Prospectus by Investment Company - Form 497

Table of Contents

General Information and History	1
Investment Objective and Policies	3
Investment Strategies	4
Sublicense Agreement	6
Investment Risks	7
Management of the Fund	10
Code of Ethics	17
Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures	18
Control Persons and Principal Holders of Securities	19
Investment Advisory and Other Services	19
Rule 12b-1 Plan	23
Other Payments to Financial Intermediaries	24
Brokerage Allocations	24
Frequent Trading and Market Timing	25
Policy Regarding Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings	26
Voting Rights and General Fund Information	27
Share Classes	27
Purchases, Redemptions and Pricing of Shares	28
Certain Federal Income Tax Matters	28
Additional Information	29
Financial Statements	29
Exhibit A-Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures	A-1

General Information and History

The Trust was organized as a Massachusetts business trust on December 14, 2011 and is authorized to issue an unlimited number of shares in one or more series. The Trust is an open-end management investment company, registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act"). The Trust currently offers shares in seven series. This SAI relates to the Fund, which is a non-diversified series.

The Fund, as a series of the Trust, represents a beneficial interest in a separate portfolio of securities and other assets, with its own objective and policies. Shares of the Fund are sold only to variable insurance accounts (each an "Account") to fund the benefits of the variable annuity and variable life insurance contracts (the "Contracts") issued by life insurance companies writing variable annuity contracts and variable life insurance contracts (each a "Participating Insurance Company").

The Board of Trustees of the Trust (the "Board,""Board of Trustees" or "Trustees") has the right to establish additional series in the future, to determine the preferences, voting powers, rights and privileges thereof and to modify such preferences, voting powers, rights and privileges without shareholder approval. Shares of any series may also be divided into one or more classes at the discretion of the Trustees.

The Trust or any series or class thereof may be terminated at any time by the Board of Trustees upon written notice to the shareholders.

Each share has one vote with respect to matters upon which a shareholder vote is required consistent with the requirements of the 1940 Act and the rules promulgated thereunder. Shares of all series of the Trust vote together as a single class except as otherwise required by the 1940 Act or if the matter being voted on affects only a particular series, and, if a matter affects a particular series differently from other series, the shares of that series will vote separately on such matter. The Trust's Declaration of Trust (the "Declaration") requires a shareholder vote only on those matters where the 1940 Act requires a vote of shareholders and otherwise permits the Trustees to take actions without seeking the consent of shareholders. For example, the Declaration gives the Trustees broad authority to approve reorganizations between the Fund and another entity or the sale of all or substantially all of the Fund's assets, or the termination of the Trust or the Fund without shareholder approval if the 1940 Act would not require such approval.

The Declaration provides that by becoming a shareholder of the Fund, each shareholder shall be expressly held to have agreed to be bound by the provisions of the Declaration and to any By-laws adopted by the Trust. The Declaration provides that, except as set forth therein and authorized by the Trustees, shareholders have no rights, privileges, claims or remedies under any contract or agreement entered into by the Trust or the Fund with any service provider or other agent to or contractor with the Trust or the Fund including, without limitation, any third party beneficiary rights.

The Declaration may, except in limited circumstances, be amended by the Trustees in any respect without a shareholder vote. The Declaration provides that the Trustees may establish the number of Trustees and that vacancies on the Board of Trustees may be filled by the remaining Trustees, except when election of Trustees by the shareholders is required under the 1940 Act. Trustees are then elected by a plurality of votes cast by shareholders at a meeting at which a quorum is present. The Declaration also provides that Trustees may be removed, with or without cause, by a vote of shareholders holding at least two-thirds of the voting power of the Trust, or by a vote of two-thirds of the remaining Trustees. The provisions of the Declaration relating to the election and removal of Trustees may not be amended without the approval of two-thirds of the Trustees.

The holders of Fund shares are required to disclose information on direct or indirect ownership of Fund shares as may be required to comply with various laws applicable to the Fund or as the Trustees may determine, and ownership of Fund shares may be disclosed by the Fund if so required by law or regulation. In addition, pursuant to the Declaration, the Trustees may, in their discretion, require the Trust to redeem shares held by any shareholder for any reason under terms set by the Trustees.

The Declaration provides a detailed process for the bringing of derivative actions by shareholders in order to permit legitimate inquiries and claims while avoiding the time, expense, distraction and other harm that can be caused to the Fund or its shareholders as a result of spurious shareholder demands and derivative actions. In addition, the Declaration provides that actions that are derivative in nature may not be brought directly. Prior to bringing a derivative action, a demand must first be made on the Trustees. The Declaration details various information, certifications, undertakings and acknowledgements that must be included in the demand. Following receipt of the demand, the Trustees have a period of 90 days, which may be extended by an additional 60 days, to consider the demand. If a majority of the Trustees who are

considered independent for the purposes of considering the demand determine that maintaining the suit would not be in the best interests of the Fund, the Trustees are required to reject the demand and the complaining shareholder may not proceed with the derivative action unless the shareholder is able to sustain the burden of proof to a court that the decision of the Trustees not to pursue the requested action was not a good faith exercise of their business judgment on behalf of the Fund. In making such a determination, a Trustee is not considered to have a personal financial interest by virtue of being compensated for his or her services as a Trustee. If a demand is rejected, the complaining shareholder will be responsible for the costs and expenses (including attorneys' fees) incurred by the Fund in connection with the consideration of the demand under a number of circumstances. In addition, if a court determines that a derivative action was made without reasonable cause or for an improper purpose, or if a derivative or direct action is dismissed on the basis of a failure to comply with the procedural provisions relating to shareholder actions as set forth in the Declaration, or if a direct action is dismissed by a court for failure to state a claim, the shareholder bringing the action may be responsible for the Fund's costs, including attorneys' fees.

The provisions of the Declaration provide that any direct or derivative action commenced by a shareholder must be brought only in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts (Boston Division) or if any such action may not be brought in that court, then in the Business Litigation Session of Suffolk Superior Court in Massachusetts (the "Chosen Courts"). Except as prohibited by applicable law, if a shareholder commences an applicable action in a court other than a Chosen Court without the consent of the Fund, then such shareholder may be obligated to reimburse the Fund and any applicable Trustee or officer of the Fund made party to such proceeding for the costs and expenses (including attorneys' fees) incurred in connection with any successful motion to dismiss, stay or transfer of the action. The Declaration also provides that any shareholder bringing an action against the Fund waives the right to trial by jury to the fullest extent permitted by law.

The Trust is not required to and does not intend to hold annual meetings of shareholders.

Under Massachusetts law applicable to Massachusetts business trusts, shareholders of such a trust may, under certain circumstances, be held personally liable as partners for its obligations. However, the Declaration contains an express disclaimer of shareholder liability for acts or obligations of the Trust and requires that notice of this disclaimer be given in each agreement, obligation or instrument entered into or executed by the Trust or the Trustees. The Declaration further provides for indemnification out of the assets and property of the Trust for all losses and expenses of any shareholder held personally liable for the obligations of the Trust. Thus, the risk of a shareholder incurring financial loss on account of shareholder liability is limited to circumstances in which both inadequate insurance existed and the Trust or the Fund itself was unable to meet its obligations.

The Declaration provides that a Trustee acting in his or her capacity as Trustee is liable to the Trust for his or her own bad faith, willful misfeasance, gross negligence, or reckless disregard of his or her duties involved in the conduct of the individual's office, and for nothing else and shall not be liable for errors of judgment or mistakes of fact or law. The Declaration also provides that the Trustees of the Trust will be subject to the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts relating to Massachusetts business trusts, but not to the laws of Massachusetts relating to the trustees of common law trusts, such as donative or probate type trusts. The Declaration further provides that a Trustee acting in his or her capacity as Trustee is not personally liable to any person other than the Trust, for any act, omission, or obligation of the Trust. The Declaration requires the Trust to indemnify any persons who are or who have been Trustees, officers or employees of the Trust for any liability for actions or failure to act except to the extent prohibited by applicable federal law. In making any determination as to whether any person is entitled to the advancement of expenses in connection with a claim for which indemnification is sought, such person is entitled to a rebuttable presumption that he or she did not engage in conduct for which indemnification is not available. The Declaration provides that any Trustee who serves as chair of the Board of Trustees or of a committee of the Board of Trustees, as lead independent Trustee or as audit committee financial expert, or in any other similar capacity will not be subject to any greater standard of care or liability because of such position.

These provisions are not intended to restrict any shareholder rights under the federal securities laws and the Declaration specifically provides that no provision of the Declaration shall be effective to require a waiver of compliance with any provision of, or restrict any shareholder rights expressly granted by, the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "1933 Act"), the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "1934 Act") or the 1940 Act, or any valid rule, regulation or order of the Securities Exchange Commission thereunder.

The Fund is advised by First Trust Advisors L.P. (the "Advisor" or "First Trust").

Investment Objective and Policies

The Prospectus describes the investment objective and certain policies of the Fund. The following supplements the information contained in the Prospectus concerning the investment objective and policies of the Fund.

The Fund is subject to the following fundamental policies, which may not be changed without approval of the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as such term is defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund:

For purposes of applying restrictions (1) and (2) above, under the 1940 Act as currently in effect, the Fund is not permitted to issue senior securities, except that the Fund may borrow from any bank if, immediately after such borrowing and at all times thereafter, the value of the Fund's total assets is at least 300% of the principal amount of all of the Fund's borrowings (i.e., the principal amount of the borrowings may not exceed 33⅓% of the Fund's total assets). In the event that such asset coverage shall at any time fall below 300% the Fund shall, within three days thereafter (not including Sundays and holidays), reduce the amount of its borrowings to an extent that the asset coverage of such borrowings shall be at least 300%.

Except for restriction (2) above, if a percentage restriction is adhered to at the time of investment, a later increase in percentage resulting from a change in market value of the investment or the total assets will not constitute a violation of that restriction. With respect to restriction (2), if the limitations are exceeded as a result of a change in market value then the Fund will reduce the amount of borrowings within three days thereafter to the extent necessary to comply with the limitations (not including Sundays and holidays).

For purposes of applying restriction (7) above, to the extent the Fund invests in other investment companies, it will consider the investments of the underlying investment companies when determining compliance with the limitation set forth in restriction (7) above, to the extent the Fund has sufficient information about such investments.

The fundamental investment limitations set forth above limit the Fund's ability to engage in certain investment practices and purchase securities or other instruments to the extent permitted by, or consistent with, applicable law. As such, these limitations will change as the statute, rules, regulations or orders (or, if applicable, interpretations) change, and no shareholder vote will be required or sought.

The foregoing policies of the Fund are fundamental and may not be changed without the affirmative vote of the majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. The 1940 Act defines a majority vote as the vote of the lesser of

(i) 67% or more of the voting securities represented at a meeting at which more than 50% of the outstanding securities are represented; or (ii) more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities. Certain matters under the 1940 Act which must be submitted to a vote of the holders of the outstanding voting securities of a series or class, shall not be deemed to have been effectively acted upon unless approved by the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting shares of each series or class affected by such matter.

In addition to the foregoing fundamental policies, the Fund is also subject to strategies and policies discussed herein which, unless otherwise noted, are non-fundamental restrictions and policies and may be changed by the Board of Trustees.

Investment Strategies

The following information supplements the discussion of the Fund's investment objective, policies and strategies that appears in the Prospectus.

The investment objective of the Fund is to seek to provide long-term capital appreciation. The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in the common stocks and real estate investment trusts ("REITs") that comprise The Growth Strength IndexTM (the "Index"). The Index is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. ("Nasdaq" or the "Index Provider").

Types of Investments

Equities. Equity securities represent an ownership position in a company. The prices of equity securities fluctuate based on, among other things, events specific to their issuers and market, economic, and other conditions. Equity securities may include common and preferred stocks. Common stocks include the common stock of any class or series of a domestic or foreign corporation or any similar equity interest, such as a trust or partnership interest. These investments may or may not pay dividends and may or may not carry voting rights. Common stock occupies the most junior position in a company's capital structure.

Fixed Income Investments and Cash Equivalents.Normally, the Fund invests substantially all of its assets to meet its investment objective; however, for temporary or defensive purposes, the Fund may invest in high quality money market instruments, fixed income instruments and cash equivalents on an ongoing basis in order to provide income, liquidity and preserve capital.

Fixed income investments and cash equivalents held by the Fund may include, without limitation, the types of investments set forth below.

investment companies. Although money market funds that operate in accordance with Rule 2a-7 under the 1940 Act seek to preserve a $1.00 share price. It is possible for the Fund to lose money by investing in money market funds.

Illiquid Investments. The Fund may invest in illiquid investments (i.e., any investment that the Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment). For purposes of this restriction, illiquid investments may include, but are not limited to, certain restricted securities (securities the disposition of which is restricted under the federal securities laws), securities that may only be resold pursuant to Rule 144A under the 1933 Act, and repurchase agreements with maturities in excess of seven days, among others. However, the Fund will not acquire illiquid investments if, as a result, such investments would comprise more than 15% of the value of the Fund's net assets. The Advisor, subject to oversight by the Board of Trustees, has the ultimate authority to determine, to the extent permissible under the federal securities laws, which investments are liquid or illiquid for purposes of this 15% limitation under the Fund's liquidity risk management program, adopted pursuant to Rule 22e-4 under the 1940 Act.

Restricted securities may be sold only in privately negotiated transactions or in a public offering with respect to which a registration statement is in effect under the 1933 Act. Where registration is required, the Fund may be obligated to pay all or part of the registration expenses and a considerable period may elapse between the time of the decision to sell and the time the Fund may be permitted to sell a security under an effective registration statement. If, during such a period, adverse market conditions were to develop, the Fund might obtain a less favorable price than that which prevailed when it decided to sell. Illiquid investments will be priced at fair value as determined in good faith under procedures adopted by the Board of Trustees. If, through the appreciation of illiquid investments or the depreciation of liquid investments, the Fund should be in a position where more than 15% of the value of its net assets are invested in illiquid investments, including restricted securities which are not readily marketable, the Advisor will report such occurrence to the Board of Trustees and take such steps as are deemed advisable to protect liquidity in accordance with the Fund's liquidity risk management program.

Real Estate Investment Trusts. The Fund may invest in shares of beneficial interest of real estate investment trusts ("REITs"). REITs are typically publicly traded corporations or trusts that invest in residential or commercial real estate. REITs generally can be divided into the following three types: (i) equity REITs which invest the majority of their assets directly in real property and derive their income primarily from rents and capital gains or real estate appreciation; (ii) mortgage REITs which invest the majority of their assets in real estate mortgage loans and derive their income primarily from interest payments; and (iii) hybrid REITs which combine the characteristics of equity REITs and mortgage REITs.

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund buys and sells portfolio securities in the normal course of its investment activities. The proportion of the Fund's investment portfolio that is bought and sold during a year is known as the Fund's portfolio turnover rate. A portfolio turnover rate of 100% would occur, for example, if all of the portfolio securities (other than short-term securities) were replaced once during the fiscal year. A high portfolio turnover rate could result in the payment by the Fund of increased brokerage costs, expenses and taxes. The portfolio turnover rate for the specified period set forth in the table below. Significant variations in portfolio turnover from year-to-year are generally the result of fluctuations in the size of the Fund or changes to the Fund's portfolio holdings.

Portfolio Turnover Rate
Inception Date	Fiscal Period Ended December 31, 2023
5/16/2023	51%

Sublicense Agreement

The Trust, on behalf of the Fund, relies on a product license agreement (the "Product License Agreement") by and between Nasdaq and First Trust and a related sublicense agreement (the "Sublicense Agreement") with First Trust that grants the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, a non-exclusive and non-transferable sublicense to use certain intellectual property of Nasdaq, in connection with the issuance, distribution, marketing and/or promotion of the Fund. Pursuant to the Sublicense

Agreement, the Fund has agreed to be bound by certain provisions of the Product License Agreement. Pursuant to the Product License Agreement, First Trust will pay Nasdaq an annual license fee. Under the Sublicense Agreement, the Fund will reimburse First Trust for its costs associated with the Product License Agreement.

Disclaimers

First Trust does not guarantee the accuracy and/or the completeness of the Index or any data included therein, and First Trust shall have no liability for any errors, omissions or interruptions therein. First Trust makes no warranty, express or implied, as to results to be obtained by the Fund, owners of the shares of the Fund or any other person or entity from the use of the Index or any data included therein. First Trust makes no express or implied warranties, and expressly disclaims all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to the Index or any data included therein. Without limiting any of the foregoing, in no event shall First Trust have any liability for any special, punitive, direct, indirect or consequential damages (including lost profits) arising out of matters relating to the use of the Index, even if notified of the possibility of such damages.

The Product(s) is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Nasdaq, Inc., its licensors or Nasdaq or its licensors affiliates (Nasdaq, its licensors with their affiliates, are referred to as the "Corporations"). The Corporations have not passed on the legality or suitability of, or the accuracy or adequacy of descriptions and disclosures relating to, the Product(s). The Corporations make no representation or warranty, express or implied to the owners of the Product(s) or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in the Product(s) particularly, or the ability of The Growth StrengthTM Index to track general stock market performance. The Corporations' only relationship to the Fund ("Licensee") is in the licensing of the Nasdaq®, Growth StrengthTM; NQCAPSGTM and certain trade names of the Corporations and the use of The Growth StrengthTM Index which is determined, composed and calculated by Nasdaq without regard to Licensee or the Product(s). Nasdaq has no obligation to take the needs of the Licensee or the owners of the Product(s) into consideration in determining, composing or calculating The Growth StrengthTM Index. The Corporations are not responsible for and have not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices at, or quantities of the Product(s) to be issued or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which the Product(s) is to be converted into cash. The Corporations have no liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the Product(s).

THE CORPORATIONS DO NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY AND/OR UNINTERRUPTED CALCULATION OF THE GROWTH STRENGTHTM INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. THE CORPORATIONS MAKE NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY LICENSEE, OWNERS OF THE PRODUCT(S), OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE GROWTH STRENGTHTM INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. THE CORPORATIONS MAKE NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO THE GROWTH STRENGTHTM INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL THE CORPORATIONS HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY LOST PROFITS OR SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

Investment Risks

The following risk disclosure supplements the discussion of the Fund's investment risks that appears in the Prospectus.

Overview

An investment in the Fund should be made with an understanding of the risks that an investment in the Fund's shares entails, including the risk that the financial condition of the issuers of the securities held by the Fund or the general condition of the securities market may worsen and the value of the securities and therefore the value of the Fund may decline. The Fund may not be an appropriate investment for those who are unable or unwilling to assume the risks involved generally with such an investment. The past market and earnings performance of any of the securities included in the Fund is not predictive of their future performance.

Additional Market Disruption Risk

In February 2022, Russia commenced a military attack on Ukraine. In response, various countries, including the United States, issued broad-ranging sanctions on Russia and certain Russian companies and individuals. The hostilities between the two countries may escalate and any existing or future sanctions could have a severe adverse effect on Russia's

economy, currency, companies and region as well as negatively impact other regional and global economic markets of the world (including Europe and the United States), companies in such countries and various sectors, industries and markets for securities and commodities globally, such as oil and natural gas. Accordingly, the hostilities and sanctions may have a negative effect on a Fund's investments and performance beyond any direct exposure to Russian issuers or those of adjoining geographic regions. Russia may also take retaliatory actions or countermeasures, such as cyberattacks and espionage, which may negatively impact the countries and companies in which a Fund may invest. The extent and duration of the military action or future escalation of such hostilities; the extent and impact of existing and any future sanctions, market disruptions and volatility; and the result of any diplomatic negotiations cannot be predicted. These and any related events could have a significant negative impact on certain of a Fund's investments as well as a Fund's performance, and the value or liquidity of certain securities held by a Fund may decline significantly.

Common Stock Risk

Equity securities are especially susceptible to general market movements and to volatile increases and decreases of value as market confidence in and perceptions of the issuers change. These perceptions are based on unpredictable factors including expectations regarding government, economic, monetary and fiscal policies, inflation and interest rates, economic expansion or contraction, and global or regional political, economic or banking crises. First Trust cannot predict the direction or scope of any of these factors. Shareholders of common stocks have rights to receive payments from the issuers of those common stocks that are generally subordinate to those of creditors of, or holders of debt obligations or preferred stocks of, such issuers.

Shareholders of common stocks of the type held by the Fund have a right to receive dividends only when and if, and in the amounts, declared by the issuer's board of directors and have a right to participate in amounts available for distribution by the issuer only after all other claims on the issuer have been paidor otherwise been settled. Common stocks do not represent an obligation of the issuer and, therefore, do not offer any assurance of income or provide the same degree of protection of capital as do debt securities. The issuance of additional debt securities or preferred stock will create prior claims for payment of principal, interest and dividends which could adversely affect the ability and inclination of the issuer to declare or pay dividends on its common stock or the rights of holders of common stock with respect to assets of the issuer upon liquidation or bankruptcy. The value of common stocks is subject to market fluctuations for as long as the common stocks remain outstanding, and thus the value of the equity securities in the Fund will fluctuate over the life of the Fund and may be more or less than the price at which they were purchased by the Fund. The equity securities held in the Fund may appreciate or depreciate in value (or pay dividends) depending on the full range of economic and market influences affecting these securities, including the impact of the Fund's purchase and sale of the equity securities and other factors.

Holders of common stocks incur more risk than holders of preferred stocks and debt obligations because common stockholders, as owners of the entity, have generally inferior rights to receive payments from the issuer in comparison with the rights of creditors of, or holders of debt obligations or preferred stocks issued by, the issuer. Cumulative preferred stock dividends must be paid before common stock dividends and any cumulative preferred stock dividend omitted is added to future dividends payable to the holders of cumulative preferred stock. Preferred stockholders are also generally entitled to rights on liquidation which are senior to those of common stockholders.

Dividends Risk

Shareholders of common stocks have rights to receive payments from the issuers of those common stocks that are generally subordinate to those of creditors of, or holders of debt obligations or preferred stocks of, such issuers. Shareholders of common stocks of the type held by the Fund have a right to receive dividends only when and if, and in the amounts, declared by the issuer's board of directors and have a right to participate in amounts available for distribution by the issuer only after all other claims on the issuer have been paid or have otherwise been settled. Common stocks do not represent an obligation of the issuer and, therefore, do not offer any assurance of income or provide the same degree of protection of capital as do debt securities. The issuance of additional debt securities or preferred stock will create prior claims for payment of principal, interest and dividends which could adversely affect the ability and inclination of the issuer to declare or pay dividends on its common stock or the rights of holders of common stock with respect to assets of the issuer upon liquidation or bankruptcy. Cumulative preferred stock dividends must be paid before common stock dividends, and any cumulative preferred stock dividend omitted is added to future dividends payable to the holders of cumulative preferred stock. Preferred stockholders are also generally entitled to rights on liquidation that are senior to those of common stockholders.

Liquidity Risk

Whether or not the equity securities held by the Fund are listed on a securities exchange, the principal trading market for certain of the equity securities in the Fund may be in the over-the-counter ("OTC") market. As a result, the existence of a liquid trading market for the equity securities may depend on whether dealers will make a market in the equity securities. Certain regions, countries or asset types may also suffer periods of relative illiquidity. There can be no assurance that a market will be made for any of the equity securities, that any market for the equity securities will be maintained or that there will be sufficient liquidity of the equity securities in any markets made. The price at which the equity securities are held by the Fund will be adversely affected if trading markets for the equity securities are limited or absent.

Market Risk

Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments due to short-term market movements or any longer periods during more prolonged market downturns. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. Such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Such events could adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund's portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of a Fund's shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund's shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund's shares may widen.

Health crises caused by the outbreak of infectious diseases or other public health issues, may exacerbate other pre-existing political, social, economic, market and financial risks. The impact of any such events, could negatively affect the global economy, as well as the economies of individual countries or regions, the financial performance of individual companies, sectors and industries, and the markets in general in significant and unforeseen ways. Any such impact could adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the securities and other instruments in which the Fund invests and negatively impact the Fund's investment return. For example, an outbreak of a respiratory disease designated as COVID-19 was first detected in China in December 2019 and subsequently spread internationally. The ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic may be short term or may last for an extended period of time, and in either case could result in a substantial economic downturn or recession.

In addition, the operations of the Fund, the Advisor and the Fund's other service providers may be significantly impacted, or even temporarily or permanently halted, as a result of government quarantine measures, voluntary and precautionary restrictions on travel or meetings and other factors related to a public health emergency, including its potential adverse impact on the health of any such entity's personnel.

Real Estate Investment Trust Risk

REITs are financial vehicles that pool investors' capital to purchase or finance real estate. REITs may concentrate their investments in specific geographic areas or in specific property types, e.g., hotels, shopping malls, residential complexes and office buildings. The market value of REIT shares and the ability of the REITs to distribute income may be adversely affected by several factors, including rising interest rates; changes in the national, state and local economic climate and real estate conditions; perceptions of prospective tenants of the safety, convenience and attractiveness of the properties; the ability of the owners to provide adequate management, maintenance and insurance; the cost of complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act; increased competition from new properties; the impact of present or future environmental legislation and compliance with environmental laws; changes in real estate taxes and other operating expenses; adverse changes in governmental rules and fiscal policies; adverse changes in zoning laws; and other factors beyond the control of the issuers of the REITs. In addition, distributions received by the Fund from REITs may consist of dividends, capital gains and/or return of capital. Many of these distributions however will not generally qualify for favorable treatment as qualified dividend income.

Securities Lending Risk

Securities lending involves exposure to certain risks, including counterparty risk, collateral risk and operational risk. Counterparty risk is the risk that the borrower may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. As a result, a First

Trust Fund engaged in securities lending transactions may suffer a loss and there may be a delay in recovering the lent securities. Any delay in the return of securities on loan may restrict the ability of the Fund to meet delivery or payment obligations. Collateral risk is the risk that the collateral received may be realized at a value lower than the value of the securities lent, whether due to inaccurate pricing of the collateral, adverse market movements in the value of the collateral, intra-day increases in the value of the securities lent, a deterioration in the credit rating of the collateral issuer, or the illiquidity of the market in which the collateral is traded. Securities lending also entails operational risks, such as settlement failures or delays in the settlement of instructions. Such failures or delays may restrict the ability of the Fund to meet delivery or payment obligations. Lastly, securities lending activities may result in adverse tax consequences for the Fund and its shareholders. For instance, substitute payments for dividends received by the Fund for securities loaned out by the Fund will not be considered qualified dividend income. The Fund could lose money if its short-term investment of the collateral declines in value over the period of the loan.

Management of the Fund

Trustees and Officers

The general supervision of the duties performed for the Fund under the investment management agreement and sub-advisory agreements is the responsibility of the Board of Trustees. There are seven Trustees of the Trust, one of whom is an "interested person" (as the term is defined in the 1940 Act) and six of whom are Trustees who are not officers or employees of First Trust or any of its affiliates ("Independent Trustees"). The Trustees set broad policies for the Fund, choose the Trust's officers and hire the Trust's investment advisor and sub-advisors. The officers of the Trust manage its day-to-day operations and are responsible to the Board of Trustees. The following is a list of the Trustees and executive officers of the Trust and a statement of their present positions and principal occupations during the past five years, the number of portfolios each Trustee oversees and the other directorships they have held during the past five years, if applicable. Each Trustee has been elected for an indefinite term. The officers of the Trust serve indefinite terms. Each Trustee, except for James A. Bowen, is an Independent Trustee. Mr. Bowen is deemed an "interested person" (as that term is defined in the 1940 Act) ("Interested Trustee") of the Trust due to his position as Chief Executive Officer of First Trust, investment advisor to the Fund. The following table identifies the Trustees and Officers of the Trust. Unless otherwise indicated, the address of all persons below is c/o First Trust Advisors L.P., 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, IL 60187.

Name and Year of Birth	Position and Offices with Trust	Term of Office and Year First Elected or Appointed	Principal Occupations During Past 5 Years	Number of Portfolios in the First Trust Fund Complex Overseen by Trustee	Other Trusteeships or Directorships Held by Trustee During the Past 5 Years
TRUSTEE WHO IS AN INTERESTED PERSON OF THE TRUST
James A. Bowen (1) 1955	Chairman of the Board and Trustee	●Indefinite term ●Since inception	Chief Executive Officer, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.; Chairman of the Board of Directors, BondWave LLC (Software Development Company) and Stonebridge Advisors LLC (Investment Advisor)	268 Portfolios	None
INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES
Richard E. Erickson 1951	Trustee	●Indefinite term ●Since inception	Retired; Physician, Edward-Elmhurst Medical Group (2021 to September 2023); Physician and Officer, Wheaton Orthopedics (1990 to 2021)	268 Portfolios	None

Name and Year of Birth	Position and Offices with Trust	Term of Office and Year First Elected or Appointed	Principal Occupations During Past 5 Years	Number of Portfolios in the First Trust Fund Complex Overseen by Trustee	Other Trusteeships or Directorships Held by Trustee During the Past 5 Years
INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES
Thomas R. Kadlec 1957	Trustee	●Indefinite term ●Since inception	Retired; President, ADM Investor Services, Inc. (Futures Commission Merchant) (2010 to July 2022)	268 Portfolios	Director, National Futures Association; formerly, Director of ADM Investor Services, Inc., ADM Investor Services International, ADMIS Hong Kong Ltd., ADMIS Singapore Ltd. and Futures Industry Association
Denise M. Keefe 1964	Trustee	●Indefinite term ●Since 2021	Executive Vice President, Advocate Aurora Health and President, Advocate Aurora Continuing Health Division (Integrated Healthcare System)	268 Portfolios	Director and Board Chair of Advocate Home Health Services, Advocate Home Care Products and Advocate Hospice; Director and Board Chair of Aurora At Home (since 2018); Director of Advocate Physician Partners Accountable Care Organization; Director of RML Long Term Acute Care Hospitals; Director of Senior Helpers (since 2021); and Director of MobileHelp (since 2022)
Robert F. Keith 1956	Trustee	●Indefinite term ●Since inception	President, Hibs Enterprises (Financial and Management Consulting)	268 Portfolios	Formerly, Director of Trust Company of Illinois
Niel B. Nielson 1954	Trustee	●Indefinite term ●Since inception	Senior Advisor (2018 to present), Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer (2015 to 2018), Pelita Harapan Educational Foundation (Educational Products and Services)	268 Portfolios	None
Bronwyn Wright 1971	Trustee	●Indefinite term ●Since 2023	Independent Director to a number of Irish collective investment funds (2009 to present); Various roles at international affiliates of Citibank (1994 to 2009), including Managing Director, Citibank Europe plc and Head of Securities and Fund Services, Citi Ireland (2007 to 2009)	244 Portfolios	None

Name and Year of Birth	Position and Offices with Trust	Term of Office and Length of Service	Principal Occupations During Past 5 Years
OFFICERS OF THE TRUST
James M. Dykas 1966	President and Chief Executive Officer	●Indefinite term ●Since 2016	Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.; Chief Financial Officer, BondWave LLC (Software Development Company) and Stonebridge Advisors LLC (Investment Advisor)

Name and Year of Birth	Position and Offices with Trust	Term of Office and Length of Service	Principal Occupations During Past 5 Years
W. Scott Jardine 1960	Secretary and Chief Legal Officer	●Indefinite term ●Since inception	General Counsel, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.; Secretary and General Counsel, BondWave LLC; and Secretary, Stonebridge Advisors LLC
Daniel J. Lindquist 1970	Vice President	●Indefinite term ●Since inception	Managing Director, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Kristi A. Maher 1966	Chief Compliance Officer and Assistant Secretary	●Indefinite term ●Since inception	Deputy General Counsel, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Derek D. Maltbie 1972	Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer	●Indefinite term ●Since 2023	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P., July 2021 - present. Previously, Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P., 2014 -2021.
Roger F. Testin 1966	Vice President	●Indefinite term ●Since inception	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.

Unitary Board Leadership Structure

Except in certain limited circumstances (as noted below) under which a Trustee is unable to sit on all the boards of all the funds in the First Trust Fund Complex (as defined below), each Trustee serves as a trustee of all open-end and closed-end funds in the First Trust Fund Complex (as defined below), which is known as a "unitary" board leadership structure. Each Trustee (except as noted below) currently serves as a trustee of First Trust Series Fund and First Trust Variable Insurance Trust, open-end funds with 11 portfolios advised by First Trust; First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II, Macquarie/First Trust Global Infrastructure/Utilities Dividend & Income Fund, First Trust Energy Income and Growth Fund, First Trust Enhanced Equity Income Fund, First Trust/abrdn Global Opportunity Income Fund, First Trust Mortgage Income Fund, First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund, First Trust High Income Long/Short Fund, First Trust Energy Infrastructure Fund, First Trust MLP and Energy Income Fund, First Trust Intermediate Duration Preferred & Income Fund, First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund and First Trust High Yield Opportunities 2027 Term Fund, closed-end funds advised by First Trust; and First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund II, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund III, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund IV, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund V, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VI, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VII, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VIII, First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund and First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II, exchange-traded funds with 244 portfolios advised by First Trust (each a "First Trust Fund" and collectively, the "First Trust Fund Complex"). Ms. Wright also serves as director of First Trust Global Funds, a public limited company established in Ireland and an open-end umbrella fund representing 29 exchange-traded funds, and advised by First Trust (the "First Trust UCITS"). In addition, Ms. Wright had previously served on the board of directors of First Trust Global Portfolios Management Limited, the manager to the First Trust UCITS and an affiliate of First Trust, but resigned such position effective March 6, 2023. Except as noted above, none of the Independent Trustees nor their immediate family members has ever been a director, officer or employee of, or consultant to, First Trust, First Trust Portfolios L.P. or their affiliates. Ms. Wright does not serve as a Trustee of First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund.

The management of the Fund, including general supervision of the duties performed for the Fund under the investment management agreement between the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, and the Advisor, is the responsibility of the Board of Trustees. The Trustees set broad policies for the Fund, choose the Trust's officers and hire the Fund's investment advisor, sub-advisors and other service providers. The officers of the Trust manage the day-to-day operations and are responsible to the Board. The Board is composed of six Independent Trustees and one Interested Trustee. The Interested Trustee, James A. Bowen, serves as the Chairman of the Board for each fund in the First Trust Fund Complex.

The unitary board structure was adopted for the First Trust Funds because of the efficiencies it achieves with respect to the governance and oversight of the First Trust Funds. Each First Trust Fund is subject to the rules and regulations of the 1940 Act (and other applicable securities laws), which means that many of the First Trust Funds face similar issues with respect to certain of their fundamental activities, including risk management, portfolio liquidity, portfolio valuation and financial reporting. Because of the similar and often overlapping issues facing the First Trust Funds, the Board of the First Trust Funds believes that maintaining a unitary board structure promotes efficiency and consistency in the governance and oversight of all First Trust Funds and reduces the costs, administrative burdens and possible conflicts that may result from having multiple boards. In adopting a unitary board structure, the Trustees seek to provide effective governance through

establishing a board the overall composition of which will, as a body, possess the appropriate skills, diversity, independence and experience to oversee the Fund's business.

Annually, the Board reviews its governance structure and the committee structures, their performance and functions, and it reviews any processes that would enhance Board governance over the Fund's business. The Board has determined that its leadership structure, including the unitary board and committee structure, is appropriate based on the characteristics of the funds it serves and the characteristics of the First Trust Fund Complex as a whole.

In order to streamline communication between the Advisor and the Independent Trustees and create certain efficiencies, the Board has a Lead Independent Trustee who is responsible for: (i) chairing all meetings of the Independent Trustees; (ii) working with the Advisor, Fund counsel and the independent legal counsel to the Independent Trustees to determine the agenda for Board meetings; (iii) serving as the principal contact for and facilitating communication between the Independent Trustees and the Fund's service providers, particularly the Advisor; and (iv) any other duties that the Independent Trustees may delegate to the Lead Independent Trustee. The Lead Independent Trustee is selected by the Independent Trustees and serves for such term as approved by the Independent Trustees or until his or her successor is selected. Robert F. Keith currently serves as the Lead Independent Trustee.

Effective March 12, 2024, the Independent Trustees may select one Independent Trustee to serve as a Vice Lead Independent Trustee for such term as approved by the Independent Trustees or until his or her successor is selected. The Vice Lead Independent Trustee assists the Lead Independent Trustee in the performance of his or her responsibilities and, in the absence of the Lead Independent Trustee, may act in the place of the Lead Independent Trustee. The Vice Lead Independent Trustee is also responsible for any other duties that the Independent Trustees may delegate to him or her. Thomas R. Kadlec was appointed to serve as the Vice Lead Independent Trustee, effective March 12, 2024.

The Board has established five standing committees (as described below) and has delegated certain of its responsibilities to those committees. The Board and its committees meet frequently throughout the year to oversee the Fund's activities, review contractual arrangements with and performance of service providers, oversee compliance with regulatory requirements and review Fund performance. The Independent Trustees are represented by independent legal counsel at all Board and committee meetings (other than meetings of the Dividend Committee). Generally, the Board acts by majority vote of all the Trustees, including a majority vote of the Independent Trustees if required by applicable law.

The five standing committees of the Board are: the Executive Committee, the Dividend Committee, the Nominating and Governance Committee, the Valuation Committee and the Audit Committee. The Dividend Committee, the Nominating and Governance Committee, the Valuation Committee and the Audit Committee each have a Chair and, since March 12, 2024, the Audit Committee has had a Vice Chair. The Committee Chairs, the Audit Committee Vice Chair, the Lead Independent Trustee and the Vice Lead Independent Trustee rotate periodically in serving in such capacities. The next rotation is currently scheduled to be effective January 1, 2026. In addition, the Lead Independent Trustee and the Vice Lead Independent Trustee currently serve on the Executive Committee with the Interested Trustee.

The Nominating and Governance Committee is responsible for appointing and nominating non-interested persons to the Board of Trustees. Messrs. Kadlec, Keith, Nielson, Dr. Erickson and Mses. Keefe and Wright are members of the Nominating and Governance Committee. If there is no vacancy on the Board of Trustees, the Board will not actively seek recommendations from other parties, including shareholders. The Board of Trustees has adopted a mandatory retirement age of 75 for Independent Trustees, beyond which age Independent Trustees are ineligible to serve. The Committee will not consider new trustee candidates who are 72 years of age or older or will turn 72 years old during the initial term. When a vacancy on the Board of Trustees occurs or is anticipated to occur and nominations are sought to fill such vacancy, the Nominating and Governance Committee may seek nominations from those sources it deems appropriate in its discretion, including shareholders of the Fund. To submit a recommendation for nomination as a candidate for a position on the Board of Trustees, shareholders of the Fund should mail such recommendation to W. Scott Jardine, Secretary, at the Trust's address, 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, Illinois 60187. Such recommendation shall include the following information: (i) evidence of Fund ownership of the person or entity recommending the candidate (if a Fund shareholder); (ii) a full description of the proposed candidate's background, including education, experience, current employment and date of birth; (iii) names and addresses of at least three professional references for the candidate; (iv) information as to whether the candidate is an "interested person" in relation to the Fund, as such term is defined in the 1940 Act, and such other information that may be considered to impair the candidate's independence; and (v) any other information that may be helpful to the Committee in evaluating the candidate. If a recommendation is received with satisfactorily completed information regarding a candidate during a time when a vacancy exists on the Board or during such other time as the Nominating and Governance Committee is accepting recommendations, the recommendation will be forwarded to the Chair

of the Nominating and Governance Committee and to counsel to the Independent Trustees. During the last fiscal period, the Nominating and Governance Committee held three meetings.

The Valuation Committee is responsible for the oversight of the Advisor as the "Valuation Designee" under Rule 2a-5 of the 1940 Act and its implementation of the valuation of the securities held in the Fund's portfolio. Messrs. Kadlec, Keith, Nielson, Dr. Erickson and Mses. Keefe and Wright are members of the Valuation Committee. During the last fiscal period, the Valuation Committee held three meetings.

The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing the Fund's accounting and financial reporting process, the system of internal controls and audit process and for evaluating and appointing independent auditors (subject also to Board approval). Messrs. Kadlec, Keith, Nielson, Dr. Erickson and Mses. Keefe and Wright serve on the Audit Committee. During the last fiscal period, the Audit Committee held five meetings.

The Executive Committee, which meets between Board meetings, is authorized to exercise all powers of and to act in the place of the Board to the extent permitted by each Fund's Declaration of Trust and By-Laws. Mr. Bowen, Mr. Keith and Mr. Kadlec are members of the Executive Committee. During the last fiscal period, the Executive Committee did not hold any meetings.

The Dividend Committee is responsible for assisting the Board in, or assuming the authority and power of the Board with respect to, the declaration and setting of the Fund's dividends. Messrs. Keith and Kadlec serve on the Dividend Committee. During the last fiscal period, the Dividend Committee did not hold any meetings.

Executive Officers

The executive officers of the Trust hold the same positions with each fund in the First Trust Fund Complex (representing 268 portfolios) as they hold with the Trust, except Mr. Testin who is an executive officer of only the ETFs and open-end funds advised by First Trust.

Risk Oversight

As part of the general oversight of the Fund, the Board is involved in the risk oversight of the Fund. The Board has adopted and periodically reviews policies and procedures designed to address the Fund's risks. Oversight of investment and compliance risk is performed primarily at the Board level in conjunction with the Advisor's investment oversight group and the Trust's Chief Compliance Officer ("CCO"). Oversight of other risks also occurs at the committee level. The Advisor's investment oversight group reports to the Board at quarterly meetings regarding, among other things, Fund performance and the various drivers of such performance. The Board reviews reports on the Fund's and the service providers' compliance policies and procedures at each quarterly Board meeting and receives an annual report from the CCO regarding the operations of the Fund's and the service providers' compliance programs. In addition, the Independent Trustees meet privately each quarter with the CCO. The Audit Committee reviews, with the Advisor and the Fund's independent auditors, the Fund's major financial risk exposures and the steps the Advisor has taken to monitor and control these exposures, including the Fund's risk assessment and risk management policies and guidelines. The Audit Committee also, as appropriate, reviews in a general manner the processes other Board committees have in place with respect to risk assessment and risk management. The Nominating and Governance Committee monitors all matters related to the corporate governance of the Fund. The Valuation Committee monitors valuation risk and oversees the Advisor's performance as Valuation Designee.

Not all risks that may affect the Fund can be identified nor can controls be developed to eliminate or mitigate their occurrence or effects. It may not be practical or cost effective to eliminate or mitigate certain risks, the processes and controls employed to address certain risks may be limited in their effectiveness, and some risks are simply beyond the reasonable control of the Fund or the Advisor or other service providers. For instance, as the use of Internet technology has become more prevalent, the Fund and its service providers have become more susceptible to potential operational risks through breaches in cyber security (generally, intentional and unintentional events that may cause the Fund or a service provider to lose proprietary information, suffer data corruption or lose operational capacity). There can be no guarantee that any risk management systems established by the Fund, its service providers, or issuers of the securities in which the Fund invests to reduce cyber security risks will succeed, and the Fund cannot control such systems put in place by service providers, issuers or other third parties whose operations may affect the Fund and/or their shareholders. Moreover, it is necessary to bear certain risks (such as investment-related risks) to achieve the Fund's goals. As a result of the foregoing and other factors, the Fund's ability to manage risk is subject to substantial limitations.

Board Diversification and Trustee Qualifications

As described above, the Nominating and Governance Committee of the Board oversees matters related to the selection and nomination of Trustees. The Nominating and Governance Committee seeks to establish an effective Board with an appropriate range of skills and diversity, including, as appropriate, differences in background, professional experience, education, vocation, and other individual characteristics and traits in the aggregate. Each Trustee must meet certain basic requirements, including relevant skills and experience, time availability and, if qualifying as an Independent Trustee, independence from the Advisor and any sub-advisors or other service providers, including any affiliates of these entities.

Listed below for each current Trustee are the experiences, qualifications and attributes that led to the conclusion, as of the date of this SAI, that each current Trustee should serve as a Trustee in light of the Trust's business and structure.

Richard E. Erickson, M.D., was previously an orthopedic surgeon with Edward-Elmhurst Medical Group from 2021 to September 2023. Prior thereto, he was President of Wheaton Orthopedics (from 1990 to 2021), a co-owner and director of a fitness center and a limited partner of two real estate companies. Dr. Erickson has served as a Trustee of each First Trust Fund since its inception and of the First Trust Funds since 1999. Dr. Erickson has also served as the Lead Independent Trustee (2008-2009 and 2017-2019) and on the Executive Committee (2008-2009 and 2017-2022), Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (2003-2007 and 2014-2016), Chairman of the Audit Committee (2012-2013) and Chairman of the Valuation Committee (June 2006-2007; 2010-2011 and 2020-2022) of the First Trust Funds. He currently serves as Chairman of the Audit Committee (since January 1, 2023) of the First Trust Funds.

Thomas R. Kadlec was previously President of ADM Investor Services Inc. ("ADMIS"), a futures commission merchant and wholly-owned subsidiary of the Archer Daniels Midland Company ("ADM") from 2010 to July 2022. Mr. Kadlec was employed by ADMIS and its affiliates since 1990 in various accounting, financial, operations and risk management capacities. Mr. Kadlec served on the boards of several international affiliates of ADMIS until July 2022 and served as a member of ADM's Integrated Risk Committee from 2008-2018, which was tasked with the duty of implementing and communicating enterprise-wide risk management. From 2014 to 2022, Mr. Kadlec was on the board of the Futures Industry Association. In 2017, Mr. Kadlec was elected to the board of the National Futures Association. Mr. Kadlec has served as a Trustee of each First Trust Fund since its inception. Mr. Kadlec also served on the Executive Committee from the organization of the first First Trust closed-end fund in 2003 through 2005 (and 2014-2019) until he was elected as the first Lead Independent Trustee in December 2005, serving as such through 2007 (and 2014-2016). He also served as Chairman of the Valuation Committee (2008-2009 and 2017-2019), Chairman of the Audit Committee (2010-2011 and 2020-2022) and Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (2012-2013). He currently serves as Vice Lead Independent Trustee (since March 12, 2024), on the Executive Committee (since March 12, 2024), on the Dividend Committee (since March 12, 2024) and as Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (since January 1, 2023) of the First Trust Funds.

Denise M. Keefe is Executive Vice President of Advocate Aurora Health and President of Advocate Aurora Continuing Health Division (together, "Advocate"), one of the largest integrated healthcare systems in the U.S. serving Illinois and Wisconsin. Ms. Keefe has been employed by Advocate since 1993 and is responsible for the Continuing Health Division's strategic direction, fiscal management, business development, revenue enhancement, operational efficiencies, and human resource management of 4,000 employees. Ms. Keefe also currently serves on the boards of several organizations within the Advocate Aurora Continuing Health Division and other health care organizations, including RML Long Term Acute Care Hospitals (since 2014) and Senior Helpers (since 2021). Prior thereto, Ms. Keefe was Corporate Vice President, Marketing and Business Development for the Visiting Nurse Association of Chicago (1989-1992) and a former Board Member of Sherman West Court Skilled Nursing Facility. Ms. Keefe has served as a Trustee of the First Trust Funds and on the Audit Committee, Nominating and Governance Committee and Valuation Committee of the First Trust Funds since November 1, 2021. In addition, she currently serves as Audit Committee Vice Chair (since March 12, 2024) of the First Trust Funds.

Robert F. Keith is President of Hibs Enterprises, a financial and management consulting firm. Mr. Keith has been with Hibs Enterprises since 2003. Prior thereto, Mr. Keith spent 18 years with ServiceMaster and Aramark, including three years as President and COO of ServiceMaster Consumer Services, where he led the initial expansion of certain products overseas; five years as President and COO of ServiceMaster Management Services; and two years as President of Aramark ServiceMaster Management Services. Mr. Keith is a certified public accountant and also has held the positions of Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer of ServiceMaster, at which time he oversaw the financial aspects of ServiceMaster's expansion of its Management Services division into Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Mr. Keith has served as a Trustee of the First Trust

Funds since 2006. Mr. Keith has also served as the Chairman of the Audit Committee (2008-2009 and 2017-2019), Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (2010-2011 and 2020-2022) and Chairman of the Valuation Committee (2014-2016) of the First Trust Funds. He served as Lead Independent Trustee and on the Executive Committee (2012-2016). He currently serves as Lead Independent Trustee and on the Executive Committee (since January 1, 2023) and as Chairman of the Dividend Committee (since January 1, 2023) of the First Trust Funds.

Niel B. Nielson, Ph.D., has been the Senior Advisor of Pelita Harapan Educational Foundation, a global provider of educational products and services since 2018. Prior thereto, Mr. Nielson served as the Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of Pelita Harapan Educational Foundation for three years. Mr. Nielson formerly served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Dew Learning LLC from 2012 through 2014. Mr. Nielson formerly served as President of Covenant College (2002-2012), and as a partner and trader (of options and futures contracts for hedging options) for Ritchie Capital Markets Group (1996-1997), where he held an administrative management position at this proprietary derivatives trading company. He also held prior positions in new business development for ServiceMaster Management Services Company and in personnel and human resources for NationsBank of North Carolina, N.A. and Chicago Research and Trading Group, Ltd. ("CRT"). His international experience includes serving as a director of CRT Europe, Inc. for two years, directing out of London all aspects of business conducted by the U.K. and European subsidiary of CRT. Prior to that, Mr. Nielson was a trader and manager at CRT in Chicago. Mr. Nielson has served as a Trustee of each First Trust Fund since its inception and of the First Trust Funds since 1999. Mr. Nielson has also served as Chairman of the Audit Committee (2003-2007 and 2014-2016), Chairman of the Valuation Committee (2012-2013), Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (2008-2009 and 2017-2019), Chairman of the Dividend Committee (2020-2022), and Lead Independent Trustee (2010-2011 and 2020-2022) of the First Trust Funds. Further, he has served as a member of the Executive Committee (2010- 2011 and January 1, 2020 - March 12, 2024) and the Dividend Committee (October 19, 2020 -March 12, 2024) of the First Trust Funds. He currently serves as Chairman of the Valuation Committee (since January 1, 2023) of the First Trust Funds.

Bronwyn Wright has acted as an independent director to a number of Irish collective investment funds since 2009. Ms. Wright is a former Managing Director of Citibank Europe plc and Head of Securities and Fund Services for Citi Ireland. In these positions, she was responsible for the management and strategic direction of Citi Ireland's securities and fund services business which included funds, custody, security finance/lending and global agency and trust. She also had responsibility for leading, managing and growing the Trustee, Custodian and Depositary business in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Luxembourg, Jersey and Cayman. Ms. Wright has served as a Trustee of the First Trust Funds and on the Audit Committee, Nominating and Governance Committee and Valuation Committee of the First Trust Funds since September 10, 2023.

James A. Bowen is Chief Executive Officer of First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P. Mr. Bowen is involved in the day-to-day management of the First Trust Funds and serves on the Executive Committee. He has over 35 years of experience in the investment company business in sales, sales management and executive management. Mr. Bowen has served as a Trustee of each First Trust Fund since its inception and of the First Trust Funds since 1999.

Effective January 1, 2024, the fixed annual retainer paid to the Independent Trustees is $285,000 per year and an annual per fund fee of $7,500 for each closed-end fund, $2,000 for each actively managed fund, $750 for each target outcome fund and $500 for each index fund. The fixed annual retainer is allocated equally among each fund in the First Trust Fund Complex rather than being allocated pro rata based on each fund's net assets. Additionally, the Lead Independent Trustee is paid $30,000 annually, the Vice Lead Independent Trustee is paid up to $25,000 annually (effective March 12, 2024), the Chairman of the Audit Committee is paid $25,000 annually, the Chairman of the Valuation Committee is paid $20,000 annually, the Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee is paid $20,000 annually and the Vice Chair of the Audit Committee is paid $15,000 annually (effective March 12, 2024) to serve in such capacities with compensation allocated pro rata among each fund in the First Trust Fund Complex based on its net assets. Trustees are also reimbursed by the funds in the First Trust Fund Complex for travel and out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with all meetings. Each Committee Chair, the Audit Committee Vice Chair, the Lead Independent Trustee and the Vice Lead Independent Trustee rotate in accordance with the rotation periods established by the Board.

The following table sets forth the compensation (including reimbursement for travel and out-of-pocket expenses) paid by the Fund, and by the First Trust Fund Complex, to each of the Independent Trustees for services during the fiscal period and the calendar year ended December 31, 2023, respectively. The Trust has no retirement or pension plans. The officers and Trustee who are "interested persons" as designated above serve without any compensation from the Trust. The Trust has no employees. Its officers are compensated by First Trust.

Name of Trustee	Compensation from the Fund (1)	Total Compensation from the First Trust Fund Complex (2)
Richard E. Erickson	$2,731	$572,000
Thomas R. Kadlec	$2,731	$567,000
Denise M. Keefe	$2,731	$547,000
Robert F. Keith	$2,731	$577,000
Niel B. Nielson	$2,731	$567,000
Bronwyn Wright (3)	$1,871	$274,250

(3) Ms. Wright was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the First Trust Funds effective September 10, 2023.

The following table sets forth the dollar range of equity securities beneficially owned by the Trustees in the Fund and in other funds overseen by the Trustees in the First Trust Fund Complex as of December 31, 2023:

Trustee	Dollar Range of Equity Securities in the Fund (Number of Shares Held)	Aggregate Dollar Range of Equity Securities in All Registered Investment Companies Overseen by Trustee in the First Trust Fund Complex
Interested Trustee
James A. Bowen	None	Over $100,000
Independent Trustees
Richard E. Erickson	None	Over $100,000
Thomas R. Kadlec	None	Over $100,000
Denise M. Keefe	None	Over $100,000
Robert F. Keith	None	Over $100,000
Niel B. Nielson	None	Over $100,000
Bronwyn Wright(1)	None	None

(1) Ms. Wright was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the First Trust Funds effective September 10, 2023.

As of March 31, 2024, the Independent Trustees of the Trust and their immediate family members did not own beneficially or of record any class of securities of an investment advisor or principal underwriter of the Fund or any person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by or under common control with an investment advisor or principal underwriter of the Fund.

As of March 31, 2024, the officers and Trustees, in the aggregate, owned less than 1% of the shares of the Fund.

As of March 31, 2024, the Advisor did not own any shares of the Fund.

As of March 31, 2024, First Trust Portfolios was the sole shareholder of the Fund. As sole shareholder, First Trust Portfolios has the ability to control the outcome of any item presented to shareholders for approval.

Code of Ethics

To mitigate the possibility that the Fund will be adversely affected by personal trading of employees, the Trust, First Trust and First Trust Portfolios have adopted Codes of Ethics under Rule 17j-1 of the 1940 Act. These Codes contain policies restricting securities trading in personal accounts of the officers, Trustees and others who normally come into possession of information on portfolio transactions. These Codes are on public file with, and are available from, the SEC. An employee of First Trust or FTP could hold shares of the First Trust Dorsey Wright Tactical Core Portfolio, if he or she were to purchase a variable annuity or variable life insurance policy that included the Fund as a "sub-Fund selection" and as long as the Fund was not included on FTP's restricted list.

Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures

The Trust has adopted a proxy voting policy that seeks to ensure that proxies for securities held by the Fund are voted consistently with the best interests of the Fund.

The Board has delegated to First Trust the proxy voting responsibilities for the Fund and has directed First Trust to vote proxies consistent with the Fund's best interests. The First Trust Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures are attached hereto as Exhibit A. First Trust has engaged the services of Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. ("ISS") to make recommendations to First Trust on the voting of proxies relating to securities held by the Fund. If First Trust manages the assets of a company or its pension plan and any of First Trust's clients hold any securities of that company, First Trust will generally vote proxies relating to such company's securities in accordance with the ISS recommendations to avoid any conflict of interest.

First Trust has adopted the ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines. While these guidelines are not intended to be all-inclusive, they do provide guidance on First Trust's general voting policies. First Trust's use of the ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines is not intended to constrain First Trust's consideration of any proxy proposal, and there are times when First Trust deviates from the ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines. This includes when required by Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act or when agreed to by the Fund and certain acquired funds as permitted under Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act, if applicable. Generally, First Trust will not rely on ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines to withhold votes or vote against directors solely based on quota criteria or the exclusion of certain climate-related disclosures, which may or may not relate to the company's core business or may not materially impact shareholder value. First Trust will consider such proxy voting decisions in light of merit-based considerations which it believes may impact shareholder value. First Trust retains final authority and fiduciary responsibility for proxy voting.

Information regarding how the Fund voted proxies (if any) relating to portfolio securities during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available upon request and without charge on the Fund's website at www.ftportfolios.com, by calling (800) 621-1675 or by accessing the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.

Portfolio Schedule. The Fund files portfolio holdings information for each month in a fiscal quarter within 60 days after the end of the relevant fiscal quarter on Form N-PORT. Portfolio holdings information for the third month of each fiscal quarter will be publicly available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. The Fund's complete schedule of portfolio holdings for the second and fourth quarters of each fiscal year is included in the semi-annual and annual reports to shareholders, respectively, and is filed with the SEC on Form N-CSR. A semi-annual or annual report for the Fund will become available to investors within 60 days after the period to which it relates. The Fund's Forms N-PORT and Forms N-CSR are available on the SEC's website listed above.

Policy Regarding Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings. The Trust has adopted a policy regarding the disclosure of portfolio holdings (the "Disclosure Policy"). The purpose of the Disclosure Policy is to outline the Fund's policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of portfolio holdings in order to comply with SEC requirements.

A listing of the portfolio holdings of the Fund generally shall not be provided to any person, including any investor of the Fund, until such time as the portfolio holdings have been filed with the SEC on Form N-Q or Form N-CSR, as applicable, and posted on the Fund's website. Any person, including any investor of the Fund that requests a listing of the Fund's portfolio holdings, shall be provided with the portfolio holdings list most recently made publicly available pursuant to this Disclosure Policy (and/or portfolio holdings as of earlier periods that previously have been made publicly available, if requested).

Neither the Fund, the Advisor, nor any other party shall receive any compensation whatsoever in connection with the disclosure of information about the Fund's portfolio securities.

The Fund may on occasion release certain nonpublic portfolio information to selected parties if (i) the Trust's CCO determines such disclosure is consistent with a legitimate business purpose of the Fund; and (ii) the recipient is subject to a duty of confidentiality with respect to the information, including a duty not to trade on the nonpublic information. In this connection, selective disclosure of portfolio holdings will be made on an ongoing basis in the normal course of investment and administrative operations to service providers, which, to the best of the Fund's knowledge, include proxy voting services (including ISS), fund administrators, fund accountants, transfer agents (including BNY) and custodians (including BNYM), as well as their financial printers and mailing service (including GComm, Fitzgerald Marketing and Communications, LLC and Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.), performance attribution vendors (including Factset Research Systems), tracking agencies (including Lipper, Inc., Morningstar, Inc., Standard & Poor's and Thomson Financial), accounting and auditing

services (including Deloitte & Touche LLP) and legal counsel to the Fund, the Independent Trustees or investment advisor (including Vedder Price P.C. and Chapman and Cutler LLP). All such third parties shall be bound by a Code of Ethics or similar insider trading policy or confidentiality agreement or duty prohibiting their use of any portfolio holdings information in an improper manner.

The Disclosure Policy will be monitored by the Trust's CCO. Any violations of the Disclosure Policy will be reported by the Trust's CCO to the Trust's Board of Trustees at the next regularly scheduled board meeting.

These procedures were designed to ensure that disclosure of information about portfolio securities is in the best interests of the Fund, including the procedures to address conflicts between the interests of Fund shareholders, on the one hand, and those of the Fund's Advisor; Distributor; or any affiliated person of the Fund, the Advisor, or the principal underwriter, on the other.

Codes of Ethics. In order to mitigate the possibility that the Fund will be adversely affected by personal trading, the Trust, First Trust and the Distributor have adopted Codes of Ethics under Rule 17j-1 of the 1940 Act. These Codes of Ethics contain policies restricting securities trading in personal accounts of the officers, Trustees and others who normally come into possession of information on portfolio transactions. Personnel subject to the Codes of Ethics may invest in securities that may be purchased or held by the Fund; however, the Codes of Ethics require that each transaction in such securities be reviewed by the Chief Compliance Officer or his or her designee. These Codes of Ethics are on public file with, and are available from, the SEC.

Control Persons and Principal Holders of Securities

To the extent required by applicable law, Participating Insurance Companies will solicit voting instructions from owners of the variable annuity and variable life insurance Contracts. All shares in the Fund will be voted by Participating Insurance Companies in accordance with voting instructions received from such Contract owners. Participating Insurance Companies will vote all of the shares which they are entitled to vote in the same proportion as the voting instructions given by variable annuity and variable life insurance Contract owners, on the issues presented. Participating Insurance Companies will also vote all shares owned in their own names proportional to such ownership. As a result of this proportional voting, a small number of Contract owners may have the ability to determine the outcome of any item voted on by the Fund.

Investment Advisory and Other Services

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P., 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, Illinois 60187, is the investment advisor to the Fund. As investment advisor, First Trust provides the Fund with professional investment supervision and management and permits any of its officers or employees to serve without compensation as Trustees or officers of the Trust if elected to such positions. First Trust provides the Fund with discretionary investment services and certain other services necessary with the management of the portfolio. Specifically, First Trust is responsible for supervising and directing the investments of the Fund in accordance with the Fund's investment objective(s), program, and restrictions as provided in the Prospectus and this SAI. First Trust is responsible for effecting all security transactions on behalf of the Fund. First Trust is also responsible for compliance with the provisions of the Code, applicable to the Fund (relating to the diversification requirements applicable to investments in underlying variable annuity and variable life insurance Contracts).

First Trust is a limited partnership with one limited partner, Grace Partners of DuPage L.P., and one general partner, The Charger Corporation. Grace Partners of DuPage L.P. is a limited partnership with one general partner, The Charger Corporation, and a number of limited partners. The Charger Corporation is an Illinois corporation controlled by James A. Bowen, the Chief Executive Officer of First Trust. First Trust discharges its responsibilities subject to the policies of the Fund.

First Trust is also advisor to 11 open-end funds, 13 closed-end funds and 10 exchange-traded funds consisting of 244 series and is the evaluator and portfolio supervisor of certain unit investment trusts sponsored by First Trust Portfolios. FTP specializes in the underwriting, trading and distribution of unit investment trusts and other securities.

First Trust acts as investment advisor to the Fund pursuant to an investment management agreement (the "Investment Management Agreement"). The Investment Management Agreement continues in effect for the Fund from year to year after its initial two-year term so long as its continuation is approved at least annually by the Trustees including a majority of the Trustees who are not parties to such agreement or interested persons of any such party except in their

capacity as Trustees of the Trust, or the interest holders of the Fund. It may be terminated at any time upon 60 days' notice by either party, or by a majority vote of the outstanding shares of the Fund, and will terminate automatically upon assignment. Additional Fund may be subject to a different agreement. The Investment Management Agreement provides that First Trust, its partners, directors, officers, employees, and certain other persons performing specific functions for the Fund will only be liable to the Fund for losses resulting from willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence, or reckless disregard of their obligations and duties under the agreement. As compensation for its services, the Fund pay First Trust a fee as described in the Prospectus. Provisions regarding expense limitations are described in the Prospectus.

Pursuant to the Investment Management Agreement between First Trust and the Trust, First Trust is paid an annual management fee of 0.60% of the Fund's average daily net assets. The Fund is responsible for all of its expenses, including the investment advisory fees, costs of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services, interest, taxes, brokerage commissions and other expenses connected with the execution of portfolio transactions, distribution and service fees pursuant to a 12b-1 plan, if any, acquired fund fees and expenses, and extraordinary expenses. First Trust has agreed to waive fees and/or pay Fund expenses to the extent necessary to prevent the annual operating expenses of the Class I shares (excluding interest expense, brokerage commissions and other trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses) from exceeding 1.20% (the "Expense Cap") at least until May 1, 2025. This contractual agreement shall continue until the earlier of (i) its termination at the direction of the Trust's Board of Trustees or (ii) upon the termination of the Fund's management agreement with First Trust, however, it is expected to remain in place for no less than one year from the date of this prospectus. Expenses borne and fees waived by First Trust are subject to reimbursement by the Fund up to three years from the date the fee or expense was incurred by the Fund, but no reimbursement payment will be made by the Fund at any time if it would result in Class I share expenses (excluding interest expense, brokerage commissions and other trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses) exceeding (after the amount of reimbursement is taken into account) the lesser of (i) the applicable Expense Cap in place for the most recent fiscal year for which such Expense Cap was in place, (ii) the applicable Expense Cap in place at the time the fees were waived, or (iii) the current Expense Cap.

The Fund paid the following advisory fees to First Trust and First Trust waived and reimbursed the amounts set forth below for the period specified:

Inception Date	Amount of Management Fees (Net of Fee Waivers and Expense Reimbursements By First Trust)	Amount of Fees Waived and Expenses Reimbursed By First Trust
Fiscal Period Ended December 31, 2023	Fiscal Period Ended December 31, 2023
5/16/2023	$0	$66,744

Investment Committee

The Investment Committee of First Trust (the "Investment Committee") is jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund's portfolios. There are currently five members of the Investment Committee, as follows:

Name	Position with First Trust	Length of Service with First Trust	Principal Occupation During Past Five Years
Daniel J. Lindquist	Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director	Since 2004	Managing Director, (July 2012 to Present), Senior Vice President (September 2005 to July 2012), First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
David G. McGarel	Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director	Since 1997	Chief Investment Officer (June 2012 to present), Managing Director (July 2012 to Present); Senior Vice President (January 2004 to July 2012), First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Jon C. Erickson	Senior Vice President	Since 1994	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Roger F. Testin	Senior Vice President	Since 2001	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Chris A. Peterson	Senior Vice President	Since 2000	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.

Daniel J. Lindquist, CFA:Mr. Lindquist is Chairman of First Trust's Investment Committee (the "Investment Committee") and presides over Investment Committee meetings. Mr. Lindquist is also responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Fund's investment strategies.

David G. McGarel, CFA:As First Trust's Chief Investment Officer, Mr. McGarel consults with the Investment Committee on market conditions and First Trust's general investment philosophy. As Chief Operating Officer, Mr. McGarel is responsible for First Trust and FTP operations, including information systems, trust administration and First Trust administration.

Jon C. Erickson, CFA:As the head of First Trust's Equity Research Group, Mr. Erickson is responsible for determining the securities to be purchased and sold by funds that do not utilize quantitative investment strategies.

Roger F. Testin, CFA:As head of First Trust's Portfolio Management Group, Mr. Testin is responsible for executing the instructions of the Strategy Research Group and Equity Research Group.

Chris A. Peterson, CFA: Mr. Peterson is a Senior Vice President and head of the strategy research group at First Trust. Mr. Peterson is responsible for developing and implementing quantitative equity investment strategies.

As of December 31, 2023, none of the portfolio managers beneficially owned any shares of the Fund.

Compensation

The compensation structure for each member of the Investment Committee is based upon a fixed salary as well as a discretionary bonus determined by the management of First Trust. Salaries are determined by management and are based upon an individual's position and overall value to the firm. Bonuses are also determined by management and are based upon an individual's overall contribution to the success of the firm and the profitability of the firm. Salaries and bonuses for members of each Investment Committee are not based upon criteria such as Fund performance or the value of assets included in the Fund's portfolio. In addition, Mr. Lindquist, Mr. McGarel, Mr. Erickson and Mr. Peterson also have an indirect ownership stake in the firm and will therefore receive their allocable share of ownership-related distributions.

Each Investment Committee member manages the investment vehicles and accounts (other than the Trust) with the number of accounts and assets, as of December 31, 2023 set forth in the following table:

Accounts Managed by Investment Committee

Investment Committee Member	Registered Investment Companies Number of Accounts ($ Assets in Thousands)	Other Pooled Investment Vehicles Number of Accounts ($ Assets in Thousands)	Other Accounts Number of Accounts ($ Assets in Thousands)	Registered Investment Companies With Performance Fees Number of Accounts ($ Assets in Thousands)	Other Pooled Investment Vehicles With Performance Fees Number of Accounts ($ Assets in Thousands)	Other Accounts With Performance Fees Number of Accounts ($ Assets in Thousands)
Daniel J. Lindquist	120 ($88,744,015)	44 ($2,082,628)	1,098 ($415,831)	N/A	N/A	N/A
David G. McGarel	121 ($88,763,695)	44 ($2,082,628)	1,098 ($415,831)	N/A	N/A	N/A
Jon C. Erickson	117 ($88,729,576)	44 ($2,082,628)	1,098 ($415,831)	N/A	N/A	N/A
Roger F. Testin	117 ($88,729,576)	44 ($2,082,628)	1,098 ($415,831)	N/A	N/A	N/A
Chris A. Peterson	121 ($88,763,695)	44 ($2,082,628)	1,098 ($415,831)	N/A	N/A	N/A

Conflicts.  None of the accounts managed by the Investment Committee pay an advisory fee that is based upon the performance of the account. In addition, First Trust believes that there are no material conflicts of interest that may arise in connection with the Investment Committee's management of the Fund's investments and the investments of the other accounts managed by the Investment Committee. However, because the investment strategies of many of the other accounts managed by the Investment Committee are based on fairly mechanical investment processes, the Investment Committee may recommend that certain clients sell and other clients buy a given security at the same time. In addition, because the investment strategies of the Fund and other accounts managed by the Investment Committee generally result in the clients investing in readily available securities, First Trust believes that there should not be material conflicts in the allocation of investment opportunities between the Fund and other accounts managed by the Investment Committee. No member of the Investment Committee owns shares in the Fund.

Distributor

First Trust Portfolios L.P., 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, Illinois 60187, serves as the principal underwriter of the shares of the Fund pursuant to a "best efforts" arrangement as provided by a distribution agreement with the Trust on behalf of the Fund (the "Distribution Agreement"). FTP is affiliated with First Trust. The officers of the Trust described as being associated with First Trust and FTP are affiliated persons of both the Trust and FTP. Pursuant to the Distribution Agreement, the Fund appointed FTP to be its agent for the distribution of the Fund's shares on a continuous offering basis. FTP sells shares of the Fund to Accounts. Pursuant to the Distribution Agreement, FTP, at its own expense, finances certain activities incident to the sale and distribution of the shares of the Fund, including printing and distribution of Prospectus and SAI to other than existing shareholders and the printing and distributing of sales literature and advertising. FTP does not receive underwriting commissions for its sale of shares of the Fund, but may receive compensation pursuant to a Rule 12b-1 plan adopted by the Trust on behalf of the Fund and described herein under the section entitled "Rule 12b-1 Plan."

Administrator

The Fund pays an administration fee as set forth in the Prospectus to cover expenses incurred by Participating Insurance Companies in connection with the administration of the Fund, Accounts and the Contracts. First Trust may also pay an additional administrative fee to Participating Insurance Companies for the Fund as set forth in the Fund's Prospectus. The services provided by Participating Insurance Companies shall include, among others, the following: (i) coordinating matters relating to the operation of the Accounts with the Fund, including any necessary coordination with the custodian, transfer agent, dividend disbursing agent, recordkeeping agent, accountants, attorneys, and other parties performing services or operational functions for the Fund; (ii) coordinating the preparation of the necessary documents with the SEC and other federal and state regulatory authorities as may be required; (iii) taking such other action as may be required by applicable law with respect to the foregoing, including without limitation the rules and regulations of the SEC and of state insurance authorities and other regulatory agencies; and (iv) coordinating with First Trust regarding investment limitations and parameters imposed on funding vehicles for variable annuities by the insurance laws of the various states and by the Code. For the period specified below, the Fund paid administration fees to the Participating Insurance Companies.

Administrative Fees Paid to Participating Insurance Companies
Inception Date	Fiscal Period Ended December 31, 2023
5/16/2023	$3,178

Participating Insurance Companies also may make their officers and employees available to the Trustees and officers of the Trust for consultation and discussions regarding the operations of Accounts and the Contracts in connection with the administration of the Fund and services provided to the Fund.

Transfer Agent

BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc. ("BNY"), with corporate offices at 301 Bellevue Parkway, Wilmington, Delaware 19809, serves as the transfer and dividend disbursing agent for the Fund pursuant to a Transfer Agency Agreement (the "Transfer Agency Agreement"). Under the Transfer Agency Agreement, BNY maintains member registrations; performs services relating to member trading activity; and provides purchase and redemption services in accordance with instruction from the Trust.

Administration and Accounting Services Agreement

Bank of New York Mellon ("BNYM"), with offices located at 240 Greenwich Street, New York, New York 10286, serves as the Trust's administrator and fund accounting agent pursuant to an Administration and Accounting Services Agreement (the "Administration Agreement"). BNYM has agreed to furnish to the Fund statistical and research data, clerical, accounting and bookkeeping services, and certain other services required. In addition, BNYM has agreed to prepare and file various reports with appropriate regulatory agencies. The Administration Agreement provides that BNYM shall be obligated to exercise care and diligence in the performance of its duties, to act in good faith and to use its best efforts, within reasonable limits, in performing services thereunder. BNYM shall be responsible for failure to perform its duties under the

Administration Agreement arising out of its willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard. The Administration Agreement provides that BNYM shall not be liable for any error of judgment or mistake of law or any loss suffered by the Trust or the Fund in connection with the performance of the agreement, except a loss resulting from willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless disregard by it of its duties and obligations thereunder.

Aggregate Amount Paid to Administrator
Inception Date	Fiscal Period Ended December 31, 2023
5/16/2023	$0

Custodian

BNYM (also, the "Custodian") acts as Custodian for the Fund pursuant to a Custodian Agreement between BNYM and the Trust on behalf of the Fund (the "Custodian Agreement"). The Custodian has custody of all securities and cash of the Trust maintained in the United States and attends to the collection of principal and income and payment for and collection of proceeds of securities bought and sold by the Fund.

Pursuant to a letter agreement between BNYM and the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, the Trust has agreed to pay BNYM fees for services provided under the Custodian Agreement.

Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The Fund's independent registered public accounting firm, Deloitte & Touche LLP ("Deloitte"), 111 South Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60606, audits the Fund's financial statements and performs other related audit services.

Rule 12b-1 Plan

The Trust has adopted a plan (the "Plan") pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act, which provides that Class I shares of the Fund will be subject to an annual 12b-1 service fee. The Trust has adopted the Plan to encourage each Participating Insurance Company to provide services to owners of shares of the Fund and to promote future sales of the Fund.

First Trust Portfolios serves as selling agent of the Fund. In this capacity, FTP manages the offering of the Fund's shares and is responsible for all sales and promotional activities. In order to compensate FTP for its costs in connection with these activities, the Fund has adopted a service plan for Class I shares under Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act. FTP uses the service fee to compensate each Participating Insurance Company for providing account services to Contract owners. These services include establishing and maintaining Contract owners' accounts, supplying information to Contract owners, delivering fund materials to Contract owners, answering inquiries, and providing other personal services to Contract owners. The Fund may spend up to 0.25% per year of the average daily net assets attributable to Class I shares as a service fee under the Plan. In addition, the Plan permits First Trust to use a portion of its advisory fee to compensate FTP for expenses incurred in connection with the sale of the Fund's shares including, without limitation, compensation of its sales force, expenses of printing and distributing the Prospectus to persons other than shareholders or Contract owners, expenses of preparing, printing and distributing advertising and sales literature and reports to shareholders and Contract owners used in connection with the sale of the Fund's shares, certain other expenses associated with the servicing of shares of the Fund, and any service-related expenses that may be authorized from time to time by the Board of Trustees.

For the fiscal year period December 31, 2023, the Fund paid $4,421 to Participating Insurance Companies under the Plan for providing account services.

Under the Trust's Plan, the Trust will report quarterly to the Board of Trustees for its review all amounts expended under the Plan. The Plan may be terminated at any time with respect to the Fund, without the payment of any penalty, by a vote of a majority of the Trustees who are not "interested persons" and who have no direct or indirect financial interest in the Plan or by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund on not more than sixty (60) days' written notice. The Plan may be renewed from year to year if approved by a vote of the Board of Trustees and a vote of the non-interested Trustees who have no direct or indirect financial interest in the Plan cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on the Plan. The Plan may be continued only if the Trustees who vote to approve such continuance

conclude, in the exercise of reasonable business judgment and in light of their fiduciary duties under the applicable law, that there is a reasonable likelihood that the Plan will benefit the Fund and its shareholders. The Plan may not be amended to increase materially the cost which the Fund may bear under the Plan without the approval of the shareholders of the Fund, and any other material amendments of the Plan must be approved by the Independent Trustees by a vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of considering such amendments. During the existence of the Plan, the selection and nomination of the Independent Trustees of the Trust will be committed to the discretion of the Independent Trustees then in office. With the exception of FTP and its affiliates, no "interested person" of the Trust (as that term is defined in the 1940 Act) and no Trustee of the Trust has a direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Plan or any related agreement.

Other Payments to Financial Intermediaries

In addition to the administrative fees and certain payments related to 12b-1 service fees paid by FTP to Participating Insurance Companies and other financial intermediaries as previously described, First Trust or its affiliates may from time to time make additional payments, out of its own resources, to Participating Insurance Companies or other financial intermediaries that sell shares of the Fund in order to promote the sales and retention of shares of the Fund by those firms and their customers. The amounts of these payments vary by Participating Insurance Company or financial intermediary and, with respect to a given firm, are typically calculated by reference to the amount of the firm's recent gross sales of Fund shares and/or total assets of the Fund held by the firm's customers. The level of payments that First Trust is willing to provide to a particular Participating Insurance Company or financial intermediary may be affected by, among other factors, the firm's total assets held in and recent net investments into the Fund, the firm's level of participation in Fund sales and marketing programs and the firm's compensation program for its registered representatives who sell Fund shares and provide services to Fund shareholders. First Trust or its affiliates may also make payments to Participating Insurance Companies or financial intermediaries in connection with sales meetings, due diligence meetings, prospecting seminars and other meetings at which First Trust or its affiliates promotes its products and services. First Trust may also make payments to Participating Insurance Companies or certain financial intermediaries for certain administrative services, including record keeping and sub-accounting of shareholder accounts pursuant to a sub-transfer agency, omnibus account service or sub-accounting agreement. All fees payable by First Trust under this category of services may be charged back to the Fund, subject to approval by the Board.

For administrative services in addition to those described above, the Fund also pays an administrative services fee to Participating Insurance Companies equal to 0.20% of the Fund's average daily net assets. The administrative services fee reimburses the Participating Insurance Companies for various recordkeeping and other administrative services related to the Contracts, including maintenance of records of transactions in the Fund's shares, processing of shareholder purchases and redemptions, payment of redemption proceeds and dividend distributions, reconciliation of the Participating Insurance Companies books with those of the Fund, preparing materials for reporting to the Trust's Board or regulators, distribution of Fund prospectuses and other reports, telephonic support for shareholders, assistance with proxy solicitation where appropriate, and any other miscellaneous services as may be required in the ordinary course.

Brokerage Allocations

First Trust is responsible for decisions to buy and sell securities for the Fund and for the placement of the Fund's securities business, the negotiation of the commissions to be paid on brokered transactions, the prices for principal trades in securities, and the allocation of portfolio brokerage and principal business. It is the policy of First Trust to seek the best execution at the best security price available with respect to each transaction, and with respect to brokered transactions in light of the overall quality of brokerage and research services provided to First Trust and its clients. The best price to the Fund means the best net price without regard to the mix between purchase or sale price and commission, if any. Purchases may be made from underwriters, dealers and, on occasion, the issuers. Commissions will be paid on the Fund's futures and options transactions, if any. The purchase price of portfolio securities purchased from an underwriter or dealer may include underwriting commissions and dealer spreads. The Fund may pay markups on principal transactions. In selecting broker-dealers and in negotiating commissions, First Trust considers, among other things, the firm's reliability, the quality of its execution services on a continuing basis and its financial condition. Fund portfolio transactions may be effected with broker-dealers who have assisted investors in the purchase of shares.

Section 28(e) of the 1934 Act permits an investment advisor, under certain circumstances, to cause an account to pay a broker or dealer who supplies brokerage and research services a commission for effecting a transaction in excess of the

amount of commission another broker or dealer would have charged for effecting the transaction. Brokerage and research services include (a) furnishing advice as to the value of securities, the advisability of investing, purchasing or selling securities, and the availability of securities or purchasers or sellers of securities; (b) furnishing analyses and reports concerning issuers, industries, securities, economic factors and trends, portfolio strategy and the performance of accounts; and (c) effecting securities transactions and performing functions incidental thereto (such as clearance, settlement and custody). Such brokerage and research services are often referred to as "soft dollars." First Trust has advised the Board of Trustees that it does not currently intend to use soft dollars.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, in selecting brokers, First Trust may in the future consider investment and market information and other research, such as economic, securities and performance measurement research, provided by such brokers, and the quality and reliability of brokerage services, including execution capability, performance and financial responsibility. Accordingly, the commissions charged by any such broker may be greater than the amount another firm might charge if First Trust determines in good faith that the amount of such commissions is reasonable in relation to the value of the research information and brokerage services provided by such broker to First Trust or the Trust. In addition, First Trust must determine that the research information received in this manner provides the Fund with benefits by supplementing the research otherwise available to the Fund. The Investment Management Agreement provides that such higher commissions will not be paid by the Fund unless First Trust determines in good faith that the amount is reasonable in relation to the services provided. The investment advisory fees paid by the Fund to First Trust under the Investment Management Agreement would not be reduced as a result of receipt by First Trust of research services.

First Trust places portfolio transactions for other advisory accounts advised by it, and research services furnished by firms through which the Fund effects securities transactions may be used by First Trust in servicing all of its accounts; not all of such services may be used by First Trust in connection with the Fund. First Trust believes it is not possible to measure separately the benefits from research services to each of the accounts (including the Fund) advised by it. Because the volume and nature of the trading activities of the accounts are not uniform, the amount of commissions in excess of those charged by another broker paid by each account for brokerage and research services will vary. However, First Trust believes such costs to the Fund will not be disproportionate to the benefits received by the Fund on a continuing basis. First Trust seeks to allocate portfolio transactions equitably whenever concurrent decisions are made to purchase or sell securities by the Fund and another advisory account. In some cases, this procedure could have an adverse effect on the price or the amount of securities available to the Fund. In making such allocations between the Fund and other advisory accounts, the main factors considered by First Trust are the respective investment objective, the relative size of portfolio holding of the same or comparable securities, the availability of cash for investment and the size of investment commitments generally held.

Brokerage Commissions

The following table sets forth the aggregate amount of brokerage commissions paid by the Fund for the specified period.

Aggregate Amount of Brokerage Commissions
Inception Date	Fiscal Period Ended December 31, 2023
5/16/2023	$655

During the fiscal period ended December 31, 2023, the Fund did not acquire shares of a regular broker or dealer of the Fund as defined in Rule 10b-1 under the 1940 Act.

Frequent Trading and Market Timing

The Fund has adopted a market timing/frequent trading policy (the "Frequent Trading Policy"). Market timing may be generally described as the practice of frequently buying and selling investment company shares in order to take advantage of a perceived arbitrage opportunity. Most often the practice has involved Funds that invest principally in non-U.S. securities. Market timing can have negative consequences for long-term investors in the Fund. First of all, the practice has the effect of "siphoning" a portion of the fund's gains and effectively diluting the returns to long-term investors. Additionally, if such activity occurs frequently and involves large amounts, it will affect how the portfolio manager manages

the fund (likely forcing the manager to hold a larger portion of the fund's assets in cash or otherwise interfering with the efficient management of the portfolio). The practice would also likely have the effect of increasing transaction costs, which would be borne by all investors. All interests of the Fund are issued to, and redeemed from, Accounts. Furthermore, such sales and redemptions are affected only in response to purchases and redemptions of the related variable annuity sub-accounts sold by Participating Insurance Companies to their policyholders or transfers among the sub-accounts. Therefore, the Fund's risk of exposure to market timing is limited to such attempts as might be made through the sub-accounts.

Due to the fact that all shares of the Fund are issued to, and redeemed from, Accounts, it is difficult for the Fund to monitor trading by a particular investor. However, FTP has entered into an agreement with each Participating Insurance Company that permits the Fund, or its designee, to receive certain identity and transaction information and requires each Participating Insurance Company to follow any Fund instructions regarding the restriction or prohibition of certain future purchases or exchanges by shareholders in certain circumstances. The Fund may rely on each Participating Insurance Company to adopt policies and procedures or may rely on their own policies and procedures with respect to transfers into or from the Account. In addition, First Trust's portfolio management personnel will monitor activity within the portfolios of the Fund and will report any unusual activity to the Trust's Chief Compliance Officer.

Technical limitations in operational systems at Participating Insurance Companies or at FTP may limit the Fund ability to detect and prevent frequent trading. In addition, the Fund may permit Participating Insurance Companies to enforce their own internal policies and procedures concerning frequent trading. Such policies may differ from the Fund Frequent Trading Policy and may be approved for use in instances where the Fund reasonably believes that the Participating Insurance Company's policies and procedures effectively discourage inappropriate trading activity. Shareholders holding their accounts with Participating Insurance Companies may wish to contact the Participating Insurance Company for information regarding its frequent trading policy. Although the Fund does not knowingly permit frequent trading, it cannot guarantee that it will be able to identify and restrict all frequent trading activity.

The Fund reserves the right in its sole discretion to waive unintentional or minor violations (including transactions below certain dollar thresholds) if it determines that doing so would not harm the interests of the Fund's shareholders. These include, among others, redemptions pursuant to systematic withdrawal plans, redemptions in connection with the total disability or death of the investor and involuntary redemptions by operation of law, redemptions in payment of account or plan fees. The Fund may also modify or suspend the Frequent Trading Policy without notice during periods of market stress or other unusual circumstances.

The Fund reserves the right to impose restrictions on purchases or exchanges that are more restrictive than those stated above if it determines, in its sole discretion that a transaction or a series of transactions involves market timing or excessive trading that may be detrimental to such Fund's shareholders. The Fund also reserve the right to reject any purchase orders, including exchange purchases, for any reason. For example, the Fund may refuse purchase orders if such Fund would be unable to invest the proceeds from the purchase order in accordance with the Fund's investment policies and/or objective(s), or if the Fund would be adversely affected by the size of the transaction, the frequency of trading in the account or various other factors.

Policy Regarding Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings

The Trust has adopted a policy regarding the disclosure of portfolio holdings (the "Disclosure Policy"). The purpose of the Disclosure Policy is to outline the Fund's policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of portfolio holdings in order to comply with SEC requirements.

A listing of the portfolio holdings of the Fund generally shall not be provided to any person, including any investor of the Fund, until such time as the portfolio holdings have been filed with the SEC on Form N-PORT or Form N-CSR, as applicable, and posted on the Fund's website. Any person, including any investor of a Fund that requests a listing of the Fund's portfolio holdings, shall be provided with the portfolio holdings list most recently made publicly available pursuant to this Disclosure Policy (and/or portfolio holdings as of earlier periods that previously have been made publicly available, if requested).

Neither the Fund, First Trust, nor any other party shall receive any compensation whatsoever in connection with the disclosure of information about the portfolio securities of the Fund.

The Fund may on occasion release certain nonpublic portfolio information to selected parties if (i) the Trust's CCO determines such disclosure is consistent with a legitimate business purpose of the Fund; and (ii) the recipient is subject to a duty of confidentiality with respect to the information, including a duty not to trade on the nonpublic information. In this connection, selective disclosure of portfolio holdings will be made on an ongoing basis in the normal course of investment and administrative operations to service providers, which, to the best of the Trust's knowledge, include proxy voting services (including ISS), fund accountants and custodians (including BNY and BONY), as well as its financial printers (including Fitzgerald Marketing & Communications, LLC) and mailing service (GComm and Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.), performance attribution vendors (including Factset Research Systems), tracking agencies (including Lipper, Inc., Morningstar, Inc., Standard & Poor's and Thomson Financial), accounting and auditing services (including Deloitte) and legal counsel to the Fund, the Independent Trustees or investment advisor (including Vedder Price P.C. and Chapman and Cutler LLP). All such third parties shall be bound by a Code of Ethics or similar insider trading policy or confidentiality agreement or duty prohibiting their use of any portfolio holdings information in an improper manner.

The Disclosure Policy will be monitored by the Trust's CCO. Any violations of the Disclosure Policy will be reported by the Trust's CCO to the Trust's Board of Trustees at the next regularly scheduled Board meeting.

These procedures were designed to ensure that disclosure of information about portfolio securities is in the best interests of the Fund, including the procedures to address conflicts between the interests of the Fund's shareholders, on the one hand, and those of the Fund's investment advisor; principal underwriter; or any of their respective affiliated persons, on the other.

Voting Rights and General Fund Information

Shareholders are entitled to one vote for each share held. Shareholders may vote on the election of Trustees and on other matters submitted to meetings of shareholders.

To the extent required by applicable law, Participating Insurance Companies will solicit voting instructions from owners of variable annuity and variable life insurance Contracts. All shares in a Fund will be voted by Participating Insurance Companies in accordance with voting instructions received from such Contract owners. A Participating Insurance Company will vote all of the shares, which it is entitled to vote in the same proportion as the voting instructions given by Contract owners, on the issues presented. Participating Insurance Companies will also vote all shares owned in their own names proportional to such ownership. As a result of this proportional voting, a small number of Contract owners may have the ability to determine the outcome of any item voted on by the Fund.

Each issued and outstanding share of a Fund is entitled to participate equally in dividends and distributions, if any, declared by the Fund, and in the net assets of the Fund remaining upon liquidation or dissolution after outstanding liabilities are satisfied. The shares of the Fund, when issued, are fully paid and non-assessable. They have no preemptive, conversion, cumulative dividend or similar rights. The Fund can only be owned by Accounts. Shares in the Fund do not have cumulative rights. This means that owners of more than half of the Trust's shares voting for election of Trustees can elect all the Trustees if they so choose. Then, the remaining shareholders would not be able to elect any Trustees.

The Board of Trustees has the right to establish additional series in the future, to change Fund series, if applicable, and to determine the preferences, voting powers, rights and privileges thereof.

The Fund is not required and do not intend to hold annual meetings of shareholders. Shareholders owning more than 10% of the outstanding shares of the Fund have the right to call a special meeting to remove Trustees or for any other purpose.

Share Classes

Class I Shares

Class I shares may be purchased at a public offering price equal to the applicable net asset value per share without any sales charge. Class I shares are also subject to an annual 12b-1 service fee of 0.25% to compensate Participating Insurance Companies for providing you with ongoing financial advice and other account services. See the section entitled "Rule 12B-1 Plan." Class I shares are not subject to a distribution fee.

Purchases, Redemptions and Pricing of Shares

Accounts will purchase shares of the Fund at their net asset value. Shares are purchased using premiums received on Contracts issued by Accounts. Accounts are funded by shares of the Fund.

All investments in the Trust are credited to the shareholder's account in the form of full and fractional shares of the Fund (rounded to the nearest 1/1000 of a share). The Trust does not issue share certificates.

As stated in the Prospectus, the net asset value of a Fund's shares is determined once each day the New York Stock Exchange (the "NYSE") is open at the close of the regular trading session on the NYSE (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday). The net asset value of a Fund's shares is not determined on days when the NYSE is closed. The NYSE holidays are generally: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.

The Fund per-share net asset value is determined by dividing the total value of the securities and other assets less liabilities, by the total number of shares outstanding. The Fund's net asset value may not be calculated on days during which the Fund receives no orders to purchase shares and no shares are tendered for redemption. The Fund's net asset value is determined as set forth in the Prospectus in the section entitled "Net Asset Value."

The Fund may suspend the right of redemption only under the following unusual circumstances: (i) when the NYSE is closed (other than weekends and holidays) or trading is restricted; (ii) when trading in the markets normally utilized is restricted, or when an emergency exists as determined by the SEC so that disposal of the Fund's investments or determination of its net assets is not reasonably practicable; or (iii) during any period when the SEC may permit.

Certain Federal Income Tax Matters

The Fund intends to qualify annually and to elect to be treated as a "regulated investment company" under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the "Code"). All of the beneficial interests in the Fund are expected to be held by the Accounts of the Participating Insurance Companies and public access to the Fund is expected to be available exclusively through the purchase of a variable annuity or a variable life insurance contract (the "Contracts") offered by Participating Insurance Companies. This section does not discuss the federal income tax consequences of investing in the Fund or of owning the Contracts. This may not be sufficient for the purpose of avoiding penalties under federal tax law. Participating Insurance Companies and owners of Contracts should seek advice based on their individual circumstances from their own tax advisor. Tax disclosure relating to the Contracts that offer the Fund as an investment alternative is to be contained in the Prospectus for those Contracts.

Section 817(h) of the Code imposes certain diversification standards on the underlying assets of segregated asset accounts on which variable annuity and variable life insurance contracts such as the Contracts are based. Failure to satisfy those standards at any time would result in imposition of Federal income tax on a Contract owner in a manner different from, and generally less favorable than, the federal income tax treatment otherwise applicable to owners of variable annuity and variable life insurance contracts. Generally, if all of the beneficial interests in the Fund are held by segregated asset accounts of insurance companies and public access to the Fund is available exclusively through the purchase of certain variable contracts, the segregated asset accounts are treated as holding a pro rata portion of each asset of the Fund directly for purposes of the diversification rules of Section 817(h) of the Code.

Section 817(h)(2) provides that a segregated asset account upon which contracts such as the Contracts is based is treated as meeting the diversification standards if, as of the close of each quarter, the assets in the account meet the diversification requirements for a regulated investment company and no more than 55% of the value of those assets consist of cash, cash items, U.S. government securities and securities of other regulated investment companies. The Treasury Regulations amplify the diversification standards set forth in Section 817(h) and provide an alternative to the provision described above. Under the regulations, the investments of a segregated asset account generally will be deemed adequately diversified only if: (i) no more than 55% of the value of the total assets of the account is represented by any one investment; (ii) no more than 70% of such value is represented by any two investments; (iii) no more than 80% of such value is represented by any three investments; and (iv) no more than 90% of such value is represented by any four investments. For purposes of these Regulations, all securities of the same issuer are treated as a single investment, but in the case of U.S. government securities, each United States government agency or instrumentality is treated as a separate issuer.

The Fund will be managed with the intention of complying with these diversification requirements. It is possible that, in order to comply with these requirements, less desirable investment decisions may be made which could affect the investment performance of the Fund.

Capital Loss Carry-forward

Under the Regulated Investment Company Modernization Act of 2010, net capital losses of the Fund incurred in taxable years beginning after December 22, 2010 may be carried forward indefinitely, and their character is retained as short-term and/or long-term losses. To the extent that these loss carry-forwards are used to offset future capital gains, it is probable that the capital gains so offset will not be distributed to Fund shareholders. As of December 31, 2023, the Fund had no non-expiring capital loss carryforwards for federal income tax purposes. The Fund is subject to certain limitations, under U.S. tax rules, on the use of capital loss carry-forwards and net unrealized built-in losses. These limitations generally apply when there has been a 50% change in ownership.

Additional Information

Shareholder Inquiries

All inquiries regarding the Fund should be directed your Participating Insurance Company who can contact the Fund on your behalf by calling (888) 373-5776, or by mail to the Trust, c/o BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc., P.O. Box 534451, Pittsburgh, PA 15253-4451.

Financial Statements

The audited financial statements and notes thereto for the Fund, contained in the Annual Report to Shareholdersdated December 31, 2023, are incorporated by reference into this Statement of Additional Information and have been audited by Deloitte & Touche LLP, independent registered public accounting firm, whose report also appears in the Annual Report and is also incorporated by reference herein. No other parts of the Annual Report are incorporated by reference herein. The Annual Report is available without charge by calling (800) 621-1675 or by visiting the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.

Exhibit A-Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures

FIRST TRUST ADVISORS L.P.
PROXY VOTING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

First Trust Advisors L.P. ("FTA" or the "Adviser") serves as investment adviser to open- and closed-end investment companies, and other collective investments ("Funds"), as well as separately managed accounts (collectively, "Clients"). As part of these services, the Adviser has, in most cases, agreed to or been delegated proxy voting responsibility on such Clients' behalf ("Proxy Clients"). FTA is required to adopt and implement policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure proxy voting on behalf of Proxy Clients is conducted in a manner that is in their best interests and addresses how conflicts of interest between FTA's interests and Proxy Clients' interests are managed. FTA has adopted the following policies and procedures to comply with this requirement (the "Policy").

vote when the cost of voting on behalf of a Proxy Client would exceed any anticipated benefits of the proxy proposal to such Proxy Client (e.g. foreign securities).

Shareholders of Fund Proxy Clients can review the Policy and a Fund's voted proxies (if any) during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 on the First Trust website at www.ftportfolios.com or by accessing EDGAR on the SEC website at www.sec.gov.

These records are either maintained at FTA's office or are electronically available to FTA through access to the ISS Proxy Exchange portal.