EXHIBIT (o)
THE DREYFUS FAMILY OF FUNDS
(DREYFUS PREMIER FUNDS)
RULE 18F-3 PLAN
Rule 18f-3 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the
"1940 Act"), requires that the Board of an investment company desiring to offer
multiple classes pursuant to said Rule adopt a plan setting forth the separate
arrangement and expense allocation of each class, and any related conversion
features or exchange privileges.
The Board, including a majority of the non-interested Board members,
of each of the investment companies, or series thereof, listed on Schedule A
attached hereto (each, a "Fund") which desires to offer multiple classes has
determined that the following plan is in the best interests of each class
individually and each Fund as a whole:
1. CLASS DESIGNATION: Fund shares shall be divided, except as
otherwise noted on Schedule A, into Class A, Class B, Class C, Class R and Class
T.
2. DIFFERENCES IN SERVICES: The services offered to shareholders of
each Class, unless otherwise noted on Schedule A, shall be substantially the
same, except that Right of Accumulation and Letter of Intent shall be available
only to holders of Class A and Class T shares.
<PAGE>
3. DIFFERENCES IN DISTRIBUTION ARRANGEMENTS: Class A shares shall be
offered with a front-end sales charge, as such term is defined under the Conduct
Rules of the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. (the "NASD Conduct
Rules"), and a deferred sales charge (a "CDSC"), as such term is defined under
the NASD Conduct Rules, may be assessed on certain redemptions of Class A shares
purchased without an initial sales charge as part of an investment of $1 million
or more. The amount of the sales charge and the amount of and provisions
relating to the CDSC pertaining to the Class A shares are set forth on Schedule
B hereto.
Class B shares shall not be subject to a front-end sales charge, but
shall be subject to a CDSC and shall be charged an annual distribution fee under
a Distribution Plan adopted pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act. The
amount of and provisions relating to the CDSC, and the amount of the fees under
the Distribution Plan pertaining to the Class B shares, are set forth on
Schedule C hereto.
Class C shares shall not be subject to a front-end sales charge, but
shall be subject to a CDSC and shall be charged an annual distribution fee under
a Distribution Plan adopted pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act. The
amount of and provisions relating to the CDSC, and the amount of the fees under
the Distribution Plan pertaining to the Class C shares, are set forth on
Schedule D hereto.
Class R shares shall be offered at net asset value only to
institutional investors acting for themselves or in a fiduciary, advisory,
agency, custodial or similar capacity for qualified or non-qualified employee
benefit plans, including pension, profit-sharing, SEP-IRAs and other deferred
compensation plans, whether established by corporations, partnerships,
non-profit entities or state and local governments, but not including IRAs or
IRA "Rollover Accounts."
Class T shares shall be offered with a front-end sales charge, and a
CDSC may be assessed on certain redemptions of Class T shares purchased without
an initial sales charge as part of an investment of $1 million or more. Class T
shares also shall be charged an annual distribution fee under a Distribution
Plan adopted pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act. The amount of the sales
charge, the amount of and provisions relating to the CDSC, and the amount of the
fees under the Distribution Plan pertaining to the Class T shares are set forth
on Schedule E hereto.
Class A, Class B, Class C and Class T shares shall be subject to an
annual service fee at the rate of .25% of the value of the average daily net
assets of such Class pursuant to a Shareholder Services Plan.
Certain Funds indicated on Schedule G charge a redemption fee which is
deducted from the redemption proceeds and retained by the Fund.
4. EXPENSE ALLOCATION: The following expenses shall be allocated, to
the extent practicable, on a Class-by-Class basis: (a) fees under a Distribution
Plan and Shareholder Services Plan; (b) printing and postage expenses related to
preparing and distributing materials, such as shareholder reports, prospectuses
and proxies, to current shareholders of a specific Class; (c) Securities and
Exchange Commission and Blue Sky registration fees incurred by a specific Class;
(d) the expense of administrative personnel and services as required to support
the shareholders of a specific Class; (e) litigation or other legal expenses
relating solely to a specific Class; (f) transfer agent fees identified by the
Fund's transfer agent as being attributable to a specific Class; and (g) Board
members' fees incurred as a result of issues relating to a specific Class.
5. CONVERSION FEATURES: Class B shares shall automatically convert to
Class A shares after a specified period of time after the date of purchase,
based on the relative net asset value of each such Class without the imposition
of any sales charge, fee or other charge, as set forth on Schedule F hereto. No
other Class shall be subject to any automatic conversion feature.
6. EXCHANGE PRIVILEGES: Shares of a Class shall be exchangeable only
for (a) shares of the same Class of other investment companies managed or
administered by The Dreyfus Corporation or its affiliates as specified from time
to time and (b) shares of certain other Classes of such investment companies or
shares of certain other investment companies specified from time to time.
<PAGE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
SCHEDULE A
NAME OF FUND DATE PLAN ADOPTED
------------ ------------------
<S> <C>
Dreyfus Premier Equity Funds, Inc. September 11, 1995
(Revised as of December 6, 1999)
--Dreyfus Premier Aggressive Growth Fund
--Dreyfus Premier Growth and Income Fund
--Dreyfus Premier Emerging Markets Fund
--Dreyfus Premier Market Neutral Fund
Dreyfus Premier International Funds, Inc. April 24, 1995
(Revised as of November 11, 1999)
--Dreyfus Premier European Equity Fund
--Dreyfus Premier Global Allocation Fund
--Dreyfus Premier Greater China Fund
--Dreyfus Premier International Growth Fund
--Dreyfus Premier Japan Fund
Dreyfus Premier Worldwide Growth Fund, Inc. April 12, 1995
(Revised as of November 15, 1999)
Dreyfus Premier Value Equity Funds July 19, 1995
(Revised as of November 3, 1999)
--Dreyfus Premier Value Fund
--Dreyfus Premier International Value Fund
Dreyfus Growth and Value Funds, Inc. February 25, 1999
(Revised as of April 25, 2000)
--Dreyfus Premier Technology Growth Fund
--Dreyfus Premier Future Leaders Fund
Dreyfus Debt and Equity Funds May 6, 1998
(Revised as of February 9, 2000)
--Dreyfus Premier High Yield Debt Plus
Equity Fund*
--Dreyfus Premier Real Estate Mortgage Fund
--Dreyfus Premier High Yield Securities Fund*
--Dreyfus Premier Core Bond Fund**
Dreyfus Premier Opportunity Funds April 17, 2000
(Revised as of October 3, 2000)
--Dreyfus Premier NexTech Fund*
--Dreyfus Premier Micro-Cap Growth Fund*+
-------------------
* Class A, Class B, Class C and Class T only.
** Class A, Class B, Class C and Class R only.
+ The following services are not available to Fund shareholders: Dreyfus
Auto-Exchange Privilege; Dreyfus-AUTOMATIC Asset Builder(R); Dreyfus
Government Direct Deposit Privilege; Dreyfus Payroll Savings Plan; Dreyfus
Dividend Options; Automatic Withdrawal Plan; and Letter of Intent.
</TABLE>
<PAGE>
SCHEDULE B
FRONT-END SALES CHARGE--CLASS A SHARES--Effective December 1, 1996, the public
offering price for Class A shares, except as set forth below, shall be the net
asset value per share of Class A plus a sales load as shown below:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
TOTAL SALES LOAD
---------------------------------------------
AS A % OF AS A % OF
OFFERING PRICE NET ASSET VALUE
AMOUNT OF TRANSACTION PER SHARE PER SHARE
--------------------- ------------------- ------------------
<S> <C> <C>
Less than $50,000............................................ 5.75 6.10
$50,000 to less than $100,000................................ 4.50 4.70
$100,000 to less than $250,000............................... 3.50 3.60
$250,000 to less than $500,000............................... 2.50 2.60
$500,000 to less than $1,000,000............................. 2.00 2.00
$1,000,000 or more........................................... -0- -0-
</TABLE>
FRONT-END SALES CHARGE--CLASS A SHARES--SHAREHOLDERS BENEFICIALLY OWNING CLASS A
SHARES ON NOVEMBER 30, 1996--For shareholders who beneficially owned Class A
shares of a Fund on November 30, 1996, the public offering price for Class A
shares of such Fund, except as set forth below, shall be the net asset value per
share of Class A plus a sales load as shown below:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
TOTAL SALES LOAD
------------------------------------------------
AS A % OF AS A % OF
OFFERING PRICE NET ASSET VALUE
AMOUNT OF TRANSACTION PER SHARE PER SHARE
--------------------- ------------------- --------------------
<S> <C> <C>
Less than $50,000............................................ 4.50 4.70
$50,000 to less than $100,000................................ 4.00 4.20
$100,000 to less than $250,000............................... 3.00 3.10
$250,000 to less than $500,000............................... 2.50 2.60
$500,000 to less than $1,000,000............................. 2.00 2.00
$1,000,000 or more........................................... -0- -0-
</TABLE>
<PAGE>
FRONT-END SALES CHARGE--CLASS A SHARES OF DREYFUS PREMIER AGGRESSIVE GROWTH FUND
ONLY--SHAREHOLDERS BENEFICIALLY OWNING CLASS A SHARES ON DECEMBER 31, 1995*
--For shareholders who beneficially owned Class A shares of Dreyfus Premier
Aggressive Growth Fund on December 31, 1995, the public offering price for Class
A shares of Dreyfus Premier Aggressive Growth Fund shall be the net asset value
per share of Class A plus a sales load as shown below:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
TOTAL SALES LOAD
----------------------------------------------
AS A % OF AS A % OF
OFFERING PRICE NET ASSET VALUE
AMOUNT OF TRANSACTION PER SHARE PER SHARE
--------------------- ------------------- -------------------
<S> <C> <C>
Less than $100,000........................................... 3.00 3.10
$100,000 to less than $250,000............................... 2.75 2.80
$250,000 to less than $500,000............................... 2.25 2.30
$500,000 to less than $1,000,000............................. 2.00 2.00
$1,000,000 or more........................................... 1.00 1.00
</TABLE>
FRONT-END SALES CHARGE--CLASS A SHARES OF DREYFUS PREMIER CORE BOND FUND
ONLY--The public offering price for Class A shares of Dreyfus Premier Core Bond
Fund, except as set forth below, shall be the net asset value per share of Class
A plus a sales load as shown below:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
TOTAL SALES LOAD
------------------- ------- --------------------
AS A % OF AS A % OF
OFFERING PRICE NET ASSET VALUE
AMOUNT OF TRANSACTION PER SHARE PER SHARE
--------------------- ------------------- --------------------
<S> <C> <C>
Less than $50,000............................................ 4.50 4.70
$50,000 to less than $100,000................................ 4.00 4.20
$100,000 to less than $250,000............................... 3.00 3.10
$250,000 to less than $500,000............................... 2.50 2.60
$500,000 to less than $1,000,000............................. 2.00 2.00
$1,000,000 or more........................................... -0- -0-
--------------------
* At a meeting held on December 16, 1996, shareholders of Premier Strategic
Growth Fund voted to merge such Fund into Premier Aggressive Growth Fund.
Shareholders of Dreyfus Premier Strategic Growth Fund who received Class A
shares of Dreyfus Premier Aggressive Growth Fund in the merger are deemed
to have beneficially owned such shares as of the date they beneficially
owned Class A shares of Premier Strategic Growth Fund for purposes of the
front-end sales charge applicable to purchases of Class A shares of Dreyfus
Premier Aggressive Growth Fund.
</TABLE>
CLASS A SHARES OF DREYFUS PREMIER REAL ESTATE MORTGAGE FUND, DREYFUS PREMIER
TECHNOLOGY GROWTH FUND, DREYFUS PREMIER HIGH YIELD SECURITIES FUND AND DREYFUS
PREMIER CORE BOND FUND ONLY--Shareholders beneficially owning Class A shares of
Dreyfus Premier Real Estate Mortgage Fund on December 24, 1998 or Dreyfus
Premier Technology Growth Fund on April 15, 1999 or Dreyfus Premier High Yield
Securities Fund on February 29, 2000 or Dreyfus Premier Core Bond Fund on
February 29, 2000 may purchase Class A shares of such Fund at net asset value
without a front-end sales charge.
CONTINGENT DEFERRED SALES CHARGE--CLASS A SHARES--A CDSC of 1.00% shall be
assessed at the time of redemption of Class A shares purchased without an
initial sales charge as part of an investment of at least $1,000,000 or, with
respect to Dreyfus Premier NexTech Fund and Dreyfus Premier Micro-Cap Growth
Fund, through a "wrap account" or similar program and redeemed within one year
of purchase. The terms contained in Schedule C pertaining to the CDSC assessed
on redemptions of Class B shares (other than the amount of the CDSC and its time
periods), including the provisions for waiving the CDSC, shall be applicable to
the Class A shares subject to a CDSC. Letter of Intent and Right of
Accumulation, to the extent offered, shall apply to purchases of Class A shares
subject to a CDSC.
<PAGE>
SCHEDULE C
CONTINGENT DEFERRED SALES CHARGE--CLASS B SHARES--A CDSC payable to the Fund's
Distributor shall be imposed on any redemption of Class B shares which reduces
the current net asset value of such Class B shares to an amount which is lower
than the dollar amount of all payments by the redeeming shareholder for the
purchase of Class B shares of the Fund held by such shareholder at the time of
redemption. No CDSC shall be imposed to the extent that the net asset value of
the Class B shares redeemed does not exceed (i) the current net asset value of
Class B shares acquired through reinvestment of dividends or capital gain
distributions, plus (ii) increases in the net asset value of the shareholder's
Class B shares above the dollar amount of all payments for the purchase of Class
B shares of the Fund held by such shareholder at the time of redemption.
If the aggregate value of the Class B shares redeemed has declined
below their original cost as a result of the Fund's performance, a CDSC may be
applied to the then-current net asset value rather than the purchase price.
In circumstances where the CDSC is imposed, the amount of the charge
shall depend on the number of years from the time the shareholder purchased the
Class B shares until the time of redemption of such shares. Solely for purposes
of determining the number of years from the time of any payment for the purchase
of Class B shares, all payments during a month shall be aggregated and deemed to
have been made on the first day of the month. The following table sets forth the
rates of the CDSC:
CDSC AS A % OF
YEAR SINCE AMOUNT INVESTED
PURCHASE PAYMENT OR REDEMPTION
WAS MADE PROCEEDS
---------------- ---------------
First.............................................. 4.00
Second............................................. 4.00
Third.............................................. 3.00
Fourth............................................. 3.00
Fifth.............................................. 2.00
Sixth.............................................. 1.00
In determining whether a CDSC is applicable to a redemption, the
calculation shall be made in a manner that results in the lowest possible rate.
Therefore, it shall be assumed that the redemption is made first of amounts
representing shares acquired pursuant to the reinvestment of dividends and
distributions; then of amounts representing the increase in net asset value of
Class B shares above the total amount of payments for the purchase of Class B
shares made during the preceding six years; then of amounts representing the
cost of shares purchased six years prior to the redemption; and finally, of
amounts representing the cost of shares held for the longest period of time
within the applicable six-year period.
WAIVER OF CDSC--The CDSC shall be waived in connection with (a) redemptions made
within one year after the death or disability, as defined in Section 72(m)(7) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code"), of the shareholder,
(b) redemptions by employees participating in qualified or non-qualified
employee benefit plans or other programs where (i) the employers or affiliated
employers maintaining such plans or programs have a minimum of 250 employees
eligible for participation in such plans or programs, or (ii) such plan's or
program's aggregate investment in the Dreyfus Family of Funds or certain other
products made available by the Fund's Distributor exceeds one million dollars,
(c) redemptions as a result of a combination of any investment company with the
Fund by merger, acquisition of assets or otherwise, (d) a distribution following
retirement under a tax-deferred retirement plan or upon attaining age 70-1/2 in
the case of an IRA or Keogh plan or custodial account pursuant to Section 403(b)
of the Code, and (e) redemptions pursuant to any systematic withdrawal plan as
described in the Fund's prospectus. Any Fund shares subject to a CDSC which were
purchased prior to the termination of such waiver shall have the CDSC waived as
provided in the Fund's prospectus at the time of the purchase of such shares.
AMOUNT OF DISTRIBUTION PLAN FEES--CLASS B SHARES--Except as otherwise noted, .75
of 1% of the value of the average daily net assets of Class B. For Dreyfus
Premier Core Bond Fund, .50 of 1% of the value of the average daily net assets
of Class B.
<PAGE>
SCHEDULE D
CONTINGENT DEFERRED SALES CHARGE--CLASS C SHARES--A CDSC of 1.00% payable to the
Fund's Distributor shall be imposed on any redemption of Class C shares within
one year of the date of purchase. The basis for calculating the payment of any
such CDSC shall be the method used in calculating the CDSC for Class B shares.
In addition, the provisions for waiving the CDSC shall be those set forth for
Class B shares.
AMOUNT OF DISTRIBUTION PLAN FEES--CLASS C SHARES--.75 of 1% of the value of the
average daily net assets of Class C.
<PAGE>
SCHEDULE E
FRONT-END SALES CHARGE--CLASS T SHARES--The public offering price for Class T
shares shall be the net asset value per share of Class T plus a sales load as
shown below:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
TOTAL SALES LOAD
---------------------------------------------
AS A % OF AS A % OF
OFFERING PRICE NET ASSET VALUE
AMOUNT OF TRANSACTION PER SHARE PER SHARE
--------------------- -------------- ---------------
<S> <C> <C>
Less than $50,000............................................ 4.50 4.70
$50,000 to less than $100,000................................ 4.00 4.20
$100,000 to less than $250,000............................... 3.00 3.10
$250,000 to less than $500,000............................... 2.00 2.00
$500,000 to less than $1,000,000............................. 1.50 1.50
$1,000,000 or more........................................... -0- -0-
</TABLE>
CONTINGENT DEFERRED SALES CHARGE--CLASS T SHARES--A CDSC of 1.00% shall be
assessed at the time of redemption of Class T shares purchased without an
initial sales charge as part of an investment of at least $1,000,000 and
redeemed within one year of purchase. The terms contained in Schedule C
pertaining to the CDSC assessed on redemptions of Class B shares (other than the
amount of the CDSC and its time periods), including the provisions for waiving
the CDSC, shall be applicable to the Class T shares subject to a CDSC. Letter of
Intent and Right of Accumulation, to the extent offered, shall apply to
purchases of Class T shares subject to a CDSC.
AMOUNT OF DISTRIBUTION PLAN FEES--CLASS T SHARES--.25 of 1% of the value of the
average daily net assets of Class T.
<PAGE>
SCHEDULE F
CONVERSION OF CLASS B SHARES--Approximately six years after the date of
purchase, Class B shares automatically shall convert to Class A shares, based on
the relative net asset values for shares of each such Class, and shall no longer
be subject to the distribution fee. At that time, Class B shares that have been
acquired through the reinvestment of dividends and distributions ("Dividend
Shares") shall be converted in the proportion that a shareholder's Class B
shares (other than Dividend Shares) converting to Class A shares bears to the
total Class B shares then held by the shareholder which were not acquired
through the reinvestment of dividends and distributions.
<PAGE>
SCHEDULE G
REDEMPTION FEE--Each Fund listed below shall deduct a redemption fee equal to 1%
of the net asset value of Fund shares redeemed (including redemptions through
the use of the Fund Exchanges service) less than one year following the issuance
of such shares. The redemption fee shall be deducted from the redemption
proceeds and retained by the Fund.
No redemption fee shall be charged on the redemption or exchange of shares
acquired through the reinvestment of dividends or capital gain distributions or
on shares redeemed through a systematic withdrawal plan in connection with a
qualified distribution to an IRA account for which The Dreyfus Trust Company
acts as custodian. The redemption fee may be waived, modified or terminated at
any time.
NAME OF FUND
Dreyfus Premier Opportunity Funds
--Dreyfus Premier Micro-Cap Growth Fund
<PAGE>
OTHER EXHIBIT (c)
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
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NOTIFICATION OF ELECTION PURSUANT TO RULE 18f-1
UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940, AS AMENDED
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DREYFUS PREMIER OPPORTUNITY FUNDS
Exact Name of Registrant
<PAGE>
NOTIFICATION OF ELECTION
Dreyfus Premier Opportunity Funds (the "Fund"), an open-end investment
company registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the
"Commission") under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940
Act"), hereby notifies the Commission that it elects to commit itself, on behalf
of its Series, to pay in cash all redemptions by a shareholder of record as
provided by Rule 18f-1 under the 1940 Act (the "Rule"). The Fund understands
that this election is irrevocable while the Rule is in effect unless the
Commission by order upon application permits the withdrawal of this Notification
of Election.
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of Rule 18f-1 under the 1940 Act, the
Fund has caused this Notification of Election to be duly executed on its behalf
in the City of New York and the State of New York on October 3, 2000.
DREYFUS PREMIER OPPORTUNITY FUNDS
By:
--------------------------------
Attest:
------------------
