questioned.
Compliance failures are rarely dramatic. They're a missed notice, an outdated SPD, a filing that slipped — small things that become expensive.
Build it into a repeatable process
Pull last year's questions and create an FAQ. Confirm plan changes and rates before enrollment opens. Hold employee meetings and offer materials in multiple formats. Track elections and trends so next year is easier. A repeatable process turns compliance from a scramble into a system.
How JPW helps
We help Michigan employers map which rules apply, prepare and distribute the right notices on time, keep plan documents current, and stay ahead of filing deadlines — economically. See our compliance resources for the full landscape.
Frequently asked questions
When is the Medicare Part D creditable coverage notice due?
Before October 15 each year, ahead of the Medicare Annual Enrollment Period, to any plan participants who are Medicare-eligible. We help you send it on time.
Who has to file Form 5500?
Many ERISA-covered plans must file Form 5500 annually, though small fully insured plans may be exempt. We'll confirm whether it applies to your plan and help you meet the deadline.
Agency President of JPW & Consultants, advising Michigan businesses and families on benefits for 20+ years.