The DOL fiduciary rule and annuity sales: where it stands in 2026

The Department of Labor's 2024 "Retirement Security Rule" would have made many more people who recommend rollovers and annuities for retirement money act as fiduciaries. It never took effect. Two Texas federal courts stayed it in July 2024, and the Department of Labor (DOL) published a Federal Register notice on March 20, 2026 removing it from the Code of Federal Regulations, effective April 20, 2026. The 1975 "five-part test" for who counts as an investment advice fiduciary applies again, so the main protections for annuity buyers now come from state best interest rules and, for broker-dealers, SEC Regulation Best Interest.

Status checked October 4, 2026, against the Federal Register notice below. Court and agency actions can change; a reader with a pending decision should confirm the current state of the rules.

What the 2024 rule tried to do

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) treats someone who gives investment advice for a fee as a fiduciary only if the advice meets a five-part test written in 1975. One part requires advice on a "regular basis." Advice to roll a 401(k) into an IRA, or to buy an annuity with the proceeds, often happens once, so many salespeople who earn commissions were not fiduciaries when they made it.

On April 25, 2024, the DOL published the Retirement Security Rule (89 Fed. Reg. 32122) to replace that test. It would have covered one-time recommendations, including rollover advice, to retirement investors and made the adviser act in the investor's interest. It came with amendments to several "prohibited transaction exemptions" that let advisers receive commissions: PTE 2020-02, and PTE 84-24, which insurance agents commonly use for annuity commissions. The rule was set to take effect September 23, 2024.

What the courts did

According to the DOL's own Federal Register notice of March 20, 2026:

The DOL said it was giving effect to the court orders and that the 2024 rule "never became effective." It also republished PTE 2020-02 as originally issued in December 2020 and said it no longer considers the exemption's preamble reliable, after separate court rulings struck rollover-advice interpretations. Industry press (Haynes Boone, March 26, 2026) reported that the DOL indicated no current plan to write rules regulating the investment activities of brokers and insurance agents. Regulatory agendas are not binding, so treat any future DOL project as unconfirmed until it is published.

What still protects an annuity buyer

With the federal expansion gone, protections come from several layers:

1. State best interest rules. The NAIC revised its annuity model regulation (#275) in 2020 to require a best interest standard for annuity recommendations. A January 2024 chart from the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors counted 42 states that had adopted it; check your state's version, and see best interest rules for annuity sales.
2. SEC Regulation Best Interest. Broker-dealers recommending securities, including variable annuities and registered index-linked annuities, must act in the retail customer's best interest. See variable annuities: how they work, what they cost, who they suit.
3. Fiduciary status by contract. A fee-only registered investment adviser is a fiduciary under securities law. Ask for it in writing.
4. Qualified-plan rules. If the money is in a 401(k), ERISA's duties on plan sponsors still apply to the plan's own investment menu, even though the rollover recommendation to an IRA may not be fiduciary advice.

Practical steps before a rollover or annuity purchase

1. Ask the person recommending it, in writing: "Are you acting as a fiduciary on this recommendation?" Many will say they are required to act in your best interest under state or SEC rules, which is a different standard; note which one they claim.
2. Ask how they are paid. A commission on a fixed indexed annuity can run well above what a flat fee would cost (see how life insurance agents are paid).
3. Compare the new product with leaving the money in the plan: fees, investment choices, surrender charges, and creditor protection can differ.
4. Get the surrender schedule and the free-look period in writing, and read the guides on annuity surrender charges and free withdrawals and annuity fees, explained.
5. If you feel pressured, especially if you are older, read annuity sales abuses targeting seniors and consider a second opinion from a fee-only planner.

Why the debate persists

Supporters of the 2024 rule argued that a one-time commission-driven recommendation can cost savers real money and that fiduciary duty should follow the advice, not the number of meetings. Opponents, including the American Council of Life Insurers, argued that it would restrict access to advice, especially for small savers, that insurance products are already regulated by states, and that the rule exceeded the DOL's authority. Neither side's arguments settle which standard is better for any one buyer; what matters in practice is the standard that applies to your adviser today and how they are paid.

Key takeaways

• The 2024 DOL fiduciary rule never took effect; the DOL removed it from the CFR effective April 20, 2026, and the 1975 five-part test applies.
• A one-time rollover or annuity recommendation is often not fiduciary advice under federal retirement law.
• State best interest rules for annuities, SEC Regulation Best Interest for securities, and fee-only fiduciary advisers are the protections available now.
• Ask in writing whether the person is a fiduciary and how they are paid before moving retirement savings.