United states securities and exchange commission

Table of Contents
BIOGEN INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)
F- 71
As of December 31, 2017, minimum rental commitments under non-cancelable leases, net of income from 
subleases, for each of the next five years and total thereafter were as follows:
(In millions)
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
Thereafter
Total
Minimum lease payments
$
72.6 $
72.3 $
68.4 $
66.9 $
65.7 $ 271.1 $ 617.0
Less: income from subleases (1)
(24.3)
(24.7)
(23.9)
(22.3)
(22.0)
(71.3)
(188.5)
Net minimum lease
payments
$
48.3 $
47.6 $
44.5 $
44.6 $
43.7 $ 199.8 $ 428.5
(1)  Represents sublease income expected to be received for the vacated manufacturing facility in Cambridge, MA, the vacated 
portion of our Weston, MA facility and other facilities throughout the world. 
Under certain of our lease agreements, we are contractually obligated to return leased space to its original 
condition upon termination of the lease agreement. At the inception of a lease with such conditions, we record an 
asset retirement obligation liability and a corresponding capital asset in an amount equal to the estimated fair value 
of the obligation. In subsequent periods, for each such lease, we record interest expense to accrete the asset 
retirement obligation liability to full value and depreciate each capitalized asset retirement obligation asset, both 
over the term of the associated lease agreement. Our asset retirement obligations were not significant as of 
December 31, 2017 or 2016.
23.    Guarantees
As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, we did not have significant liabilities recorded for guarantees.
We enter into indemnification provisions under our agreements with other companies in the ordinary course of 
business, typically with business partners, contractors, clinical sites and customers. Under these provisions, we 
generally indemnify and hold harmless the indemnified party for losses suffered or incurred by the indemnified party 
as a result of our activities. These indemnification provisions generally survive termination of the underlying 
agreement. The maximum potential amount of future payments we could be required to make under these 
indemnification provisions is unlimited. However, to date we have not incurred material costs to defend lawsuits or 
settle claims related to these indemnification provisions. As a result, the estimated fair value of these agreements 
is minimal. Accordingly, we have no liabilities recorded for these agreements as of December 31, 2017 and 2016.
24.    Employee Benefit Plans
We sponsor various retirement and pension plans. Our estimates of liabilities and expenses for these plans 
incorporate a number of assumptions, including expected rates of return on plan assets and interest rates used to 
discount future benefits.
401(k) Savings Plan
We maintain a 401(k) Savings Plan, which is available to substantially all regular employees in the U.S. over the 
age of 21. Participants may make voluntary contributions. We make matching contributions according to the 401(k) 
Savings Plan’s matching formula. All matching contributions and participant contributions vest immediately. The 
401(k) Savings Plan also holds certain transition contributions on behalf of participants who previously participated 
in the Biogen, Inc. Retirement Plan. The expense related to our 401(k) Savings Plan primarily consists of our 
matching contributions.
Expense related to our 401(k) Savings Plan totaled $42.6 million, $45.2 million and $51.8 million for the years 
ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

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Table of Contents
BIOGEN INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)
F- 72
Deferred Compensation Plan
We maintain a non-qualified deferred compensation plan, known as the Supplemental Savings Plan (SSP), 
which allows a select group of management employees in the U.S. to defer a portion of their compensation. The SSP 
also provides certain credits to highly compensated U.S. employees that are paid by the company. These credits are 
known as the Restoration Match. The deferred compensation amounts are accrued when earned. Such deferred 
compensation is distributable in cash in accordance with the rules of the SSP. Deferred compensation amounts 
under such plan as of December 31, 2017 and 2016 totaled approximately $109.8 million and $128.5 million, 
respectively, and are included in other long-term liabilities in our consolidated balance sheets. The SSP also holds 
certain transition contributions on behalf of participants who previously participated in the Biogen, Inc. Retirement 
Plan. The Restoration Match and participant contributions vest immediately. Distributions to participants can be 
either in one lump sum payment or annual installments as elected by the participants.
Pension Plans
Our retiree benefit plans include defined benefit plans for employees in our affiliates in Switzerland and 
Germany as well as other insignificant defined benefit plans in certain other countries where we maintain an 
operating presence.
Our Swiss plan is a government-mandated retirement fund that provides employees with a minimum investment 
return. The minimum investment return is determined annually by the Swiss government and was 1.00% in 2017 and 
1.25% in 2016 and 1.75% in 2015, respectively. Under the Swiss plan, both we and certain of our employees with 
annual earnings in excess of government determined amounts are required to make contributions into a fund 
managed by an independent investment fiduciary. Employer contributions must be in an amount at least equal to the 
employee’s contribution. Minimum employee contributions are based on the respective employee’s age, salary and 
gender. 
As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, the Swiss plan had an unfunded net pension obligation of approximately 
$48.3 million and $39.1 million, respectively, and plan assets that totaled approximately $83.7 million and $68.6 
million, respectively. In 2017, 2016 and 2015, we recognized expense totaling $12.3 million, $15.3 million and 
$12.9 million, respectively, related to our Swiss plan.
The obligations under the German plans are unfunded and totaled $43.5 million and $35.4 million as of 
December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Net periodic pension cost related to the German plans totaled $5.2 
million, $4.2 million and $4.0 million for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.
25.    Segment Information
We operate as one operating segment, focused on discovering, developing and delivering worldwide innovative 
therapies for people living with serious neurological and neurodegenerative diseases. Our Chief Executive Officer 
(CEO), as the chief operating decision-maker, manages and allocates resources to the operations of our company on 
a total company basis. Our research and development organization is responsible for the research and discovery of 
new product candidates and supports development and registration efforts for potential future products. Our 
pharmaceutical, operations and technology organization manages the development of the manufacturing processes, 
clinical trial supply, commercial product supply, distribution, buildings and facilities. Our commercial organization is 
responsible for U.S. and international development of our commercial products. The company is also supported by 
corporate staff functions. Managing and allocating resources on a total company basis enables our CEO to assess 
the overall level of resources available and how to best deploy these resources across functions, therapeutic areas 
and research and development projects that are in line with our long-term company-wide strategic goals. Consistent 
with this decision-making process, our CEO uses consolidated, single-segment financial information for purposes of 
evaluating performance, forecasting future period financial results, allocating resources and setting incentive targets.
Enterprise-wide disclosures about product revenues, other revenues and long-lived assets by geographic area 
and information relating to major customers are presented below. Revenues are primarily attributed to individual 
countries based on location of the customer or licensee.

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