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There are a number of instances in which single occupational federal credit unions must amend their field of membership.
First, a group sharing the credit union’s common bond is added to the field of membership. This may occur through various ways including agreement between the group and the credit union directly, or through a merger, corporate acquisition, purchase and assumption (P&A), or spin-off.
Second, if the entire field of membership is acquired by another corporation, the credit union can serve the employees of the new corporation and any subsidiaries after receiving NCUA approval.
Third, a federal credit union qualifies to change its common bond from:
- a single occupational common bond to a single associational common bond;
- a single occupational common bond to a community charter; or
- a single occupational common bond to a multiple common bond.
Fourth, a federal credit union removes a portion of the group from its field of membership through agreement with the group, a spin-off, or because a portion of the group is no longer in existence.
An existing single occupational common bond federal credit union that submits a request to amend its charter must provide documentation to establish that the occupational common bond requirement has been met. The regional director must approve all amendments to an occupational common bond credit union’s field of membership.
Corporate Restructuring
If the single common bond group that comprises a federal credit union's field of membership undergoes a substantial restructuring, the result is often that portions of the group are sold or spun off. This requires a change to the credit union’s field of membership. NCUA will not permit a single common bond credit union to maintain in its field of membership a sold or spun-off group to which it has been providing service unless the group otherwise qualifies for membership in the credit union or the credit union converts to a multiple common bond credit union.
If the group comprising the single common bond of the credit union merges with, or is acquired by, another group, the credit union can serve the new group resulting from the merger or acquisition after receiving a housekeeping amendment.
Economic Advisability
Prior to granting a common bond expansion, NCUA will examine the amendment's likely effect on the credit union's operations and financial condition. In most cases, the information needed for analyzing the effect of adding a particular group will be available to NCUA through the examination and financial and statistical reports; however, in particular cases, a regional director may require additional information prior to making a decision.
Documentation Requirements
A federal credit union requesting a common bond expansion must submit an Application for Field of Membership Amendment. They should use either NCUA 4015-EZ (for employers with up to 3,000 employees), 4015-A (for employers with between 3,001 and 5,000 employees), or NCUA 4015 (for employers with more than 5,000 employees) to the NCUA Office of Credit Union Resources and Expansion. An authorized credit union representative must sign the request.
Field of Membership Expansion
