interpretations of the SECSecurities and Exchange Commission or its staff. Similarly, certain terms used in the proposed new management contract are used as defined in the 1940 Act, the rules and regulations under the 1940 Act and any applicable guidance or interpretation of the SECSecurities and Exchange Commission or its staff. The current management contracts contain similar terms, except that they generally do not make reference to guidance or interpretation of the SEC or its staff. Thus, the proposed new management contracts explicitly permit the funds and Manager to operate in a manner consistent with regulatory guidance and interpretations, which may provide advantages and operational flexibility from time to time.

*Sub-Adviser Arrangements

For certain funds listed below, Sub-Management Contract.Putnam Management has retained an affiliate, to provide sub-management services. Putnam Management has retained Putnam Investments Limited (“PIL”), a wholly owned subsidiary of The Putnam Advisory Company, LLC (“PAC,” which is itself a subsidiary of Putnam Investments) and an affiliate of Putnam Management, as the sub-advisersub-manager for a portion of certainthe funds’ assets as determined by Putnam Management from time to time.time (an “Allocated Sleeve”). PIL is currently authorized to serve as the sub-adviser,sub-manager, to the extent determined by Putnam Management from time to time, for each of the following funds:funds. PIL is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Putnam Diversified Income Trust,Advisory Company, LLC (“PAC”), which is itself a subsidiary of Putnam VT Diversified Income Fund, Putnam Europe Equity Fund, Putnam Global Equity Fund, Putnam VT Global Equity Fund, Putnam Global Income Trust, Putnam Global Natural Resources Fund, Putnam High Income Securities Fund, Putnam High Yield Advantage Fund, Putnam High Yield Trust, Putnam VT High Yield Fund, Putnam International Capital Opportunities Fund, Putnam International Equity Fund, Putnam VT International Equity Fund, Putnam International Growth and Income Fund, Putnam VT International Growth and Income Fund, Putnam International New Opportunities Fund, Putnam VT International New Opportunities Fund, Putnam Master Intermediate Income Trust, Putnam Premier Income Trust, Putnam Research Fund, Putnam VT Research Fund, Putnam Utilities Growth and Income Fund, and Putnam VT Utilities Growth and Income Fund.Investments.

PIL serves as sub-advisersub-manager for thosethe funds under a sub-management agreementcontract between Putnam Management and PIL. Pursuant to the terms ofUnder the sub-management agreement,contract, Putnam Management (and not the fund) pays a quarterly sub-management fee to PIL for its services at the annual rate of 0.35%rates set forth in the accompanying table, in each case measured as a percentage of the average aggregate net asset value of the portion of a fund’sassets invested in equity securities and 0.40% of the portion of a fund’s assets invested in fixed-income securities, if any, that PIL manages from time to time except that, in the case of Putnam High Income Securities Fund, Putnam Master Intermediate Income Trust and Putnam Premier Income Trust, Putnam Management (and not the fund) pays PIL a quarterly sub-management fee for its services at the annual rate of 0.40% of the funds’ average weekly assets, if any, that PIL manages from time to time.an Allocated Sleeve.

Under the terms of the sub-management contract, PIL, at its own expense, furnishes continuously an investment program for the portion of each fund that Putnam Management allocates to PIL from time to time and makes investment decisions on behalf of these portions of the fund, subject to Putnam Management’s supervision. Putnam Management may also, at its discretion, request PIL to provide assistance with purchasing and selling securities for the fund, including order placement with certain broker-dealers. PIL, at its expense, furnishes all necessary investment and management facilities, including salaries of personnel, required for it to execute its duties.

The sub-management contract provides that PIL is not subject to any liability to Putnam Management, the fund or any shareholder of the fund for any act or omission in the course of or connected with rendering services to the fund in the absence of PIL’s willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of its obligations and duties.

The sub-management contract may be terminated with respect to a fund without penalty by vote of the Trustees or the shareholderstheshareholders of the fund, or by PIL or Putnam Management, on not less than 30 days’ nor more than 60 days’ written notice. The sub-management contract also terminates without payment of any penalty in the event of its assignment. Subject to applicable law, it may be amended by a majority of the Trustees who are not “interested persons” of Putnam Management or the fund. The sub-management contract provides that it will continue in effect only so long as such continuance is approved at least annually by vote of either the Trustees or the shareholders and, in either case, by a majority of the Trustees who are not “interested persons” of Putnam Management or the fund. In each of the foregoing cases, the vote of the shareholders is the affirmative vote of a “majority of the outstanding voting securities” as defined in the 1940 Act.

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Sub-Advisory Contract.PAC has been retained as a sub-adviser for a portion of the assets of Putnam International Equity Fundthe funds identified in the accompanying table (collectively referred to herein as the “PAC Funds”) as determined from time to time by Putnam Management or, with respect to portions of thatsuch fund’s assets for which PIL acts as sub-adviser as described above, by PIL.

PAC serves as sub-adviser under athe sub-advisory agreement among Putnam Management, PIL and PAC.

contract. Pursuant to the terms of the sub-advisory agreement,contract, Putnam Management or, with respect to portions of Putnam International Equitya PAC Fund’s assets for which PIL acts as sub-adviser, PIL (and not the fund) pays a quarterly sub-advisory fee to PAC for its services at the annual rate of 0.10%0.35% of the average aggregate net asset value of the portion of thesuch fund with respect to which PAC acts as sub-adviser.

Under the terms of the sub-advisory contract, PAC, at its own expense, furnishes recommendations to purchase, hold, sell or exchange investments, securities and assetscontinuously an investment program for that portion of Putnam International Equity Funda fund that is allocated to PAC from time to time by Putnam Management or PIL. Putnam Management or PIL, as applicable, determines whether to execute eachand makes investmentdecisions on behalf of such recommendation by PAC, whose activities as sub-adviser areportion of the fund, subject to the supervision of Putnam Management andor PIL, as applicable. PAC, at its expense, furnishes all necessary investment and management facilities, including salaries of personnel, required for it to execute its duties.

The sub-advisory contract provides that PAC is not subject to any liability to Putnam Management, PIL, Putnam International Equitya PAC Fund or any shareholder of thesuch fund for any act or omission in the course of or connected with rendering services to the fund in the absence of PAC’s willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of its obligations and duties.

The sub-advisory contract may be terminated without penalty by vote of the Trustees or the shareholders of Putnam International Equitythe relevant PAC Fund, or by PAC, PIL or Putnam Management, on not less than 30 days’ nor more than 60 days’ written notice. The sub-advisory contract also terminates without payment of any penalty in the event of its assignment. Subject to applicable law, it may be amended by a majority of the Trustees who are not “interested persons” of Putnam Management or the PAC fund. The sub-advisory contract provides that it will continue in effect only so long as its continuance is approved at least annually by vote of either the Trustees or shareholders of the shareholdersrespective PAC Fund and, in either case, by a majority of the Trustees who are not “interested persons” of Putnam Management or the fund.PAC Fund. In each of the foregoing cases, the vote of the shareholdersisshareholders of a PAC Fund is the affirmative vote of a “majority of the outstanding voting securities” as defined in the 1940 Act.

ATo the extent that the Transfer may have constituted a “change of control” that constitutes an assignmentof Putnam Management, terminating automatically the funds’ previous management contracts, willthen the funds’ sub-management contract and the sub-advisory contract would also terminate automaticallyhave terminated. To ensure that your fund did not lose the benefit of PIL’s or PAC’s services, at their in-person meeting held on October 18, 2013, the Trustees approved the continuance of the sub-management contract with PIL and the sub-advisory contract with PIL and PAC. So that your fundThe sub-management contract and sub-advisory contract are not interim in nature and will not lose the benefit of PIL’s or PAC’s services,continue in effect through June 30, 2014. However, as described above, Putnam Management, intendsPIL and PAC intend to enter into a new sub-management contractand sub-advisory contracts contemporaneously with PIL and athe execution of the proposed new sub-advisory contract with PIL and PAC, each identical tomanagement contracts if the current contract except for the effective date. The Trustees have unanimouslynew management contracts are approved these new contracts.by fund shareholders. SeeAppendix FEfor copies of the current sub-management and sub-advisory contracts.

*What did the Trustees consider in evaluating the proposal?proposed new management contracts?

In considering whether to approve the proposed new management contracts, as well as the interim management contracts, the Trustees took into account that they had recently approved the annual continuation of all of the previous management contracts and the sub-management and sub-advisory contracts for the Putnam funds in June 2013. That approval, on which the Trustees voted at an in-person meeting held on June 20 and 21, 2013, followed a lengthy process during which the Trustees considered a variety of factors that the Trustees considered to have a bearing on the contracts.Appendix Fcontains a general description of the Trustees’ deliberations.

At their in-person meeting on October 18, 2013, the Trustees, including the Trustees who are not “interested persons” as defined in the 1940 Act, considered the potential implications of Mr. Desmarais’ death and the Transfer. To address the possibility that the Transfer constituted an assignment of the funds’ management contracts, on October 18, 2013, the Trustees unanimously voted to approve interim management contractsfor the funds. The Trustees considered that, except for the effective date (October 8, 2013) and duration (until the earlier of either (i) March 7, 2014 (which, pursuant to Rule 15a-4 under the 1940 Act, represents the maximum allowable 150-day duration of an interim management contract) or (ii) the effective date of new management contracts that have been approved by fund shareholders, unless the Securities and Exchange Commission or its staff permits the contracts’ continuance through a later date), the interim management contracts were identical to the funds’ previous management contracts. Under the interim management contracts, Putnam Management provides investment advisory services to each fund on essentially the same terms and conditions, and for the same fees, as it did under the previous management contracts.

On November 21 and 22, 2013, the Trustees met in person on October 12 and 13, 2006 to discuss further the implicationsTransfer and the possibility that a change of a possible salecontrol of Putnam Investments in light of a decision made by its parent company, Marsh & McLennan, to explore the possibility of a sale. At this meeting, the Trustees considered information relating to the operations, competitive position in the mutual fund industry and recent history of a number of firms thatManagement had indicated to Marsh & McLennan a preliminary interest in acquiring Putnam Investments. During the course of this meeting, the Trustees received presentations on these matters from two consultants with recognized expertise in the mutual fund industry. In addition, the Trustees reviewed information about recent significant acquisitions in the mutual fund industry and considered the possible effects of a sale transaction on Putnam Management and the rest of the Putnam organization.occurred. The Trustees received a report from the chief executive officer of Marsh & McLenn an and considered analyst reports relating to Marsh & McLennan and its ownership of Putnam Investments. The Trustees also received advice from their independent legal counsel regarding their responsibilities in evaluating a possible sale transaction.

The Trustees actively monitored the sale process throughout the period leading up to the public announcement of a final sale agreement on February 1, 2007. The Trustees discussed developments at telephone meetings on October 18, October 25, November 1, November 29, December 20, January 12, January 18, and February 5, and at their regular in-person meetings on November 9-10, December 14-15, January 11-12, February 8-9, and March 8-9. The Trustees who are not affiliated with Putnam Investments met separately to discuss these matters during most of these meetings.

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Mr. Haldeman, the only Trustee affiliated with Putnam Investments, participated in portions of these meetings to provide the perspective of the Putnam organization, but did not otherwise participate in the deliberations of the Trustees regarding a possible sale.

Over the course of these meetings, the Trustees discussed and developed general principles to guide their evaluation of a possible sale transaction. Following the emergence of a number of interested bidders by early November 2006, the Trustees conducted due diligence on these bidders with the assistance of their independent legal counsel. The Trustees communicated their perspectives on these bidders to Marsh & McLennan and also submitted specific requests for information to be provided by bidders. After learning in December 2006 that Marsh & McLennan was negotiating exclusively with Power Financial and Lifeco, the Trustees focused their diligence efforts on Power Financial and Lifeco.

On January 2, 2007, a committee of the Trustees, together with their independent legal counsel, met with representatives of Power Financial and Lifeco to discuss the proposal to acquire Putnam Investments and responses to the Trustees’ diligence requests. The Trustees were advised in this meeting that Power Financial and Lifeco intended to maintain Putnam Investments as a separate, stand-alone organization under the Putnam brand and to retain Putnam Investments’ current management team. Power Financial and Lifeco expressed their intention to maintain the quality of services that the Putnam organization currently provides to the funds and the funds’ current cost structure. At the same time, they indicated their intention, consistent with this commitment, to pursue opportunities for improving the profitability of the Putnam organization. Power Financial and Lifeco indicated interest in pursuing the possibility of making the Putnam funds and other Putnam Investments products available through cer tain of their distribution channels, but indicated that no significant operational changes were envisioned. Power Financial and Lifeco also raised the possibility of using Putnam Investments’ distribution network to distribute certain of the products of one or more of the Power Financial or Lifeco companies. The Trustees noted that these proposals may benefit Lifeco and may also enable Putnam Investments to allocate the costs of its distribution network across a greater number of products. At this meeting, the Trustees reviewed with Power Financial and Lifeco the role and operation of the Board of Trustees, emphasizing its historical independence and activism in such areas as fees andexpenses, regulatory issues, quality of service provided by Putnam to the funds, soft dollars and proxy voting. On January 10, 2007, Ms. Baxter, Vice Chairman of the Trustees and the Chairman of the Contract Committee, also met with a representative of Power Financial and Lifeco for further d iscussion of these matters. At a telephonic meeting on January 18, 2007, the Trustees received a presentation on the terms of the proposed sale and unanimously expressed their support for the proposed sale, subject to their review of final agreements.

Mr. Hill, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, met with the Chairman and Co-Chief Executive Officer and the President and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Power Corporation of Canada and the Chairman of the Board and the President and Chief Executive Officer of Power Financial on January 28, 2007 to further discuss the role of the Board of Trustees in overseeing the funds and Power Financial’s and Lifeco’s commitment to the Putnam brand, to Putnam Investments’ management team, and to support Putnam Investments’ management team and the team’s strategy following the transaction with the aim of minimizing disruption and change for the Putnam shareholders. Following the public announcement of the transaction on February 1, 2007, the Trustees received a report from Putnam Investments on the final terms of the transaction at a telephonic meeting on February 5, 2007.

At an in-person meeting on February 8-9, 2007, the Trustees received further presentations regarding the final terms of the transaction. At this meeting, the Trustees considered the approval of new management contracts for each fund, proposed to become effective upon the closingtheir execution following approval by shareholders, as well as calling a special meeting of the sale,fund shareholders and the filing of a preliminary proxy statement. At an in-person meeting on March 8-9, 2007, the Trustees considered the approval of the final forms of the proposed new management contracts for each fund and the proxy statement. They reviewed the terms of the proposed new management contracts and the differences between the proposed new management contracts and the current management contracts (and administrative services contracts,disclosure included in the case of Putnam Municipal Opportunities Trust and Putnam Prime Money Market Fund).preliminary proxy statement. They noted that, as described above, the terms of the proposed new management contracts were substantially identical to the currentprevious management contracts, except for the effective dates and initial terms and for certain changes develop ed at the initiative ofnon-substantive changes. In particular, the Trustees considered:

• Information about the operations of The Desmarais Family Residuary Trust, including that Paul Desmarais, Jr. and designed largelyAndré Desmarais, Mr. Desmarais’ sons, were expected to address inconsistencies among variousexercise, jointly, voting control over the Power Corporation of the existing contracts, whichCanada shares controlled by The Desmarais Family Residuary Trust.

• That Paul Desmarais, Jr. and André Desmarais had been developed and implementedplaying active managerial roles at different timesPower Corporation of Canada, with responsibility for the oversight of Power Corporation of Cana-da’s subsidiaries, including Putnam Investments, since Power Corporation of Canada had acquired Putnam Investments in the past. (These differences are described elsewhere in this proxy statement.)

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In considering the approval of the proposed new management contracts, the Trustees also considered the following matters:

(i) their belief that the transaction will not adversely affect the Putnam funds, and by addressing uncertainty regarding the ownership2007, including serving as Directors of Putnam Investments, should enhanceand that the Transfer would not affect their responsibilities as officers of Power Corporation of Canada.

• The intention expressed by representatives of Power Corporation of Canada, Power Financial Corporation, and Great-West Lifeco that there would be no change to the operations or management of Putnam Investments, to Putnam Management’s management of the funds or to investment, advisory and other services provided to the funds by Putnam Management and its affiliates as a result of the Transfer.

• Putnam Management’s assurances that, following the Transfer, Putnam Management would continue to provide the same level of services to each fund and that the Transfer will not have an adverse impact on the ability of Putnam Management and

• The commitment of Putnam Investments;

(vii) Power Financial’s and Lifeco’s commitment to maintaining competitive compensation arrangements to allow the Putnam organization to attract and retain highly qualified personnel;

(viii) that the current senior management team at Putnam Investments has indicated its strong support of the transaction; and

(ix) the commitments of Marsh & McLennan and Lifeco to bear alla reasonable share of the expenses incurred by the Putnam funds in connection with the transaction,Transfer, including allone-half of the costs associated with this proxy solicitation.

Finally, in considering the proposed new management contracts, the Trustees also took into account their deliberations and conclusions in connection with their most recent annual approval of the continuance of the funds’ management contracts effective July 1, 2006, and the extensive materials that they had reviewed in connection with that approval process. Appendix Gcontains a summary description of the matters considered by the Trustees in connection with that approval.solicitation (see page [ ] below).

Based upon the foregoing considerations, on March 9, 2007,the Trustees concluded that, to eliminate any ambiguity as to the status of your fund’s management contract, it was in the best interests of your fund’s shareholders to call a special meeting so that shareholders may approve a new management contract with Putnam Management and Putnam Management can continue as your fund’s investment adviser. On November 22, 2013, the Trustees, including all of the Trustees present who are not “interested persons” of the funds or Putnam Investments, unanimously approved the proposed new management contracts and determined to recommend their approval to the shareholders of the Putnam funds.

*Additional Information Regarding Potential Interests of Certain Trustees in the Transaction

Charles E. Haldeman, Jr., a Trustee of the funds, serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Putnam Investments. Mr. Haldeman is also a stockholder of Putnam Investments Trust as a result of various equity compensation grants made to him in recent years. On March 15, 2005, Putnam Investments Trust granted Mr. Haldeman 210,635 shares of class B common stock pursuant to the Putnam Investments Trust Equity Partnership Plan. With respect to this grant, Mr. Haldeman’s shares vest over a four-year period, with 25% of the shares vesting on each anniversary of the grant, although vesting may be accelerated under certain circumstances if Mr. Haldeman’s employment with Putnam terminates. On September 29, 2005, Mr. Haldeman participated in the Putnam Option Exchange Program, in which holders of eligible options to purchase class B common stock were permitted to elect to exchange their options for restricted shares of class B common stock with a value equal to the value of the exchanged options. Mr. Haldeman was granted 14,226 restricted shares of class B common stock in exchange for an option to purchase 99,200 shares of

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class B common stock. On March 15, 2006, Putnam Investments Trust granted Mr. Haldeman 111,693 restricted shares of class B common stock for his performance in 2005. With respect to such grant, Mr. Haldeman’s shares vest over a four-year period, with 25% of the shares vesting on each anniversary of the grant. On March 15, 2006, Mr. Haldeman received an additional grant of 314,136 restricted shares of class B common stock and an option to purchase 510,638 shares as a special grant as a result of his employment contract with Marsh & McLennan. With respect to each such grant, Mr. Haldeman’s shares vest 10%, 20%, 30% and 40% over the next four years, subject to acceleration provisions based on investment performance. Mr. Haldeman also holds other restricted shares of class B common stock from grants in years prior to 2005, and it is expected that an additional grant of such restricted shares will be made in March 2007.

As a result of his interests in the stock of Putnam Investments Trust as described above, Mr. Haldeman will benefit directly from the sale of your fund’s investment adviser to Lifeco in an estimated amount of approximately $54 million, which is the value of his holdings in Putnam Investments Trust stock and stock options. Approximately 37% of this amount will be paid at the closing of the transaction and the remainder will be paid, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, over a three-year period. In addition, Mr. Haldeman has agreed to amend his employment agreement with Putnam Investments, which will remain in effect following the transaction with Lifeco, among other things, to defer his right to terminate his employment as a result of the transaction and receive severance payments (equal to two times his 2006 total compensation, or approximately $26 million), and Putnam Investments Trust has agreed to pay Mr. Haldeman additional incentive compensation of $8.5 million in the future, continge nt upon the achievement of certain specified business objectives.

In addition to the interests described above, Mr. Haldeman currently owns 33,334 vested shares and 42,554 unvested shares, which will vest when the transaction with Lifeco closes, of stock and options to purchase 89,350 shares of stock of Marsh & McLennan and may benefit indirectly from the sale of your fund’s investment adviser to Lifeco to the extent of his interests in Marsh & McLennan.

George Putnam, III, is the President of your fund as well as a Trustee. Mr. Putnam is also a stockholder of Marsh & McLennan. As of December 31, 2006, he and his children own in the aggregate 12,110 shares of Marsh & McLennan. In addition, Mr. Putnam serves as a trustee of trusts holding in the aggregate 102,317 shares of Marsh & McLennan; Mr. Putnam is a likely beneficiary of these trusts. Mr. Putnam is also a director of a charitable organization that owns 12,000 shares of Marsh & McLennan in which Mr. Putnam has no economic interest. In addition, certain other members of Mr. Putnam’s family own in the aggregate 518,846 shares of Marsh & McLennan in which Mr. Putnam has no current economic interest. Mr. Putnam may benefit indirectly from the sale of your fund’s investment adviser to Lifeco to the extent of his interests in shares of Marsh & McLennan.

*What is the voting requirement for approving the proposal?

Approval of your fund’s proposed new management contract requires the affirmative vote of a “majority of the outstanding voting securities” of the fund, which is defined under the 1940 Act to bethe lesser of(a) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the fund, or (b) 67% or more of the shares of the fund present (in person or by proxy) at the special meeting if more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the fund are present at the meeting in person or by proxy.The Trustees including a majorityunanimously recommend that shareholders vote FOR the proposed new management contracts.

2. ELECTING TRUSTEES

Affected funds:All open-end funds (i.e. all funds except Putnam High Income Securities Fund, Putnam Managed Municipal Income Trust, Putnam Master Intermediate Income Trust, Putnam Municipal Opportunities Trust, and Putnam Premier Income Trust)

Who are the nominees for Trustees?

The Board Policy and Nominating Committee of the Board is responsible for making recommendations concerning the nominees for Trustees of your fund. The Board Policy and Nominating Committee consists solely of Trustees who are not “interested persons” (as defined in the 1940 Act) of yourfund. Those Trustees who are not “interested persons” of your fund are referred to as “Independent Trustees” in this Section II. of this proxy statement.

The Board, based on the recommendation of the Board Policy and Nominating Committee, has fixed the number of Trustees of your fund at 14 and recommends that you vote for the election of the nominees described in the following pages. Each nominee is currently a Trustee of your fund and of the other Putnam funds.

Your fund does not regularly hold an annual shareholder meeting, but may from time to time schedule a special meeting. Except for Putnam Asia Pacific Equity Fund and Putnam International Value Fund, each of which held a special meeting in 2011, the last such meeting was held in 2009.

Biographical Information For The Fund’s Nominees.

The Board’s nominees for Trustees and their backgrounds are shown in the following pages. This information includes each nominee’s name, year of birth, principal occupation(s) during the past 5 years, and other information about the nominee’s professional background, including other directorships the nominee holds. Each Trustee oversees all of the Putnam funds and serves until the election and qualification of his or her successor, or until he or she sooner dies, resigns, retires, or is removed. The address of all of the Trustees is One Post Office Square, Boston, Massachusetts 02109. As of September 30, 2013, there were 116 Putnam funds.

Independent Trustees

Liaquat Ahamed(Born 1952)
Trustee since 2012

Mr. Ahamed is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author ofLords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the World. His articles on economics have appeared in the New York Times, ForeignAffairs, and the Financial Times.

Mr. Ahamed serves as a director of Aspen Insurance Co., a New York Stock Exchange company, and is the Chair of the Aspen Board’s Investment Committee. He is a Trustee of the Brookings Institution, where he serves as Chair of the Investment Committee. He is also a director of the Rohatyn Group, an emerging-market fund complex that manages money for institutions. Mr. Ahamed was previously the Chief Executive Officer of Fischer Francis Trees & Watts, Inc., a fixed income investment management subsidiary of BNP Paribas. He was formerly the head of the investment division at the World Bank, and is a member of the Foreign Affairs Policy Board of the U.S. Department of State.

Mr. Ahamed holds a B.A. in economics from Trinity College, Cambridge University and an M.A. in economics from Harvard University.

Ravi Akhoury(Born 1947)
Trustee since 2009

Mr. Akhoury serves as a Trustee of the Rubin Museum, serving on the Investment Committee, and of the American India Foundation. Mr. Akhoury is also a Director ofRAGE Frameworks, Inc. and English Helper, Inc. (each a private software company).

Previously, Mr. Akhoury served as a Director of Jacob Ballas Capital India (a non-banking finance company focused on private equity advisory services) and a member of its Compensation Committee. He was also a Director and on the Compensation Committee of MaxIndia/New York Life Insurance Company in India. He was also Vice President and Investment Policy Committee member of Fischer Francis Trees & Watts, a fixed income investment management firm. He has also served on the Board of Bharti Telecom (an Indian telecommunications company), serving as a member of its Audit and Compensation Committees, and as a Director and member of the Audit Committee on the Board of Thompson Press (a publishing company). From 1992 to 2007, he was Chairman and CEO of MacKay Shields, a multi-product investment management firm with over $40 billion in assets under management.

Mr. Akhoury graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology with a B.S. in Engineering and obtained an M.S. in Quantitative Methods from SUNY at Stony Brook.

Barbara M. Baumann(Born 1955)
Trustee since 2010

Ms. Baumann is President and Owner of Cross Creek Energy Corporation, a strategic consultant to domestic energy firms and direct investor in energy projects.

Ms. Baumann currently serves as a Director of SM Energy Company (a publicly held U.S. exploration and production company) and UNS Energy Corporation (a publicly held electric and gas utility in Arizona). She is a director of Cody Resources management (a private company in the energy and ranching businesses). Ms. Baumann is a Trustee of Mount Holyoke College. She is a former Chair of the Board and a current Board member of Girls Inc. of Metro Denver, and serves on the Finance Committee of The Children’s Hospital of Colorado, as well as the Investment Committee of The Denver Foundation.

Until May 2012, Ms. Baumann was a Director of CVR Energy (a publicly held petroleum refiner and fertilizer manufacturer). Prior to 2003, Ms. Baumann was Executive Vice President of Associated Energy Managers, a domestic private equity firm. From 1981 until 2000, she held a variety of financial and operational management positions with the global energy company Amoco Corporation and its successor, BP, most recently serving as Commercial Operations Manager of its Western Business Unit.Ms. Baumann holds an M.B.A. from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. from Mount Holyoke College.

Jameson A. Baxter(Born 1943)
Trustee since 1994, Vice Chair from 2005 to2011 and Chair since 2011

Ms. Baxter is the President of Baxter Associates, Inc., a private investment firm.

Ms. Baxter serves as Chair of the Mutual FundDirectors Forum, Director of the Adirondack Land Trust and Trustee of the Nature Conservancy’s Adirondack Chapter. Until 2011, Ms. Baxter was a director of ASHTA Chemical, Inc. Until 2007, she was a Director of Banta Corporation (a printing and supply chain management company), Ryerson, Inc. (a metals service corporation), and Advocate Health Care. She has also served as a director on a number of other boards, including BoardSource (formerly the National Center for Nonprofit Boards), Intermatic Corporation (a manufacturer of energy control products), and MB Financial. She is Chair Emeritus of the Board of Trustees of Mount Holyoke College, having served as Chair for five years.

Ms. Baxter has held various positions in investment banking and corporate finance, including Vice President of and Consultant to First Boston Corporation and Vice President and Principal of the Regency Group. She is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College.

Charles B. Curtis(Born 1940)
Trustee since 2001

Mr. Curtis serves as Senior Advisor to the Center for Strategic and International Studies and is President Emeritus of the Nuclear Threat Initiative (a private foundation dealing with nationalsecurity issues).

Mr. Curtis is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the U.S. State Department International Security Advisory Board. He also serves as a Director of Edison International and Southern California Edison.

Mr. Curtis is an attorney with over 15 years in private practice and 19 years in various positions in public service, including service at the Department of Treasury, the U.S. House of Representatives, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Department of Energy.

Robert J. Darretta(Born 1946)
Trustee since 2007

Mr. Darretta serves as Director of UnitedHealth Group, a diversified health-care company.

Until April 2007, Mr. Darretta was Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Johnson & Johnson,one of the world’s largest and most broadly based health-care companies. Prior to 2007, he had responsibility for Johnson & Johnson’s finance, investor relations, information technology, and procurement functions. He served as Johnson & Johnson Chief Financial Officer for a decade, prior to which he spent two

years as Treasurer of the corporation and over 10 years leading various Johnson & Johnson operating companies. From 2009 until 2012, Mr. Darretta served as the Health Care Industry Adviser to Permira, a global private equity firm.

Mr. Darretta received a B.S. in Economics from Villanova University.

Katinka Domotorffy(Born 1975)
Trustee since 2012

Ms. Domotorffy is a voting member of the Investment Committee of the Anne Ray Charitable Trust, part of the Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies. She also serves as the Vice Chairof Reach Out and Read of Greater New York, an organization dedicated to promoting childhood literacy.

Until December 2011, Ms. Domotorffy was Partner, Chief Investment Officer, and Global Head of Quantitative Investment Strategies at Goldman Sachs Asset Management.

Ms. Domotorffy holds a BSc in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania and an MSc in Accounting and Finance from the London School of Economics.

John A. Hill(Born 1942)
Trustee since 1985 and Chairman from 2000to 2011

Mr. Hill is founder and Vice-Chairman of First Reserve Corporation, the leading private equity buyout firm specializing in the world-wide energy industry, with offices in Greenwich, Connecticut; Houston, Texas; London, England; and Hong Kong, China. The firm’s investments on behalf of some of the nation’s largest pension and endowment funds are currently concentrated in 31 companies with annual revenues in excess of $15 billion, which employ over 100,000 people in 23 countries.

Mr. Hill is a Director of Devon Energy Corporation (a leading independent natural gas and oil exploration and production company) and various private companies owned by First Reserve, and serves as a Trustee of Sarah Lawrence College where he serves as Chairman and also chairs the Investment Committee. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of the Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership at The Columbia University Law School.

Prior to forming First Reserve in 1983, Mr. Hill served as President of F. Eberstadt and Company, an investment banking and investment management firm. Between 1969 and 1976, Mr. Hill held various senior positions in Washington, D.C. with the federal government, including Deputy Associate Director of the Office of Management and Budget and Deputy Administrator of the Federal Energy Administration during the Ford Administration.

Born and raised in Midland, Texas, he received his B.A. in Economics from Southern Methodist University and pursued graduate studies as a Woodrow Wilson Fellow.

Paul L. Joskow(Born 1947)
Trustee since 1997

Dr. Joskow is an economist and President of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation (a philanthropic institution focused primarily on research and education on issues related to science,technology, and economic performance). He is the Elizabeth and James Killian Professor of Economics, Emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he joined the faculty in 1972. Dr. Joskow was the Director of the Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research at MIT from 1999 through 2007.

Dr. Joskow serves as a Trustee of Yale University, as a Director of TransCanada Corporation (an energy company focused on natural gas transmission, oil pipelines, and power services) and of Exelon Corporation (an energy company focused on power services), and as a member of the Board of Overseers of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Prior to August 2007, he served as a Director of National Grid (a UK-based holding company with interests in electric and gas transmission and distribution and telecommunications infrastructure). Prior to July 2006, he served as President of the Yale University Council. Prior to February 2005, he served on the Board of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research (a non-profit research institution). Prior to February 2002, he was a Director of State Farm Indemnity Company (an automobile insurance company), and prior to March 2000, he was a Director of New England Electric System (a public utility holding company).

Dr. Joskow has published seven books and numerous articles on industrial organization, government regulation of industry, and competition policy. He is active in industry restructuring, environmental, energy, competition, and privatization policies — having served as an advisor to governments and corporations worldwide. Dr. Joskow holds a Ph.D. and M.Phil. from Yale University and a B.A. from Cornell University.

Kenneth R. Leibler(Born 1949)
Trustee since 2006

Mr. Leibler is a founder and former Chairman of the Boston Options Exchange, an electronic marketplace for the trading of derivative securities.

Mr. Leibler currently serves on the Board of Trustees of Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Boston. He is also a Director of Northeast Utilities, which operates New England’s largest energy delivery system, and, until November 2010, was a Director of Ruder Finn Group, a global communications and advertising firm. Prior to December 2006, he served as a Director of the Optimum Funds group. Prior to October 2006, he served as a Director of ISO New England, the organization responsible for the operation of the electric generation system in the New England states. Prior to 2000, Mr. Leibler was a Director of the Investment Company Institute in Washington, D.C.

Prior to January 2005, Mr. Leibler served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Boston Stock Exchange. Prior to January 2000, he served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Liberty Financial Companies, a publicly traded diver-sified asset management organization. Prior to June 1990, Mr. Leibler served as President and Chief Operating Officer of the American Stock Exchange (AMEX), and at the time was the youngest person in AMEX history to hold the title of President. Prior to serving as AMEX President, he held the position of Chief Financial Officer, and headed its management and marketing operations. Mr. Leibler graduated with a degree in Economics from Syracuse University.

Robert E. Patterson(Born 1945)
Trustee since 1984

Mr. Patterson is Co-Chairman of Cabot Properties, Inc. (a private equity firm investing in commercial real estate) and Chairman of its Investment Committee.

Mr. Patterson is past Chairman and served as a Trustee of the Joslin Diabetes Center. He previously was a Trustee of the Sea Education Association. Prior to December 2001, Mr. Patterson was President and Trustee of Cabot Industrial Trust (a publicly traded real estate investment trust). Prior to February 1998, he was Executive Vice President and Director of Acquisitions of Cabot Partners Limited Partnership (a registered investment adviser involved in institutional real estate investments). Prior to 1990, he served as Executive Vice President of Cabot, Cabot & Forbes Realty Advisors, Inc. (the predecessor company of Cabot Partners).

Mr. Patterson practiced law and held various positions in state government, and was the founding Executive Director of the Massachusetts Industrial Finance Agency. Mr. Patterson is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School.

George Putnam, III(Born 1951)
Trustee since 1984

Mr. Putnam is Chairman of New Generation Research, Inc. (a publisher of financial advisory and other research services), and President of New Generation Advisors, LLC (a registeredinvestment adviser to private funds). Mr. Putnam founded the New Generation companies in 1986.

Mr. Putnam is a Director of The Boston Family Office, LLC (a registered investment adviser). He is a Trustee of Epiphany School and a Trustee of the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Prior to June 2007, Mr. Putnam was President of the Putnam funds. Until 2010, he was a Trustee of St. Mark’s School, until 2006, he was a Trustee of Shore Country Day School, and until 2002, he was a Trustee of the Sea Education Association.

Mr. Putnam previously worked as an attorney with the law firm of Dechert LLP (formerly known as Dechert Price & Rhoads) in Philadelphia. He is a graduate of Harvard College, Harvard Business School, and Harvard Law School.

W. Thomas Stephens(Born 1942)
Trustee from 1997 to 2008, and since 2009

Mr. Stephens retired as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Boise Cascade, LLC (a paper, forest products and timberland assets company) in December 2008.

Mr. Stephens is a Director of TransCanada Pipelines, Ltd. (an energy infrastructure company).Until 2010, Mr. Stephens was a Director of Boise Inc. (a manufacturer of paper and packaging products). Until 2004, Mr. Stephens was a Director of Xcel Energy Incorporated (a public utility company), Qwest Communications and Norske Canada, Inc. (a paper manufacturer). Until 2003, Mr. Stephens was a Director of Mail-Well, Inc. (a diversified printing company). He served as Chairman of Mail-Well until 2001 and as CEO of MacMillan-Bloedel, Ltd. (a forest products company) until 1999.

Prior to 1996, Mr. Stephens was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Johns Manville Corporation (a manufacturing company). He holds B.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of Arkansas.

Interested Trustee*

Robert L. Reynolds(Born 1952)
Trustee since 2008 and President of the
Putnam funds since July 2009

Mr. Reynolds is President and Chief Executive Officer of Putnam Investments, a member of Putnam Investments’ Executive Board ofDirectors, and President of the Putnam funds. He has more than 30 years of investment and financial services experience.

Prior to joining Putnam Investments in 2008, Mr. Reynolds was Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer of Fidelity Investments from 2000 to 2007. During this time, he served on the Board of Directors for FMR Corporation, Fidelity Investments Insurance Ltd., Fidelity Investments Canada Ltd., and Fidelity Management Trust Company. He was also a Trustee of the Fidelity Family of Funds. From 1984 to 2000, Mr. Reynolds served in a number of increasingly responsible leadership roles at Fidelity.

Mr. Reynolds serves on several not-for-profit boards, including those of the West Virginia University Foundation, Concord Museum, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Boston Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of the Chief Executives Club of Boston, the National Innovation Initiative, and the Council on Competitiveness, and he is a former President of the Commercial Club of Boston.

Mr. Reynolds received a B.S. in Business Administration/Finance from West Virginia University.

* Trustee who is an “interested person” as defined in the 1940 Act of the fund and Putnam Management. Mr. Reynolds is deemed an “interested person” by virtue of his position as an officer of the fund and Putnam Management. Mr. Reynolds is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Putnam Investments and the President of your fund and each of the other Putnam funds.

The Board Policy and Nominating Committee is responsible for recommending proposed nominees for election to the Board of Trustees for its approval. In recommending the election or appointment of the current Board members as Trustees, the Committee generally considered the educational, business and professional experience of each Trustee in determining his or her qualifications to serve as a Trustee of the fund, including the Trustee’s record of service as a director or trustee of public and private organizations. This included, as applicable, their previous service as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Putnam funds, during which they have demonstrated a high level of diligence and commitment to the interests of fund shareholders and the ability to work effectively and collegially with other members of the Board. The Committee also considered, among other factors, the particular attributes described below with respect to the various individual Trustees.

Independent Trustees:

Liaquat Ahamed — Mr. Ahamed’s experience as Chief Executive Officer of a major investment management organization and as head of the investment division at the World Bank, as well as his experience as an author of economic literature.

Ravi Akhoury — Mr. Akhoury’s experience as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of a major investment management organization.

Barbara M. Baumann — Ms. Baumann’s experience in the energy industry as a consultant, an investor, and in both financial and operational management positions at a global energy company, and her service as a director of three NYSE companies.

Jameson A. Baxter — Ms. Baxter’s experience in corporate finance acquired in the course of her career at a major investment bank, her experience as a director and audit committee chair of two NYSE companies and her role as Chair of the Mutual Fund Directors Forum.

Charles B. Curtis — Mr. Curtis’s experience in public and regulatory policy matters relating to energy and finance acquired in the course of his service in various senior positions in government and on numerous boards of public and private organizations.

Robert J. Darretta — Mr. Darretta’s experience as the Chief Financial Officer and Vice Chairman of the board of a major NYSE health products company.

Katinka Domotorffy — Ms. Domotorffy’s experience as Chief Investment Officer and Global Head of Quantitative Investment Strategies at a major asset management organization.

John A. Hill — Mr. Hill’s experience as founder and Chairman of an open-end mutual fund and as a founder and lead managing partner of one of the largest private equity firms in the United States.

Paul L. Joskow — Dr. Joskow’s education and experience as a professional economist familiar with financial economics and related issues and his service on multiple for-profit boards.

Kenneth R. Leibler — Mr. Leibler’s extensive experience in the financial services industry, including as Chief Executive Officer of a major asset management organization, and his service as a director of various public and private companies.

Robert E. Patterson — Mr. Patterson’s training and experience as an attorney and his experience as president of a NYSE company.

George Putnam, III — Mr. Putnam’s training and experience as an attorney, his experience as the founder and Chief Executive Officer of an investment management firm and his experience as an author of various publications on the subject of investments.

W. Thomas Stephens — Mr. Stephens’s extensive business experience, including his service as Chief Executive Officer of four public companies, as non-executive chairman of two public companies and as a director of numerous other public companies.

Interested Trustee:

Robert L. Reynolds — Mr. Reynolds’s extensive experience as a senior executive of one of the largest mutual fund organizations in the United States and his current role as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Putnam Investments.

Each of the nominees has agreed to serve as a Trustee, if elected. If any of the nominees is unavailable for election at the time of the special meeting, which is not anticipated, the Trustees may vote for other nominees at their discretion, or the Trustees may fix the number of Trustees at fewer than 14 for your fund.

What are the Trustees’ responsibilities?

Your fund’s Trustees are responsible for the general oversight of your fund’s affairs and for assuring that your fund is managed in the best interests of its shareholders. The Trustees regularly review your fund’s investment performance as well as the quality of other services provided to your fund and its shareholders by Putnam Management and its affiliates, including administration, distribution and shareholder servicing. At least annually, the Trustees review and evaluate the fees and operating expenses paid by your fund for these services and negotiate changes if they deem it appropriate. In carrying out these responsibilities, the Trustees are assisted by an independent administrative staff and by your fund’s auditors, independent counsel and other experts as appropriate, selected by and responsible to the Trustees.

Board Leadership Structure.Currently, 13 of the 14 Trustees of your fund are Independent Trustees. These Independent Trustees must vote separately to approve all financial arrangements and other agreements with your fund’s investment manager and other affiliated parties. The role of the Independent Trustees has been characterized as that of a “watchdog” charged with oversight to protect shareholders’ interests against overreaching and abuse by those who are in a position

to control or influence a fund. Your fund’s Independent Trustees meet regularly as a group in executive session. An Independent Trustee currently serves as chair of the Board.

Board Committees.Taking into account the number, the diversity and the complexity of the funds overseen by the Board and the aggregate amount of assets under management, your fund’s Trustees have determined that the efficient conduct of the Board’s affairs makes it desirable to delegate responsibility for certain specific matters to committees of the Board. Certain committees (the Executive Committee, Distributions Committee and Audit and Compliance Committee) are authorized to act for the Trustees as specified in their charters. The other committees review and evaluate matters specified in their charters and make recommendations to the Trustees as they deem appropriate. Each committee may utilize the resources of your fund’s auditors, independent staff and counsel as well as other experts. The committees meet as often as necessary, either in conjunction with regular meetings of the Trustees or otherwise. The membership and chair of each committee are appointed by the Trustees upon recommendation of the Board Policy and Nominating Committee. Each committee is chaired by an Independent Trustee and, except as noted below, the membership and chairs of each committee consist exclusively of Independent Trustees.

The Trustees have determined that this committee structure also allows the Board to focus more effectively on the oversight of risk as part of its broader oversight of the fund’s affairs. While risk management is the primary responsibility of the fund’s investment manager, the Trustees regularly receive reports regarding investment risks and compliance risks. The Board’s committee structure allows separate committees to focus on different aspects of these risks and their potential impact on some or all of the funds and to discuss with the fund’s investment manager how it monitors and controls such risks.

Audit and Compliance Committee.The Audit and Compliance Committee provides oversight on matters relating to the preparation of the Putnam funds’ financial statements, compliance matters, internal audit functions, and Codes of Ethics issues. This oversight is discharged by regularly meeting with management and the funds’ auditors and keeping current on industry developments. Duties of this Committee also include the review and evaluation of all matters and relationships pertaining to the funds’ auditors, including their independence. Information about the fees billed to the fund by the funds’ auditors, as well as information about the Committee’s pre-approval policies relating to the work performed by the funds’ auditors, is included inAppendix Gof this proxy statement. The members of the Committee include only Independent Trustees. Each member of the Committee also is “independent,” as that term is interpreted for purposes of Rule 10A-3(b)(1) of the Exchange Act, and the listing standards of the New York Stock Exchange. The Board has adopted a written charter for the Committee, a current copy of which is available at putnam.com/about-putnam/. TheCommittee currently consists of Messrs. Leibler (Chairperson), Curtis, Darretta and Hill and Mses. Baumann and Domotorffy.

Board Policy and Nominating Committee.The Board Policy and Nominating Committee reviews matters pertaining to the operations of the Board and its committees, the compensation of the Trustees and their staff, and the conduct of legal affairs for the Putnam funds. The Committee also oversees the voting of proxies associated with portfolio investments of the Putnam funds, with the goal of ensuring that these proxies are voted in the best interest of each fund’s shareholders.

The Committee evaluates and recommends all candidates for election as Trustees and recommends the appointment of members and chairs of each Board committee. The Committee also identifies prospective nominees for election as Trustee by considering individuals that come to its attention through the recommendation of current Trustees, Putnam Management or shareholders. Candidates properly submitted by shareholders (as described below) will be considered and evaluated on the same basis as candidates recommended by other sources. The Committee may, but is not required to, engage a third-party professional search firm to assist it in identifying and evaluating potential nominees.

When evaluating a potential candidate for membership on the Board, the Committee considers the skills and characteristics that it determines would most benefit the Putnam funds at the time the evaluation is made. The Committee may take into account a wide variety of attributes in considering potential Trustee candidates, including, but not limited to: (i) availability and commitment of a candidate to attend meetings and perform his or her responsibilities to the Board, (ii) other board experience, (iii) relevant industry and related experience, (iv) educational background, (v) financial expertise, (vi) an assessment of the candidate’s ability, judgment and expertise, (vii) an assessment of the perceived needs of the Board and its committees at that point in time and (viii) overall Board composition. The Committee generally believes that the Board benefits from diversity of background, experience and views among its members, and considers this as a factor in evaluating the composition of the Board, but has not adopted any specific policy in this regard. In connection with this evaluation, the Committee will determine whether to interview prospective nominees, and, if warranted, one or more members of the Committee, and other Trustees and representatives of the funds, as appropriate, will interview prospective nominees in person or by telephone. Once this evaluation is completed, the Committee recommends such candidates as it determines appropriate to the Independent Trustees for nomination, and the Independent Trustees select the nominees after considering the recommendation of the Committee.

The Committee will consider nominees for Trustee recommended by shareholders of a fund provided shareholders submit their recommendations by the date disclosed in the paragraph entitled “Date for receipt of shareholders’ proposals

for subsequent meetings of shareholders” in the section “Further Information About Voting and the Special Meeting,” and provided the shareholders’ recommendations otherwise comply with applicable securities laws, including Rule 14a-8 under the Exchange Act.

The Committee consists only of Independent Trustees. The Trustees have adopted a written charter for the Board Policy and Nominating Committee, a current copy of which is available at putnam.com/about-putnam/. The Board Policy and Nominating Committee currently consists of Messrs. Hill (Chairperson), Curtis, Patterson and Putnam and Ms. Baxter.

Brokerage Committee.The Brokerage Committee reviews the Putnam funds’ policies regarding the execution of portfolio trades and Putnam Management’s practices and procedures relating to the implementation of those policies. The Committee reviews periodic reports on the cost and quality of execution of portfolio transactions and the extent to which brokerage commissions have been used (i) by Putnam Management to obtain brokerage and research services generally useful to it in managing the portfolios of the funds and of its other clients, and (ii) by the funds to pay for certain fund expenses. The Committee reports to the Trustees and makes recommendations to the Trustees regarding these matters. The Committee currently consists of Dr. Joskow (Chairperson), Ms. Baxter and Messrs. Ahamed, Akhoury, Patterson, Putnam and Stephens.

Contract Committee.The Contract Committee reviews and evaluates at least annually all arrangements pertaining to (i) the engagement of Putnam Management and its affiliates to provide services to the Putnam funds, (ii) the expenditure of the funds’ assets for distribution purposes pursuant to Distribution Plans of the funds, and (iii) the engagement of other persons to provide material services to the funds, including in particular those instances where the cost of services is shared between the funds and Putnam Management and its affiliates or where Putnam Management or its affiliates have a material interest. The Committee also reviews the proposed organization of new fund products, proposed structural changes to existing funds and matters relating to closed-end funds. The Committee reports and makes recommendations to the Trustees regarding these matters. The Committee currently consists of Mr. Patterson (Chairperson), Dr. Joskow, Ms. Baxter and Messrs. Ahamed, Akhoury, Putnam and Stephens.

Distributions Committee.The Distributions Committee oversees all dividends and distributions by the Putnam funds. The Committee makes recommendations to the Trustees of the funds regarding the amount and timing of distributions paid by the funds, and determines such matters when the Trustees are not in session. The Committee also oversees the policies and procedures pursuant to which Putnam Management prepares recommendations for distributions, and meets regularly with representatives of Putnam Management to review the implementation of these policies and procedures. The Committee reports to the Trustees and makes recommendations to theTrustees regarding these matters. The Committee currently consists of Ms. Baumann (Chairperson), Ms. Domotorffy and Messrs. Curtis, Darretta, Hill and Leibler.

Executive Committee.The functions of the Executive Committee are twofold. The first is to ensure that the Putnam funds’ business may be conducted at times when it is not feasible to convene a meeting of the Trustees or for the Trustees to act by written consent. The Committee may exercise any or all of the power and authority of the Trustees when the Trustees are not in session. The second is to establish annual and ongoing goals, objectives and priorities for the Board, and to ensure coordination of all efforts between the Trustees and Putnam Management on behalf of the shareholders of the funds. The Committee currently consists of Ms. Baxter (Chairperson) and Messrs. Hill, Leibler, Patterson and Putnam.

Investment Oversight Committees.The Investment Oversight Committees regularly meet with investment personnel of Putnam Management to review the investment performance and strategies of the Putnam funds in light of their stated investment objectives and policies. The Committees seek to identify any compliance issues that are unique to the applicable categories of funds and work with the appropriate Board committees to ensure that any such issues are properly addressed. Investment Oversight Committee A currently consists of Messrs. Akhoury (Chairperson), Ahamed, Darretta, Hill, Patterson and Reynolds and Ms. Baxter. Investment Oversight Committee B currently consists of Messrs. Putnam (Chairperson), Curtis, Leibler and Stephens, Dr. Joskow and Mses. Baumann and Domotorffy.

Pricing Committee.The Pricing Committee oversees the valuation of assets of the Putnam funds and reviews the funds’ policies and procedures for achieving accurate and timely pricing of fund shares. The Committee also oversees implementation of these policies, including fair value determinations of individual securities made by Putnam Management or other designated agents of the funds. The Committee also oversees compliance by money market funds with Rule 2a-7 under the 1940 Act and the correction of occasional pricing errors. The Committee also reviews matters related to the liquidity of portfolio holdings. The Committee reports to the Trustees and makes recommendations to the Trustees regarding these matters. The Committee currently consists of Messrs. Darretta (Chairperson), Curtis, Hill and Leibler and Mses. Baumann and Domotorffy.

How large a stake do the Trustees have in the Putnam family of funds?

The Trustees allocate their investments among the Putnam funds based on their own investment needs. The number of shares beneficially owned by each nominee for Trustee, as well as the value of each nominee’s holdings in each fund and in all of the Putnam funds as of September 30, 2013 is included inAppendix H. As a group, the Trustees owned shares of the Putnam funds valued at approximately $[[ ]] million, as of September 30, 2013.

As of September 30, 2013, to the knowledge of your fund, each Trustee, and the officers and Trustees of the fund as a group, owned less than 1% of the outstanding shares of each class of each fund, except as listed inAppendix H.

How can shareholders communicate with the Trustees?

The Board provides a process for shareholders to send communications to the Trustees. Shareholders may direct communications to the Board as a whole or to specified individual Trustees by submitting them in writing to the following address:

Written communications must include the shareholder’s name, be signed by the shareholder, refer to the Putnam fund(s) in which the shareholder holds shares and include the class and number of shares held by the shareholder as of a recent date.

Representatives of the funds’ transfer agent will review all communications sent to Trustees and, as deemed appropriate, will provide copies and/or summaries of communications to the Trustees.

How often do the Trustees meet?

The Trustees currently hold regular in-person meetings eight times each year, usually over a two-day period, to review the operations of the Putnam funds. A portion of these meetings is devoted to meetings of various committees of the Board that focus on particular matters. Each Independent Trustee generally attends at least two formal committee meetings during each regular meeting of the Trustees. In addition, the Trustees meet in small groups with senior investment personnel and portfolio managers to review recent performance and the current investment climate for selected funds. These meetings ensure that fund performance is reviewed in detail on at least an annual basis. The committees of the Board, including the Executive Committee, may also meet on special occasions as the need arises. During calendar year 2012, the average Trustee participated in approximately 37 committee and Board meetings.

The number of times each committee met during calendar year 2012 is shown in the table below:

The funds do not have a formal policy with respect to Trustee attendance at shareholder meetings, although, where possible, the Chair of the Trustees generally seeks to attend all meetings involving non-routine business matters. With the exception of Putnam Asia Pacific Equity Fund, Putnam High Income Securities Fund, Putnam International Value Fund, Putnam Managed Municipal Income Trust, Putnam Master Intermediate Income Trust, Putnam Municipal Opportunities Trust and Putnam Premier Income Trust, your fund’s Trustees other than John A. Hill did not attend the last shareholder meeting of your fund. The Trustees are generally represented at routine shareholder meetings by their independent staff and independent counsel.

What are some of the ways in which the Trustees represent shareholder interests?

Among other ways, the Trustees seek to represent shareholder interests:

• by reviewing your fund’s investment performance with your fund’s investment personnel;

• by discussing with senior management of Putnam Management steps being taken to address any performance deficiencies;

• by reviewing the quality of the various other services provided to your fund and its shareholders by Putnam Management and its affiliates;

• by reviewing in depth the fees paid by each fund and by negotiating with Putnam Management, if appropriate, to ensure that such fees remain reasonable and competitive with those of comparable funds, while at the same time providing Putnam Management sufficient resources to continue to provide high quality services in the future;

• by reviewing brokerage costs and fees, allocations among brokers, soft dollar expenditures and similar expenses of your fund;

• by monitoring potential conflicts of interest between the Putnam funds, including your fund, and Putnam Management and its affiliates to ensure that the funds continue to be managed in the best interests of their shareholders; and

• by monitoring potential conflicts among funds managed by Putnam Management to ensure that shareholders continue to realize the benefits of participation in a large and diverse family of funds.

What are the Trustees paid for their services?

Each Independent Trustee of the fund receives an annual retainer fee and additional fees for each Trustee meeting attended and for certain related services. Independent Trustees also are reimbursed for expenses they incur relating to their service as Trustees. All of the current Independent Trustees of the fund are Trustees of all of the Putnam funds and receive fees for their services.

The Trustees periodically review their fees to ensure that the fees continue to be appropriate in light of their responsibilities as well as in relation to fees paid to trustees of other mutual fund complexes. The Board Policy and Nominating Committee, which consists solely of Independent Trustees of the fund, estimates that committee and Trustee meeting time, together with the appropriate preparation, requires the equivalent of at least four business days per Trustee meeting. The table found inAppendix Iincludes the year each Trustee became a Trustee of the Putnam funds, the fees paid to each of those Trustees by each fund included in this proxy statement for its most recent fiscal year (ended prior to October 1, 2013) and the fees paid to each of those Trustees by all of the Putnam funds during calendar year 2012.

Under a Retirement Plan in effect for Trustees of the Putnam funds elected to the Board before 2003 (the “Plan”), each eligible Trustee who retires with at least five years of service as a Trustee of the funds is entitled to receive an annual retirement benefit equal to one-half of the average annual attendance and retainer fees paid to such Trustee for calendar years 2003, 2004 and 2005. This retirement benefit is payable during a Trustee’s lifetime, beginning the year following retirement, for the number of years of service through December 31, 2006. A death benefit, also available under the Plan, ensures that the Trustee and his or her beneficiaries will receive benefit payments for the lesser of an aggregate period of (i) ten years or (ii) such Trustee’s total years of service.

The Plan Administrator (currently the Board Policy and Nominating Committee) may terminate or amend the Plan at any time, but no termination or amendment will result in a reduction in the amount of benefits (i) currently being paid to a Trustee at the time of such termination or amendment, or (ii) to which a current Trustee would have been entitled had he or she retired immediately prior to such termination or amendment. The Trustees have terminated the Plan with respect to any Trustee first elected to the Board after 2003.

Why should you vote for your fund’s nominees?

Your current Trustees are independent, experienced, and highly qualified fiduciaries who exercise strong fund governance practices.

Independent

• The Chair of your fund, Jameson Baxter, is independent of Putnam Management and has served on the Board for nearly 20 years. She also serves as the Chair of the Mutual Fund Directors Forum, which provides educational and outreach programs for independent directors;

• 13 of the 14 Trustees are independent of Putnam Management; and

• The Independent Trustees are assisted by an independent administrative staff and legal counsel who are selected by the Independent Trustees and are independent of Putnam Management.

Highly Qualified

• The Trustees have significant current and past related industry experience, and have a demonstrated history of actively pursuing the interests of the fund’s shareholders; and

• The Board includes individuals with substantial professional accomplishments and prior experience in a variety of fields, including investment management, economics, finance, energy, health care, manufacturing, national security and real estate; and

Strong Governance Practices

• The Board includes a combination of long-tenured and newer members, bringing diverse perspectives to fund oversight;

• The Board has a well-established committee and oversight structure for the Putnam funds, including your fund, which has been developed over a long period of time; and

• The fund does not have a staggered board structure or other takeover defenses.

What is the voting requirement for electing Trustees?

All of the funds within a trust will vote together on the election of Trustees as a single class. If a quorum for your trust is present at the special meeting, the fourteen nominees for election as Trustees who receive the greatest number of votes cast at the meeting will be elected as Trustees of your trust. The table inAppendix Nincludes each Trust, and if applicable, its constituent series.The Trustees unanimously recommend that shareholders vote “FOR” the election of your fund’s nominees.

3. APPROVING AN AMENDED AND RESTATED DECLARATION OF TRUST FOR YOUR FUND

Affected funds:All open-end funds (i.e. all funds except Putnam High Income Securities Fund, Putnam Managed Municipal Income Fund, Putnam Master Intermediate Income Trust, Putnam Municipal Opportunities Trust, and Putnam Premier Income Trust)

Each Putnam fund is organized as a series of a Massachusetts business trust or as a stand-alone Massachusetts business trust (each, a “Trust”). Each Trust is governed by a declaration of trust established under the laws of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The declaration of trust sets forth, among other things, details regarding the organization and operation of a fund, shareholder rights, powers of the Trustees and the characteristics of fund shares.

The Putnam funds affected by this proposal currently operate under thirty-eight distinct declarations of trust (each a “Current Declaration” and together, the “Current Declarations”). The Current Declarations were created at different times in the past and differ from each other in a number of ways. These differences create certain inefficiencies in the operations of the Putnam funds that can be disadvantageous to the funds and their shareholders. In addition, the terms of many of the Current Declarations do not provide for the flexibility and the

same limitations of liabilities that more recent declarations of trust provide to many other mutual funds organized as Massa-chusetts business trusts and to their trustees and officers. The Trustees of your fund believe that the adoption of a single form of Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust (the “Revised Declaration”) for each Trust will, among other things: (i) provide the Trustees and Putnam Management increased flexibility in managing the affairs of the funds in an efficient and cost-effective manner in the best interests of shareholders; (ii) modernize and streamline certain corporate governance provisions, potentially resulting in a reduction or elimination of costs and delays over time and a reduction in the risks and costs of litigation; and (iii) eliminate certain ambiguities in and among the Current Declarations. On the basis of these and other considerations noted below, the Trustees recommend that shareholders of your Fund vote to authorize the Trustees to adopt the Revised Declaration, a form of which is included herein asAppendix M.

The discussion below highlights certain differences between the Current Declarations and the Revised Declaration. The most significant changes are described below under the caption “Significant Changes.” There are other differences between the Revised Declaration and the Current Declarations, mostly in the nature of clarifying and conforming changes, certain of which are described below under the caption “Other Changes.” Because there are many variations among the Current Declarations, not all of the changes described below will necessarily pertain to your fund. In addition, not all of the differences between the Current Declarations and the Revised Declaration are described below, so you should carefully review the form of the Revised Declaration inAppendix M. For a copy of your fund’s Current Declaration, you may call Putnam Investments at (800) 225-1581. Your fund’s Current Declaration is also on file with the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Significant Changes

1. Class Reorganizations and Terminations (all funds)

Each Current Declaration permits the Trustees to divide the shares of any series into one or more classes. The Trustees have historically used this power to create classes of shares that reflect different methods of distribution. It may be desirable at some point in the future for the Trustees discontinue certain share classes, in which case it may be desirable to reorganize the shares of a discontinued class with another series or class or to liquidate the shares of such class. The Revised Declaration (Article III, Section 1) clarifies the Trustees’ authority to combine shares of two or more classes of a fund into a single class without shareholder approval. Likewise, the Revised Declaration (Article IX, Section 5) permits the Trustees to authorize the reorganization of a class (by way of merger, consolidation or sale of assets) with another entity (including another series or class) without shareholder approval to the extent permitted by law. Finally, the Revised Declaration permits the Trustees to terminate and liquidate a particular class without shareholderapproval. These additional powers are intended to provide the Board the flexibility to implement changes in a fund’s class structure that it believes to be in the shareholders’ best interests, without causing the funds to incur the time and expense of soliciting shareholder approval. Putnam Management has advised the Trustees that it has no present intention of proposing any changes in the current class structure of the funds.

2. Derivative Actions and Exclusive Selection of Forum for Certain Shareholder Actions (all funds)

The Revised Declaration (Article III, Section 6) provides that a shareholder may not bring or maintain any court action, proceeding or claim on behalf of a Trust without first making demand on the Trustees requesting the Trustees to bring the action. The Current Declarations do not contain a similar provision, although Massachusetts courts have generally imposed a similar demand requirement in the past based on the Trustees’ inherent authority to manage all affairs of the Trust, including the bringing of litigation on behalf of the Trust. This requirement also conforms to a recent change in Massachusetts law applicable to business corporations requiring that demand be made in all circumstances. The requirement for shareholder demand is intended to prevent the potential disruption and expense that could result when a shareholder attempts to bring a suit that the Trustees in their judgment do not believe would be in the best interests of a Trust. The effect of these changes may be to discourage suits brought on behalf of the funds by shareholders against Putnam Management or the Trustees, but is not intended to affect any right of shareholders to bring actions in their own name.

The Revised Declaration (Article III, Section 7) also provides that any action brought by a shareholder seeking to enforce any right or privilege of shareholders under the Revised Declaration, challenging the powers of the Trustees thereunder, alleging a breach of fiduciary duty by any Trustee or officer of a Trust, or otherwise involving primarily the internal affairs of a Trust may be brought only in the courts of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Current Declarations do not contain a similar provision. This proposed change is intended to ensure that the courts of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts will be the exclusive forum in which certain lawsuits against a fund, its Trustees or officers may be brought. In recent years, lawsuits against mutual funds and their officers and directors have often been brought and decided outside of a fund’s state of organization. Forum selection provisions can benefit funds and their shareholders by reducing the cost and disruption of multi-forum litigation (i.e.,litigation brought by shareholders simultaneously in different forums that challenges the same action) and limiting the ability of plaintiffs’ lawyers to seek out judicial forums that are particularly favorable to plaintiffs’ actions, sometimes referred to as “forum shopping.” Forum selection provisions are intended to permit a fund and its shareholders to benefit from the special expertise and long history of Massachusetts courts in dealing with declarations of trust governing the affairs of entities organized as Massachusetts business trusts. This provision would not, however, limit the

ability of plaintiffs to bring actions outside of Massachusetts with respect to claims that do not fall within the scope of the forum selection provision, such as claims based on violations of federal securities law, contract claims or tort claims.

3. Removal of a Trustee (all funds)

The Revised Declaration (Article IV, Section 2) provides that a Trustee may be removed by the vote of two-thirds of the remaining Trustees or by the vote of two-thirds of a fund’s outstanding shares. Under the Current Declarations, the only mechanism for removing a Trustee is by the vote of two-thirds of the fund’s outstanding shares. This change is intended to increase administrative efficiency by providing Trustees the authority to remove a Trustee without causing the funds to incur the time and expense of soliciting shareholder approval. A Trustee would only be removed if the remaining Trustees deem such removal as necessary to ensure the effective operation of the Board or otherwise serve the best interests of shareholders, for example, to deal with the situation of a trustee who has become incapacitated, who refuses to resign in accordance with the Board’s retirement policy, or who has become involved in personal or business-related legal matters that could call into question his or her continuing fitness to serve. The ability of the Board to remove a Trustee without shareholder action is also consistent with recent changes in Massachusetts law applicable to business corporations.

4. Involuntary Redemptions (all funds)

The Current Declarations generally provide that the Trustees have the power to redeem the shares of any shareholder if either (i) the shareholder owns fewer shares than, or shares having an aggregate net asset value less than, an amount determined from time to time by the Trustees (the current minimum is 20 shares) or (ii) the shareholder owns shares of the fund in excess of a maximum amount set by the Trustees. In addition to these circumstances, the Revised Declaration (Article VI, Section 3) permits a fund to make involuntary redemptions in certain additional circumstances, including: (i) if a shareholder fails to supply appropriate personal and tax identification information requested by the fund; (ii) if a shareholder fails to meet or maintain the qualifications for ownership of a particular series or class; (iii) to collect a small account fee imposed on certain accounts (as described further below); or (iv) if the Trustees determine for any other reason, in their sole discretion, that the ownership of fund shares by a shareholder is not in the best interests of the remaining shareholders of the Trust or of the applicable series or class. A fund will provide advance notice to a shareholder of the intention to redeem shares involuntarily.

It is common for mutual funds to pay transfer agent and other shareholder servicing costs that are incurred in whole or in part on a per account basis. As a result, having a large number of relatively small shareholder accounts can potentially increase a fund’s expense ratio, with larger shareholders bearing a disproportionate amount of such costs. The Current Declarations already permitthe Trustees to redeem all shares held in an account falling below a number fixed by the Trustees. The Revised Declaration would provide the Trustees the additional flexibility to impose fees on accounts that do not meet a minimum investment amount and to redeem shares in any such account in an amount required to pay such fees. This would allow a fund to cause those shareholders who maintain small accounts to bear a fair portion of the costs of maintaining small accounts in lieu of redeeming such accounts altogether. A fund will provide advance notice to shareholders of its intention to impose fees on accounts that do not exceed a minimum investment size. Any such action would be subject to approval by the Trustees on such terms as they consider to be in the best interests of all shareholders.

5. Indemnification of Trustees, Officers, etc. (all funds)

The Revised Declaration (Article VIII, Section 2) modifies certain provisions relating to the availability of indemnification to the Trust’s Trustees and officers (including persons who serve at the Trust’s request as directors, officers or trustees of another organization in which the Trust has any interest as a shareholder, creditor or otherwise) (each a “Covered Person”). Under the Revised Declaration, a Covered Person would not be indemni-fied with respect to any matter as to which such person had been finally adjudicated (i) not to have acted in good faith, (ii) not to have acted in the reasonable belief that his or her action was in the best interest of a Trust or at least was not opposed to the best interest of the Trust, (iii) in the case of a criminal proceeding, to have had reasonable cause to believe his or her action was unlawful, or (iv) to be liable by reason of such person’s willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of his or her duties (referred to below as “Disabling Conduct”). The Current Declarations contain a similar provision but do not expressly permit indemnification in circumstances where such person has been finally adjudicated to have acted in good faith in the reasonable belief that his or her action was not opposed to the best interest of the Trust. The Current Declarations also do not contain the exception noted above for criminal proceedings. These changes are intended to conform to recent changes in law applicable to Massachusetts corporations.

The Revised Declaration (Article VIII, Section 1) also adds a provision that creates a rebuttable presumption in favor of a Covered Person when determining whether there is reason to believe the Covered Person ultimately will be entitled to indem-nification and hence may receive advancements of expenses in connection with indemnification. The Revised Declaration provides that the persons making determinations concerning advance payments will afford the Covered Person a rebuttable presumption that he or she did not engage in Disabling Conduct. This rebuttable presumption is consistent with recent guidance of the Securities and Exchange Commission staff. The Revised Declaration both provides greater certainty to Trustees and other indemnified persons as to the circumstances where they might be denied indemnification, and makes it less likely in most circumstances that a Covered Person will be denied

indemnification. The Trustees believe that providing for indem-nification to the extent permitted by law is consistent with best corporate practices and will aid in attracting and retaining high quality members of the Board.

6. Limitation of Liability (all funds)

The Revised Declaration (Article VIII, Sections 1 and 2) clari-fies that the duties, obligations and liability imposed upon a Trustee that is appointed, designated or identified as an officer of the fund or a member of any committee of the Trustees, or as an expert with respect to certain matters (including an audit committee financial expert), or a Trustee who has special skills or expertise shall be the same as those imposed on a Trustee in the absence of such appointment, designation, identifica-tion or expertise. The Revised Declaration also clarifies that no such appointment, designation, identification or expertise would affect any right or privilege to which the Trustee would otherwise be entitled as a Trustee, including the right to indem-nification. While the Current Declarations do not address the standard of care with respect to Trustees with special skills or designations, nothing herein is intended to suggest that a different result was intended by the Current Declarations.

In the Security and Exchange Commission’s 2003 adopting release for disclosure requirements related to the “audit committee financial expert” designation, the Securities and Exchange Commission stated that “[w]e find no support in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act or in related legislative history that Congress intended to change the duties, obligations or liability of any audit committee member, including the audit committee financial expert, through this provision.” Although this is persuasive guidance, the standard of care imposed on a Trustee is primarily a matter governed by Massachusetts law rather than by federal law or regulations. The proposed change is intended to provide an extra safeguard for the Trustees in the event of litigation, making it clear that one standard of liability applies for all Trustees without regard to designation of additional responsibilities or titles or any actual or implied individual expertise or qualifications. By providing greater clarity regarding the applicable standard of care, the Trustees hope to reduce the uncertainties associated with potential litigation and enhance the ability of the funds to attract and retain high quality members of the Board.

7. Merger, Consolidation, Sale of Assets and Other Reorganizations (all funds)

The Revised Declaration (Article VIII, Section 5) permits the Trustees to authorize various types of reorganization transactions in which a Trust, or a series or class, may be combined with another entity, typically another mutual fund. Such transactions are typically contemplated when a fund has declined in size to a point where it is no longer able to operate at an efficient cost level or to effectively distribute its shares, to reduce existing overlap in portfolios within the same asset class of a family of funds, and to change a fund’s investment philosophy,among others. For most funds, the Current Declarations already permit the Trustees to sell or exchange all or substantially all of the assets of the Trust without shareholder authorization, but is otherwise silent with regard to other types of reorganization transactions. However, in the case of those Affected Funds listed below, shareholder authorization is explicitly required before any sale or exchange of all or substantially all of the assets of the Trust or before any merger or consolidation of the Trust with any other trust or corporation.

The proposed changes would expand the authority of the Trustees to authorize reorganization transactions without shareholder approval where permitted by applicable law. The proposed changes would permit the Trustees to make decisions they believe are in the shareholders’ best interests when considering a reorganization of a Trust (or a series or class of the Trust) without causing a Trust to incur the time and expense of soliciting shareholder approval, unless the law otherwise requires it.

Any exercise of the Trustees’ increased authority under the Revised Declaration would be subject to the Trustees’ general fiduciary responsibilities to act in the best interests of all shareholders and subject to the requirements of applicable law, including the 1940 Act. For example, Rule 17a-8 under the 1940 Act requires reorganizations involving affiliated funds to be approved by the shareholders of the trust or series being acquired unless certain conditions are satisfied. Because of this regulatory requirement, some transactions will continue to require shareholder approval. Should shareholders approve the Revised Declaration, shareholders would not have the right to vote under the trust’s organizational document on any reorganization that may be effected without a shareholder vote pursuant to Rule 17a-8, unless the Trustees determined that it would be appropriate in the circumstance to permit shareholders to vote on the reorganization.

Affected Funds: Putnam Convertible Securities Fund, The Putnam Fund for Growth and Income, The George Putnam Fund of Boston (d/b/a George Putnam Balanced Fund), Putnam Global Equity Fund, Putnam Income Fund, Putnam Investors Fund, and Putnam Voyager Fund are currently not permitted to engage in any form of reorganization without shareholder approval; the remaining open-end funds would be affected only by the additional authority to engage in mergers or consolidations.

8. Redemption Fees (listed funds only)

The Revised Declaration (Article VI, Section 3) makes explicit that fees or charges may be imposed on shares being redeemed. Such fees or charges would typically be applied in circumstances where the Trustees believe that such fees are necessary or appropriate to protect non-redeeming shareholders from the transaction costs associated with redemptions, for example, during periods of market turmoil resulting in reduced trading liquidity. While the Current Declarations for most funds state that the Trustees may impose redemption fees, the declarations of trust of the Affected Funds listed below do not explicitly contemplate this power. In order to conform your fund’s Current Declaration with the majority of the Putnam funds’ declarations of trust and to avoid

any ambiguity with respect to the ability of a fund to impose redemption fees, the Trustees believe it is prudent to make this power explicit in each fund’s Revised Declaration.

Affected Funds: Putnam American Government Income Fund, Putnam California Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Convertible Securities Fund, Putnam Equity Income Fund, Putnam Global Equity Fund, Putnam Global Health Care Fund, Putnam Global Income Trust, Putnam Global Natural Resources Fund, Putnam High Yield Advantage Fund, Putnam High Yield Trust, Putnam Income Fund, Putnam International Equity Fund, Putnam Investors Fund, Putnam Massachusetts Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Michigan Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Minnesota Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Money Market Fund, Putnam New York Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Ohio Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam U.S. Government Income Trust, and Putnam Voyager Fund.

9. In-Kind Redemptions and Distributions (listed funds only)

The Revised Declaration (Article VI, Section 2) clarifies that redemption and distribution payments made to shareholders may be made in cash, fund shares or other property, or a combination thereof, as determined by the Trustees. While the Current Declarations for most funds expressly permit the Trustees to make redemption payments in property other than cash or fund shares (e.g., a fund’s portfolio securities), the Current Declarations for the Affected Funds listed below do not explicitly contemplate such an “in-kind” redemption or distribution. The Trustees believe that standardizing the provisions relating to in-kind redemptions and distributions across the funds’ declarations of trust would enhance efficiency in administering the Putnam funds. The Trustees expect that the flexibility to pay redemptions in-kind would be used only in extraordinary circumstances, for example, to ensure that transaction costs associated with unusually large and unanticipated redemptions or large redemptions during periods of unusually limited market liquidity are not borne by all other fund shareholders. In addition, if the Revised Declaration is approved by a trust, the trust intends to file an election with the Securities and Exchange Commission under Rule 18f-1 under the 1940 Act, which will commit the trust to pay in cash in all cases involving requests for redemption by a single shareholder during any 90-day period of up to the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the relevant fund’s net asset value measured at the beginning of the 90-day period.

Affected Funds for In-Kind Distributions: Putnam American Government Income Fund, Putnam AMT-Free Municipal Fund, Putnam California Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Convertible Securities Fund, Putnam Diversified Income Trust, Putnam Equity Income Fund, The Putnam Fund for Growth and Income, The George Putnam Fund of Boston (d/b/a George Putnam Balanced Fund), Putnam Global Equity Fund, Putnam Global Health Care Fund, Putnam Global Income Trust, Putnam Global Natural Resources Fund, Putnam High Yield AdvantageFund, Putnam High Yield Trust, Putnam Income Fund, Putnam International Equity Fund, Putnam Investors Fund, Putnam New York Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Massachusetts Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Michigan Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Minnesota Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Money Market Fund, Putnam Ohio Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Tax-Free High Yield Fund, Putnam U.S. Government Income Trust, and Putnam Voyager Fund.

Affected Fund for In-Kind Redemptions: Putnam American Government Income Fund, Putnam AMT-Free Municipal Fund, Putnam Arizona Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam California Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Capital Opportunities Fund, Putnam Convertible Securities Fund, Putnam Diversi-fied Income Trust, Putnam Dynamic Asset Allocation Balanced Fund, Putnam Dynamic Asset Allocation Conservative Fund, Putnam Dynamic Asset Allocation Growth Fund, Putnam Equity Income Fund, Putnam Europe Equity Fund, The Putnam Fund for Growth and Income, The George Putnam Fund of Boston (d/b/a George Putnam Balanced Fund), Putnam Growth Opportunities Fund, Putnam Global Equity Fund, Putnam Global Health Care Fund, Putnam Global Income Trust, Putnam Global Natural Resources Fund, Putnam Global Utilities Fund, Putnam High Yield Advantage Fund, Putnam High Yield Trust, Putnam Income Fund, Putnam International Capital Opportunities Fund, Putnam International Equity Fund, Putnam International Growth Fund, Putnam Investors Fund, Putnam Massachusetts Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Michigan Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Minnesota Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Money Market Fund, Putnam Multi-Cap Growth Fund, Putnam Multi-Cap Value Fund, Putnam New Jersey Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam New York Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Ohio Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Pennsylvania Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Research Fund, Putnam Small Cap Value Fund, Putnam U.S. Government Income Trust, Putnam Tax Exempt Income Fund, Putnam Tax Exempt Money Market Fund, Putnam Tax-Free High Yield Fund, and Putnam Voyager Fund.

10. Amendment of the Declaration of Trust (all funds)

Under the Revised Declaration (Article VIII, Section 8), the Trustees have the authority to amend the declaration of trust without shareholder approval if (i) the amendment would be for the purpose of changing the name of the Trust or curing any omission, ambiguity, defect or inconsistency or (ii) the amendment would not, in the judgment of the Trustees, have a material adverse effect on the shareholders of any series or class of shares. In contrast, the Current Declarations for most funds permit the Trustees to amend the declaration of trust without shareholder authorization only for the purpose of changing the name of the trust or curing any omission, ambiguity, defect or inconsistency. (In the case of The George Putnam Fund of Boston (d/b/a George Putnam Balanced Fund) and The Putnam Fund for Growth and Income, the Current Declarations permit the

Trustees to amend the declaration of trust without shareholder authorization to change the name of the Trust only in certain limited circumstances.) The proposed changes would expand, to a certain extent, the Trustees’ authority to amend a declaration of trust without obtaining a shareholder vote. The proposed changes are designed to give the Trustees the flexibility to react quickly to future contingencies, changes to applicable law or other changes, and to take action without causing the Trust to incur the time and expense of soliciting shareholder approval. These situations could arise as a result of regulatory changes or changes in markets or mutual fund structures generally. In addition, any exercise of this power by the Trustees would be subject to their general fiduciary responsibilities to act in the best interests of all shareholders.

Where a shareholder vote is required to authorize an amendment of the Revised Declaration, approval requires the affirmative vote of at least a majority of shares voted, subject to applicable quorum requirements and applicable law. Under the Current Declarations, approval requires a vote of at least a majority of the outstanding shares entitled to vote on the matter. Obtaining the favorable vote of a majority of the outstanding shares can be difficult and expensive when shareholders do not return their proxies in sufficient numbers, even though a substantial majority of those shareholders voting have voted in favor of a proposal. These proposed changes are designed to enhance the ability of the Trustees to obtain shareholder approval of amendments to the declarations of trust provided that the current 30% quorum requirement is satisfied.

Other Changes

In addition to the changes described above, the Revised Declaration would result in numerous minor changes to many of the Current Declarations for the purposes of eliminating immaterial inconsistencies in language and clarifying potential ambiguities. None of these additional changes is considered to have a material impact on the rights and privileges of shareholders and, in many cases, the Trustees would have the power under the Current Declarations to implement such changes in any event without shareholder approval.

What is the voting requirement for approving the proposal?

All of the funds within a Trust will vote together on the Revised Declaration, as a single class. Approval of the Revised Declaration with respect to a Trust requires the vote of a majority of the shares of such Trust outstanding and entitled to vote. If the shareholders of a Trust fail to approve the Revised Declaration, the Current Declaration will remain in effect for that Trust. The table inAppendix Nincludes each Trust, and if applicable, its constituent series.

4. APPROVING AN AMENDMENT TO A FUNDAMENTAL INVESTMENT RESTRICTION WITH RESPECT TO INVESTMENTS IN COMMODITIES

Affected fund:Putnam Dynamic Asset Allocation Conservative Fund only

What is this proposal?

Under the 1940 Act, a fund’s investment policy relating to the purchase and sale of commodities must be fundamental, which means that it can be modified only by a vote of a majority of the fund’s outstanding voting securities. Commodities include physical commodities, such as gold and other metals, agricultural products, and oil, as well as certain financial instruments, such as futures contracts and related options.

Putnam Dynamic Asset Allocation Conservative Fund’s current fundamental investment restriction with respect to investments in commodities states that the fund may not:

Purchase or sell physical commodities unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments.

This restriction shall not prevent the fund from purchasing or selling financial instruments representing interests in commodities (or the values of which are determined by reference to commodities), but which do not involve the delivery of physical commodities to or by the fund, or from entering into financial futures contracts, options, foreign exchange contracts and other financial transactions.

Although the fund’s current restriction expressly permits investments in financial instruments whose values are determined by reference to physical commodities, it generally prohibits direct investment in physical commodities.

The proposed amended fundamental investment restriction would state that your fund may not:

Purchase or sell commodities, except as permitted by applicable law.

This proposal would permit your fund to obtain exposure to commodities, whether through direct investment in physical commodities or through related financial instruments, in the manner Putnam Management deems most efficient, as from time to time authorized by the Trustees.

What effect will amending the current restriction with respect to investments in commodities have on your fund?

Under the proposed fundamental investment restriction, the fund will be able to invest directly in gold and other physical commodities, as well as engage in a variety of transactions involving the use of commodity-linked investments, including commodity-based exchange-traded funds or notes (ETFs or ETNs) and commodity-linked notes, to the extent permitted by law and consistent with the fund’s investment objectives and policies.

Putnam Management believes that this added investment flexi-bility could assist your fund in achieving its investment objective, both because commodities and commodity-linked investments may offer the opportunity for attractive investment returns

and because economic exposure to gold or other commodities through these investments may enhance the ability of the fund to diversify risks, particularly to the extent that the returns of commodities are not correlated with the returns of other asset classes in which the fund invests. The proposed fundamental investment restriction amendment would also align your fund’s investment restriction with the investment restriction of many other Putnam funds, which had the same amendment approved by shareholders in 2009.

The fund intends to continue to qualify for treatment as a regulated investment company (a “RIC”) under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). If the fund qualifies as a RIC, the fund will generally not be subject to federal income tax on income and gains it distributes to its shareholders. In order to maintain its special status as a RIC, the fund must limit any “non-qualifying income” to a maximum of 10% of its annual gross income. Generally, the fund’s investments in commodity-linked derivatives or physical commodities will be limited by this requirement. Putnam Management presently has no specific intention to change the fund’s exposures to commodities or commodity-linked investments in response to the revision of the fund’s investment restriction, but this intention is subject to change based on Putnam Management’s assessment of both market conditions at any given time and those investments most likely to assist your fund in meeting its investment objective.

While commodities and commodity-linked investments offer significant potential benefits to the fund, investment in this asset class presents particular risks as well, as described in the fund’s prospectus. The values of commodities and commodity-linked investments may be highly volatile, and may be subject to a wide variety of risks relevant to particular physical commodities (such as the risks of drought, floods, weather, livestock disease, embargoes, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory developments) to which the markets for other investments are not typically subject. Investments in physical commodities may also involve different custody arrangements and greater custody risks than other types of commodity-related investments. Putnam Management will take these risks into account in determining whether to invest directly in physical commodities.

What are the Trustees recommending?

The Trustees unanimously recommend that shareholders approve an amendment to the fund’s fundamental investment restriction with respect to investments in commodities.

What is the voting requirement for approving the proposal?

Approval of the proposed new management contracts.amendment to the fund’s fundamental investment restriction requires the affirmative vote of “a majority of the outstanding voting securities” of the fund, which is defined under the 1940 Act to bethe lesser of(a) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the fund, or (b) 67% or more of the shares of the fund present (in person or by proxy) at themeeting if more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the fund are present at the meeting in person or by proxy.

5. APPROVING AN AMENDMENT TO A FUNDAMENTAL INVESTMENT POLICY REGARDING DIVERSIFICATION OF INVESTMENTS

13Affected funds:

Putnam Global Consumer Fund
Putnam Global Financials Fund

What is this proposal?

The Trustees recommend that each affected fund adopt a fundamental investment policy to operate as a “non-diversified” fund.

Each affected fund is currently sub-classified as a “diversified” fund for purposes of Section 5(b)(1) of the 1940 Act. As a diver-sified fund, with respect to 75% of its total assets, no more than 5% of each fund’s total assets may be invested in the securities of any single issuer, and it may not hold more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of any single issuer. With respect to the remaining 25% of its total assets, there is no limit on the percentage of assets each fund may invest in the securities of a single issuer or on the outstanding voting securities of an issuer that may be held by each fund. These 1940 Act limits do not apply to securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities, or to securities issued by other investment companies. These limits apply only at the time a fund purchases a security. Each affected fund may exceed these limits if positions it already holds increase in value relative to the rest of the fund’s holdings.

The Trustees, subject to shareholder approval, have approved a change to each affected fund’s sub-classification under the 1940 Act from a “diversified” fund to a “non-diversified” fund under the 1940 Act. The Trustees and Putnam Management believe that changing each affected fund from a diversified fund to a non-diversified fund would give Putnam Investments more flexibility in implementing each fund’s investment strategies, in response to market or industry developments or to changes in Putnam Management’s views about issuers in the relevant sector. The proposed change would also conform the affected funds’ fundamental investment restriction to the standard restriction currently used by Putnam’s other global sector funds, which operate as non-diversified funds.

Each affected fund was originally organized and operated as a non-diversified fund pursuant to the following fundamental investment policy, which matches that of other global sector funds. The policy provides that the fund may not:

With respect to 50% of its total assets, invest in securities of any issuer if, immediately after such investment, more than 5% of the total assets of the fund (taken at current value) would be invested in the securities of such issuer; provided that this limitation does not apply to obligations issued or guaranteed as to interest or principal by the U.S. government or its agencies or instrumentalities or to securities issued by other investment companies.

As discussed above, the affected funds are currently operating as diversified funds. Shareholder approval is required to permit each affected fund to once again operate as a non-diversified fund. If shareholders approve this Proposal, the fundamental investment policy with respect to diversification of investments would be restored and Putnam Management would have the flexibility to operate the affected funds as non-diversified, although it has no immediate plans to alter materially its management of the affected funds.

For each of the affected funds, the proposed change would allow the fund to operate as a non-diversified fund, able to invest more of its assets in the securities of fewer issuers than a diversified fund. The fund would be exposed to non-diversification risk, as its ability to invest more of its assets in the securities of fewer issuers would increase its vulnerability to factors affecting a single investment; therefore, the fund may be more exposed to the risks of loss and volatility than a fund that invests more broadly.

What are the Trustees recommending?

The Trustees unanimously recommend that shareholders approve an amendment to each affected fund’s fundamental investment policy with respect to diversification of investments. What is the voting requirement for approving the proposal?

Approval of this proposal requires the affirmative vote of a “majority of the outstanding voting securities” of the affected fund, which is defined under the 1940 act to bethe lesser of(1) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the affected fund, or (2) 67% or more of the shares of the affected fund present at the meeting if more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the affected fund are present at the meeting in person or by proxy.

Further Information About Voting and the Special Meeting

Meeting Quorum and Methods of Tabulation.The shareholders of each fund vote separately with respect to the proposal. In the caseapproving a new management contract (Proposal 1). The shareholders of all closed-endof the series of a trust vote together as a single class with respect to the election of Trustees (Proposal 2) and approval of an Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust (Proposal 3). Shareholders of Putnam Dynamic Asset Allocation Conservative Fund vote separately with respect to approving an amendment to that fund’s fundamental investment restriction with respect to investments in commodities (Proposal 4), and shareholders of certain funds vote separately with respect to approving an amendment to those funds’ fundamental investment policies with respect to diversification of investments (Proposal 5). Shares of all classes of each fund vote together as a majoritysingle class. Thirty percent of the shares entitled to vote constitutes a quorum for the transaction of business with respect to any proposal at the meeting. In the case of each other fund, 30%special meeting for all funds except Putnam High Income Securities Fund, Putnam Managed Municipal Income Trust, Putnam Master Intermediate Income Trust, Putnam Municipal Opportunities Trust and Putnam Premier Income Trust, for which a majority of the shares entitled to vote constitutes a quorum. Shares of all classes of each fund vote together as a single class. Votes cast by proxy or in person atpersonat the special meeting will be counted by persons appointed by your fund appoints as tellers for the meeting. The tellers will count the total number of votes cast “for” approval of thea proposal for purposes of determining whether sufficient affirmative votes have been cast. Shares represented by proxies that reflect abstentions and “broker non-votes” (i.e.(i.e., shares held by brokers or nominees as to which (i) instructions have not been received from the beneficialbene-ficial owners or the persons entitled to vote and (ii) the broker or nominee does not have the discretionary voting power on a particular matter) will be counted as shares that are present and entitled to vote on the matter for purposes of determining the presence of a quorum.

The documents that authorize Putnam Fiduciary Trust Company or Putnam Investor Services, Inc. to act as Trustee for certain individual retirement accounts (including traditional, Roth and SEP IRAs, 403(b)(7) accounts and Coverdell Education Savings Accounts) provide that if an account owner does not submit voting instructions for his or her shares, Putnam Fiduciary Trust Company or Putnam Investor Services will vote such shares in the same proportions as other shareholders with similar accounts have submitted voting instructions for their shares. Shareholders should be aware that this practice, known as “echo-voting,” may have the effect of increasing the number of shares voted in favor of the proposal (possibly increasing the likelihood that thea proposal will be approved)acted upon (approved or disapproved) and that Putnam Fiduciary Trust Company or Putnam Investor Services, Inc., each of which is an affiliate of Putnam Management, may benefit indirectly from the approval of the proposed new management contracts.

Abstentions

With respect to Proposals 2 and 3, neither abstentions nor broker non-votes have an effect on the outcome of the proposal. With respect to other proposals, abstentions and broker non-votes have the effect of a negative vote onvotes against the proposal. TreatingFor Proposals 1, 4, and 5, treating broker non-votes as negative votes may result in athe proposal not being approved, even though the votes cast in favor would have been sufficient to approve the proposal if some or all of the broker non-votes had been withheld. In certain circumstances in which a fund has receivedsufficient votes to approve a matter being recommended for approval by the fund’s Trustees, the fund may request that brokers and nominees, in their discretion, withhold or withdraw submission of broker non-votes in order to avoid the need for solicitation of additional votes in favor of the proposal. A fund may also request that selected brokers and nominees, in their discretion, submit broker non-votes, if doing so is necessary to obtain a quorum.

Shareholders who object to any proposal in this Proxy Statement will not be entitled under Massachusetts law or the Agreement and Declaration of Trust of the particular Putnam fund to demand payment for, or an appraisal of, their shares.

Special Rule for Proportional Voting(for Putnam High Yield Municipal Trust, Putnam Investment Grade Municipal Trust, Putnam Managed Municipal Income Trust Putnam Municipal Bond Fund and Putnam Municipal Opportunities Trust).Trust.For funds listed on the New York Stock Exchange that have outstanding preferred shares, in accordance with the rules of the New York Stock Exchange,exchange, brokerage firms may vote for or against (or against)

a proposal, on behalf of their clients who beneficially own the remarketed or auction rate preferred shares and from whom they have not received voting instructions, in the same proportion as votes for and against(and against) such proposal have been received from holders of preferred shares if (i) the holders of a minimum of 30% of the outstanding preferred shares have been voted by the holders of preferred shares, (ii) the holders of less than 10% of the outstanding preferred shar esshares have voted against thesuch proposal, and (iii) the holders of the common shares have approved thesuch proposal.

Other business.The Trustees know of no matters other than those described in this proxy statement to be brought before the special meeting. If, however, any other matters properly come before the special meeting, proxies will be voted on suchthese matters in accordance with the judgment of the persons named in the enclosed form of proxy.

proxy card(s).

Simultaneous meetings.The special meeting of shareholders of your fund is called to be held at the same time as the meetings of shareholders of certain of the other Putnam funds. It is anticipated that all special meetings will be held simultaneously.

If any shareholder at the special meeting objects to the holding of a simultaneous meeting and moves for an adjournment of the meeting to a time promptly after the simultaneous meetings, the persons named as proxies will vote in favor of such adjournment.

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Information for all Putnam fundsexceptfunds that are series of Putnam Variable Trust

Solicitation of proxies.In addition to soliciting proxies by mail, the Trustees of your fund and employees of Putnam Management Putnam Fiduciary Trust Company and Putnam Retail ManagementInvestor Services, as well as their agents, may solicit proxies in person or by telephone. Your fund may arrange to have a proxy solicitation firm call you to record your voting instructions by telephone. The procedures for voting proxies by telephone are designed to authenticate shareholders’ identities, to allow them to authorize the voting of their shares in accordance with their instructions, and to confirm that their instructions have been properly recorded. Shareholders would be called at the phone number Putnam Management or Putnam Investor Services has in its records for their accounts (or that Putnam Management or Putnam Investor Services obtains from agents acting on behalf of financial intermediaries, in the case of shares held in street name through a bank, broker or other financial intermediary) and would be given an opportunity to authenticate their identities and to authorize the proxies to vote their shares at the special meeting in accordance with their instructions. To ensure that shareholders’ instructions have been recorded correctly, they will also receive a confirmation of their instructions in the mail. A special toll-free number will be available in case the information contained in the confirmation is incorrect. Your fund has been advised by counsel that these procedures are consistent with the requirements of applicable law. If these procedures were subject to a successful legal challenge, such votes would not be counted at the special meeting. Your fund is unaware of any such challenge at this time. Shareholders would be called at the phone numb er Putnam Management has in its records for their accounts, and would be asked for their Social Security number or other identifying information. The shareholders would then be given an opportunity to authorize the proxies to vote their shares at the meeting in accordance with their instructions. To ensure that the shareholders’ instructions have been recorded correctly, they will also receive a confirmation of their instructions in the mail. A special toll-free number will be available in case the information contained in the confirmation is incorrect.

Common shareholdersShareholders have the opportunity to submit their voting instructions viaover the Internet by using a program provided by abya third-party vendor hired by Putnam Management or by automated telephone service. The giving of a proxy will not affect your right to vote in person should you decide to attend the special meeting. To usevote online using the Internet, please access the Internet address listed on yourthe proxy card and follow the instructions on the Internet site. To record your voting instructions viausing the automated telephone service, use the toll-free number listed on your proxy card. The Internet and telephone voting procedures are designed to authenticate shareholder identities, to allow shareholders to give their voting instructions, and to confirm that shareholders’ instructions have been recorded properly.

Shareholders voting viaover the Internet should understand that there may be costs associated with electronic access, such as usage charges from Internet access providers and telephone companies, that must be borne by the shareholders.

Your fund’s Trustees have adopted a general policy of maintaining confidentiality in the voting of proxies. Consistent with this policy, your fund may solicit proxies from shareholders who have not voted their shares or who have abstained from voting, including brokers and nominees.

Revocation of proxies.Giving your proxy, whether by returning the proxy card(s) or providing voting instructions over the Internet or by telephone, does not affect your right to attend the special meeting and vote in person. Proxies, including proxies given by telephone or over the Internet, may be revoked at any time before they are voted either (i) by a written revocation received by the Clerk of your fund, (ii) by properly executing and submitting a later-dated proxy, (iii) by recording later-dated voting instructions by telephone or via the Internet, (iv) in the case of brokers and nominees, by submitting written instructions to your fund’s solicitation agent or the applicable record shareholders, or (v)(iv) by attending the special meeting and voting in person. If your shares are held in street name through a bank, broker or other financial intermediary, please check your voting instruction form or contact your bank, broker or other financial intermediary for instructions on how to change or revoke your vote.

Information for funds that are series of Putnam Variable Trust

Voting Process.With respect to funds that are series of Putnam Variable Trust only, as of the Record Date, certain insurance companies or funds of funds sold exclusively to insurance company separate accounts and other variable insurance products (each an “Insurance Company”) were shareholders of record of each fund that is a series of Putnam Variable Trust. Each Insurance Company will vote shares of the fund or funds held by it in accordance with voting instructions received from variable annuity contract and variable life insurance policy owners (collectively, the “Contract Owners”) for whose accounts the shares are held. Accordingly, with respect to funds that are series of Putnam Variable Trust, this proxy statement is also intended to be used by each Insurance Company in obtaining these voting instructions from Contract Owners. In the event that a Contract Owner gives no instructions, the relevant

Insurance Company will vote the shares of the appropriate fund attributable to the Contract Owner in the same proportion as shares of that fund for which it has received instructions. One effect of this system of proportional voting is that, if only a small number of Contract Owners provide voting instructions, this small number of Contract Owners may determine the outcome of a vote for a fund.

Solicitation of proxies.In addition to soliciting proxies and voting instructions by mail, the Trustees of your fund and employees of Putnam Management, Putnam Fiduciary Trust Company,Investor Services, Inc., Putnam Retail Management and the Insurance Companies may solicit voting instructions from Contract Owners in person or by telephone. Your fund may arrange to have a proxy solicitation firm call you to record your voting instructions by telephone. The procedures for solicitation of proxies and voting

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instructions by telephone are designed to authenticate Contract Owners’ identities, to allow them to authorize the voting of their units in accordance with their instructions, and to confirm that their instructions have been properly recorded. Your fund has been advised by counsel that these procedures are consistent with the requirements of applicable law. If these procedures were subject to a successful legal challenge, such votes would not be counted at the meeting. Your fund is unaware of any such challenge at this time. Contract Owners would be called at the phone number Putnam Management has in its records for their accounts (or that Putnam Management obtains from the Insurance Companies), and would be asked for their Social Security number or other identifying information. The Contract Owners would then be given an opportunity to give their instructions. To ensure that the Contract Owners’ instructions have been recorded correctly, they will also receive a confirmation of their instructions in the mail. A special toll-free number will be available in case the information contained in the confirmation is incorrect. If these procedures were subject to a successful legal challenge, such votes would not be counted at the special meeting. Your fund is unaware of any such challenge at this time.

Contract Owner Instructions.Each Contract Owner is entitled to instruct his or her insurance companyInsurance Company as to how to vote its shares and can do so by marking voting instructions on the ballot enclosed with this proxy statement and then signing, dating and mailing the ballot in the envelope provided. If a ballot is not marked to indicate voting instructions, but is signed, dated and returned, it will be treated as an instruction to vote the shares in favor ofaccordance with the proposal.Trustees’ recommendations. Each Insurance Company will vote the shares for which it receives timely voting instructions from Contract Owners in accordance with those instructions and will vote those shares for which it receives no timely voting instructions for and against approval of a proposal, and as an abstention, in the same proportion as the shares for which it receives voting instructions. Shares attributable to accounts retained by each Insurance Company will be voted in the same propor tionproportion as votes cast by Contract Owners. Accordingly, there are not expected to be any “broker non-votes.”

Contract Owners have the opportunity to submit their voting instructions via the Internet by utilizing a program provided by a third party vendor hired by Putnam Management or byorby automated telephone service. The giving of such voting instructions will not affect your right to vote in person should you decide to attend the special meeting. To use the Internet, please access the Internet address listed on yourthe proxy card, and follow the instructions on the Internet site. To record your voting instructions via automated telephone service, use the toll-free number listed on your proxy card. The Internet and telephone voting procedures are designed to authenticate ContractOwners’ identities, to allow Contract Owners to give their voting instructions, and to confirm that their instructions have been recorded properly.

Contract Owners voting viaover the Internet should understand that there may be costs associated with electronic access, such as usage charges from Internet access providers and telephone companies, that must be borne by the Contract Owners.

Your fund’s Trustees have adopted a general policy of maintaining confidentiality in the voting of proxies and the giving of voting instructions. Consistent with this policy, your fund may solicit proxies from Contract Owners who have not voted their shares or who have abstained from voting.

Revocation of instructions.Any Contract Owner giving instructions to an Insurance Company has the power to revoke such instructions by mail by providing superseding instructions. All properly executed instructions received in time for the special meeting will be voted as specified in the instructions.

Revocation of proxies.Proxies, including proxies given by telephone or over the Internet, may be revoked at any time before they are voted either (i) by a written revocation received by the Clerk of your fund, (ii) by properly executing a later-dated proxy, (iii) by recording later-dated voting instructions by telephone or via the Internet, or (iv) by attending the special meeting and voting in person.

Information for all Putnam funds other than the closed-end fundsPutnam High Income Securities Fund, Putnam Managed Municipal Income Trust, Putnam Master Intermediate Income Trust, Putnam Municipal Opportunities Trust and Putnam Premier Income Trust

Date for receipt of shareholders’ proposals for subsequent meetings of shareholders.

Your fund does not regularly hold an annual shareholder meetings,meeting, but may from time to time schedule a special meetings. In addition, your fund has voluntarily undertaken to hold shareholder meetings at least every five years for the purpose of electing yourmeeting. Putnam Asia Pacific Equity Fund and Putnam International Value Fund last held a special meeting in 2011. Each other fund’s Trustees; the last suchspecial meeting was held in 2004.2009. In accordance with the regulations of the SEC,Securities and Exchange Commission, in order to be eligible for inclusion in the fund’s proxy statement for such a meeting, a shareholder or Contract Owner proposal must be received a reasonable time before the fund prints and mails its proxy statement.

TheAs described in more detail earlier in this proxy statement, the Board Policy and Nominating Committee of the Board of