Guide

LM-2, LM-3 and LM-4: what union treasurers need from their software

October 15, 2026 · 5 min read

Short answerUS private-sector and federal-sector unions file an annual financial report with the Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards: the LM-2 if total annual receipts are $250,000 or more, the LM-3 if they are less, and the LM-4 if they are under $10,000. Your union software should give your treasurer clean membership counts, receipts and disbursements to prepare it from.

Which form does your union file?

The form depends on total annual receipts. Reports are due within 90 days after the end of the union’s fiscal year.

LM-2: total annual receipts of $250,000 or more, or the union is in trusteeship. It must be filed electronically.
LM-3: total annual receipts under $250,000 (a union may file the LM-2 instead).
LM-4: total annual receipts under $10,000.

Who doesn’t file

Unions that represent only state, county or municipal employees aren’t covered by the federal reporting law and don’t file with OLMS, though many have reporting duties under state law. In Canada there is no LM-form equivalent; federal and provincial labour codes generally require unions to provide financial statements to members on request.

What the forms ask for

The LM-2 is the most detailed. Alongside assets and liabilities, it asks for membership counts by category and itemized receipts and disbursements, including payments to officers and employees. The LM-3 and LM-4 ask for less detail, but the same discipline applies: the numbers must reconcile with your books and your membership records.

What your union software should give you

Your software doesn’t file the report, but it should make preparing it routine:

Membership counts by category as of your fiscal year end.
Dues and other receipts by type, matched to members and employers.
Per capita paid to your international, from the same dues records.
Clean exports your accountant can bring into their preparation tools.
An audit trail for every adjustment.

A year-end checklist

A few weeks before your fiscal year ends:

Close out open remittance exceptions.
Reconcile online payments with your bank deposits.
Review member status changes for the year (initiations, withdrawals, retirements).
Run the membership-by-category report and compare it with last year.
Agree with your accountant on the export format.

Questions

Where do we file the LM-2?

With the US Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS), electronically. Filed reports are public in the OLMS Online Public Disclosure Room.

Can union software file our LM report for us?

No. Your officers sign and file the report. Good union software gives your treasurer and accountant the membership and financial records to prepare it accurately.