The Company maintains the Entegris, Inc. 401(k) Savings and Profit Sharing Plan (the 401(k) Plan) that qualifies as a deferred salary arrangement under Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code. Under the Plan, eligible employees may defer a portion of their pre-tax wages, up to the Internal Revenue Service annual contribution limit. Entegris matches employees’ contributions to a maximum match of 4% of the employee’s eligible wages. The employer matching contribution expense under the 401(k)Plan was $7.1 million, $6.1 million and $5.1 million in the fiscal years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

The employees of the Company’s subsidiaries in Japan, Taiwan and Germany are covered in defined benefit pension plans. The Company uses a December 31 measurement date for its pension plans.

The tables below set forth the Company’s estimated funded status as of December 31, 2019 and 2018:



(In thousands)	2019			2018
Change in benefit obligation:
Benefit obligation at beginning of year	$	7,308		$	7,682
Service cost	26			50
Interest cost	54			62
Actuarial (gain) loss	471			75
Benefits paid	(636		)	(560		)
Curtailment	(346		)	—
Other	—			11
Foreign exchange impact	69			(12		)
Benefit obligation at end of year	6,946			7,308
Change in plan assets:
Fair value of plan assets at beginning of year	835			908
Return on plan assets	35			31
Employer contributions	93			110
Benefits paid	(63		)	(185		)
Foreign exchange impact	10			(29		)
Fair value of plan assets at end of year	910			835
Funded status:
Plan assets less than benefit obligation - Net amount recognized	$	(6,036	)	$	(6,473	)

Amounts recognized in the consolidated balance sheets consist of:



(In thousands)	2019			2018
Noncurrent liability	$	(6,036	)	$	(6,473	)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of taxes	791			860

Amounts recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax consist of:



(In thousands)	2019			2018
Net actuarial loss	$	598		$	514
Prior service cost	460			616
Gross amount recognized	1,058			1,130
Deferred income taxes	(267		)	(270		)
Net amount recognized	$	791		$	860

Information for pension plans with an accumulated benefit obligation in excess of plan assets:



(In thousands)	2019		2018
Projected benefit obligation	$	6,036	$	6,473
Accumulated benefit obligation	6,030		6,235
Fair value of plan assets	910		835

The components of the net periodic benefit cost for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017 were as follows:



(In thousands)	2019			2018			2017
Pension benefits:
Service cost	$	26		$	50		$	38
Interest cost	54			62			46
Expected return on plan assets	(16		)	(18		)	(11		)
Curtailments	95			—			—
Amortization of prior service cost	67			69			69
Amortization of net transition obligation	—			—			22
Amortization of plan loss	17			20			—
Net periodic pension benefit cost	$	243		$	183		$	164

The estimated amount that will be amortized from accumulated other comprehensive income into net periodic benefit cost in 2020 is as follows:



(In thousands)
Prior service cost	$	36
Net actuarial loss	38
	$	74

Assumptions used in determining the benefit obligation and net periodic benefit cost for the Company’s pension plans for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017 are presented in the following table as weighted-averages:



	2019		2018		2017
Benefit obligations:
Discount rate	0.53	%	0.76	%	0.82	%
Rate of compensation increase	2.91	%	3.08	%	3.05	%
Net periodic benefit cost:
Discount rate	1.29	%	1.66	%	1.45	%
Rate of compensation increase	3.51	%	3.18	%	3.00	%
Expected return on plan assets	1.51	%	1.89	%	1.80	%

The plans’ expected return on assets as shown above is based on management’s expectations of long-term average rates of return to be achieved by the underlying investment portfolios. In establishing this assumption, management considers historical and expected returns for the asset classes in which the plans are invested, as well as current economic and capital market conditions. The discount rate primarily used by the Company is based on market yields at the valuation date on government bonds as well as the estimated maturity of benefit payments.

At December 31, 2019, the majority of the Company’s pension plan assets are deposited in Bank of Taiwan in the form of money market funds, where the Bank of Taiwan is the assigned funding vehicle for the statutory retirement benefit. The remaining portion of the Company’s plan assets is deposited in a German insurance company’s investment fund.

The fair value measurements of the Company’s pension plan assets at December 31, 2019, by asset category are as follows:



(In thousands)			Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets		Significant observable inputs	Significant unobservable inputs
Asset category	Total		(Level 1)		(Level 2)	(Level 3)
Taiwan plan assets (a)	$	729	$	729	—	—
Germany plan assets (b)	$	181	$	181	—	—
	$	910	$	910	—	—

The fair value measurements of the Company’s pension plan assets at December 31, 2018, by asset category are as follows:



(In thousands)			Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets		Significant observable inputs	Significant unobservable inputs
Asset category	Total		(Level 1)		(Level 2)	(Level 3)
Taiwan plan assets (a)	$	669	$	669	—	—
Germany plan assets (b)	$	166	$	166	—	—
	$	835	$	835	—	—

The Company expects to make the following contributions and benefit payments:



(In thousands)	Contributions		Payments
2020	$	71	$	40
2021	—		225
2022	—		113
2023	—		201
2024	—		399
Years 2025-2029	—		1,707