13. Employee Benefit Plans

Pension and Other Postretirement Benefit Plans

Certain subsidiaries of MetLife, Inc. (the “Subsidiaries”) sponsor and/or administer various U.S. qualified and non-qualified defined benefit pension plans and other postretirement employee benefit plans covering employees and sales representatives who meet specified eligibility requirements. The Subsidiaries also provide certain postemployment benefits and certain postretirement medical and life insurance benefits for retired employees.

The components of net periodic benefit costs were as follows:



	Pension Benefits												Other Postretirement Benefits
	U.S. Plans						Non-U.S. Plans						U.S. Plans						Non-U.S. Plans
	Three Months Ended September 30,						Three Months Ended September 30,						Three Months Ended September 30,						Three Months Ended September 30,
	2013			2012			2013			2012			2013			2012			2013			2012
	(In millions)
Service costs	$	59		$	56		$	16		$	19		$	5		$	5		$	—		$	—
Interest costs	98			102			4			4			23			26			1			1
Expected return on plan assets	(121		)	(121		)	(2		)	(1		)	(18		)	(19		)	(1		)	(1		)
Amortization of net actuarial (gains) losses	57			48			—			—			14			15			—			1
Amortization of prior service costs (credit)	2			2			—			—			(19		)	(26		)	—			—
Net periodic benefit costs	$	95		$	87		$	18		$	22		$	5		$	1		$	—		$	1



	Pension Benefits												Other Postretirement Benefits
	U.S. Plans						Non-U.S. Plans						U.S. Plans						Non-U.S. Plans
	Nine Months Ended September 30,						Nine Months Ended September 30,						Nine Months Ended September 30,						Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2013			2012			2013			2012			2013			2012			2013			2012
	(In millions)
Service costs	$	177		$	168		$	50		$	55		$	15		$	16		$	1		$	1
Interest costs	292			305			11			13			69			77			2			2
Expected return on plan assets	(363		)	(363		)	(5		)	(5		)	(56		)	(57		)	(1		)	(1		)
Amortization of net actuarial (gains) losses	171			146			—			—			41			43			—			1
Amortization of prior service costs (credit)	5			5			—			—			(56		)	(78		)	—			—
Net periodic benefit costs	$	282		$	261		$	56		$	63		$	13		$	1		$	2		$	3

As disclosed in Note 18 of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in the 2012 Annual Report, no contributions are required to be made to the Subsidiaries’ U.S. qualified pension plans during 2013; however, during the nine months ended September 30, 2013, $313 million of discretionary contributions were made by the Subsidiaries to those plans.