Contingent deferred sales load

A contingent deferred sales load, also called a back-end load, is a sales charge some mutual funds impose when you sell shares in the fund within a certain period of time after you buy them.

These shares are typically identified as Class B shares, and the period that the load applies is often as long as seven to ten years, as determined by the fund.

The charge is a percentage of the amount of the investment you're liquidating. It typically begins at a certain level - say 7% - and drops by a percentage point each year until it disappears entirely.

Information about the charge and how long it's levied is provided in the fund's prospectus.