on March 21, 2022 at 1:56 pm

As of May 31, 2022, EDGAR filers will be able to make filing fee payments to the SEC in EDGAR using credit and debit cards, ACH, and the existing Fedwire payment method.  To use the new payment methods, filers must access Pay.gov through EDGAR for payments to be processed.  Details about Pay.gov payment functionality can be found in the EDGAR Filer Manual, Volume II. Please note also that as of May 31, 2022, EDGAR filers will no longer be able to submit payments by check, and the filing fee lockbox that currently accepts check payments will be retired effective May 31, 2022.  Check payments received on or after this date will be returned to filers without further processing, and filers will have to submit payments using an alternate payment method prior to submitting a filing that requires fees to be paid. The payment changes are a result of Filing Fee Disclosure and Payment Methods Modernization amendments (Release 33-10997) adopted by the SEC on October 13, 2021.  Payments to the SEC for services other than filing fee payments should continue to be submitted according to the requirements for those services.

on March 21, 2022 at 1:07 pm

On March 21, 2022, EDGAR Release 22.1 will introduce the following changes: In connection with Commission Release IC-34199, EDGAR will be updated to include the following new submission form type to EDGARLink Online: 497VPSUB: Substitution-related supplement and correspondence for variable contracts filed pursuant to the Commission Statement on Insurance Product Fund Substitution Applications The new submission form type is accessible by selecting the "EDGARLink Online Form Submission" link on the EDGAR Filing Website. Additionally, filers may construct XML submissions for this submission form type by following the "EDGARLink Online XML Technical Specification" document available on https://www.sec.gov/edgar/filer-information/current-edgar-technical-specifications. See Chapter 3 (Index to Forms), Chapter 7 (Preparing and Transmitting EDGARLink Online Submissions), and Appendix C (EDGAR Submission Types) of the EDGAR Filer Manual, Volume II: "EDGAR Filing." On October 13, 2021, the Commission adopted rules to modernize filing fee disclosure and payment methods as part of Release 33-10997. EDGAR will be updated to allow filers to pay filing fees via credit card, debit card, and Automated Clearing House (ACH) debit payment methods. EDGAR will use Treasury's Pay.gov for filers to initiate payments in the system, and rely on Pay.gov to perform the payment processing for ACH and debit and credit card payments. The lockbox for the receipt of checks will no longer be available as of May 31, 2022. Checks received on or after this date will be returned to the sender. Instructions on how to pay filing fees are included in Chapter 4 (Filing Fee Information) of the "EDGAR Filer Manual, Volume II: EDGAR Filing". The Commission has issued orders granting substituted compliance with respect to the requirements of Exchange Act Rule 18a-7 which requires that security-based swap dealers file annual audited financial statements and reports. These orders require a security-based swap dealer applying substituted compliance with respect to these requirements of Rule 18a-7 to, among other things, simultaneously send to the Commission a copy of the firm's annual financial statements filed pursuant to the firm's home-country requirements and the report of the independent public accountant covering the annual financial statements. In accordance with these orders, EDGAR is being updated to allow filers that are not broker-dealers to select the new “Filing pursuant to a Commission substituted compliance order” check box. Such firms would be permitted to make the entirety of their filing confidential. See Chapter 8 (Preparing and Transmitting Online Submissions) of the EDGAR Filer Manual, Volume II: "EDGAR Filing." The "EDGAR Form X-17A-5 XML Technical Specification" document will be updated and available on https://www.sec.gov/edgar/filer-information/current-edgar-technical-specifications. New exhibit "EX-99.36 Form 7-R" (Firm Application) is being added to the drop down exhibit list for submission form types SBSE-A and SBSE-A/A. This gives SBSE-A filers, who file Form 7-R with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (or its designee), and who are required to file that form with the Commission, a designated location to place it when filing on EDGAR. Filers can attach "EX-99.36 Form 7-R" in official HTML, ASCII, or PDF format. See Chapter 5 (Constructing Attached Documents and Document Types), Chapter 8 (Preparing and Transmitting Online Submissions), and Appendix E (Automated Conformance Rules for EDGAR Data Fields) of the EDGAR Filer Manual, Volume II: "EDGAR Filing." As part of Release 33-10765, the Commission adopted amendments that will require variable contracts to tag certain disclosures in Forms N-3, N-4, and N-6 in iXBRL. In conjunction with the amendments, EDGAR will be updated to support the 2022 Variable Insurance Product (VIP) Taxonomy. See Chapter 6 (Interactive Data) of the EDGAR Filer Manual, Volume II: "EDGAR Filing." Appendix B “Frequently Asked Questions” (FAQs) has been modified, and Appendix F “Glossary of Commonly Used Terms, Acronyms and Abbreviations” has been removed. Appendix B is now titled, “EDGAR – Information for Filers”, and links to the "EDGAR - Information for Filers" webpage on SEC.gov, containing a revised Glossary, and updated FAQs, including a "How Do I?" guide with step-by-step instructions concerning filing on EDGAR. Appendix D "Paper Forms" has been revised to remove screenshots of the paper forms. A notice that current and prospective EDGAR filers can download electronic copies of EDGAR-related forms from https://www.sec.gov/forms remains. The EDGAR Filer Manual has been revised to address software changes made previously in EDGAR: On February 22, 2022, EDGAR Release 22.0.2 introduced the following change: Submission form types MA-A and MA-A/A will be validated to prevent filers from submitting a form with the incorrect fiscal year. Filers will not be able to submit their annual amendment in EDGAR for a fiscal year that has not yet been completed in the “Fiscal Year End Information” field on Item 1, Part I of the form. See Chapter 8 (Preparing and Transmitting Online Submissions) and Appendix A (Messages Reported By EDGAR) of the EDGAR Filer Manual, Volume II: "EDGAR Filing.” On September 20, 2021, EDGAR Release 21.3 introduced the following change: In Rule 34-87005, Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements for Security-Based Swap Dealers, Major Security-Based Swap Participants, and Broker-Dealers, the Commission adopted a revised version of Form X-17A-5 Part III. In accordance with these rules, EDGAR was updated to allow Form X-17A-5 Part III to be filed by two new classes of registrants (security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants). See Chapter 8 (Preparing and Transmitting Online Submissions) of the EDGAR Filer Manual, Volume II: "EDGAR Filing." These changes were deployed in Release 21.3.1 on October 6, 2021. If you have any questions, please contact Filer Support at (202) 551-8900 (Option 3).

on March 18, 2022 at 2:44 pm

The EDGAR Beta environment is available until March 25, 2022 for filing agent/filing software vendor adjustments related to the SEC’s previously announced planned change to EDGAR filing websites that will impact how some third-party software may communicate with these websites (EDGAR Filer Web a/k/a EDGAR Link Online and Online Forms). The SEC plans to implement the change on or about April 4, 2022. As the SEC announced on February 10, 2022, EDGAR will create a unique parameter that some third-party software products may need to include with every request that enters/updates information. EDGAR will verify the existence and validity of the parameter in filers’ requests, and will terminate user sessions if the value of the parameter is missing or mismatched. Filing agents/filing software vendors can obtain technical details on this upcoming change by logging into EDGAR Filer Web a/k/a EDGAR Link Online and viewing the information under the “EDGAR Filer News” section. If you have any questions and/or would like to participate in this testing, please email EdgarOperationsFilerCommunications@sec.gov. Thank you.

on February 11, 2022 at 1:16 pm

On March 1, 2022, EBO plans to pause the use of the EDGAR beta environment (“EDGAR Beta”) for testing of EDGAR Next code and to deploy code for other testing purposes.  At a future date, to be announced, EDGAR Next code will be re-deployed in EDGAR Beta to allow filers to test possible future EDGAR Next technical changes. EDGAR Beta currently incorporates most of the potential technical changes to EDGAR filer access and account management processes being considered by the SEC, including integration of Login.gov into EDGAR access; a revised EDGAR Filer Management website; and a new user management function. Please consult the EDGAR Next page on SEC.gov for more information about the potential technical changes.

on February 10, 2022 at 2:57 pm

On or about April 4, 2022, the SEC plans to implement a change to the EDGAR filing websites (EDGAR Filer Web a/k/a EDGAR Link Online and Online Forms) that will impact how some third-party software may communicate with these websites. Specifically, EDGAR will create a unique parameter that some third-party software products may need to include with every request that enters/updates information.  EDGAR will verify the existence and validity of the parameter in filers’ requests, and will terminate user sessions if the value of the parameter is missing or mismatched.   Filing agents/filing software vendors can obtain technical details on this upcoming change by logging into EDGAR Filer Web a/k/a EDGAR Link Online and viewing the information under the “EDGAR Filer News” section. The SEC plans to make the EDGAR Beta environment available in March 2022 to filing agents/filing software vendors who wish to test their software changes to accommodate this change.  We will provide information about EDGAR Beta testing to identified filing agents by February 28, 2022.  If you have any questions, please email EdgarOperationsFilerCommunications@sec.gov.  Thank you.

on January 31, 2022 at 2:43 pm

On January 31, 2022, EDGAR Release 22.0.1 introduced the following changes: The eis_Common.xsd schema file has been updated to allow the filer to submit EX-FILING FEES Exhibit type documents. The eis_CoReg.xsd, eis_CoReg_Fee.xsd, eis_CoReg_Serial.xsd, eis_Subject_Fee.xsd, and eis_SubjectGroup_Fee.xsd schema files have been updated to add a new element “feeTableIncludedFlag”. The eis_CoReg_Serial.xsd has been updated to remove the element “feeTableInProspectusFlag”. Tables 3.4.5.1, 3.4.5.2, 3.4.5.3, 3.4.5.4, 3.4.6, 3.4.7, 3.4.10, and 3.4.13 have been updated to add the new element “feeTableIncludedFlag”. Table 3.4.7 has been updated to remove the element “feeTableInProspectusFlag”. Table 6-1 updated to account for “EX-FILING FEES” Exhibit type. For more information, see the updated “EDGARLink Online XML Technical Specification (Version 38)” document available on sec.gov (https://www.sec.gov/info/edgar/tech-specs). If you have any questions, please contact Filer Support at (202) 551-8900 (Option 3).

on January 21, 2022 at 6:57 pm

The Divisions of Corporation Finance and Investment Management have asked that paper “courtesy copies” no longer be provided unless requested by staff.  Please see the announcement on the Division of Corporation Finance webpage.

on January 7, 2022 at 3:17 pm

Filers who use third-party custom software solutions to connect to EDGAR should be aware that the SEC will update the ciphers it supports in its Transport Layer Security (TLS) cryptographic protocol on Monday, January 17, 2022.  (Notice of the upcoming upgrade was previously announced on August 25, 2021 and October 27, 2021.)    TLS relies on cipher sets to encrypt and authenticate data.  These cipher sets, or profiles, are updated from time to time to improve efficiency and security.  Older cipher profiles support out-of-date, weak ciphers.  We strive to use newer, stronger cipher profiles which are compatible with all up-to-date web browsers.   A table of the SEC’s currently supported ciphers is below.  Ciphers in red italics will not be supported after January 17, 2022. If you have any questions, please email EDGAR_Escalations@sec.gov. Thank you. TLS Version OpenSSL Cipher Name (Hex Code) IANA Cipher Name 1.3 TLS-AES-256-GCM-SHA384 (0x13,0x02) TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 1.3 TLS-CHACHA20-POLY1305-SHA256 (0x13,0x03) TLS_CHACHA20_POLY1305_SHA256 1.3 TLS-AES-128-GCM-SHA256 (0x13,0x01) TLS_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 1.3 TLS-AES-128-CCM-8-SHA256 (0x13,0x05) (0x13,0x05) TLS_AES_128_CCM_8_SHA256 1.3 TLS-AES-128-CCM-SHA256 (0x13,0x04) TLS_AES_128_CCM_SHA256 1.2 ECDHE-ECDSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384 (0xC0,0x2C) TLS_ECDHE_ECDSA_WITH_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 1.2 ECDHE-ECDSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256 (0xC0,0x2B) TLS_ECDHE_ECDSA_WITH_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 1.2 ECDHE-RSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384 (0xC0,0x30) TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 1.2 ECDHE-RSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256 (0xC0,0x2F) TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 1.2 ECDHE-ECDSA-CHACHA20-POLY1305 (0xCC,0xA9) TLS_ECDHE_ECDSA_WITH_CHACHA20_POLY1305_SHA256 1.2 ECDHE-RSA-CHACHA20-POLY1305 (0xCC,0xA8) TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_CHACHA20_POLY1305_SHA256 1.2 ECDHE-ECDSA-AES256-SHA384 (0xC0,0x24) TLS_ECDHE_ECDSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA384 1.2 ECDHE-ECDSA-AES128-SHA256 (0xC0,0x23) TLS_ECDHE_ECDSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA256 1.2 ECDHE-RSA-AES256-SHA384 (0xC0,0x28) TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA384 1.2 ECDHE-RSA-AES128-SHA256 (0xC0,0x27) TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA256 1.2 ECDHE-RSA-AES256-SHA (0xC0,0x14) TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA 1.2 ECDHE-RSA-AES128-SHA (0xC0,0x13) TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA

on January 5, 2022 at 5:01 pm

The Chair has asked the staff to consider how the agency might address concerns articulated by commenters in response to the Commission’s Request for Comment on Potential Technical Changes to EDGAR Filer Access and Filer Account Management Processes.  Staff plan to seek additional information and engage in a dialogue regarding concerns raised by commenters, which may include consideration of further approaches to EDGAR access improvements.