Another name for a tax-qualified pension. This is an employer-sponsored retirement arrangement in which the value of the benefit to a participant is defined by a formula based on compensation, service, and age. The employer contributes the amount necessary to pay the benefits, and incurs the investment risk. DB plans may be tax-qualified or not tax-qualified (i.e. nonqualified). A supplemental executive retirement plan (SERP) may be a type of nonqualified DB plan.