SECURE Act Fiduciary Considerations: Understanding the Annuity Safe Harbor

As employers and policymakers increasingly focus on improving retirement readiness, guaranteed lifetime income solutions are gaining greater attention within defined contribution plans. The MetLife 2026 Lifetime Income Poll identified an important opportunity to increase awareness of the Safe Harbor for Annuity Carrier Selection, a provision of the SECURE Act designed to help plan fiduciaries evaluate retirement income solutions with greater clarity. In this whitepaper, MetLife explores how the Annuity Safe Harbor works and what it means for employers seeking to offer retirement income solutions to plan participants.

As interest in guaranteed lifetime income continues to grow, understanding the fiduciary framework is an important part of the evaluation process. This whitepaper examines the key considerations involved in selecting and monitoring retirement income solutions and offers practical insights to help support a disciplined, well-documented decision-making process. The result is a roadmap that can help fiduciaries implement retirement income solutions prudently, thoughtfully and with confidence.

View our companion video for highlights about the topics covered in this whitepaper: View Video