Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

  

The Fund may offer Class 2 shares to separate accounts funding certain variable annuity contracts and variable life insurance policies (Contracts) issued by affiliated life insurance companies and other qualified institutional investors authorized by Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. (the Distributor), as set forth herein. There are no exchange ticker symbols associated with shares of the Fund.

As with all mutual funds, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

Columbia Management makes adjustments to Fund’s investment exposure based on historical volatility, the actual market volatility experienced in the recent past. Volatility refers to the ups and down in the market and can run in cycles of several months or even years.

Strategic Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 40% to 90% of its net assets in Underlying Funds managed by Columbia Management, including those for which Columbia Management provides day-to-day portfolio management and those for which day-to-day portfolio management is provided by investment subadvisers hired by Columbia Management. Of the assets allocated to the Underlying Funds, the Fund may invest up to 100% of those assets in Equity Underlying Funds or Fixed-Income Underlying Funds (or some combination of the two).

The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds across various sectors and industries within the U.S. equity and fixed-income/debt asset classes and markets, including Underlying Funds that invest in securities of different investment strategies and styles (e.g., alternatives, growth, value and core/blend) and market capitalizations (e.g., large, mid and small cap), as well as those that invest in real estate securities and fixed-income or debt instruments, including investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS and mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures.

Underlying Fund selections and allocations are reviewed periodically by Columbia Management. Changes to Underlying Fund selections and allocations may be driven by various factors, including the risks and potential benefits of investing in a particular Underlying Fund as a means of achieving total return. During times of relatively high equity market volatility as determined by Columbia Management, Columbia Management may reduce or eliminate entirely the Fund’s allocation to Equity Underlying Funds and may alter Underlying Fund selections and allocations with more frequency in seeking to achieve desired levels of EEME.

Columbia Management also considers the independent analysis of an independent investment consultant with respect to the performance of the Underlying Funds, the types of investment categories represented by the Underlying Funds, and the consideration of additional asset classes or segments. Columbia Management retains full discretion over the Fund’s investment activities.

Tactical Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 10% to 60% of its net assets in the Tactical Allocation strategy, which includes derivative instruments (such as forward contracts (including forward foreign currency contracts), futures (including currency, equity, index and interest rate futures), options and swaps (including credit default swaps and credit default swap indexes), as well as direct investments in ETFs and fixed-income or debt instruments (such as investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS, mortgage- and asset-backed securities, and mortgage dollar rolls, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures). The Fund may invest well below the range for Tactical Assets during a reasonable start-up period from the commencement of Fund investment operations (currently expected to be up to 3 months) until assets accumulate to a level sufficient for the efficient implementation of the tactical allocation strategy.

Through investments in Tactical Assets, Columbia Management seeks to adjust the Fund’s exposures to equity and fixed-income/ debt markets and to segments within those markets in response to its assessment of the relative risks and potential returns of these markets and segments. As with the Underlying Funds, the Fund may, through its tactical allocation strategy, reduce (or, in certain extreme cases, eliminate entirely) its EEME and, correspondingly, increase the Fund’s effective fixed-income/debt market exposure. Conversely, the Fund may also increase its EEME by employing the Tactical Assets to adjust upward the volatility level in the Fund’s portfolio closer to desired levels.

The Fund also seeks to reduce equity market volatility in the portfolio by purchasing or writing call and put options on liquid equity indices to protect against periods of decline in equity markets.

The Investment Manager believes that the use of the Tactical Assets, the derivative instruments and ETFs in particular, may provide more efficient and economical exposure to asset classes and segments than investments in or withdrawals from the Underlying Funds. As a result, Columbia Management expects to use derivatives and ETFs as primary tools for adjusting the Fund’s EEME.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

The Fund may hold a significant amount of cash, money market instruments or other high quality, short-term investments, including shares of affiliated or unaffiliated money market funds which may have a floating net asset value, to cover obligations with respect to, or that may result from, the Fund’s investments in derivatives. The Fund’s use of certain derivatives may create significant leveraged exposure to the equity and debt markets. Leverage occurs when investments in derivatives create greater economic exposure than the amount invested. This means that the Fund could lose more than originally invested in the derivative.

The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade securities in the Fund’s portfolio to carry out its principal strategies.

Underlying Funds

Appendix A includes the list of the Underlying Funds available to the Fund, as well as a description of the Underlying Funds’ investment objectives and principal investment strategies. A description of the principal risks associated with the Underlying Funds is included in Appendix B. Columbia Management may add new or remove existing Underlying Funds at any time without the approval of shareholders.

Principal Risks

An investment in the Fund involves risks, including specific risks relating to the investment in the Fund based on its investment process and its "fund-of-funds" structure, as well as specific risks related to the underlying funds in which it invests, including among others, those described below. More information about underlying funds, including their principal risks, is available in their prospectuses, which are incorporated by reference into this prospectus. This prospectus is not an offer for any of the underlying funds. There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective and you may lose money . The value of the Fund’s holdings may decline, and the Fund’s net asset value (NAV) and share price may go down. An investment in the Fund is not a bank deposit and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

Allocation Risk. Because the Fund uses an asset allocation strategy in pursuit of its investment objective, there is a risk that the Fund's allocation among asset classes, investments, managers, strategies and/or investment styles will cause the Fund's shares to lose value or cause the Fund to underperform other funds with similar investment objectives and/or strategies, or that the investments themselves will not produce the returns expected.

Alternative Strategies Investment Risk. An investment in alternative investment strategies (Alternative Strategies), whether through direct investment or through one or more underlying funds that use Alternative Strategies, involves risks, which may be significant. Alternative Strategies may include strategies, instruments or other assets, such as derivatives, that seek investment returns uncorrelated with the broad equity and fixed income/debt markets, as well as those providing exposure to other markets, including but not limited to absolute (positive) return strategies. Alternative Strategies may fail to achieve their desired performance, market or other exposure, or their returns (or lack thereof) may be more correlated with the broad equity and/or fixed income/debt markets than was anticipated, and the Fund may lose money. Some Alternative Strategies may be considered speculative.

Counterparty Risk. Counterparty risk is the risk that a counterparty to a financial instrument held by the Fund or by a special purpose or structured vehicle invested in by the Fund may become insolvent or otherwise fail to perform its obligations. As a result, the Fund may obtain no or limited recovery of its investment, and any recovery may be significantly delayed.

Credit Risk. Credit risk is the risk that the value of loans or other debt instruments may decline if the borrower or the issuer thereof defaults or otherwise becomes unable or unwilling, or is perceived to be unable or unwilling, to honor its financial obligations, such as making payments to the Fund when due. Rating agencies assign credit ratings to certain loans and fixed-income securities to indicate their credit risk. Lower quality or unrated loans or securities held by the Fund may present increased credit risk as compared to higher-rated loans or securities. Non-investment grade loans or fixed-income instruments (commonly called “high-yield” or “junk”) may be subject to greater price fluctuations and are more likely to experience a default than investment grade loans or fixed-income instruments and therefore may expose the Fund to increased credit risk. If the Fund purchases unrated loans or securities, or if the ratings of loans or securities held by the Fund are lowered after purchase, the Fund will depend on analysis of credit

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

risk more heavily than usual. If the issuer of a loan declares bankruptcy or is declared bankrupt, there may be a delay before the Fund can act on the collateral securing the loan, which may adversely affect the Fund. Further, there is a risk that a court could take action with respect to a loan that is adverse to the holders of the loan. Such actions may include invalidating the loan, the lien on the collateral, the priority status of the loan, or ordering the refund of interest previously paid by the borrower. Any such actions by a court could adversely affect the Fund’s performance. A default or expected default of a loan could also make it difficult for the Fund to sell the loan at a price approximating the value previously placed on it. In order to enforce its rights in the event of a default, bankruptcy or similar situation, the Fund may be required to retain legal or similar counsel. This may increase the Fund’s operating expenses and adversely affect its NAV. Loans that have a lower priority for repayment in an issuer’s capital structure may involve a higher degree of overall risk than more senior loans of the same borrower.

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives may involve significant risks. Derivatives are financial instruments with a value in relation to, or derived from, the value of an underlying asset(s) or other reference, such as an index, rate or other economic indicator (each an underlying reference). Derivatives may include those that are privately placed or otherwise exempt from SEC registration, including certain Rule 144A eligible securities. Derivatives could result in Fund losses if the underlying reference does not perform as anticipated. Use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that can involve investment techniques, risks, and tax planning different from those associated with more traditional investment instruments. A Fund’s derivatives strategy may not be successful and use of certain derivatives could result in substantial, potentially unlimited, losses to the Fund regardless of the Fund’s actual investment. A relatively small movement in the price, rate or other economic indicator associated with the underlying reference may result in substantial loss for the Fund. Derivatives may be more volatile than other types of investments. The value of derivatives may be influenced by a variety of factors, including national and international political and economic developments. Potential changes to the regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the market for derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Derivatives can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Forward Contracts Risk. A forward contract is an over-the-counter derivative transaction between two parties to buy or sell a specified amount of an underlying reference at a specified price (or rate) on a specified date in the future. Forward contracts are negotiated on an individual basis and are not standardized or traded on exchanges. The market for forward contracts is substantially unregulated and can experience lengthy periods of illiquidity, unusually high trading volume and other negative impacts, such as political intervention, which may result in volatility or disruptions in such markets. A relatively small price movement in a forward contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. Forward contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Futures Contracts Risk. A futures contract is an exchange-traded derivative transaction between two parties in which a buyer (holding the “long” position) agrees to pay a fixed price (or rate) at a specified future date for delivery of an underlying reference from a seller (holding the “short” position). The seller hopes that the market price on the delivery date is less than the agreed upon price, while the buyer hopes for the contrary. Certain futures contract markets are highly volatile, and futures contracts may be illiquid. Futures exchanges may limit fluctuations in futures contract prices by imposing a maximum permissible daily price movement. The Fund may be disadvantaged if it is prohibited from executing a trade outside the daily permissible price movement. At or prior to maturity of a futures contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in futures contract prices. The liquidity of the futures markets depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the futures market could be reduced. Because of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, it is possible that the Fund may employ a high degree of leverage in the portfolio. As a result, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. For certain types of futures contracts, losses are potentially unlimited. Futures markets

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s net asset value. Futures contracts executed (if any) on foreign exchanges may not provide the same protection as U.S. exchanges. Futures contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Options Risk. Options are derivatives that give the purchaser the option to buy (call) or sell (put) an underlying reference from or to a counterparty at a specified price (the strike price) on or before an expiration date. By investing in options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that it may be required to buy or sell the underlying reference at a disadvantageous price on or before the expiration date. Options may involve economic leverage, which could result in greater volatility in price movement. The Fund's losses could be significant, and are potentially unlimited for certain types of options. Options may be traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market. At or prior to maturity of an options contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in options prices. Options can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Swaps Risk. In a typical swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the return earned on a specified underlying reference for a fixed return or the return from another underlying reference during a specified period of time. Swaps may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Swaps could result in Fund losses if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Swaps create significant investment leverage such that a relatively small price movement in a swap may result in immediate and substantial losses to the Fund. The Fund may only close out a swap with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. Certain swaps, such as short swap transactions and total return swaps, have the potential for unlimited losses, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Swaps can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, inflation risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) Risk. ETFs are subject to, among other risks, tracking risk and passive and, in some cases, active investment risk. In addition, shareholders bear both their proportionate share of the Fund’s expenses and similar expenses incurred through ownership of the ETF.

Forward Commitments on Mortgage-Backed Securities (including Dollar Rolls) Risk. When purchasing mortgage-backed securities in the “to be announced” (TBA) market (MBS TBAs), the seller agrees to deliver mortgage-backed securities for an agreed upon price on an agreed upon date, but may make no guarantee as to the specific securities to be delivered. In lieu of taking delivery of mortgage-backed securities, the Fund could enter into dollar rolls, which are transactions in which the Fund sells securities to a counterparty and simultaneously agrees to purchase those or similar securities in the future at a predetermined price. Dollar rolls involve the risk that the market value of the securities the Fund is obligated to repurchase may decline below the repurchase price, or that the counterparty may default on its obligations. These transactions may also increase the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate. If the Fund reinvests the proceeds of the security sold, the Fund will also be subject to the risk that the investments purchased with such proceeds will decline in value (a form of leverage risk). MBS TBAs and dollar rolls are subject to the risk that the counterparty to the instrument may not perform or be unable to perform in accordance with the terms of the instrument.

Frequent Trading Risk.  The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade investments in the Fund's portfolio to carry out its investment strategies. Frequent trading can mean higher brokerage and other transaction costs, which could reduce the Fund's return. The trading costs associated with portfolio turnover may adversely affect the Fund’s performance.

Fund-of-Funds Risk. Determinations regarding asset classes or underlying funds and the Fund’s allocations thereto may not successfully achieve the Fund’s investment objective, in whole or in part. The ability of the Fund to realize its investment objective will depend, in large part, on the extent to which the underlying funds realize their investment

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

objective. There is no guarantee that the underlying funds will achieve their respective investment objectives. The Fund is exposed to the same risks as the underlying funds in direct proportion to the allocation of its assets among the underlying funds. Therefore, to the extent that the Fund invests significantly in a particular underlying fund, the Fund’s performance would be significantly impacted by the performance of such underlying fund. Generally, by investing in a combination of underlying funds, the Fund has exposure to the risks of many areas of the market. By concentrating its investments in relatively few underlying funds, the Fund may have more concentrated market exposures, subjecting the Fund to greater risk of loss should those markets decline or fail to rise. The performance of underlying funds could be adversely affected if other entities that invest in the same underlying funds make relatively large investments or redemptions in such underlying funds. The Fund, and its shareholders, indirectly bear a portion of the expenses of any funds in which the Fund invests. Because the expenses and costs of each underlying fund are shared by its investors, redemptions by other investors in an underlying fund could result in decreased economies of scale and increased operating expenses for such fund. The Investment Manager may have potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds over unaffiliated funds for investment by the Fund, and may also face potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds, because the fees the Investment Manager receives from some underlying funds may be higher than the fees paid by other underlying funds. Also, to the extent that the Fund is constrained/restricted from investing (or investing further) in a particular underlying fund for one or more reasons (e.g., underlying fund capacity constraints or regulatory restrictions) or if the Fund chooses to sell its investment in an underlying fund because of poor investment performance or for other reasons, the Fund may have to invest in another underlying fund(s), including less desirable funds – from a strategy or investment performance standpoint – which could have a negative impact on Fund performance. In addition, Fund performance could be negatively impacted if an appropriate alternate underlying fund(s) does not present itself in a timely manner or at all.

Growth Securities Risk. Growth securities typically trade at a higher multiple of earnings than other types of equity securities. Accordingly, the market values of growth securities may never reach their expected market value and may decline in price. In addition, growth securities, at times, may not perform as well as value securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

High-Yield Investments Risk. Securities and other debt instruments held by the Fund that are rated below investment grade (commonly called “high-yield” or “junk” bonds) and unrated debt instruments of comparable quality expose the Fund to a greater risk of loss of principal and income than a fund that invests solely or primarily in investment grade debt instruments. In addition, these investments have greater price fluctuations, are less liquid and are more likely to experience a default than higher-rated debt instruments. High-yield debt instruments are considered to be predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal.

Inflation-Protected Securities Risk. Inflation-protected debt securities tend to react to changes in real interest rates (i.e., nominal interest rates minus the expected impact of inflation). In general, the price of such securities falls when real interest rates rise, and rises when real interest rates fall. Interest payments on these securities will vary and may be more volatile than interest paid on ordinary bonds. In periods of deflation, the Fund may have no income at all from such investments.

Interest Rate Risk. Interest rate risk is the risk of losses attributable to changes in interest rates. In general, if prevailing interest rates (which are at historic lows) rise, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to fall, and if interest rates fall, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to rise. Changes in the value of a fixed-income instrument usually will not affect the amount of income the Fund receives from it but will generally affect the value of the Fund's shares. In general, the longer the maturity or duration of a fixed-income instrument, the greater its sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Interest rate declines also may increase prepayments of debt obligations, which, in turn, would increase prepayment risk. Similarly, a period of rising interest rates may negatively impact the Fund’s performance. Actions by governments and central banking authorities can result in increases in interest rates. Such actions may negatively affect the value of fixed-income instruments held by the Fund, resulting in a negative impact on the Fund's performance and NAV. Debt instruments with floating coupon rates are typically less sensitive to interest rate changes, but these debt instruments may decline in value if their coupon rates do not rise as much as, or keep pace with, yields on such types of debt instruments. Because rates on certain floating rate loans and other debt instruments reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause fluctuations in the Fund’s NAV. Any interest

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

rate increases could cause the value of the Fund’s investments in fixed-income instruments to decrease. Rising interest rates may prompt redemptions from the Fund, which may force the Fund to sell investments at a time when it is not advantageous to do so, which could result in losses.

Issuer Risk. An issuer in which the Fund invests or to which it has exposure may perform poorly, and the value of its loans or securities may therefore decline, which would negatively affect the Fund’s performance. Poor performance may be caused by poor management decisions, competitive pressures, breakthroughs in technology, reliance on suppliers, labor problems or shortages, corporate restructurings, fraudulent disclosures, natural disasters or other events, conditions or factors.

Leverage Risk. Leverage occurs when the Fund increases its assets available for investment using borrowings, derivatives, or similar instruments or techniques. Use of leverage can produce volatility and may exaggerate changes in the net asset value of Fund shares and in the return on the Fund’s portfolio, which may increase the risk that the Fund will lose more than it has invested. If the Fund uses leverage, through the purchase of particular instruments such as derivatives, the Fund may experience capital losses that exceed the net assets of the Fund. Leverage can create an interest expense that may lower the Fund's overall returns. Leverage presents the opportunity for increased net income and capital gains, but may also exaggerate the Fund’s volatility and risk of loss. There can be no guarantee that a leveraging strategy will be successful.

Liquidity Risk. Liquidity risk is the risk associated with any event, circumstance, or characteristic of an investment or market that negatively impacts the Fund’s ability to sell, or realize the proceeds from the sale of, an investment at a desirable time or price. Liquidity risk may arise because of, for example, a lack of marketability of the investment, which means that when seeking to sell its portfolio investments, the Fund could find that selling is more difficult than anticipated, especially during times of high market volatility. Decreases in the number of financial institutions, including banks and broker-dealers, willing to make markets (match up sellers and buyers) in the Fund’s investments or decreases in their capacity or willingness to trade such investments may increase the Fund’s exposure to this risk. The debt market has experienced considerable growth, and financial institutions making markets in instruments purchased and sold by the Fund (e.g., bond dealers) have been subject to increased regulation. The impact of that growth and regulation on the ability and willingness of financial institutions to engage in trading or “making a market” in such instruments remains unsettled. Certain types of investments, such as lower-rated securities or those that are purchased and sold in over-the-counter markets, may be especially subject to liquidity risk. Securities or other assets in which the Fund invests may be traded in the over-the-counter market rather than on an exchange and therefore may be more difficult to purchase or sell at a fair price, which may have a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. Market participants attempting to sell the same or a similar instrument at the same time as the Fund could exacerbate the Fund’s exposure to liquidity risk. The Fund may have to accept a lower selling price for the holding, sell other, liquid or more liquid, investments that it might otherwise prefer to hold (thereby increasing the proportion of the Fund’s investments in less liquid or illiquid securities), or forego another more appealing investment opportunity. Certain investments that were liquid when purchased by the Fund may later become illiquid, particularly in times of overall economic distress. Changing regulatory, market or other conditions or environments (for example, the interest rate or credit environments) may also adversely affect the liquidity and the price of the Fund's investments. Judgment plays a larger role in valuing illiquid or less liquid investments as compared to valuing liquid or more liquid investments. Price volatility may be higher for illiquid or less liquid investments as a result of, for example, the relatively less frequent pricing of such securities (as compared to liquid or more liquid investments). Generally, the less liquid the market at the time the Fund sells a portfolio investment, the greater the risk of loss or decline of value to the Fund. Overall market liquidity and other factors can lead to an increase in Fund redemptions, which may negatively impact Fund performance and NAV, including, for example, if the Fund is forced to sell investments in a down market.

Market Risk. Market risk refers to the possibility that the market values of securities or other investments that the Fund holds will fall, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, or fail to rise. An investment in the Fund could lose money over short or long periods.

Mortgage- and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk.  The value of any mortgage-backed and other asset-backed securities held by the Fund may be affected by, among other things, changes or perceived changes in: interest rates; factors concerning the interests in and structure of the issuer or the originator of the mortgages or other assets; the

10	Prospectus 2016

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

creditworthiness of the entities that provide any supporting letters of credit, surety bonds or other credit enhancements; or the market's assessment of the quality of underlying assets. Payment of principal and interest on some mortgage-backed securities (but not the market value of the securities themselves) may be guaranteed by the full faith and credit of a particular U.S. Government agency, authority, enterprise or instrumentality, and some, but not all, are also insured or guaranteed by the U.S. Government. Mortgage-backed securities issued by non-governmental issuers (such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers) may entail greater risk than obligations guaranteed by the U.S. Government. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk, which is the possibility that the underlying mortgage or other asset may be refinanced or prepaid prior to maturity during periods of declining or low interest rates, causing the Fund to have to reinvest the money received in securities that have lower yields. Rising or high interest rates tend to extend the duration of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, making their prices more volatile and more sensitive to changes in interest rates.

Prepayment and Extension Risk. Prepayment and extension risk is the risk that a bond or other security or investment might, in the case of prepayment risk, be called or otherwise converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity and, in the case of extension risk, that the investment might not be called as expected. In the case of prepayment risk, if the investment is converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity, the portfolio managers may not be able to invest the proceeds in other investments providing as high a level of income, resulting in a reduced yield to the Fund. In the case of mortgage- or asset-backed securities, as interest rates decrease or spreads narrow, the likelihood of prepayment increases. Conversely, extension risk is the risk that an unexpected rise in interest rates will extend the life of a mortgage- or asset-backed security beyond the prepayment time. If the Fund’s investments are locked in at a lower interest rate for a longer period of time, the portfolio managers may be unable to capitalize on securities with higher interest rates or wider spreads.

U.S. Government Obligations Risk. While U.S. Treasury obligations are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government, such securities are nonetheless subject to credit risk (i.e., the risk that the U.S. Government may be, or be perceived to be, unable or unwilling to honor its financial obligations, such as making payments). Securities issued or guaranteed by federal agencies or authorities and U.S. Government-sponsored instrumentalities or enterprises may or may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government.

Value Securities Risk. Value securities are securities of companies that may have experienced, for example, adverse business, industry or other developments or may be subject to special risks that have caused the securities to be out of favor and, in turn, potentially undervalued. The market value of a portfolio security may not meet the portfolio manager's perceived value assessment of that security, or may decline in price, even though the portfolio manager(s) believe(s) the securities are already undervalued. There is also a risk that it may take longer than expected for the value of these investments to rise to the portfolio manager’s perceived value. In addition, value securities, at times, may not perform as well as growth securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

Volatility and Volatility Management Risk. Although the Fund seeks to manage equity market volatility within its portfolio, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful. Despite the Fund’s name, the Fund’s portfolio may experience more than its targeted level of volatility, subjecting the Fund to market risk. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Funds’ portfolios may be subject to price volatility, and the Fund’s share price may not be any less volatile than the market as a whole and could be more volatile. The Investment Manager’s determinations/expectations regarding volatility may be incorrect or inaccurate, which may also adversely affect the Fund’s actual volatility within the portfolio. The Fund also may underperform other funds with similar investment objectives and/or strategies. Additionally, because the Fund seeks to target a particular level of effective equity market exposure (EEME), as stated above under “Principal Investment Strategies”, the Fund may provide protection in volatile markets by potentially curbing or mitigating the risk of loss in declining equity markets, but the Fund’s opportunity to achieve returns when the equity markets are rising may also be curbed. In general, the greater the protection against downside loss (as reflected in a smaller target level of EEME), the lesser the Fund’s opportunity to participate in the returns generated by rising equity markets; however, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in protecting the value of its portfolio in down markets. Additionally, to the extent that the Fund maximizes its EEME in low volatility markets, if the equity markets should decline in such low volatility markets, the Fund may

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

experience greater loss than if it had not maximized its EEME. To the extent that the Fund underestimates or misinterprets volatility signals, the Fund’s performance could be negatively affected. Volatility targets and volatility risk are different for all three funds in the U.S. Flexible series, with the Conservative Growth Fund having the lowest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk) and the U.S. Flexible Growth Fund having the highest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk).

Performance Information

The Fund is new as of the date of this prospectus and therefore performance information is not available.

When available, the Fund intends to compare its performance to the performance of a Blended Index, consisting of 65% Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index and 35% S&P 500 Index, and to the performance of the S&P 500 Index and the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index.

When available, updated performance information can be obtained by calling toll-free 800.345.6611 or visiting columbiathreadneedle.com/us.

Fund Management

Investment Manager: Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC

    

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund is available for purchase through Contracts offered by the separate accounts of participating insurance companies or by other eligible investors authorized by Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. (the Distributor). Shares of the Fund may not be purchased or sold by individual owners of Contracts. If you are a Contract holder, please refer to your Contract prospectus for information about minimum investment requirements and how to purchase and redeem shares of the Fund.

Tax Information

The Fund expects to be treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and does not expect to make regular distributions (other than in redemption of Fund shares) to shareholders which are generally the participating insurance companies investing in the Fund through separate accounts or certain other eligible investors authorized by the Distributor. You should consult with the participating insurance company that issued your Contract, plan sponsor or other eligible investor through which your investment in the Fund is made regarding the U.S. federal income taxation of your investment.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you make allocations to the Fund, the Fund, its Distributor or other related companies may pay participating insurance companies or other financial intermediaries for the allocation (sale) of Fund shares and related services in connection with such allocations to the Fund. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the participating insurance company, other financial intermediary or your salesperson to recommend an allocation to the Fund over another fund or other investment option. Ask your financial advisor or salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

Investment Process

Columbia Management uses the following two-part investment process that, together, pursues total return while seeking to manage the Fund’s exposure to equity market volatility:

■	Selects and determines allocations to the Underlying Funds (referred to as the Strategic Allocation); and

■	Invests in and determines allocations to the Tactical Assets to modify desired asset class exposures (referred to as the Tactical Allocation).

Columbia Management makes adjustments to Fund’s investment exposure based on historical volatility, the actual market volatility experienced in the recent past. Volatility refers to the ups and down in the market and can run in cycles of several months or even years.

Strategic Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 40% to 90% of its net assets in Underlying Funds managed by Columbia Management, including those for which Columbia Management provides day-to-day portfolio management and those for which day-to-day portfolio management is provided by investment subadvisers hired by Columbia Management. Of the assets allocated to the Underlying Funds, the Fund may invest up to 100% of those assets in Equity Underlying Funds or Fixed-Income Underlying Funds (or some combination of the two).

The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds across various sectors and industries within the U.S. equity and fixed-income/debt asset classes and markets, including Underlying Funds that invest in securities of different investment strategies and styles (e.g., alternatives, growth, value and core/blend) and market capitalizations (e.g., large, mid and small cap), as well as those that invest in real estate securities and fixed-income or debt instruments, including investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS and mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures.

Underlying Fund selections and allocations are reviewed periodically by Columbia Management. Changes to Underlying Fund selections and allocations may be driven by various factors, including the risks and potential benefits of investing in a particular Underlying Fund as a means of achieving total return. During times of relatively high equity market volatility as determined by Columbia Management, Columbia Management may reduce or eliminate entirely the Fund’s allocation to Equity Underlying Funds and may alter Underlying Fund selections and allocations with more frequency in seeking to achieve desired levels of EEME.

Columbia Management also considers the independent analysis of an independent investment consultant with respect to the performance of the Underlying Funds, the types of investment categories represented by the Underlying Funds, and the consideration of additional asset classes or segments. Columbia Management retains full discretion over the Fund’s investment activities.

Tactical Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 10% to 60% of its net assets in the Tactical Allocation strategy, which includes derivative instruments (such as forward contracts (including forward foreign currency contracts), futures (including currency, equity, index and interest rate futures), options and swaps (including credit default swaps and credit default swap indexes), as well as direct investments in ETFs and fixed-income or debt instruments (such as investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS, mortgage- and asset-backed securities, and mortgage dollar rolls, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures). The Fund may invest well below the range for Tactical Assets during a reasonable start-up period from the commencement of Fund investment operations (currently expected to be up to 3 months) until assets accumulate to a level sufficient for the efficient implementation of the tactical allocation strategy.

Through investments in Tactical Assets, Columbia Management seeks to adjust the Fund’s exposures to equity and fixed-income/ debt markets and to segments within those markets in response to its assessment of the relative risks and potential returns of these markets and segments. As with the Underlying Funds, the Fund may, through its tactical allocation strategy, reduce (or, in certain extreme cases, eliminate entirely) its EEME and, correspondingly, increase the Fund’s effective fixed-income/debt market exposure. Conversely, the Fund may also increase its EEME by employing the Tactical Assets to adjust upward the volatility level in the Fund’s portfolio closer to desired levels.

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The Fund also seeks to reduce equity market volatility in the portfolio by purchasing or writing call and put options on liquid equity indices to protect against periods of decline in equity markets.

The Investment Manager believes that the use of the Tactical Assets, the derivative instruments and ETFs in particular, may provide more efficient and economical exposure to asset classes and segments than investments in or withdrawals from the Underlying Funds. As a result, Columbia Management expects to use derivatives and ETFs as primary tools for adjusting the Fund’s EEME.

The Fund may hold a significant amount of cash, money market instruments or other high quality, short-term investments, including shares of affiliated or unaffiliated money market funds which may have a floating net asset value, to cover obligations with respect to, or that may result from, the Fund’s investments in derivatives. The Fund’s use of certain derivatives may create significant leveraged exposure to the equity and debt markets. Leverage occurs when investments in derivatives create greater economic exposure than the amount invested. This means that the Fund could lose more than originally invested in the derivative.

The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade securities in the Fund’s portfolio to carry out its principal strategies.

Underlying Funds

Appendix A includes the list of the Underlying Funds available to the Fund, as well as a description of the Underlying Funds’ investment objectives and principal investment strategies. A description of the principal risks associated with the Underlying Funds is included in Appendix B. Columbia Management may add new or remove existing Underlying Funds at any time without the approval of shareholders.

Below are the Underlying Funds available to the Fund for investment within each asset class category. The Investment Manager may add new Underlying Funds for investment or change Underlying Funds without the approval of shareholders. Certain Underlying Funds, due to their characteristics, may fit into more than one category, and may be used by the Investment Manager to provide exposure to more than one of these categories. A description of the Underlying Funds’ investment objectives and strategies is included in Appendix A. A description of the principal risks associated with the Underlying Funds is included in Appendix B. The prospectuses and Statements of Additional Information for the Underlying Funds include more detailed information about these Underlying Funds and are available free of charge by calling 800.345.6611.Columbia Variable Portfolio – Contrarian Core Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Disciplined Core Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Dividend Opportunity Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – High Yield Bond Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Income Opportunities Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Intermediate Bond Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Large Cap Growth Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Large Cap Index Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Long Government/Credit Bond Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Limited Duration Credit Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Mid Cap Growth Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Mid Cap Value Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Select Large Cap Growth Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Select Large-Cap Value Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Select Smaller-Cap Value Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Strategic Income Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Equities Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Government Mortgage Fund, Variable Portfolio – American Century Diversified Bond Fund, Variable Portfolio – CenterSquare Real Estate Fund, Variable Portfolio – Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Fund, Variable Portfolio – J.P. Morgan Core Bond Fund, Variable Portfolio – Jennison Mid Cap Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – Loomis Sayles Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – MFS ^® Blended Research ^® Core Equity Fund, Variable Portfolio – MFS ^® Value Fund, Variable Portfolio – Morgan Stanley Advantage Fund, Variable Portfolio – NFJ Dividend Value Fund*,Variable Portfolio – Nuveen Winslow Large Cap Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – Partners Small Cap Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – Partners Small Cap Value Fund, Variable Portfolio – TCW Core Plus Bond Fund, Variable Portfolio – Victory Sycamore Established Value Fund and Variable Portfolio – Wells Fargo Short Duration Government Fund

*Effective November 14, 2016, Variable Portfolio – T. Rowe Price Large Cap Value Fund.

The Fund’s investment policy with respect to 80% of its net assets may be changed by the Fund’s Board of Trustees without shareholder approval as long as shareholders are given 60 days’ advance written notice of the change. Additionally, shareholders will be given 60 days’ notice of any change to the Fund’s investment objective made to comply with the SEC rule governing investment company names.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives may involve significant risks. Derivatives are financial instruments, traded on an exchange or in the over-the-counter (OTC) markets, with a value in relation to, or derived from, the value of an underlying asset(s) (such as a security, commodity or currency) or other reference, such as an index, rate or other economic indicator (each an underlying reference). Derivatives may include those that are privately placed or otherwise exempt from SEC registration, including certain Rule 144A eligible securities. Derivatives could result in Fund losses if the underlying references do not perform as anticipated. Use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that can involve investment techniques, risks, and tax planning different from those associated with more traditional investment instruments. A Fund’s derivatives strategy may not be successful and use of certain derivatives could result in substantial, potentially unlimited, losses to the Fund regardless of the Fund’s actual investment. A relatively small movement in the price, rate or other economic indicator associated with the underlying reference may result in substantial loss for the Fund. Derivatives may be more volatile than other types of investments. Derivatives can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, including the risk of an adverse credit event associated with the underlying reference (credit risk), the risk of adverse movement in the value, price or rate of the underlying reference (market risk), the risk of adverse movement in the value of underlying currencies (foreign currency risk) and the risk of adverse movement in underlying interest rates (interest rate risk). Derivatives may expose the Fund to additional risks, including the risk of loss due to a derivative position that is imperfectly correlated with the underlying reference it is intended to hedge or replicate (correlation risk), the risk that a counterparty will fail to perform as agreed (counterparty risk), the risk that a hedging strategy may fail to mitigate losses, and may offset gains (hedging risk), the risk that losses may be greater than the amount invested (leverage risk), the risk that the Fund may be unable to sell an investment at an advantageous time or price (liquidity risk), the risk that the investment may be difficult to value (pricing risk), and the risk that the price or value of the investment fluctuates significantly over short periods of time (volatility risk). The value of derivatives may be influenced by a variety of factors, including national and international political and economic developments. Potential changes to the regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the market for derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives.

Derivatives Risk – Forward Contracts Risk. A forward contract is an over-the-counter derivative transaction between two parties to buy or sell a specified amount of an underlying reference at a specified price (or rate) on a specified date in the future. Forward contracts are negotiated on an individual basis and are not standardized or traded on exchanges. The market for forward contracts is substantially unregulated (there is no limit on daily price movements and speculative position limits are not applicable). The principals who deal in certain forward contract markets are not required to continue to make markets in the underlying references in which they trade and these markets can experience periods of illiquidity, sometimes of significant duration. There have been periods during which certain participants in forward contract markets have refused to quote prices for certain underlying references or have quoted prices with an unusually wide spread between the price at which they were prepared to buy and that at which they were prepared to sell. At or prior to maturity of a forward contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in forward contract prices. The liquidity of the markets for forward contracts depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the market for forwards could be reduced. A relatively small price movement in a forward contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. Forward contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

■

A forward foreign currency contract is a derivative (forward contract) in which the underlying reference is a country's or region’s currency. The Fund may agree to buy or sell a country's or region’s currency at a specific price on a specific date in the future. These instruments may fall in value (sometimes dramatically) due to foreign market downswings or foreign currency value fluctuations, subjecting the Fund to foreign currency risk (the risk that Fund performance may be negatively impacted by foreign currency strength or weakness relative to the U.S. dollar, particularly if the Fund exposes a significant percentage of its assets to currencies other than the U.S. dollar). Unanticipated changes in the currency markets could result in reduced performance for the Fund. When the Fund converts its foreign currencies into U.S. dollars, it may incur currency conversion costs due to the spread between the prices at which it may buy and sell various currencies in the market.

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Derivatives Risk – Futures Contracts Risk. A futures contract is an exchange-traded derivative transaction between two parties in which a buyer (holding the “long” position) agrees to pay a fixed price (or rate) at a specified future date for delivery of an underlying reference from a seller (holding the “short” position). The seller hopes that the market price on the delivery date is less than the agreed upon price, while the buyer hopes for the contrary. Certain futures contract markets are highly volatile, and futures contracts may be illiquid. Futures exchanges may limit fluctuations in futures contract prices by imposing a maximum permissible daily price movement. The Fund may be disadvantaged if it is prohibited from executing a trade outside the daily permissible price movement. At or prior to maturity of a futures contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in futures contract prices. The liquidity of the futures markets depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the futures market could be reduced. Positions in futures contracts may be closed out only on the exchange on which they were entered into or through a linked exchange, and no secondary market exists for such contracts. Futures positions are marked to market each day and variation margin payment must be paid to or by the Fund. Because of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, it is possible that the Fund may employ a high degree of leverage in the portfolio. As a result, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. For certain types of futures contracts, losses are potentially unlimited. Futures markets are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s net asset value. Futures contracts executed (if any) on foreign exchanges may not provide the same protection as U.S. exchanges. Futures contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

■	A currency future , also an FX future or foreign exchange future, is a derivative that is an agreement to exchange one currency for another at a specified date in the future at a price (exchange rate) that is fixed on the purchase date.

■	An equity future is a derivative that is an agreement for the contract holder to buy or sell a specified amount of an individual equity, a basket of equities or the securities in an equity index on a specified date at a predetermined price.

■	An interest rate future is a derivative that is an agreement whereby the buyer and seller agree to the future delivery of an interest-bearing instrument on a specific date at a pre-determined price. Examples include Treasury-bill futures, Treasury-bond futures and Eurodollar futures.

Derivatives Risk – Options Risk. Options are derivatives that give the purchaser the option to buy (call) or sell (put) an underlying reference from or to a counterparty at a specified price (the strike price) on or before an expiration date. The Fund may purchase or write (i.e., sell) put and call options on an underlying reference it is otherwise permitted to invest in. By investing in options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that it may be required to buy or sell the underlying reference at a disadvantageous price on or before the expiration date. If the Fund sells a put option, the Fund may be required to buy the underlying reference at a strike price that is above market price, resulting in a loss. If the Fund sells a call option, the Fund may be required to sell the underlying reference at a strike price that is below market price, resulting in a loss. If the Fund sells a call option that is not covered (it does not own the underlying reference), the Fund's losses are potentially unlimited. Options may involve economic leverage, which could result in greater volatility in price movement. Options may be traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market. At or prior to maturity of an options contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in options prices. Options can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Swaps Risk. In a typical swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the return earned on a specified underlying reference for a fixed return or the return from another underlying reference during a specified period of time. Swaps may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Swaps could result in Fund losses if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Swaps create significant investment leverage such that a relatively small price movement in a swap may result in immediate and substantial losses to the Fund. The

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

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Fund may only close out a swap with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. Certain swaps, such as short swap transactions and total return swaps, have the potential for unlimited losses, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Swaps can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, inflation risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

■

A credit default swap (including a swap on a credit default index, sometimes referred to as a credit default swap index) is a derivative and special type of swap where one party pays, in effect, an insurance premium through a stream of payments to another party in exchange for the right to receive a specified return upon the occurrence of a particular credit event by one or more third parties, such as bankruptcy, default or a similar event. A credit default swap may be embedded within a structured note or other derivative instrument. Credit default swaps enable an investor to buy or sell protection against such a credit event (such as an issuer’s bankruptcy, restructuring or failure to make timely payments of interest or principal). Credit default swap indices are indices that reflect the performance of a basket of credit default swaps and are subject to the same risks as credit default swaps. If such a default were to occur, any contractual remedies that the Fund may have may be subject to bankruptcy and insolvency laws, which could delay or limit the Fund's recovery. Thus, if the counterparty under a credit default swap defaults on its obligation to make payments thereunder, as a result of its bankruptcy or otherwise, the Fund may lose such payments altogether, or collect only a portion thereof, which collection could involve costs or delays. The Fund’s return from investment in a credit default swap index may not match the return of the referenced index. Further, investment in a credit default swap index could result in losses if the referenced index does not perform as expected. Unexpected changes in the composition of the index may also affect performance of the credit default swap index. If a referenced index has a dramatic intraday move that causes a material decline in the Fund’s net assets, the terms of the Fund’s credit default swap index may permit the counterparty to immediately close out the transaction. In that event, the Fund may be unable to enter into another credit default swap index or otherwise achieve desired exposure, even if the referenced index reverses all or a portion of its intraday move.

Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) Risk. An ETF’s share price may not track its specified market index (if any) and may trade below its NAV. Certain ETFs use a “passive” investment strategy and do not take defensive positions in volatile or declining markets. Other ETFs in which the Fund may invest are actively managed ETFs (i.e., they do not track a particular benchmark), which indirectly subjects the Fund to active management risk. An active secondary market in ETF shares may not develop or be maintained and may be halted or interrupted due to actions by its listing exchange, unusual market conditions or other reasons. There can be no assurance that an ETF’s shares will continue to be listed on an active exchange. In addition, shareholders bear both their proportionate share of the Fund’s expenses and similar expenses incurred through ownership of the ETF. There is a risk that ETFs in which the Fund invests may terminate due to extraordinary events. For example, any of the service providers to ETFs, such as the trustee or sponsor, may close or otherwise fail to perform their obligations to the ETF, and the ETF may not be able to find a substitute service provider. Also, certain ETFs may be dependent upon licenses to use various indexes as a basis for determining their compositions and/or otherwise to use certain trade names. If these licenses are terminated, the ETFs may also terminate. In addition, an ETF may terminate if its net assets fall below a certain amount.

Forward Commitments on Mortgage-Backed Securities (including Dollar Rolls) Risk. When purchasing mortgage-backed securities in the “to be announced” (TBA) market (MBS TBAs), the seller agrees to deliver mortgage-backed securities for an agreed upon price on an agreed upon date, but may make no guarantee as to the specific securities to be delivered. In lieu of taking delivery of mortgage-backed securities, the Fund could enter into dollar rolls, which are transactions in which the Fund sells securities to a counterparty and simultaneously agrees to purchase those or similar securities in the future at a predetermined price. Dollar rolls involve the risk that the market value of the securities the Fund is obligated to repurchase may decline below the repurchase price, or that the counterparty may default on its obligations. These transactions may also increase the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate. If the Fund reinvests the proceeds of the security sold, the Fund will also be subject to the risk that the investments purchased with such proceeds will decline in value (a form of leverage risk). MBS TBAs and dollar rolls are subject to the risk that the counterparty to the instrument may not perform or be unable to perform in accordance with the terms of the instrument.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

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Frequent Trading Risk.  The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade investments in the Fund's portfolio to carry out its investment strategies. Frequent trading can mean higher brokerage and other transaction costs, which could reduce the Fund's return. The trading costs associated with portfolio turnover may adversely affect the Fund’s performance.

Fund-of-Funds Risk. Determinations regarding asset classes or underlying funds and the Fund’s allocations thereto may not successfully achieve the Fund’s investment objective, in whole or in part. The selected underlying funds’ performance may be lower than the performance of the asset class they were selected to represent or may be lower than the performance of alternative underlying funds that could have been selected to represent the asset class. The Fund also is exposed to the same risks as the underlying funds in direct proportion to the allocation of its assets among the underlying funds. Therefore, to the extent that the Fund invests significantly in a particular underlying fund, the Fund’s performance would be significantly impacted by the performance of such underlying fund. Generally, by investing in a combination of underlying funds, the Fund has exposure to the risks of many areas of the market. By concentrating its investments in relatively few underlying funds, the Fund may have more concentrated market exposures, subjecting the Fund to greater risk of loss should those markets decline or fail to rise. The ability of the Fund to realize its investment objective will depend, in large part, on the extent to which the underlying funds realize their investment objectives. There is no guarantee that the underlying funds will achieve their respective investment objectives. The performance of underlying funds could be adversely affected if other entities that invest in the same underlying funds make relatively large investments or redemptions in such underlying funds. The Fund, and its shareholders, indirectly bear a portion of the expenses of any funds in which the Fund invests. Because the expenses and costs of each underlying fund are shared by its investors, redemptions by other investors in an underlying fund could result in decreased economies of scale and increased operating expenses for such underlying fund. These transactions might also result in higher brokerage, tax or other costs for an underlying fund. This risk may be particularly important when one investor owns a substantial portion of an underlying fund. The Investment Manager may have potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds over unaffiliated funds for investment by the Fund, and may also face potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds, because the fees the Investment Manager receives from some underlying funds may be higher than the fees paid by other underlying funds. Also, to the extent that the Fund is constrained/restricted from investing (or investing further) in a particular underlying fund for one or more reasons (e.g., underlying fund capacity constraints or regulatory restrictions) or if the Fund chooses to sell its investment in an underlying fund because of poor investment performance or for other reasons, the Fund may have to invest in another underlying fund(s), including less desirable funds – from a strategy or investment performance standpoint – which could have a negative impact on Fund performance. In addition, Fund performance could be negatively impacted if an appropriate alternate underlying fund(s) does not present itself in a timely manner or at all.

Growth Securities Risk. Growth securities typically trade at a higher multiple of earnings than other types of equity securities. Accordingly, the market values of growth securities may never reach their expected market value and may decline in price. In addition, growth securities, at times, may not perform as well as value securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

High-Yield Investments Risk. Securities and other debt instruments held by the Fund that are rated below investment grade (commonly called “high-yield” or “junk” bonds) and unrated debt instruments of comparable quality tend to be more sensitive to credit risk than higher-rated debt instruments and may experience greater price fluctuations in response to perceived changes in the ability of the issuing entity or obligor to pay interest and principal when due than to changes in interest rates. These investments are generally more likely to experience a default than higher-rated debt instruments. High-yield debt instruments are considered to be predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal. These debt instruments typically pay a premium – a higher interest rate or yield – because of the increased risk of loss, including default. High-yield debt instruments may require a greater degree of judgment to establish a price, may be difficult to sell at the time and price the Fund desires, may carry high transaction costs, and also are generally less liquid than higher-rated debt instruments. The ratings provided by third party rating agencies are based on analyses by these ratings agencies of the credit quality of the debt instruments and may not take into account every risk related to whether interest or principal will be timely repaid. In adverse economic and other circumstances, issuers of lower-rated debt instruments are more likely to have difficulty making principal and interest payments than issuers of higher-rated debt instruments.

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Inflation-Protected Securities Risk. Inflation-protected debt securities tend to react to changes in real interest rates. Real interest rates can be described as nominal interest rates minus the expected impact of inflation. In general, the price of an inflation-protected debt security falls when real interest rates rise, and rises when real interest rates fall. Interest payments on inflation-protected debt securities will vary as the principal and/or interest is adjusted for inflation and may be more volatile than interest paid on ordinary bonds. In periods of deflation, the Fund may have no income at all from such investments. Income earned by a shareholder depends on the amount of principal invested, and that principal will not grow with inflation unless the shareholder reinvests the portion of Fund distributions that comes from inflation adjustments.

Interest Rate Risk. Interest rate risk is the risk of losses attributable to changes in interest rates. In general, if prevailing interest rates (which are at historic lows) rise, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to fall, and if interest rates fall, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to rise. Changes in the value of a fixed-income instrument usually will not affect the amount of income the Fund receives from it but will generally affect the value of the Fund's shares. In general, the longer the maturity or duration of a fixed-income instrument, the greater its sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Interest rate declines also may increase prepayments of debt obligations, which, in turn, would increase prepayment risk. Similarly, a period of rising interest rates may negatively impact the Fund’s performance. Actions by governments and central banking authorities can result in increases in interest rates. Such actions may negatively affect the value of fixed-income instruments held by the Fund, resulting in a negative impact on the Fund's performance and NAV. Debt instruments with floating coupon rates are typically less sensitive to interest rate changes, but these debt instruments may decline in value if their coupon rates do not rise as much as, or keep pace with, yields on such types of debt instruments. Because rates on certain floating rate loans and other debt instruments reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause fluctuations in the Fund’s NAV. Any interest rate increases could cause the value of the Fund’s investments in fixed-income instruments to decrease. Rising interest rates may prompt redemptions from the Fund, which may force the Fund to sell investments at a time when it is not advantageous to do so, which could result in losses.

Issuer Risk. An issuer in which the Fund invests or to which it has exposure may perform poorly, and the value of its loans or securities may therefore decline, which would negatively affect the Fund’s performance. Poor performance may be caused by poor management decisions, competitive pressures, breakthroughs in technology, reliance on suppliers, labor problems or shortages, corporate restructurings, fraudulent disclosures, natural disasters or other events, conditions or factors.

Leverage Risk. Leverage occurs when the Fund increases its assets available for investment using borrowings, derivatives, or similar instruments or techniques. Use of leverage can produce volatility and may exaggerate changes in the net asset value of Fund shares and in the return on the Fund’s portfolio, which may increase the risk that the Fund will lose more than it has invested. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations or to meet any required asset segregation or position coverage requirements. Futures contracts, options on futures contracts, forward contracts and other derivatives can allow the Fund to obtain large investment exposures in return for meeting relatively small margin requirements. As a result, investments in those transactions may be highly leveraged. If the Fund uses leverage, through the purchase of particular instruments such as derivatives, the Fund may experience capital losses that exceed the net assets of the Fund. Leverage can create an interest expense that may lower the Fund's overall returns. Leverage presents the opportunity for increased net income and capital gains, but may also exaggerate the Fund's volatility and risk of loss. There can be no guarantee that a leveraging strategy will be successful.

Liquidity Risk. Liquidity risk is the risk associated with any event, circumstance, or characteristic of an investment or market that negatively impacts the Fund’s ability to sell, or realize the proceeds from the sale of, an investment at a desirable time or price. Liquidity risk may arise because of, for example, a lack of marketability of the investment, which means that when seeking to sell its portfolio investments, the Fund could find that selling is more difficult than anticipated, especially during times of high market volatility. Decreases in the number of financial institutions, including banks and broker-dealers, willing to make markets (match up sellers and buyers) in the Fund’s investments or decreases in their capacity or willingness to trade such investments may increase the Fund’s exposure to this risk. The debt market has experienced considerable growth, and financial institutions making markets in instruments purchased and sold by the Fund (e.g., bond dealers) have been subject to increased regulation. The impact of that

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growth and regulation on the ability and willingness of financial institutions to engage in trading or “making a market” in such instruments remains unsettled. Certain types of investments, such as lower-rated securities or those that are purchased and sold in over-the-counter markets, may be especially subject to liquidity risk. Securities or other assets in which the Fund invests may be traded in the over-the-counter market rather than on an exchange and therefore may be more difficult to purchase or sell at a fair price, which may have a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. Market participants attempting to sell the same or a similar instrument at the same time as the Fund could exacerbate the Fund’s exposure to liquidity risk. The Fund may have to accept a lower selling price for the holding, sell other, liquid or more liquid, investments that it might otherwise prefer to hold (thereby increasing the proportion of the Fund’s investments in less liquid or illiquid securities), or forego another more appealing investment opportunity. Certain investments that were liquid when purchased by the Fund may later become illiquid, particularly in times of overall economic distress. Changing regulatory, market or other conditions or environments (for example, the interest rate or credit environments) may also adversely affect the liquidity and the price of the Fund's investments. Judgment plays a larger role in valuing illiquid or less liquid investments as compared to valuing liquid or more liquid investments. Price volatility may be higher for illiquid or less liquid investments as a result of, for example, the relatively less frequent pricing of such securities (as compared to liquid or more liquid investments). Generally, the less liquid the market at the time the Fund sells a portfolio investment, the greater the risk of loss or decline of value to the Fund. Overall market liquidity and other factors can lead to an increase in Fund redemptions, which may negatively impact Fund performance and NAV, including, for example, if the Fund is forced to sell investments in a down market.

Market Risk. Market risk refers to the possibility that the market values of securities or other investments that the Fund holds will fall, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, or fail to rise. The value of Fund investments may fall or fail to rise because of a variety of actual or perceived factors affecting an issuer (e.g., an unfavorable earnings report), the industry or sector in which it operates, or the market as a whole, which may reduce the value of an investment in the Fund. Accordingly, an investment in the Fund could lose money over short or long periods. The market values of the investments the Fund holds can be affected by changes or perceived changes in U.S. or foreign economies and financial markets, and the liquidity of these investments, among other factors.

Mortgage- and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk.  The value of any mortgage-backed and other asset-backed securities held by the Fund may be affected by, among other things, changes or perceived changes in: interest rates; factors concerning the interests in and structure of the issuer or the originator of the mortgages or other assets; the creditworthiness of the entities that provide any supporting letters of credit, surety bonds or other credit enhancements; or the market's assessment of the quality of underlying assets. Mortgage-backed securities represent interests in, or are backed by, pools of mortgages from which payments of interest and principal (net of fees paid to the issuer or guarantor of the securities) are distributed to the holders of the mortgage-backed securities. Other types of asset-backed securities typically represent interests in, or are backed by, pools of receivables such as credit, automobile, student and home equity loans. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities can have a fixed or an adjustable rate. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk, which is the possibility that the underlying mortgage or other asset may be refinanced or prepaid prior to maturity during periods of declining or low interest rates, causing the Fund to have to reinvest the money received in securities that have lower yields. In addition, the impact of prepayments on the value of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities may be difficult to predict and may result in greater volatility. Rising or high interest rates tend to extend the duration of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, making them more volatile and more sensitive to changes in interest rates. Payment of principal and interest on some mortgage-backed securities (but not the market value of the securities themselves) may be guaranteed (i) by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government (in the case of securities guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association) or (ii) by its agencies, authorities, enterprises or instrumentalities (in the case of securities guaranteed by the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC)), which are not insured or guaranteed by the U.S. Government (although FNMA and FHLMC may be able to access capital from the U.S. Treasury to meet their obligations under such securities). Mortgage-backed securities issued by non-governmental issuers (such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers) may be supported by various credit enhancements, such as pool insurance,

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guarantees issued by governmental entities, letters of credit from a bank or senior/subordinated structures, and may entail greater risk than obligations guaranteed by the U.S. Government, whether or not such obligations are guaranteed by the private issuer.

Prepayment and Extension Risk. Prepayment and extension risk is the risk that a bond or other security or investment might, in the case of prepayment risk, be called or otherwise converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity and, in the case of extension risk, that the investment might not be called as expected. In the case of prepayment risk, if the investment is converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity, the portfolio managers may not be able to invest the proceeds in other investments providing as high a level of income, resulting in a reduced yield to the Fund. In the case of mortgage- or other asset-backed securities, as interest rates decrease or spreads narrow, the likelihood of prepayment increases. Conversely, extension risk is the risk that an unexpected rise in interest rates will extend the life of a mortgage- or asset-backed security beyond the prepayment time. If the Fund's investments are locked in at a lower interest rate for a longer period of time, the portfolio managers may be unable to capitalize on securities with higher interest rates or wider spreads.

U.S. Government Obligations Risk. While U.S. Treasury obligations are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government, such securities are nonetheless subject to credit risk ( i.e. , the risk that the U.S. Government may be, or may be perceived to be, unable or unwilling to honor its financial obligations, such as making payments). Securities issued or guaranteed by federal agencies or authorities and U.S. Government-sponsored instrumentalities or enterprises may or may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. For example, securities issued by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Banks are neither insured nor guaranteed by the U.S. Government. These securities may be supported by the ability to borrow from the U.S. Treasury or only by the credit of the issuing agency, authority, instrumentality or enterprise and, as a result, are subject to greater credit risk than securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury.

Value Securities Risk. Value securities are securities of companies that may have experienced, for example, adverse business, industry or other developments or may be subject to special risks that have caused the securities to be out of favor and, in turn, potentially undervalued. The market value of a portfolio security may not meet the portfolio manager's perceived value assessment of that security, or may decline in price, even though the portfolio manager(s) believe(s) the securities are already undervalued. There is also a risk that it may take longer than expected for the value of these investments to rise to the portfolio manager’s perceived value. In addition, value securities, at times, may not perform as well as growth securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

Volatility and Volatility Management Risk. Although the Fund seeks to manage equity market volatility within its portfolio, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful. Despite the Fund’s name, the Fund’s portfolio may experience more than its targeted level of volatility, subjecting the Fund to market risk. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Funds’ portfolios may be subject to price volatility, and the Fund’s share price may not be any less volatile than the market as a whole and could be more volatile. The Investment Manager’s determinations/expectations regarding volatility may be incorrect or inaccurate, which may also adversely affect the Fund’s actual volatility within the portfolio. The Fund also may underperform other funds with similar investment objectives and/or strategies. Additionally, because the Fund seeks to target a particular level of effective equity market exposure (EEME), as stated above under “Principal Investment Strategies”, the Fund may provide protection in volatile markets by potentially curbing or mitigating the risk of loss in declining equity markets, but the Fund’s opportunity to achieve returns when the equity markets are rising may also be curbed. In general, the greater the protection against downside loss (as reflected in a smaller target level of EEME), the lesser the Fund’s opportunity to participate in the returns generated by rising equity markets; however, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in protecting the value of its portfolio in down markets. Additionally, to the extent that the Fund maximizes its EEME in low volatility markets, if the equity markets should decline in such low volatility markets, the Fund may experience greater loss than if it had not maximized its EEME. To the extent that the Fund underestimates or misinterprets volatility signals, the Fund’s performance could be negatively affected. Volatility targets and volatility risk are different for all three funds in the U.S. Flexible series, with the Conservative Growth Fund having the lowest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk) and the U.S. Flexible Growth Fund having the highest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk).

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Additional Investment Strategies and Policies

This section describes certain investment strategies and policies that the Fund may utilize in pursuit of its investment objective and some additional factors and risks involved with investing in the Fund.

Investment Guidelines

As a general matter, and except as specifically described in the discussion of the Fund's principal investment strategies in this prospectus or as otherwise required by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act), the rules and regulations thereunder and any applicable exemptive relief, whenever an investment policy or limitation states a percentage of the Fund's assets that may be invested in any security or other asset or sets forth a policy regarding an investment standard, compliance with that percentage limitation or standard will be determined solely at the time of the Fund's investment in the security or asset.

Holding Other Kinds of Investments

The Fund may hold investments that are not part of its principal investment strategies. These investments and their risks are described below and/or in the Statement of Additional Information (SAI). The Fund may choose not to invest in certain securities described in this prospectus and in the SAI, although it has the ability to do so. Information on the Fund’s holdings can be found in the Fund’s shareholder reports or by visiting columbiathreadneedle.com/us.

Transactions in Derivatives

The Fund may enter into derivative transactions or otherwise have exposure to derivative transactions through underlying investments. Derivatives are financial contracts whose values are, for example, based on (or “derived” from) traditional securities (such as a stock or bond), assets (such as a commodity like gold or a foreign currency), reference rates (such as the London Interbank Offered Rate (commonly known as LIBOR)) or market indices (such as the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 ^® Index). The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity which involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. Derivatives involve special risks and may result in losses or may limit the Fund's potential gain from favorable market movements. Derivative strategies often involve leverage, which may exaggerate a loss, potentially causing the Fund to lose more money than it would have lost had it invested in the underlying security or other asset directly. The values of derivatives may move in unexpected ways, especially in unusual market conditions, and may result in increased volatility in the value of the derivative and/or the Fund’s shares, among other consequences. Other risks arise from the Fund's potential inability to terminate or to sell derivative positions. A liquid secondary market may not always exist for the Fund's derivative positions at times when the Fund might wish to terminate or to sell such positions. Over-the-counter instruments (investments not traded on an exchange) may be illiquid, and transactions in derivatives traded in the over-the-counter market are subject to the risk that the other party will not meet its obligations. The use of derivatives also involves the risks of mispricing or improper valuation and that changes in the value of the derivative may not correlate perfectly with the underlying security, asset, reference rate or index. The Fund also may not be able to find a suitable derivative transaction counterparty, and thus may be unable to engage in derivative transactions when it is deemed favorable to do so, or at all. U.S. federal legislation has been enacted that provides for new clearing, margin, reporting and registration requirements for participants in the derivatives market. These changes could restrict and/or impose significant costs or other burdens upon the Fund’s participation in derivatives transactions. For more information on the risks of derivative investments and strategies, see the SAI.

Affiliated Fund Investing

The Investment Manager or an affiliate serves as investment adviser to funds using the Columbia brand (Columbia Funds), including those that are structured as “fund-of-funds” (such as the Fund(s) offered in this prospectus), and provides asset-allocation services to (i) shareholders by investing in shares of other Columbia Funds (collectively referred to in this section as Underlying Funds), and (ii) discretionary managed accounts (collectively referred to as affiliated products) that invest exclusively in Underlying Funds. These affiliated products, individually or collectively, may own a significant percentage of the outstanding shares of one or more Underlying Funds, and the Investment Manager seeks to balance potential conflicts of interest between the affiliated products and the Underlying Funds in which they invest. The affiliated products’ investment in the Underlying Funds may have the effect of creating economies of scale, possibly resulting in lower expense ratios for the Underlying Funds, because the affiliated

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products may own substantial portions of the shares of Underlying Funds. However, redemption of Underlying Fund shares by one or more affiliated products could cause the expense ratio of an Underlying Fund to increase, as its fixed costs would be spread over a smaller asset base. Because of large positions of certain affiliated products, the Underlying Funds may experience relatively large inflows and outflows of cash due to affiliated products’ purchases and sales of Underlying Fund shares. Although the Investment Manager or its affiliate may seek to minimize the impact of these transactions where possible, for example, by structuring them over a reasonable period of time or through other measures, Underlying Funds may experience increased expenses as they buy and sell portfolio securities to manage the cash flow effect related to these transactions. Further, when the Investment Manager or its affiliate structures transactions over a reasonable period of time in order to manage the potential impact of the buy and sell decisions for the affiliated products, those affiliated products, including funds-of-funds, may pay more or less (for purchase activity), or receive more or less (for redemption activity), for shares of the Underlying Funds than if the transactions were executed in one transaction. In addition, substantial redemptions by affiliated products within a short period of time could require the Underlying Fund to liquidate positions more rapidly than would otherwise be desirable, which may have the effect of reducing or eliminating potential gain or causing it to realize a loss. In order to meet such redemptions, an Underlying Fund may be forced to sell its liquid (or more liquid) positions, leaving the Underlying Fund holding, post-redemption, a relatively larger position in illiquid securities (securities that are not readily marketable or that cannot be sold or disposed of in the ordinary course of business, within seven days, at approximately the value at which the holder has valued the security) or less liquid securities. Substantial redemptions may also adversely affect the ability of the Underlying Fund to implement its investment strategy. The Investment Manager or its affiliate also has an economic conflict of interest in determining the allocation of affiliated products’ assets among the Underlying Funds, as it earns different fees from the various Underlying Funds.

Affiliated Products

As of the date of this prospectus, shares of the Fund are available to holders of variable annuity contracts and in variable life insurance policies (collectively, Contracts) issued by RiverSource Life Insurance Company and RiverSource Life Insurance Co. of New York (collectively, RiverSource Life).

RiverSource Life is an affiliate of Ameriprise Financial, Inc., which is the parent company of Columbia Management, the Fund’s investment manager. Under certain variable annuity contracts, contract holders have elected a guaranteed benefit rider that requires investment in the Fund (the Rider). RiverSource Life has financial obligations to holders of the Riders arising from guarantee obligations under such Riders, which vary based upon the investment performance of the Fund. RiverSource Life expects to benefit financially by offering this Fund, compared to offering other types of funds, in variable annuity contracts with Riders. For example, RiverSource Life expects to reduce its costs to purchase hedge investments associated with variable annuity contract liabilities tied to this Fund. It also expects to benefit from the greater liquidity of hedge investments used to meet its obligations under the Riders. In addition, it expects to reduce its capital requirements, which represent assets RiverSource Life sets aside to back the guarantees offered in its variable annuity contracts. As described above, RiverSource Life has a financial interest in reducing its potential exposure with respect to variable annuity contract values invested under the Riders. This may present a potential conflict of interest with respect to the interests of the holders of the Riders (who are required to allocate their variable annuity contract value to the Fund). In particular, RiverSource Life’s interest in reducing volatility within the Fund’s portfolio may present a potential conflict between it and Columbia Management as the latter seeks to achieve the Fund’s investment objective of “total return while seeking to manage the Fund’s exposure to equity market volatility.”

Columbia Management has a framework in place to ensure its management of the Fund is effected in the best interests of the Fund, without undue influence from RiverSource Life. Although an investment in the Fund may have the effect of mitigating declines in your Contract value (whether or not you have elected a Rider in your variable annuity contract), in the event of a significant decline in the equity markets, the strategy followed by the Fund, if successful, will also generally result in your Contract value increasing to a lesser degree than the equity markets, or decreasing when the values of equity investments are stable or rising. Depending on future market conditions and considering only the potential return on your investment in the Fund, a variable annuity contract holder electing the Rider might benefit (or benefit more) from selecting an investment option offered in connection with a different

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

guaranteed benefit rider (if available) or alternate investments and a variable annuity contract holder who did not elect the Rider might benefit (or benefit more) from selecting an alternative investment option. In addition, there is no guarantee that the Fund’s strategy will have its intended effect, or that it will work as effectively as is intended.

Investing in Money Market Funds

The Fund may invest cash in, or hold as collateral for certain investments, shares of registered or unregistered money market funds, including funds advised by the Investment Manager or its affiliates. These funds are not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or any other government agency. The Fund and its shareholders indirectly bear a portion of the expenses of any money market fund or other fund in which the Fund may invest.

Investing Defensively

The Fund may from time to time take temporary defensive investment positions that may be inconsistent with the Fund’s principal investment strategies in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political, social or other conditions, including, without limitation, investing some or all of its assets in money market instruments or shares of affiliated or unaffiliated money market funds or holding some or all of its assets in cash or cash equivalents. The Fund may take such defensive investment positions for as long a period as deemed necessary.

The Fund may not achieve its investment objective while it is investing defensively. Investing defensively may adversely affect Fund performance. During these times, the portfolio managers may make frequent portfolio holding changes, which could result in increased trading expenses and decreased Fund performance. See also Investing in Money Market Funds above for more information.

Other Strategic and Investment Measures

The Fund may also from time to time take temporary portfolio positions that may or may not be consistent with the Fund’s principal investment strategies in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political, social or other conditions, including, without limitation, investing in derivatives, such as forward contracts, futures contracts, options, structured investments and swaps, for various purposes, including among others, investing in particular derivatives in seeking to reduce investment exposures, or in seeking to achieve indirect investment exposures, to a sector, country, region or currency where the Investment Manager believes such positioning is appropriate. The Fund may take such portfolio positions for as long a period as deemed necessary. While the Fund is so positioned, derivatives could comprise a substantial portion of the Fund’s investments and the Fund may not achieve its investment objective. Investing in this manner may adversely affect Fund performance. During these times, the portfolio managers may make frequent portfolio holding changes, which could result in increased trading expenses and decreased Fund performance. For information on the risks of investing in derivatives, see Transactions in Derivatives above.

Portfolio Holdings Disclosure

The Board has adopted policies and procedures that govern the timing and circumstances of disclosure to shareholders and third parties of information regarding the securities owned by the Fund. A description of these policies and procedures is included in the SAI. Fund policy generally permits the disclosure of portfolio holdings information on the Fund's website (columbiathreadneedle.com/us) only after a certain amount of time has passed, as described in the SAI.

Purchases and sales of portfolio securities can take place at any time, so the portfolio holdings information available on the Fund's website may not always be current.

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Cash Flows

The timing and magnitude of cash inflows from investors buying Fund shares could prevent the Fund from always being fully invested. Conversely, the timing and magnitude of cash outflows to shareholders redeeming Fund shares could require the Fund to sell portfolio securities at less than opportune times or to hold ready reserves of uninvested cash in amounts larger than might otherwise be the case to meet shareholder redemptions. Either situation could adversely impact the Fund’s performance.

Understanding Annual Fund Operating Expenses

The Fund’s annual operating expenses, as presented in the Annual Fund Operating Expenses table in the Fees and Expenses of the Fund section of this prospectus, generally are based on estimated expenses for the Fund’s current fiscal period and are expressed as a percentage (expense ratio) of the Fund’s average net assets. The expense ratio reflects current fee arrangements.

In addition to the total annual Fund operating expenses that the Fund bears directly, the Fund’s shareholders indirectly bear the expenses of the underlying funds (or acquired funds) in which the Fund invests. The Fund’s “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” shown are based on its estimated allocations to the underlying funds. Because acquired funds will have varied expense and fee levels and the Fund may own different proportions of acquired funds at different times, the amount of fees and expenses incurred by the Fund with respect to such investments will vary.

Fee Waiver/Expense Reimbursement Arrangements

The Investment Manager and certain of its affiliates have contractually agreed to waive fees and/or reimburse expenses (excluding certain fees and expenses described below) through April 30, 2017, unless sooner terminated at the sole discretion of the Fund's Board, so that the Fund’s net operating expenses, after giving effect to fees waived/expenses reimbursed and any balance credits and/or overdraft charges from the Fund’s custodian, do not exceed the annual rate of:

    

Columbia Variable Portfolio - U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth
Class 2	1.10%

Under the agreement, the following fees and expenses are excluded from the Fund’s operating expenses when calculating the waiver/reimbursement commitment, and therefore will be paid by the Fund, if applicable: taxes (including foreign transaction taxes), transaction costs and brokerage commissions, costs related to any securities lending program, dividend expenses associated with securities sold short, inverse floater program fees and expenses, transaction charges and interest on borrowed money, interest, infrequent and/or unusual expenses and any other expenses the exclusion of which is specifically approved by the Fund’s Board. This agreement may be modified or amended only with approval from all parties.

Primary Service Providers

The Fund enters into contractual arrangements (Contracts) with various parties, including, among others, the Investment Manager, the Distributor, Columbia Management Investment Services Corp. (the Transfer Agent) and the Fund’s custodian. The Fund’s Contracts are solely among the parties thereto. Shareholders are not parties to, or intended to be third-party beneficiaries of, any Contracts. Further, this prospectus, the SAI and any Contracts are not intended to give rise to any agreement, duty, special relationship or other obligation between the Fund and any investor, or give rise to any contractual, tort or other rights in any individual shareholder, group of shareholders or

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other person, including any right to assert a fiduciary or other duty, enforce the Contracts against the parties or to seek any remedy thereunder, either directly or on behalf of the Fund. Nothing in the previous sentence should be read to suggest any waiver of any rights under federal or state securities laws.

The Investment Manager, the Distributor and the Transfer Agent are all affiliates of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (Ameriprise Financial). They and their affiliates currently provide key services, including investment advisory, administration, distribution, shareholder servicing and transfer agency services, to the Fund and various other funds, including the Columbia Funds, and are paid for providing these services. These service relationships are described below.

The Investment Manager

Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC is located at 225 Franklin Street, Boston, MA 02110 and serves as investment adviser and administrator to the Columbia Funds. The Investment Manager is a registered investment adviser and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ameriprise Financial. The Investment Manager’s management experience covers all major asset classes, including equity securities, fixed-income securities and money market instruments. In addition to serving as an investment adviser to traditional mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and closed-end funds, the Investment Manager acts as an investment adviser for itself, its affiliates, individuals, corporations, retirement plans, private investment companies and financial intermediaries.

Subject to oversight by the Board, the Investment Manager manages the day-to-day operations of the Fund, determining what securities and other investments the Fund should buy or sell and executing portfolio transactions. The Investment Manager may use the research and other capabilities of its affiliates and third parties in managing the Fund’s investments. The Investment Manager is also responsible for overseeing the administrative operations of the Fund, including the general supervision of the Fund’s operations, the coordination of the Fund’s other service providers and the provision of related clerical and administrative services.

The SEC has issued an order that permits the Investment Manager, subject to the approval of the Board, to appoint an unaffiliated subadviser or to change the terms of a subadvisory agreement, including fees paid thereunder, for the Fund without first obtaining shareholder approval, thereby avoiding the expense and delays typically associated with obtaining shareholder approval. The Investment Manager and its affiliates may have other relationships, including significant financial relationships, with current or potential subadvisers or their affiliates, which may create certain conflicts of interest. When making recommendations to the Board to appoint or to change a subadviser, or to change the terms of a subadvisory agreement, the Investment Manager discloses to the Board the nature of any such material relationships. At present, the Investment Manager has not engaged any investment subadviser for the Fund.

The Fund pays the Investment Manager a fee for its management services, which include investment advisory and administrative services. The fee is calculated as a percentage of the average daily net assets of the Fund. The fee is paid monthly, as follows:

    

Annual Management Fee, as a % of Average Daily Net Assets:
Assets invested in affiliated underlying funds (including ETFs and closed-end funds) that pay a management fee (or advisory fee, as applicable) to the Investment Manager	0.02%
Assets invested in securities (other than affiliated underlying funds (including ETFs and closed-end funds) that pay a management fee (or advisory fee, as applicable) to the Investment Manager), including other funds advised by the Investment Manager that do not pay a management fee, third party funds, derivatives and individual securities	$0 - $500	0.720%
	>$500 - $1,000	0.670%
	>$1,000 - $1,500	0.620%
	>$1,500 - $3,000	0.570%
	>$3,000 - $6,000	0.550%
	>$6,000 - $12,000	0.530%
	>$12,000	0.520%

A discussion regarding the basis for the Board approving the adoption of the management agreement will be available in the Fund’s annual report to shareholders for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016.

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Other Roles and Relationships of Ameriprise Financial and its Affiliates — Certain Conflicts of Interest

The Investment Manager, Distributor and Transfer Agent, all affiliates of Ameriprise Financial, provide various services to the Fund and other Columbia Funds for which they are compensated. Ameriprise Financial and its other affiliates may also provide other services to these funds and be compensated for them.

The Investment Manager and its affiliates may provide investment advisory and other services to other clients and customers substantially similar to those provided to the Columbia Funds. These activities, and other financial services activities of Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, may present actual and potential conflicts of interest and introduce certain investment constraints.

Ameriprise Financial is a major financial services company, engaged in a broad range of financial activities beyond the mutual fund-related activities of the Investment Manager, including, among others, insurance, broker-dealer (sales and trading), asset management, banking and other financial activities. These additional activities may involve multiple advisory, financial, insurance and other interests in securities and other instruments, and in companies that issue securities and other instruments, that may be bought, sold or held by the Columbia Funds.

Conflicts of interest and limitations that could affect a Columbia Fund may arise from, for example, the following:

■	compensation and other benefits received by the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates related to the management/administration of a Columbia Fund and the sale of its shares;

■	the allocation of, and competition for, investment opportunities among the Fund, other funds and accounts advised/managed by the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates, or Ameriprise Financial itself and its affiliates;

■	separate and potentially divergent management of a Columbia Fund and other funds and accounts advised/managed by the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates;

■	regulatory and other investment restrictions on investment activities of the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates and accounts advised/managed by them;

■	insurance and other relationships of Ameriprise Financial affiliates with companies and other entities in which a Columbia Fund invests;

■	regulatory and other restrictions relating to the sharing of information between Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, including the Investment Manager, and a Columbia Fund; and

■

insurance companies investing in the Fund may be affiliates of Ameriprise Financial; these affiliated insurance companies, individually and collectively, may hold through separate accounts a significant portion of the Fund's shares and may also invest in separate accounts managed by the Investment Manager that have the same or substantially similar investment objectives and strategies as the Fund.

The Investment Manager and Ameriprise Financial have adopted various policies and procedures that are intended to identify, monitor and address conflicts of interest. However, there is no assurance that these policies, procedures and disclosures will be effective.

Additional information about Ameriprise Financial and the types of conflicts of interest and other matters referenced above is set forth in the Investment Management and Other Services — Other Roles and Relationships of Ameriprise Financial and its Affiliates — Certain Conflicts of Interest section of the SAI. Investors in the Columbia Funds should carefully review these disclosures and consult with their financial advisor if they have any questions.

Certain Legal Matters

Ameriprise Financial and certain of its affiliates have historically been involved in a number of legal, arbitration and regulatory proceedings, including routine litigation, class actions and governmental actions, concerning matters arising in connection with the conduct of their business activities. Ameriprise Financial believes that the Fund is not currently the subject of, and that neither Ameriprise Financial nor any of its affiliates are the subject of, any pending legal, arbitration or regulatory proceedings that are likely to have a material adverse effect on the Fund or the ability of Ameriprise Financial or its affiliates to perform under their contracts with the Fund. Information regarding certain

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pending and settled legal proceedings may be found in the Fund’s shareholder reports and in the SAI. Additionally, Ameriprise Financial is required to make quarterly (10-Q), annual (10-K) and, as necessary, 8-K filings with the SEC on legal and regulatory matters that relate to Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates. Copies of these filings may be obtained by accessing the SEC website at sec.gov.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

affiliated broker-dealers and insurance companies, may be separately incented to include shares of the Columbia Funds in Contracts offered by affiliated insurance companies, as employee compensation and business unit operating goals at all levels are generally tied to the success of Ameriprise Financial. Certain employees, directly or indirectly, may receive higher compensation and other benefits as investment in the Columbia Funds increases. In addition, management, sales leaders and other employees may spend more of their time and resources promoting Ameriprise Financial and its subsidiary companies, including the Distributor and the Investment Manager, and the products they offer, including the Fund.

In addition to the payments described above, the Distributor, the Investment Manager and their affiliates may make other payments or allow promotional incentives to broker-dealers to the extent permitted by SEC and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) rules and by other applicable laws and regulations.

Amounts paid by the Distributor and the Investment Manager and their affiliates are paid out of the Distributor’s and the Investment Manager’s own resources and do not increase the amount paid by you or the Fund. You can find further details in the SAI about the payments made by the Distributor and the Investment Manager and their affiliates, as well as a list of the selling agents, including Ameriprise Financial affiliates, to which the Distributor and the Investment Manager have agreed to make marketing/sales support payments.

Your selling agent may charge you fees and commissions in addition to those described herein. You should consult with your selling agent and review carefully any disclosure your selling agent provides regarding its services and compensation. Depending on the financial arrangement in place at any particular time, a selling agent may have a conflict of interest or financial incentive with respect to its recommendations regarding the Fund or any Contract that includes the Fund.

Share Price Determination

The price you pay or receive when you buy, sell or transfer shares is the Fund's next determined net asset value (or NAV) per share. The Fund calculates the NAV per share at the end of each business day. Any affiliated underlying funds calculate their NAV in the same manner as the Fund calculates its NAV.

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About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

Equity securities are valued primarily on the basis of market quotations reported on stock exchanges and other securities markets around the world. If an equity security is listed on a national exchange, the security is valued at the closing price or, if the closing price is not readily available, the mean of the closing bid and asked prices. Certain equity securities, debt securities and other assets are valued differently. For instance, bank loans trading in the secondary market are valued primarily on the basis of indicative bids, fixed-income investments maturing in 60 days or less are valued primarily using the amortized cost method, unless this methodology results in a valuation that does not approximate the market value of these securities, and those maturing in excess of 60 days are valued primarily using a market-based price obtained from a pricing service, if available. Investments in other open-end funds are valued at their latest NAVs. Both market quotations and indicative bids are obtained from outside pricing services approved and monitored pursuant to a policy approved by the Fund's Board. For a money market fund, the Fund's investments are generally valued at amortized cost, which approximates market value.

If a market price is not readily available or is deemed not to reflect market value, the Fund will determine the price of a portfolio security based on a determination of the security's fair value pursuant to a policy approved by the Fund's Board. In addition, the Fund may use fair valuation to price securities that trade on a foreign exchange when a significant event has occurred after the foreign exchange closes but before the time at which the Fund's share price is calculated. Foreign exchanges typically close before the time at which Fund share prices are calculated, and may be closed altogether on some days when the Fund is open. Such significant events affecting a foreign security may include, but are not limited to: (1) corporate actions, earnings announcements, litigation or other events impacting a single issuer; (2) governmental action that affects securities in one sector or country; (3) natural disasters or armed conflicts affecting a country or region; or (4) significant domestic or foreign market fluctuations. The Fund uses various criteria, including an evaluation of U.S. market moves after the close of foreign markets, in determining whether a foreign security's market price is readily available and reflective of market value and, if not, the fair value of the security. To the extent the Fund has significant holdings of small cap stocks, high-yield bonds, floating rate loans, or tax-exempt, foreign or other securities that may trade infrequently, fair valuation may be used more frequently than for other funds.

Fair valuation may have the effect of reducing stale pricing arbitrage opportunities presented by the pricing of Fund shares. However, when the Fund uses fair valuation to price securities, it may value those securities higher or lower than another fund would have priced the security. Also, the use of fair valuation may cause the Fund's performance to diverge to a greater degree from the performance of various benchmarks used to compare the Fund's performance because benchmarks generally do not use fair valuation techniques. Because of the judgment involved in fair valuation decisions, there can be no assurance that the value ascribed to a particular security is accurate. The Fund has retained one or more independent fair valuation pricing services to assist in the fair valuation process for foreign securities.

Shareholder Information

Shares of the Fund are generally available for purchase only by participating insurance companies in connection with Contracts.

Shares of the Fund may not be purchased or sold directly by individual Contract owners. When you sell your shares through your Contract, the Fund is effectively buying them back. This is called a redemption. The right of redemption may be suspended or payment postponed whenever permitted by applicable laws and regulations.

Depending on the context, references to “you” or “your” herein refer either to the holder of a Contract who may select Fund shares to fund his or her investment in the Contract or to the participating insurance company as the holder of Fund shares through one or more separate accounts.

Potential Conflicts of Interest – Mixed and Shared Funding

The Fund is available for purchase through Contracts offered by the separate accounts of participating insurance companies and may also be available to other eligible investors authorized by the Distributor. Due to differences in tax treatment and other considerations, the interests of various Contract owners may conflict. The Fund does not foresee any disadvantages to investors arising from these potential conflicts of interest at this time. Nevertheless, the Board of the Fund intends to monitor events to identify any material irreconcilable conflicts which may arise, and

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About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

to determine what action, if any, should be taken in response to any conflicts. If such a conflict were to arise, one or more separate accounts might be required to withdraw its investments in the Fund or shares of another mutual fund may be substituted. This might force the Fund to sell securities at disadvantageous prices.

Additional Discussion of Potential Conflicts of Interest Relating to Funds Used Exclusively by Affiliated Insurance Companies

The Fund is sold exclusively as underlying investment options of the Contracts offered by RiverSource Life Insurance Company (RiverSource Life) and its wholly-owned subsidiary, RiverSource Life Insurance Co. of New York (collectively, the Companies). The Investment Manager and its affiliates make or support payments out of their own resources to the Companies as a result of the Companies including the Fund as an investment option in the Contracts. These allocations may be significant. In addition, employees of Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, including employees of the Companies, may be separately incented to include the Fund in the Contracts, as employee compensation and business unit operating goals at all levels are tied to the company’s success. These Contracts may also include unaffiliated mutual funds as investment options, and the Companies receive payments from the sponsors of these unaffiliated mutual funds as a result of including these funds in the products. The amount of payment from sponsors of unaffiliated funds or allocation from the Investment Manager and its affiliates varies, and may be significant. The amount of the payment or allocation the Companies receive from a Fund may create an incentive for the Companies and may influence their decision regarding which funds to include in a Contract. Employees of Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, including employees of affiliated broker-dealers, may be separately incented to recommend or sell shares of the Fund, as employee compensation and business unit operating goals at all levels are tied to the company’s success. Certain employees, directly or indirectly, may receive higher compensation and other benefits as investments in the Fund increase. In addition, management, sales leaders and other employees may spend more of their time and resources promoting Ameriprise Financial and its subsidiary companies, including Columbia Management, and the Distributor, and the products they offer, including the Fund. These arrangements are sometimes referred to as “revenue sharing payments,” and are in addition to any Rule 12b-1 distribution and/or service fees or other amounts paid by the Fund for account maintenance, sub-accounting or recordkeeping services provided directly by the Companies. See About Fund Shares and Transactions - Selling Agent Compensation for more information generally about selling agent compensation and the Contract prospectus for more information regarding these payments and allocations relating to your Contract.

Order Processing

Orders to buy and sell shares of the Fund that are placed by your participating insurance company are processed on business days. Orders received in “good form” by the Transfer Agent or a selling agent, including your participating insurance company , before the end of a business day are priced at the Fund’s NAV per share on that day. Orders received after the end of a business day will receive the next business day’s NAV per share. An order is in “good form” if the Transfer Agent or your selling agent has all of the information and documentation it deems necessary to effect your order. The market value of the Fund’s investments may change between the time you submit your order and the time the Fund next calculates its NAV per share. The business day that applies to your order is also called the trade date.

There is no sales charge associated with the purchase of Fund shares, but there may be charges associated with your Contract. Any charges that apply to your Contract, and any charges that apply to separate accounts of participating insurance companies that may own shares directly, are described in your Contract prospectus.

You may transfer all or part of your investment in the Fund to one or more of the other investment options available under your Contract. You may provide instructions to sell any amount allocated to the Fund. Proceeds will be mailed within seven days after your surrender or withdrawal request is received in good form by an authorized agent. The amount you receive may be more or less than the amount you invested.

Please refer to your Contract prospectus for more information about transfers as well as surrenders and withdrawals.

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About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

Information Sharing Agreements

As required by Rule 22c-2 under the 1940 Act, the Funds or certain of their service providers will enter into information sharing agreements with selling agents, including participating life insurance companies and selling agents that sponsor or offer retirement plans through which shares of the Funds are made available for purchase. Pursuant to Rule 22c-2, selling agents are required, upon request, to: (i) provide shareholder account and transaction information; and (ii) execute instructions from the Fund to restrict or prohibit further purchases of Fund shares by shareholders who have been identified by the Fund as having engaged in transactions that violate the Fund's excessive trading policies and procedures.

Excessive Trading Practices Policy of Non-Money Market Funds

Right to Reject or Restrict Share Transaction Orders — The Fund is intended for investors with long-term investment purposes and is not intended as a vehicle for frequent trading activity (market timing) that is excessive. Investors should transact in Fund shares primarily for investment purposes. The Board has adopted excessive trading policies and procedures that are designed to deter excessive trading by investors (the Excessive Trading Policies and Procedures). The Fund discourages and does not accommodate excessive trading.

The Fund reserves the right to reject, without any prior notice, any buy or transfer order for any reason, and will not be liable for any loss resulting from rejected orders. For example, the Fund may in its sole discretion restrict or reject a buy or transfer order even if the transaction is not subject to the specific limitation described below if the Fund or its agents determine that accepting the order could interfere with efficient management of the Fund's portfolio or is otherwise contrary to the Fund's best interests. The Excessive Trading Policies and Procedures apply equally to buy or transfer transactions communicated directly to the Transfer Agent and to those received by selling agents.

Specific Buying and Transferring Limitations — If a Fund detects that an investor has made two “material round trips” in any 28-day period, it will generally reject the investor's future purchase orders, including transfer buy orders, involving any Fund.

For these purposes, a “round trip” is a purchase or transfer into the Fund followed by a sale or transfer out of the Fund, or a sale or transfer out of the Fund followed by a purchase or transfer into the Fund. A “material” round trip is one that is deemed by the Fund to be material in terms of its amount or its potential detrimental impact on the Fund. Independent of this limit, the Fund may, in its sole discretion, reject future buy orders by any person, group or account that appears to have engaged in any type of excessive trading activity.

These limits generally do not apply to automated transactions or transactions by registered investment companies in a “fund-of-funds” structure. These limits do not apply to payroll deduction contributions by retirement plan participants, transactions initiated by a retirement plan sponsor or certain other retirement plan transactions consisting of rollover transactions, loan repayments and disbursements, and required minimum distribution redemptions. They may be modified or rescinded for accounts held by certain retirement plans to conform to plan limits, for considerations relating to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 or regulations of the Department of Labor, and for certain asset allocation or wrap programs. Accounts known to be under common ownership or control generally will be counted together, but accounts maintained or managed by a common intermediary generally will not be considered to be under common ownership or control. The Fund retains the right to modify these restrictions at any time without prior notice to shareholders. In addition, the Fund may, in its sole discretion, reinstate trading privileges that have been revoked under the Fund's Excessive Trading Policies and Procedures.

Limitations on the Ability to Detect and Prevent Excessive Trading Practices — The Fund takes various steps designed to detect and prevent excessive trading, including daily review of available shareholder transaction information. However, the Fund receives buy, sell or transfer orders through selling agents, and cannot always know of or reasonably detect excessive trading that may be facilitated by selling agents or by the use of the omnibus account arrangements they offer. Omnibus account arrangements are common forms of holding shares of mutual funds, particularly among certain selling agents such as broker-dealers, retirement plans and variable insurance products. These arrangements often permit selling agents to aggregate their clients' transactions and accounts, and in these circumstances, the identity of the shareholders is often not known to the Fund.

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About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

Some selling agents apply their own restrictions or policies to underlying investor accounts, which may be more or less restrictive than those described here. This may impact the Fund's ability to curtail excessive trading, even where it is identified. For these and other reasons, it is possible that excessive trading may occur despite the Fund's efforts to detect and prevent it.

Although these restrictions and policies involve judgments that are inherently subjective and may involve some selectivity in their application, the Fund seeks to act in a manner that it believes is consistent with the best interests of shareholders in making any such judgments.

Risks of Excessive Trading — Excessive trading creates certain risks to the Fund's long-term shareholders and may create the following adverse effects:

■	negative impact on the Fund's performance;

■	potential dilution of the value of the Fund's shares;

■	interference with the efficient management of the Fund's portfolio, such as the need to maintain undesirably large cash positions, the need to use its line of credit or the need to buy or sell securities it otherwise would not have bought or sold;

■	losses on the sale of investments resulting from the need to sell securities at less favorable prices; and

■	increased brokerage and administrative costs.

To the extent that the Fund invests significantly in foreign securities traded on markets that close before the Fund's valuation time, it may be particularly susceptible to dilution as a result of excessive trading. Because events may occur after the close of foreign markets and before the Fund's valuation time that influence the value of foreign securities, investors may seek to trade Fund shares in an effort to benefit from their understanding of the value of foreign securities as of the Fund's valuation time. This is often referred to as price arbitrage. The Fund has adopted procedures designed to adjust closing market prices of foreign securities under certain circumstances to reflect what the Fund believes to be the fair value of those securities as of its valuation time. To the extent the adjustments do not work fully, investors engaging in price arbitrage may cause dilution in the value of the Fund's shares held by other shareholders.

Similarly, to the extent that the Fund invests significantly in thinly traded high-yield bonds (junk bonds) or equity securities of small-capitalization companies, because these securities are often traded infrequently, investors may seek to trade Fund shares in an effort to benefit from their understanding of the value of these securities. This is also a type of price arbitrage. Any such frequent trading strategies may interfere with efficient management of the Fund's portfolio to a greater degree than would be the case for mutual funds that invest in highly liquid securities, in part because the Fund may have difficulty selling those portfolio securities at advantageous times or prices to satisfy large and/or frequent sell orders. Any successful price arbitrage may also cause dilution in the value of Fund shares held by other shareholders. The risks of excessive trading described above also apply to any Underlying Funds in which the Fund invests.

Excessive Trading Practices Policy of Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund

A money market fund is designed to offer investors a liquid cash option that they may buy and sell as often as they wish. Accordingly, the Board has not adopted policies and procedures designed to discourage excessive or short-term trading of Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund shares. However, since frequent purchases and sales of Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund shares could in certain instances harm shareholders in various ways, including reducing the returns to long-term shareholders by increasing costs (such as spreads paid to dealers who trade money market instruments with Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund) and disrupting portfolio management strategies, Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund reserves the right, but has no obligation, to reject any purchase or transfer transaction at any time. Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund has no limits on purchase or transfer transactions. In addition, Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund reserves the right to impose or modify restrictions on purchases, transfers or trading of Fund shares at any time.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Distributions and Taxes (continued)

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Appendix A (continued)

investment a majority of the Fund’s net assets would be invested in Focus Stocks. The Fund may continue to hold, and to make additional investments in, Focus Stocks whose market capitalization has grown to exceed $5 billion, regardless of whether the Fund’s investments in Focus Stocks are a majority of the Fund’s net assets.

The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its net assets in foreign securities. The Fund may invest directly in foreign securities or indirectly through depositary receipts. The Fund may from time to time emphasize one or more economic sectors in selecting its investments, including the financial services sector. The Fund also may invest in real estate investment trusts.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, including futures (including equity futures and index futures) and options, for hedging or investment purposes.

Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC (Columbia Management or the Investment Manager) serves as the investment manager for the Fund and will attempt to achieve the Fund’s objective by managing a portion of the Fund’s assets (the Columbia Management sleeve) and selecting one or more subadvisers to manage other sleeves independently of each other and Columbia Management. A portion of the Fund’s assets is subadvised by Columbia Wanger Asset Management, LLC (CWAM), a wholly-owned affiliate of the Investment Manager. The subadviser and Columbia Management each make investment decisions for their respective sleeves independently of one another.

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Government Mortgage Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Government Mortgage Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with current income as its primary objective and, as its secondary objective, preservation of capital.

The Fund’s assets primarily are invested in mortgage-related securities. Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the Fund’s net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) are invested in mortgage-related securities that either are issued or guaranteed as to principal and interest by the U.S. Government, its agencies, authorities or instrumentalities. This includes, but is not limited to, Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA or Ginnie Mae) mortgage-backed bonds, which are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government; and Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA or Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC or Freddie Mac) mortgage-backed bonds. FNMA and FHLMC are chartered or sponsored by Acts of Congress; however, their securities are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury.

The Fund’s investments in mortgage-related securities include investments in stripped mortgage-backed securities such as interest-only (IO) and principal-only (PO) securities.

The Fund may invest in debt instruments of any maturity and does not seek to maintain a particular dollar-weighted average maturity.

The Fund may invest in privately placed and other securities or instruments that are purchased and sold pursuant to Rule 144A or other exemptions under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the 1933 Act), subject to liquidity determinations and certain regulatory restrictions.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, including futures (including interest rate futures) to manage duration and yield curve exposure and to manage exposure to movements in interest rates.

The Fund may purchase or sell securities on a when-issued, delayed delivery or forward commitment basis. Such securities may include mortgage-backed securities acquired or sold in the “to be announced” (TBA) market and those in a dollar roll transaction.

The Fund’s investment strategy may involve the frequent trading of portfolio securities.

Variable Portfolio – American Century Diversified Bond Fund

Variable Portfolio - American Century Diversified Bond Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with a high level of current income.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in bonds and other debt securities. At least 50% of the Fund’s net assets will be invested in securities like those included in the Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index (the Index), which are investment grade and denominated in U.S. dollars. The Index includes securities issued by the U.S. Government, corporate

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Appendix A (continued)

bonds, and mortgage- and asset-backed securities. Although the Fund emphasizes high- and medium-quality debt securities, it may assume increased credit risk by investing in below investment-grade fixed-income securities (commonly referred to as “high-yield” investments or “junk” bonds).

The Fund may invest in securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury and certain U.S. Government agencies or instrumentalities such as the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae). Ginnie Mae is supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. Securities issued or guaranteed by other U.S. Government agencies or instrumentalities, such as the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), and the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) are not guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. However, they are authorized to borrow from the U.S. Treasury to meet their obligations.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, including forward contracts (including forward foreign currency contracts), futures (including interest rate futures) and swaps (including credit default swaps and credit default swap indexes) in an effort to manage interest rate exposure, to produce incremental earnings, to hedge existing positions, and to increase market exposure and investment flexibility.

The Fund may purchase or sell securities on a when-issued, delayed delivery or forward commitment basis. Such securities may include mortgage-backed securities acquired or sold in the “to be announced” (TBA) market and those in a dollar roll transaction.

Variable Portfolio – CenterSquare Real Estate Fund (prior to June 1, 2016 Variable Portfolio – Morgan Stanley Global Real Estate Fund)

Variable Portfolio – CenterSquare Real Estate Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with current income and capital appreciation.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in equity and equity-related securities issued by companies in the real estate industry. A company is considered to be in the real estate industry if it (i) derives at least 50% of its revenues or profits from the ownership, construction, management, financing or sale of residential, commercial or industrial real estate or (ii) has at least 50% of the fair market value of its assets invested in residential, commercial or industrial real estate. Companies in the real estate industry include, among others, real estate operating companies (REOCs) and real estate investment trusts (REITs).

Variable Portfolio – Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Fund

Variable Portfolio - Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with a high level of current income.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in income producing floating rate loans and other floating rate debt securities. These debt instruments will generally be rated non-investment grade by recognized rating agencies (similar to “high-yield” investments or “junk bonds”) or, if unrated, determined to be of comparable quality. The Fund invests in senior floating rate loans of borrowers (Senior Loans). The Fund may also purchase secured and unsecured subordinated loans, second lien loans and subordinate bridge loans (Junior Loans), or other floating rate debt instruments, fixed income debt instruments and money market instruments. For purposes of the 80% policy, money market holdings with a remaining maturity of less than 60 days will be deemed floating rate assets.

The Fund may invest up to 25% of its net assets in foreign investments.

Floating rate loans are debt obligations of companies and other similar entities that have interest rates that adjust or “float” periodically (normally on a daily, monthly, quarterly or semiannual basis by reference to a base lending rate (such as London Interbank Offered Rate (commonly known as LIBOR)) plus a premium). Floating rate loans are typically structured and administered by a financial institution that acts as the agent of the lenders participating in the floating rate loan. The Fund may acquire loans directly through the agent or from another holder of the loan by assignment. They are generally valued on a daily basis by independent pricing services.

Variable Portfolio – J.P. Morgan Core Bond Fund

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Appendix A (continued)

capitalization range and composition of the companies in the Index are subject to change. The Fund may from time to time emphasize one or more economic sectors in selecting its investments, including the health care sector and the technology and technology-related sectors.

Multiple subadvisers provide the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio. Each subadviser employs an active investment strategy.

Variable Portfolio – Partners Small Cap Value Fund

Variable Portfolio - Partners Small Cap Value Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with long-term capital appreciation.

Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the Fund’s net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) are invested in small cap companies. For these purposes, small cap companies are those that have a market capitalization, at the time of investment, that falls within the range of the Russell 2000 ^® Value Index (the Index) or up to $2.5 billion, whichever is greater. The Fund may buy and hold stock in a company that is not included in the Index. The market capitalization range of the companies included within the Index was $13.6 million to $5.8 billion as of March 31, 2016. The market capitalization range and composition of the companies in the Index are subject to change. The Fund may invest in any type of security, including common stocks and depositary receipts.

The Fund may invest up to 25% of its net assets in foreign investments. The Fund may from time to time emphasize one or more economic sectors in selecting its investments, including the financial services sector and the industrials sector.

Multiple subadvisers provide the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio. Each of the subadvisers employs an active investment strategy that focuses on small cap companies in an attempt to take advantage of what are believed to be undervalued securities.

Variable Portfolio – TCW Core Plus Bond Fund

Variable Portfolio - TCW Core Plus Bond Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with total return through current income and capital appreciation.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in bonds and other debt securities, including debt securities issued by the U.S. Government, its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations, debt securities issued by corporations, mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, dollar-denominated securities issued by foreign governments, companies or other entities, bank loans and other obligations. For purposes of its 80% test, the Fund treats investment in loans as “debt securities,” even though loans may not be “securities” under certain of the federal securities laws. The Fund invests at least 60% of its net assets in debt securities that, at the time of purchase, are rated in at least one of the three highest rating categories or are unrated securities determined to be of comparable quality. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in debt instruments that, at the time of purchase, are rated below investment grade or are unrated but determined to be of comparable quality (commonly referred to as “high-yield” investments or “junk” bonds). The Fund may invest in fixed income securities of any maturity and does not seek to maintain a particular dollar-weighted average maturity or duration at the Fund level.

Up to 25% of the Fund’s net assets may be invested in foreign investments, which may include investments in non-U.S. dollar denominated securities, as well as investments in emerging markets securities. In connection with its strategy relating to foreign investments, the Fund may buy or sell foreign currencies in lieu of or in addition to non-dollar denominated fixed-income securities in order to increase or decrease its exposure to foreign interest rate and/or currency markets.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, including futures contracts (including interest rate futures) to manage exposure of the Fund.

The Fund’s investments in mortgage-related securities include investments in stripped mortgage-backed securities such as interest-only (IO) and principal-only (PO) securities.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Appendix A (continued)

enter into mortgage dollar rolls and reverse repurchase agreements. In addition, the Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by U.S. Government agencies, and to a lesser extent, other securities rated AA- or Aa3 that the Fund’s subadviser believes will sufficiently outperform U.S. Treasuries. Generally, the portfolio’s overall dollar-weighted average effective duration is less than that of a 3-year U.S. Treasury note.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, such as futures contracts (including interest rate futures) to hedge interest rate exposure of the Fund.

The Fund’s investment strategy may involve the frequent trading of portfolio securities.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

interest previously paid by the borrower. Any such actions by a court could adversely affect the Fund’s performance. A default or expected default of a loan could also make it difficult for the Fund to sell the loan at a price approximating the value previously placed on it. In order to enforce its rights in the event of a default, bankruptcy or similar situation, the Fund may be required to retain legal or similar counsel. This may increase the Fund’s operating expenses and adversely affect its NAV. Loans that have a lower priority for repayment in an issuer’s capital structure may involve a higher degree of overall risk than more senior loans of the same borrower.

Depositary Receipts Risk. Depositary receipts are receipts issued by a bank or trust company reflecting ownership of underlying securities issued by foreign companies. Some foreign securities are traded in the form of American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). Depositary receipts involve risks similar to the risks associated with investments in foreign securities, including those associated with investing in the particular country of an issuer, which may be related to the particular political, regulatory, economic, social and other conditions or events, including, for example, military confrontations, war and terrorism, occurring in the country and fluctuations in its currency, as well as market risk tied to the underlying foreign company. In addition, ADR holders may have limited voting rights, may not have the same rights afforded typical company stockholders in the event of a corporate action such as an acquisition, merger or rights offering and may experience difficulty in receiving company stockholder communications.

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives may involve significant risks. Derivatives are financial instruments with a value in relation to, or derived from, the value of an underlying asset(s) or other reference, such as an index, rate or other economic indicator (each an underlying reference). Derivatives may include those that are privately placed or otherwise exempt from SEC registration, including certain Rule 144A eligible securities. Derivatives could result in Fund losses if the underlying reference does not perform as anticipated. Use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that can involve investment techniques, risks, and tax planning different from those associated with more traditional investment instruments. A Fund’s derivatives strategy may not be successful and use of certain derivatives could result in substantial, potentially unlimited, losses to the Fund regardless of the Fund’s actual investment. A relatively small movement in the price, rate or other economic indicator associated with the underlying reference may result in substantial loss for the Fund. Derivatives may be more volatile than other types of investments. The value of derivatives may be influenced by a variety of factors, including national and international political and economic developments. Potential changes to the regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the market for derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Derivatives can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Forward Contracts Risk. A forward contract is an over-the-counter derivative transaction between two parties to buy or sell a specified amount of an underlying reference at a specified price (or rate) on a specified date in the future. Forward contracts are negotiated on an individual basis and are not standardized or traded on exchanges. The market for forward contracts is substantially unregulated and can experience lengthy periods of illiquidity, unusually high trading volume and other negative impacts, such as political intervention, which may result in volatility or disruptions in such markets. A relatively small price movement in a forward contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. Forward contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Futures Contracts Risk. A futures contract is an exchange-traded derivative transaction between two parties in which a buyer (holding the “long” position) agrees to pay a fixed price (or rate) at a specified future date for delivery of an underlying reference from a seller (holding the “short” position). The seller hopes that the market price on the delivery date is less than the agreed upon price, while the buyer hopes for the contrary. Certain futures contract markets are highly volatile, and futures contracts may be illiquid. Futures exchanges may limit fluctuations in futures contract prices by imposing a maximum permissible daily price movement. The Fund may be disadvantaged if it is prohibited from executing a trade outside the daily permissible price movement. At or prior to maturity of a futures contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in futures contract prices. The liquidity of the futures markets depends on participants

B-2	Prospectus 2016

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the futures market could be reduced. Because of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, it is possible that the Fund may employ a high degree of leverage in the portfolio. As a result, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. For certain types of futures contracts, losses are potentially unlimited. Futures markets are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s net asset value. Futures contracts executed (if any) on foreign exchanges may not provide the same protection as U.S. exchanges. Futures contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Inverse Floaters Risk. Inverse variable or floating rate obligations, sometimes referred to as inverse floaters, are a type of over-the-counter derivative debt instrument with a variable or floating coupon rate that moves in the opposite direction of an underlying reference, typically short-term interest rates. While inverse floaters tend to provide more income than similar term and credit quality fixed-rate bonds, they also exhibit greater volatility in price movement, which could result in significant losses for the Fund. An inverse floater may have the effect of investment leverage to the extent that its coupon rate varies by a magnitude that exceeds the magnitude of the change in the index or reference rate of interest, which could result in increased losses for the Fund. Inverse floaters can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Options Risk. Options are derivatives that give the purchaser the option to buy (call) or sell (put) an underlying reference from or to a counterparty at a specified price (the strike price) on or before an expiration date. By investing in options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that it may be required to buy or sell the underlying reference at a disadvantageous price on or before the expiration date. Options may involve economic leverage, which could result in greater volatility in price movement. The Fund's losses could be significant, and are potentially unlimited for certain types of options. Options may be traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market. At or prior to maturity of an options contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in options prices. Options can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Structured Investments Risk. Structured investments are over-the-counter derivatives that provide principal and/or interest payments based on the value of an underlying reference(s). Structured investments may lack a liquid secondary market and their prices or value can be volatile which could result in significant losses for the Fund. Structured investments may create economic leverage which may increase the volatility of the value of the investment. Structured investments can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Swaps Risk. In a typical swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the return earned on a specified underlying reference for a fixed return or the return from another underlying reference during a specified period of time. Swaps may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Swaps could result in Fund losses if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Swaps create significant investment leverage such that a relatively small price movement in a swap may result in immediate and substantial losses to the Fund. The Fund may only close out a swap with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. Certain swaps, such as short swap transactions and total return swaps, have the potential for unlimited losses, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Swaps can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, inflation risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Prospectus 2016

B-3

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

bankers and other secondary market issuers) may entail greater risk than obligations guaranteed by the U.S. Government. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk, which is the possibility that the underlying mortgage or other asset may be refinanced or prepaid prior to maturity during periods of declining or low interest rates, causing the Fund to have to reinvest the money received in securities that have lower yields. Rising or high interest rates tend to extend the duration of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, making their prices more volatile and more sensitive to changes in interest rates.

Multi-Adviser Risk. The Fund has multiple advisory firms that each manage a portion of the Fund’s net assets on a daily basis. Each adviser makes investment decisions independently from the other adviser(s). It is possible that the security selection process of one adviser will not complement or may conflict or even contradict that of the other adviser(s), including making off-setting trades that have no net effect to the Fund, but which may increase Fund expenses. As a result, the Fund's exposure to a given security, industry, sector or market capitalization could be smaller or larger than if the Fund were managed by a single adviser, which could adversely affect the Fund's performance.

Non-Diversified Fund Risk.  The Fund is non-diversified, which generally means that it will invest a greater percentage of its total assets in the securities of fewer issuers than a “diversified” fund. This increases the risk that a change in the value of any one investment held by the Fund could affect the overall value of the Fund more than it would affect that of a diversified fund holding a greater number of investments. Accordingly, the Fund's value will likely be more volatile than the value of a more diversified fund.

Preferred Stock Risk. Preferred stock is a type of stock that generally pays dividends at a specified rate and that has preference over common stock in the payment of dividends and the liquidation of assets. Preferred stock does not ordinarily carry voting rights. The price of a preferred stock is generally determined by earnings, type of products or services, projected growth rates, experience of management, liquidity, and general market conditions of the markets on which the stock trades. The most significant risks associated with investments in preferred stock include issuer risk, market risk and interest rate risk ( i.e. , the risk of losses attributable to changes in interest rates).

Prepayment and Extension Risk. Prepayment and extension risk is the risk that a bond or other security or investment might, in the case of prepayment risk, be called or otherwise converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity and, in the case of extension risk, that the investment might not be called as expected. In the case of prepayment risk, if the investment is converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity, the portfolio managers may not be able to invest the proceeds in other investments providing as high a level of income, resulting in a reduced yield to the Fund. In the case of mortgage- or asset-backed securities, as interest rates decrease or spreads narrow, the likelihood of prepayment increases. Conversely, extension risk is the risk that an unexpected rise in interest rates will extend the life of a mortgage- or asset-backed security beyond the prepayment time. If the Fund’s investments are locked in at a lower interest rate for a longer period of time, the portfolio managers may be unable to capitalize on securities with higher interest rates or wider spreads.

Quantitative Model Risk. Investments selected using quantitative methods may perform differently from the market as a whole. There can be no assurance that these methodologies will enable the Fund to achieve its objective.

Real Estate-Related Investment Risk. Investments in real estate investment trusts (REITs) and in securities of other companies (wherever organized) principally engaged in the real estate industry subject the Fund to, among other things, risks similar to those of direct investments in real estate and the real estate industry in general. These include risks related to general and local economic conditions, possible lack of availability of financing and changes in interest rates or property values. REITs are entities that either own properties or make construction or mortgage loans, and also may include operating or finance companies. The value of interests in a REIT may be affected by, among other factors, changes in the value of the underlying properties owned by the REIT, changes in the prospect for earnings and/or cash flow growth of the REIT itself, defaults by borrowers or tenants, market saturation, decreases in market rates for rents, and other economic, political, or regulatory matters affecting the real estate industry, including REITs. REITs and similar non-U.S. entities depend upon specialized management skills, may have limited financial resources, may have less trading volume in their securities, and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than the overall securities markets. REITs are also subject to the risk of failing to qualify for

Prospectus 2016

B-9

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

favorable tax treatment under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Some REITs (especially mortgage REITs) are affected by risks similar to those associated with investments in debt securities including changes in interest rates and the quality of credit extended.

Reinvestment Risk. Reinvestment risk is the risk that the Fund will not be able to reinvest income or principal at the same return it is currently earning.

Repurchase Agreements  Risk. Repurchase agreements are agreements in which the seller of a security to the Fund agrees to repurchase that security from the Fund at a mutually agreed upon price and time. Repurchase agreements carry the risk that the counterparty may not fulfill its obligations under the agreement. This could cause the Fund's income and the value of your investment in the Fund to decline.

Reverse Repurchase Agreements Risk. Reverse repurchase agreements are agreements in which a Fund sells a security to a counterparty, such as a bank or broker-dealer, in return for cash and agrees to repurchase that security at a mutually agreed upon price and time. Reverse repurchase agreements carry the risk that the market value of the security sold by the Fund may decline below the price at which the Fund must repurchase the security. Reverse repurchase agreements also may be viewed as a form of borrowing, and borrowed assets used for investment creates leverage risk. Leverage can create an interest expense that may lower the Fund's overall returns. Leverage presents the opportunity for increased net income and capital gains, but may also exaggerate the Fund’s volatility and risk of loss. There can be no guarantee that this strategy will be successful.

Rule 144A and Other Exempted Securities Risk. The Fund may invest in privately placed and other securities or instruments exempt from SEC registration (collectively “private placements”), subject to liquidity and other regulatory restrictions. In the U.S. market, private placements are typically sold only to qualified institutional buyers, or qualified purchasers, as applicable. An insufficient number of buyers interested in purchasing private placements at a particular time could affect adversely the marketability of such investments and the Fund might be unable to dispose of them promptly or at reasonable prices, subjecting the Fund to liquidity risk. The Fund may invest in private placements determined to be liquid as well as those determined to be illiquid. Even if determined to be liquid, the Fund’s holdings of private placements may increase the level of Fund illiquidity if eligible buyers are unable or unwilling to purchase them at a particular time. Issuers of Rule 144A eligible securities are required to furnish information to potential investors upon request. However, the required disclosure is much less extensive than that required of public companies and is not publicly available since the offering is not filed with the SEC. Further, issuers of Rule 144A eligible securities can require recipients of the information (such as the Fund) to agree contractually to keep the information confidential, which could also adversely affect the Fund’s ability to dispose of the security.

Sector Risk. At times, the Fund may have a significant portion of its assets invested in securities of companies conducting business in a related group of industries within an economic sector, including the consumer discretionary sector, health care sector and information technology sector. Companies in the same economic sector may be similarly affected by economic, regulatory, political or market events or conditions, which may make the Fund more vulnerable to unfavorable developments in that economic sector than funds that invest more broadly. Generally, the more broadly the Fund invests, the more it spreads risk and potentially reduces the risks of loss and volatility.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the consumer discretionary sector than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the consumer discretionary sector are subject to certain risks, including fluctuations in the performance of the overall domestic and international economy, interest rate changes, increased competition and consumer confidence. Performance of such companies may be affected by factors including reduced disposable household income, reduced consumer spending, changing demographics and consumer tastes.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the financial services sector than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the financial services sector are subject to certain risks, including the risk of regulatory change, decreased liquidity in credit markets and unstable interest rates. Such companies may have concentrated portfolios, such as a high level of loans to real estate developers, which makes them vulnerable to economic conditions that affect that industry. Performance of such companies may be affected by competitive pressures and exposure to investments or agreements that, under certain circumstances, may lead to losses (e.g., subprime loans). Companies in the financial services sector are

B-10	Prospectus 2016

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

subject to extensive governmental regulation that may limit the amount and types of loans and other financial commitments they can make, and interest rates and fees that they may charge. In addition, profitability of such companies is largely dependent upon the availability and the cost of capital.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the health care sector than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the health care sector are subject to certain risks, including restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, government approval of medical products and services, competitive pricing pressures, and the rising cost of medical products and services (especially for companies dependent upon a relatively limited number of products or services). Performance of such companies may be affected by factors including, government regulation, obtaining and protecting patents (or the failure to do so), product liability and other similar litigation as well as product obsolescence.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the industrials sector than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the industrials sector are subject to certain risks, including changes in supply and demand for their specific product or service and for industrial sector products in general, including decline in demand for such products due to rapid technological developments and frequent new product introduction. Performance of such companies may be affected by factors including government regulation, world events and economic conditions and risks for environmental damage and product liability claims.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the information technology sector, as well as other technology-related sectors (collectively, the technology sectors) than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the technology sectors are subject to certain risks, including the risk that new services, equipment or technologies will not be accepted by consumers and businesses or will become rapidly obsolete. Performance of such companies may be affected by factors including obtaining and protecting patents (or the failure to do so) and significant competitive pressures, including aggressive pricing of their products or services, new market entrants, competition for market share and short product cycles due to an accelerated rate of technological developments. Such competitive pressures may lead to limited earnings and/or falling profit margins. As a result, the value of their securities may fall or fail to rise. In addition, many technology sector companies have limited operating histories and prices of these companies’ securities historically have been more volatile than other securities, especially over the short term.

Short Positions Risk. The Fund may establish short positions which introduce more risk to the Fund than long positions (where the Fund owns the instrument or other asset) because the maximum sustainable loss on an instrument or other asset purchased (held long) is limited to the amount paid for the instrument or other asset plus the transaction costs, whereas there is no maximum price of the shorted instrument or other asset when purchased in the open market. Therefore, in theory, short positions have unlimited risk. The Fund’s use of short positions in effect “leverages” the Fund. Leverage potentially exposes the Fund to greater risks of loss due to unanticipated market movements, which may magnify losses and increase the volatility of returns. To the extent the Fund takes a short position in a derivative instrument or other asset, this involves the risk of a potentially unlimited increase in the value of the underlying instrument or other asset.

Small- and Mid-Cap Company Securities Risk. Investments in small- and mid-capitalization companies (small- and mid-cap companies) often involve greater risks than investments in larger, more established companies (larger companies) because small- and mid-cap companies tend to have less predictable earnings and may lack the management experience, financial resources, product diversification and competitive strengths of larger companies. Securities of small- and mid-cap companies may be less liquid and more volatile than the securities of larger companies.

Small Company Securities Risk. Investments in small-capitalization companies (small-cap companies) often involve greater risks than investments in larger, more established companies (larger companies) because small-cap companies tend to have less predictable earnings and may lack the management experience, financial resources, product diversification and competitive strengths of larger companies, and securities of small-cap companies may be less liquid and more volatile than the securities of larger companies.

Prospectus 2016

B-11

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

by being able to buy newly issued shares. Rights allow shareholders to buy the shares below the current market price. Holders can exercise the rights and purchase the stock, sell the rights or let them expire. Their value, and their risk of investment loss, is a function of that of the underlying security.

Prospectus 2016

B-13

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Conservative Growth Fund

P.O. Box 8081
Boston, MA 02266-8081

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

  

The Fund may offer Class 2 shares to separate accounts funding certain variable annuity contracts and variable life insurance policies (Contracts) issued by affiliated life insurance companies and other qualified institutional investors authorized by Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. (the Distributor), as set forth herein. There are no exchange ticker symbols associated with shares of the Fund.

As with all mutual funds, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

Columbia Management makes adjustments to Fund’s investment exposure based on historical volatility, the actual market volatility experienced in the recent past. Volatility refers to the ups and down in the market and can run in cycles of several months or even years.

Strategic Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 40% to 90% of its net assets in Underlying Funds managed by Columbia Management, including those for which Columbia Management provides day-to-day portfolio management and those for which day-to-day portfolio management is provided by investment subadvisers hired by Columbia Management. Of the assets allocated to the Underlying Funds, the Fund may invest up to 100% of those assets in Equity Underlying Funds or Fixed-Income Underlying Funds (or some combination of the two).

The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds across various sectors and industries within the U.S. equity and fixed-income/debt asset classes and markets, including Underlying Funds that invest in securities of different investment strategies and styles (e.g., alternatives, growth, value and core/blend) and market capitalizations (e.g., large, mid and small cap), as well as those that invest in real estate securities and fixed-income or debt instruments, including investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS and mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures.

Underlying Fund selections and allocations are reviewed periodically by Columbia Management. Changes to Underlying Fund selections and allocations may be driven by various factors, including the risks and potential benefits of investing in a particular Underlying Fund as a means of achieving total return. During times of relatively high equity market volatility as determined by Columbia Management, Columbia Management may reduce or eliminate entirely the Fund’s allocation to Equity Underlying Funds and may alter Underlying Fund selections and allocations with more frequency in seeking to achieve desired levels of EEME.

Columbia Management also considers the independent analysis of an independent investment consultant with respect to the performance of the Underlying Funds, the types of investment categories represented by the Underlying Funds, and the consideration of additional asset classes or segments. Columbia Management retains full discretion over the Fund’s investment activities.

Tactical Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 10% to 60% of its net assets in the Tactical Allocation strategy, which includes derivative instruments (such as forward contracts (including forward foreign currency contracts), futures (including currency, equity, index and interest rate futures), options and swaps (including credit default swaps and credit default swap indexes), as well as direct investments in ETFs and fixed-income or debt instruments (such as investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS, mortgage- and asset-backed securities, and mortgage dollar rolls, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures). The Fund may invest well below the range for Tactical Assets during a reasonable start-up period from the commencement of Fund investment operations (currently expected to be up to 3 months) until assets accumulate to a level sufficient for the efficient implementation of the tactical allocation strategy.

Through investments in Tactical Assets, Columbia Management seeks to adjust the Fund’s exposures to equity and fixed-income/ debt markets and to segments within those markets in response to its assessment of the relative risks and potential returns of these markets and segments. As with the Underlying Funds, the Fund may, through its tactical allocation strategy, reduce (or, in certain extreme cases, eliminate entirely) its EEME and, correspondingly, increase the Fund’s effective fixed-income/debt market exposure. Conversely, the Fund may also increase its EEME by employing the Tactical Assets to adjust upward the volatility level in the Fund’s portfolio closer to desired levels.

The Fund also seeks to reduce equity market volatility in the portfolio by purchasing or writing call and put options on liquid equity indices to protect against periods of decline in equity markets.

The Investment Manager believes that the use of the Tactical Assets, the derivative instruments and ETFs in particular, may provide more efficient and economical exposure to asset classes and segments than investments in or withdrawals from the Underlying Funds. As a result, Columbia Management expects to use derivatives and ETFs as primary tools for adjusting the Fund’s EEME.

Prospectus 2016

5

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

The Fund may hold a significant amount of cash, money market instruments or other high quality, short-term investments, including shares of affiliated or unaffiliated money market funds which may have a floating net asset value, to cover obligations with respect to, or that may result from, the Fund’s investments in derivatives. The Fund’s use of certain derivatives may create significant leveraged exposure to the equity and debt markets. Leverage occurs when investments in derivatives create greater economic exposure than the amount invested. This means that the Fund could lose more than originally invested in the derivative.

The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade securities in the Fund’s portfolio to carry out its principal strategies.

Underlying Funds

Appendix A includes the list of the Underlying Funds available to the Fund, as well as a description of the Underlying Funds’ investment objectives and principal investment strategies. A description of the principal risks associated with the Underlying Funds is included in Appendix B. Columbia Management may add new or remove existing Underlying Funds at any time without the approval of shareholders.

Principal Risks

An investment in the Fund involves risks, including specific risks relating to the investment in the Fund based on its investment process and its "fund-of-funds" structure, as well as specific risks related to the underlying funds in which it invests, including among others, those described below. More information about underlying funds, including their principal risks, is available in their prospectuses, which are incorporated by reference into this prospectus. This prospectus is not an offer for any of the underlying funds. There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective and you may lose money . The value of the Fund’s holdings may decline, and the Fund’s net asset value (NAV) and share price may go down. An investment in the Fund is not a bank deposit and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

Allocation Risk. Because the Fund uses an asset allocation strategy in pursuit of its investment objective, there is a risk that the Fund's allocation among asset classes, investments, managers, strategies and/or investment styles will cause the Fund's shares to lose value or cause the Fund to underperform other funds with similar investment objectives and/or strategies, or that the investments themselves will not produce the returns expected.

Alternative Strategies Investment Risk. An investment in alternative investment strategies (Alternative Strategies), whether through direct investment or through one or more underlying funds that use Alternative Strategies, involves risks, which may be significant. Alternative Strategies may include strategies, instruments or other assets, such as derivatives, that seek investment returns uncorrelated with the broad equity and fixed income/debt markets, as well as those providing exposure to other markets, including but not limited to absolute (positive) return strategies. Alternative Strategies may fail to achieve their desired performance, market or other exposure, or their returns (or lack thereof) may be more correlated with the broad equity and/or fixed income/debt markets than was anticipated, and the Fund may lose money. Some Alternative Strategies may be considered speculative.

Counterparty Risk. Counterparty risk is the risk that a counterparty to a financial instrument held by the Fund or by a special purpose or structured vehicle invested in by the Fund may become insolvent or otherwise fail to perform its obligations. As a result, the Fund may obtain no or limited recovery of its investment, and any recovery may be significantly delayed.

Credit Risk. Credit risk is the risk that the value of loans or other debt instruments may decline if the borrower or the issuer thereof defaults or otherwise becomes unable or unwilling, or is perceived to be unable or unwilling, to honor its financial obligations, such as making payments to the Fund when due. Rating agencies assign credit ratings to certain loans and fixed-income securities to indicate their credit risk. Lower quality or unrated loans or securities held by the Fund may present increased credit risk as compared to higher-rated loans or securities. Non-investment grade loans or fixed-income instruments (commonly called “high-yield” or “junk”) may be subject to greater price fluctuations and are more likely to experience a default than investment grade loans or fixed-income instruments and therefore may expose the Fund to increased credit risk. If the Fund purchases unrated loans or securities, or if the ratings of loans or securities held by the Fund are lowered after purchase, the Fund will depend on analysis of credit

6	Prospectus 2016

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

risk more heavily than usual. If the issuer of a loan declares bankruptcy or is declared bankrupt, there may be a delay before the Fund can act on the collateral securing the loan, which may adversely affect the Fund. Further, there is a risk that a court could take action with respect to a loan that is adverse to the holders of the loan. Such actions may include invalidating the loan, the lien on the collateral, the priority status of the loan, or ordering the refund of interest previously paid by the borrower. Any such actions by a court could adversely affect the Fund’s performance. A default or expected default of a loan could also make it difficult for the Fund to sell the loan at a price approximating the value previously placed on it. In order to enforce its rights in the event of a default, bankruptcy or similar situation, the Fund may be required to retain legal or similar counsel. This may increase the Fund’s operating expenses and adversely affect its NAV. Loans that have a lower priority for repayment in an issuer’s capital structure may involve a higher degree of overall risk than more senior loans of the same borrower.

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives may involve significant risks. Derivatives are financial instruments with a value in relation to, or derived from, the value of an underlying asset(s) or other reference, such as an index, rate or other economic indicator (each an underlying reference). Derivatives may include those that are privately placed or otherwise exempt from SEC registration, including certain Rule 144A eligible securities. Derivatives could result in Fund losses if the underlying reference does not perform as anticipated. Use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that can involve investment techniques, risks, and tax planning different from those associated with more traditional investment instruments. A Fund’s derivatives strategy may not be successful and use of certain derivatives could result in substantial, potentially unlimited, losses to the Fund regardless of the Fund’s actual investment. A relatively small movement in the price, rate or other economic indicator associated with the underlying reference may result in substantial loss for the Fund. Derivatives may be more volatile than other types of investments. The value of derivatives may be influenced by a variety of factors, including national and international political and economic developments. Potential changes to the regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the market for derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Derivatives can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Forward Contracts Risk. A forward contract is an over-the-counter derivative transaction between two parties to buy or sell a specified amount of an underlying reference at a specified price (or rate) on a specified date in the future. Forward contracts are negotiated on an individual basis and are not standardized or traded on exchanges. The market for forward contracts is substantially unregulated and can experience lengthy periods of illiquidity, unusually high trading volume and other negative impacts, such as political intervention, which may result in volatility or disruptions in such markets. A relatively small price movement in a forward contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. Forward contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Futures Contracts Risk. A futures contract is an exchange-traded derivative transaction between two parties in which a buyer (holding the “long” position) agrees to pay a fixed price (or rate) at a specified future date for delivery of an underlying reference from a seller (holding the “short” position). The seller hopes that the market price on the delivery date is less than the agreed upon price, while the buyer hopes for the contrary. Certain futures contract markets are highly volatile, and futures contracts may be illiquid. Futures exchanges may limit fluctuations in futures contract prices by imposing a maximum permissible daily price movement. The Fund may be disadvantaged if it is prohibited from executing a trade outside the daily permissible price movement. At or prior to maturity of a futures contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in futures contract prices. The liquidity of the futures markets depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the futures market could be reduced. Because of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, it is possible that the Fund may employ a high degree of leverage in the portfolio. As a result, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. For certain types of futures contracts, losses are potentially unlimited. Futures markets

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Summary of the Fund (continued)

are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s net asset value. Futures contracts executed (if any) on foreign exchanges may not provide the same protection as U.S. exchanges. Futures contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Options Risk. Options are derivatives that give the purchaser the option to buy (call) or sell (put) an underlying reference from or to a counterparty at a specified price (the strike price) on or before an expiration date. By investing in options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that it may be required to buy or sell the underlying reference at a disadvantageous price on or before the expiration date. Options may involve economic leverage, which could result in greater volatility in price movement. The Fund's losses could be significant, and are potentially unlimited for certain types of options. Options may be traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market. At or prior to maturity of an options contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in options prices. Options can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Swaps Risk. In a typical swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the return earned on a specified underlying reference for a fixed return or the return from another underlying reference during a specified period of time. Swaps may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Swaps could result in Fund losses if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Swaps create significant investment leverage such that a relatively small price movement in a swap may result in immediate and substantial losses to the Fund. The Fund may only close out a swap with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. Certain swaps, such as short swap transactions and total return swaps, have the potential for unlimited losses, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Swaps can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, inflation risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) Risk. ETFs are subject to, among other risks, tracking risk and passive and, in some cases, active investment risk. In addition, shareholders bear both their proportionate share of the Fund’s expenses and similar expenses incurred through ownership of the ETF.

Forward Commitments on Mortgage-Backed Securities (including Dollar Rolls) Risk. When purchasing mortgage-backed securities in the “to be announced” (TBA) market (MBS TBAs), the seller agrees to deliver mortgage-backed securities for an agreed upon price on an agreed upon date, but may make no guarantee as to the specific securities to be delivered. In lieu of taking delivery of mortgage-backed securities, the Fund could enter into dollar rolls, which are transactions in which the Fund sells securities to a counterparty and simultaneously agrees to purchase those or similar securities in the future at a predetermined price. Dollar rolls involve the risk that the market value of the securities the Fund is obligated to repurchase may decline below the repurchase price, or that the counterparty may default on its obligations. These transactions may also increase the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate. If the Fund reinvests the proceeds of the security sold, the Fund will also be subject to the risk that the investments purchased with such proceeds will decline in value (a form of leverage risk). MBS TBAs and dollar rolls are subject to the risk that the counterparty to the instrument may not perform or be unable to perform in accordance with the terms of the instrument.

Frequent Trading Risk.  The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade investments in the Fund's portfolio to carry out its investment strategies. Frequent trading can mean higher brokerage and other transaction costs, which could reduce the Fund's return. The trading costs associated with portfolio turnover may adversely affect the Fund’s performance.

Fund-of-Funds Risk. Determinations regarding asset classes or underlying funds and the Fund’s allocations thereto may not successfully achieve the Fund’s investment objective, in whole or in part. The ability of the Fund to realize its investment objective will depend, in large part, on the extent to which the underlying funds realize their investment

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

objective. There is no guarantee that the underlying funds will achieve their respective investment objectives. The Fund is exposed to the same risks as the underlying funds in direct proportion to the allocation of its assets among the underlying funds. Therefore, to the extent that the Fund invests significantly in a particular underlying fund, the Fund’s performance would be significantly impacted by the performance of such underlying fund. Generally, by investing in a combination of underlying funds, the Fund has exposure to the risks of many areas of the market. By concentrating its investments in relatively few underlying funds, the Fund may have more concentrated market exposures, subjecting the Fund to greater risk of loss should those markets decline or fail to rise. The performance of underlying funds could be adversely affected if other entities that invest in the same underlying funds make relatively large investments or redemptions in such underlying funds. The Fund, and its shareholders, indirectly bear a portion of the expenses of any funds in which the Fund invests. Because the expenses and costs of each underlying fund are shared by its investors, redemptions by other investors in an underlying fund could result in decreased economies of scale and increased operating expenses for such fund. The Investment Manager may have potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds over unaffiliated funds for investment by the Fund, and may also face potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds, because the fees the Investment Manager receives from some underlying funds may be higher than the fees paid by other underlying funds. Also, to the extent that the Fund is constrained/restricted from investing (or investing further) in a particular underlying fund for one or more reasons (e.g., underlying fund capacity constraints or regulatory restrictions) or if the Fund chooses to sell its investment in an underlying fund because of poor investment performance or for other reasons, the Fund may have to invest in another underlying fund(s), including less desirable funds – from a strategy or investment performance standpoint – which could have a negative impact on Fund performance. In addition, Fund performance could be negatively impacted if an appropriate alternate underlying fund(s) does not present itself in a timely manner or at all.

Growth Securities Risk. Growth securities typically trade at a higher multiple of earnings than other types of equity securities. Accordingly, the market values of growth securities may never reach their expected market value and may decline in price. In addition, growth securities, at times, may not perform as well as value securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

High-Yield Investments Risk. Securities and other debt instruments held by the Fund that are rated below investment grade (commonly called “high-yield” or “junk” bonds) and unrated debt instruments of comparable quality expose the Fund to a greater risk of loss of principal and income than a fund that invests solely or primarily in investment grade debt instruments. In addition, these investments have greater price fluctuations, are less liquid and are more likely to experience a default than higher-rated debt instruments. High-yield debt instruments are considered to be predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal.

Inflation-Protected Securities Risk. Inflation-protected debt securities tend to react to changes in real interest rates (i.e., nominal interest rates minus the expected impact of inflation). In general, the price of such securities falls when real interest rates rise, and rises when real interest rates fall. Interest payments on these securities will vary and may be more volatile than interest paid on ordinary bonds. In periods of deflation, the Fund may have no income at all from such investments.

Interest Rate Risk. Interest rate risk is the risk of losses attributable to changes in interest rates. In general, if prevailing interest rates (which are at historic lows) rise, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to fall, and if interest rates fall, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to rise. Changes in the value of a fixed-income instrument usually will not affect the amount of income the Fund receives from it but will generally affect the value of the Fund's shares. In general, the longer the maturity or duration of a fixed-income instrument, the greater its sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Interest rate declines also may increase prepayments of debt obligations, which, in turn, would increase prepayment risk. Similarly, a period of rising interest rates may negatively impact the Fund’s performance. Actions by governments and central banking authorities can result in increases in interest rates. Such actions may negatively affect the value of fixed-income instruments held by the Fund, resulting in a negative impact on the Fund's performance and NAV. Debt instruments with floating coupon rates are typically less sensitive to interest rate changes, but these debt instruments may decline in value if their coupon rates do not rise as much as, or keep pace with, yields on such types of debt instruments. Because rates on certain floating rate loans and other debt instruments reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause fluctuations in the Fund’s NAV. Any interest

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Summary of the Fund (continued)

rate increases could cause the value of the Fund’s investments in fixed-income instruments to decrease. Rising interest rates may prompt redemptions from the Fund, which may force the Fund to sell investments at a time when it is not advantageous to do so, which could result in losses.

Issuer Risk. An issuer in which the Fund invests or to which it has exposure may perform poorly, and the value of its loans or securities may therefore decline, which would negatively affect the Fund’s performance. Poor performance may be caused by poor management decisions, competitive pressures, breakthroughs in technology, reliance on suppliers, labor problems or shortages, corporate restructurings, fraudulent disclosures, natural disasters or other events, conditions or factors.

Leverage Risk. Leverage occurs when the Fund increases its assets available for investment using borrowings, derivatives, or similar instruments or techniques. Use of leverage can produce volatility and may exaggerate changes in the net asset value of Fund shares and in the return on the Fund’s portfolio, which may increase the risk that the Fund will lose more than it has invested. If the Fund uses leverage, through the purchase of particular instruments such as derivatives, the Fund may experience capital losses that exceed the net assets of the Fund. Leverage can create an interest expense that may lower the Fund's overall returns. Leverage presents the opportunity for increased net income and capital gains, but may also exaggerate the Fund’s volatility and risk of loss. There can be no guarantee that a leveraging strategy will be successful.

Liquidity Risk. Liquidity risk is the risk associated with any event, circumstance, or characteristic of an investment or market that negatively impacts the Fund’s ability to sell, or realize the proceeds from the sale of, an investment at a desirable time or price. Liquidity risk may arise because of, for example, a lack of marketability of the investment, which means that when seeking to sell its portfolio investments, the Fund could find that selling is more difficult than anticipated, especially during times of high market volatility. Decreases in the number of financial institutions, including banks and broker-dealers, willing to make markets (match up sellers and buyers) in the Fund’s investments or decreases in their capacity or willingness to trade such investments may increase the Fund’s exposure to this risk. The debt market has experienced considerable growth, and financial institutions making markets in instruments purchased and sold by the Fund (e.g., bond dealers) have been subject to increased regulation. The impact of that growth and regulation on the ability and willingness of financial institutions to engage in trading or “making a market” in such instruments remains unsettled. Certain types of investments, such as lower-rated securities or those that are purchased and sold in over-the-counter markets, may be especially subject to liquidity risk. Securities or other assets in which the Fund invests may be traded in the over-the-counter market rather than on an exchange and therefore may be more difficult to purchase or sell at a fair price, which may have a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. Market participants attempting to sell the same or a similar instrument at the same time as the Fund could exacerbate the Fund’s exposure to liquidity risk. The Fund may have to accept a lower selling price for the holding, sell other, liquid or more liquid, investments that it might otherwise prefer to hold (thereby increasing the proportion of the Fund’s investments in less liquid or illiquid securities), or forego another more appealing investment opportunity. Certain investments that were liquid when purchased by the Fund may later become illiquid, particularly in times of overall economic distress. Changing regulatory, market or other conditions or environments (for example, the interest rate or credit environments) may also adversely affect the liquidity and the price of the Fund's investments. Judgment plays a larger role in valuing illiquid or less liquid investments as compared to valuing liquid or more liquid investments. Price volatility may be higher for illiquid or less liquid investments as a result of, for example, the relatively less frequent pricing of such securities (as compared to liquid or more liquid investments). Generally, the less liquid the market at the time the Fund sells a portfolio investment, the greater the risk of loss or decline of value to the Fund. Overall market liquidity and other factors can lead to an increase in Fund redemptions, which may negatively impact Fund performance and NAV, including, for example, if the Fund is forced to sell investments in a down market.

Market Risk. Market risk refers to the possibility that the market values of securities or other investments that the Fund holds will fall, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, or fail to rise. An investment in the Fund could lose money over short or long periods.

Mortgage- and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk.  The value of any mortgage-backed and other asset-backed securities held by the Fund may be affected by, among other things, changes or perceived changes in: interest rates; factors concerning the interests in and structure of the issuer or the originator of the mortgages or other assets; the

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Summary of the Fund (continued)

creditworthiness of the entities that provide any supporting letters of credit, surety bonds or other credit enhancements; or the market's assessment of the quality of underlying assets. Payment of principal and interest on some mortgage-backed securities (but not the market value of the securities themselves) may be guaranteed by the full faith and credit of a particular U.S. Government agency, authority, enterprise or instrumentality, and some, but not all, are also insured or guaranteed by the U.S. Government. Mortgage-backed securities issued by non-governmental issuers (such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers) may entail greater risk than obligations guaranteed by the U.S. Government. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk, which is the possibility that the underlying mortgage or other asset may be refinanced or prepaid prior to maturity during periods of declining or low interest rates, causing the Fund to have to reinvest the money received in securities that have lower yields. Rising or high interest rates tend to extend the duration of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, making their prices more volatile and more sensitive to changes in interest rates.

Prepayment and Extension Risk. Prepayment and extension risk is the risk that a bond or other security or investment might, in the case of prepayment risk, be called or otherwise converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity and, in the case of extension risk, that the investment might not be called as expected. In the case of prepayment risk, if the investment is converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity, the portfolio managers may not be able to invest the proceeds in other investments providing as high a level of income, resulting in a reduced yield to the Fund. In the case of mortgage- or asset-backed securities, as interest rates decrease or spreads narrow, the likelihood of prepayment increases. Conversely, extension risk is the risk that an unexpected rise in interest rates will extend the life of a mortgage- or asset-backed security beyond the prepayment time. If the Fund’s investments are locked in at a lower interest rate for a longer period of time, the portfolio managers may be unable to capitalize on securities with higher interest rates or wider spreads.

U.S. Government Obligations Risk. While U.S. Treasury obligations are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government, such securities are nonetheless subject to credit risk (i.e., the risk that the U.S. Government may be, or be perceived to be, unable or unwilling to honor its financial obligations, such as making payments). Securities issued or guaranteed by federal agencies or authorities and U.S. Government-sponsored instrumentalities or enterprises may or may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government.

Value Securities Risk. Value securities are securities of companies that may have experienced, for example, adverse business, industry or other developments or may be subject to special risks that have caused the securities to be out of favor and, in turn, potentially undervalued. The market value of a portfolio security may not meet the portfolio manager's perceived value assessment of that security, or may decline in price, even though the portfolio manager(s) believe(s) the securities are already undervalued. There is also a risk that it may take longer than expected for the value of these investments to rise to the portfolio manager’s perceived value. In addition, value securities, at times, may not perform as well as growth securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

Volatility and Volatility Management Risk. Although the Fund seeks to manage equity market volatility within its portfolio, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful. Despite the Fund’s name, the Fund’s portfolio may experience more than its targeted level of volatility, subjecting the Fund to market risk. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Funds’ portfolios may be subject to price volatility, and the Fund’s share price may not be any less volatile than the market as a whole and could be more volatile. The Investment Manager’s determinations/expectations regarding volatility may be incorrect or inaccurate, which may also adversely affect the Fund’s actual volatility within the portfolio. The Fund also may underperform other funds with similar investment objectives and/or strategies. Additionally, because the Fund seeks to target a particular level of effective equity market exposure (EEME), as stated above under “Principal Investment Strategies”, the Fund may provide protection in volatile markets by potentially curbing or mitigating the risk of loss in declining equity markets, but the Fund’s opportunity to achieve returns when the equity markets are rising may also be curbed. In general, the greater the protection against downside loss (as reflected in a smaller target level of EEME), the lesser the Fund’s opportunity to participate in the returns generated by rising equity markets; however, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in protecting the value of its portfolio in down markets. Additionally, to the extent that the Fund maximizes its EEME in low volatility markets, if the equity markets should decline in such low volatility markets, the Fund may

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Summary of the Fund (continued)

experience greater loss than if it had not maximized its EEME. To the extent that the Fund underestimates or misinterprets volatility signals, the Fund’s performance could be negatively affected. Volatility targets and volatility risk are different for all three funds in the U.S. Flexible series, with the Conservative Growth Fund having the lowest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk) and the U.S. Flexible Growth Fund having the highest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk).

Performance Information

The Fund is new as of the date of this prospectus and therefore performance information is not available.

When available, the Fund intends to compare its performance to the performance of a Blended Index, consisting of 65% S&P 500 Index and 35% Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index, and to the performance of the S&P 500 Index and the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index.

When available, updated performance information can be obtained by calling toll-free 800.345.6611 or visiting columbiathreadneedle.com/us.

Fund Management

Investment Manager: Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC

    

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund is available for purchase through Contracts offered by the separate accounts of participating insurance companies or by other eligible investors authorized by Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. (the Distributor). Shares of the Fund may not be purchased or sold by individual owners of Contracts. If you are a Contract holder, please refer to your Contract prospectus for information about minimum investment requirements and how to purchase and redeem shares of the Fund.

Tax Information

The Fund expects to be treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and does not expect to make regular distributions (other than in redemption of Fund shares) to shareholders which are generally the participating insurance companies investing in the Fund through separate accounts or certain other eligible investors authorized by the Distributor. You should consult with the participating insurance company that issued your Contract, plan sponsor or other eligible investor through which your investment in the Fund is made regarding the U.S. federal income taxation of your investment.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you make allocations to the Fund, the Fund, its Distributor or other related companies may pay participating insurance companies or other financial intermediaries for the allocation (sale) of Fund shares and related services in connection with such allocations to the Fund. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the participating insurance company, other financial intermediary or your salesperson to recommend an allocation to the Fund over another fund or other investment option. Ask your financial advisor or salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

Investment Process

Columbia Management uses the following two-part investment process that, together, pursues total return while seeking to manage the Fund’s exposure to equity market volatility:

■	Selects and determines allocations to the Underlying Funds (referred to as the Strategic Allocation); and

■	Invests in and determines allocations to the Tactical Assets to modify desired asset class exposures (referred to as the Tactical Allocation).

Columbia Management makes adjustments to Fund’s investment exposure based on historical volatility, the actual market volatility experienced in the recent past. Volatility refers to the ups and down in the market and can run in cycles of several months or even years.

Strategic Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 40% to 90% of its net assets in Underlying Funds managed by Columbia Management, including those for which Columbia Management provides day-to-day portfolio management and those for which day-to-day portfolio management is provided by investment subadvisers hired by Columbia Management. Of the assets allocated to the Underlying Funds, the Fund may invest up to 100% of those assets in Equity Underlying Funds or Fixed-Income Underlying Funds (or some combination of the two).

The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds across various sectors and industries within the U.S. equity and fixed-income/debt asset classes and markets, including Underlying Funds that invest in securities of different investment strategies and styles (e.g., alternatives, growth, value and core/blend) and market capitalizations (e.g., large, mid and small cap), as well as those that invest in real estate securities and fixed-income or debt instruments, including investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS and mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures.

Underlying Fund selections and allocations are reviewed periodically by Columbia Management. Changes to Underlying Fund selections and allocations may be driven by various factors, including the risks and potential benefits of investing in a particular Underlying Fund as a means of achieving total return. During times of relatively high equity market volatility as determined by Columbia Management, Columbia Management may reduce or eliminate entirely the Fund’s allocation to Equity Underlying Funds and may alter Underlying Fund selections and allocations with more frequency in seeking to achieve desired levels of EEME.

Columbia Management also considers the independent analysis of an independent investment consultant with respect to the performance of the Underlying Funds, the types of investment categories represented by the Underlying Funds, and the consideration of additional asset classes or segments. Columbia Management retains full discretion over the Fund’s investment activities.

Tactical Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 10% to 60% of its net assets in the Tactical Allocation strategy, which includes derivative instruments (such as forward contracts (including forward foreign currency contracts), futures (including currency, equity, index and interest rate futures), options and swaps (including credit default swaps and credit default swap indexes), as well as direct investments in ETFs and fixed-income or debt instruments (such as investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS, mortgage- and asset-backed securities, and mortgage dollar rolls, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures). The Fund may invest well below the range for Tactical Assets during a reasonable start-up period from the commencement of Fund investment operations (currently expected to be up to 3 months) until assets accumulate to a level sufficient for the efficient implementation of the tactical allocation strategy.

Through investments in Tactical Assets, Columbia Management seeks to adjust the Fund’s exposures to equity and fixed-income/ debt markets and to segments within those markets in response to its assessment of the relative risks and potential returns of these markets and segments. As with the Underlying Funds, the Fund may, through its tactical allocation strategy, reduce (or, in certain extreme cases, eliminate entirely) its EEME and, correspondingly, increase the Fund’s effective fixed-income/debt market exposure. Conversely, the Fund may also increase its EEME by employing the Tactical Assets to adjust upward the volatility level in the Fund’s portfolio closer to desired levels.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

The Fund also seeks to reduce equity market volatility in the portfolio by purchasing or writing call and put options on liquid equity indices to protect against periods of decline in equity markets.

The Investment Manager believes that the use of the Tactical Assets, the derivative instruments and ETFs in particular, may provide more efficient and economical exposure to asset classes and segments than investments in or withdrawals from the Underlying Funds. As a result, Columbia Management expects to use derivatives and ETFs as primary tools for adjusting the Fund’s EEME.

The Fund may hold a significant amount of cash, money market instruments or other high quality, short-term investments, including shares of affiliated or unaffiliated money market funds which may have a floating net asset value, to cover obligations with respect to, or that may result from, the Fund’s investments in derivatives. The Fund’s use of certain derivatives may create significant leveraged exposure to the equity and debt markets. Leverage occurs when investments in derivatives create greater economic exposure than the amount invested. This means that the Fund could lose more than originally invested in the derivative.

The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade securities in the Fund’s portfolio to carry out its principal strategies.

Underlying Funds

Appendix A includes the list of the Underlying Funds available to the Fund, as well as a description of the Underlying Funds’ investment objectives and principal investment strategies. A description of the principal risks associated with the Underlying Funds is included in Appendix B. Columbia Management may add new or remove existing Underlying Funds at any time without the approval of shareholders.

Below are the Underlying Funds available to the Fund for investment within each asset class category. The Investment Manager may add new Underlying Funds for investment or change Underlying Funds without the approval of shareholders. Certain Underlying Funds, due to their characteristics, may fit into more than one category, and may be used by the Investment Manager to provide exposure to more than one of these categories. A description of the Underlying Funds’ investment objectives and strategies is included in Appendix A. A description of the principal risks associated with the Underlying Funds is included in Appendix B. The prospectuses and Statements of Additional Information for the Underlying Funds include more detailed information about these Underlying Funds and are available free of charge by calling 800.345.6611.Columbia Variable Portfolio – Contrarian Core Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Disciplined Core Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Dividend Opportunity Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – High Yield Bond Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Income Opportunities Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Intermediate Bond Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Large Cap Growth Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Large Cap Index Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Long Government/Credit Bond Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Limited Duration Credit Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Mid Cap Growth Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Mid Cap Value Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Select Large Cap Growth Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Select Large-Cap Value Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Select Smaller-Cap Value Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Strategic Income Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Equities Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Government Mortgage Fund, Variable Portfolio – American Century Diversified Bond Fund, Variable Portfolio – CenterSquare Real Estate Fund, Variable Portfolio – Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Fund, Variable Portfolio – J.P. Morgan Core Bond Fund, Variable Portfolio – Jennison Mid Cap Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – Loomis Sayles Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – MFS ^® Blended Research ^® Core Equity Fund, Variable Portfolio – MFS ^® Value Fund, Variable Portfolio – Morgan Stanley Advantage Fund, Variable Portfolio – NFJ Dividend Value Fund*,Variable Portfolio – Nuveen Winslow Large Cap Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – Partners Small Cap Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – Partners Small Cap Value Fund, Variable Portfolio – TCW Core Plus Bond Fund, Variable Portfolio – Victory Sycamore Established Value Fund and Variable Portfolio – Wells Fargo Short Duration Government Fund

*Effective November 14, 2016, Variable Portfolio – T. Rowe Price Large Cap Value Fund.

The Fund’s investment policy with respect to 80% of its net assets may be changed by the Fund’s Board of Trustees without shareholder approval as long as shareholders are given 60 days’ advance written notice of the change. Additionally, shareholders will be given 60 days’ notice of any change to the Fund’s investment objective made to comply with the SEC rule governing investment company names.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives may involve significant risks. Derivatives are financial instruments, traded on an exchange or in the over-the-counter (OTC) markets, with a value in relation to, or derived from, the value of an underlying asset(s) (such as a security, commodity or currency) or other reference, such as an index, rate or other economic indicator (each an underlying reference). Derivatives may include those that are privately placed or otherwise exempt from SEC registration, including certain Rule 144A eligible securities. Derivatives could result in Fund losses if the underlying references do not perform as anticipated. Use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that can involve investment techniques, risks, and tax planning different from those associated with more traditional investment instruments. A Fund’s derivatives strategy may not be successful and use of certain derivatives could result in substantial, potentially unlimited, losses to the Fund regardless of the Fund’s actual investment. A relatively small movement in the price, rate or other economic indicator associated with the underlying reference may result in substantial loss for the Fund. Derivatives may be more volatile than other types of investments. Derivatives can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, including the risk of an adverse credit event associated with the underlying reference (credit risk), the risk of adverse movement in the value, price or rate of the underlying reference (market risk), the risk of adverse movement in the value of underlying currencies (foreign currency risk) and the risk of adverse movement in underlying interest rates (interest rate risk). Derivatives may expose the Fund to additional risks, including the risk of loss due to a derivative position that is imperfectly correlated with the underlying reference it is intended to hedge or replicate (correlation risk), the risk that a counterparty will fail to perform as agreed (counterparty risk), the risk that a hedging strategy may fail to mitigate losses, and may offset gains (hedging risk), the risk that losses may be greater than the amount invested (leverage risk), the risk that the Fund may be unable to sell an investment at an advantageous time or price (liquidity risk), the risk that the investment may be difficult to value (pricing risk), and the risk that the price or value of the investment fluctuates significantly over short periods of time (volatility risk). The value of derivatives may be influenced by a variety of factors, including national and international political and economic developments. Potential changes to the regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the market for derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives.

Derivatives Risk – Forward Contracts Risk. A forward contract is an over-the-counter derivative transaction between two parties to buy or sell a specified amount of an underlying reference at a specified price (or rate) on a specified date in the future. Forward contracts are negotiated on an individual basis and are not standardized or traded on exchanges. The market for forward contracts is substantially unregulated (there is no limit on daily price movements and speculative position limits are not applicable). The principals who deal in certain forward contract markets are not required to continue to make markets in the underlying references in which they trade and these markets can experience periods of illiquidity, sometimes of significant duration. There have been periods during which certain participants in forward contract markets have refused to quote prices for certain underlying references or have quoted prices with an unusually wide spread between the price at which they were prepared to buy and that at which they were prepared to sell. At or prior to maturity of a forward contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in forward contract prices. The liquidity of the markets for forward contracts depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the market for forwards could be reduced. A relatively small price movement in a forward contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. Forward contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

■

A forward foreign currency contract is a derivative (forward contract) in which the underlying reference is a country's or region’s currency. The Fund may agree to buy or sell a country's or region’s currency at a specific price on a specific date in the future. These instruments may fall in value (sometimes dramatically) due to foreign market downswings or foreign currency value fluctuations, subjecting the Fund to foreign currency risk (the risk that Fund performance may be negatively impacted by foreign currency strength or weakness relative to the U.S. dollar, particularly if the Fund exposes a significant percentage of its assets to currencies other than the U.S. dollar). Unanticipated changes in the currency markets could result in reduced performance for the Fund. When the Fund converts its foreign currencies into U.S. dollars, it may incur currency conversion costs due to the spread between the prices at which it may buy and sell various currencies in the market.

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Derivatives Risk – Futures Contracts Risk. A futures contract is an exchange-traded derivative transaction between two parties in which a buyer (holding the “long” position) agrees to pay a fixed price (or rate) at a specified future date for delivery of an underlying reference from a seller (holding the “short” position). The seller hopes that the market price on the delivery date is less than the agreed upon price, while the buyer hopes for the contrary. Certain futures contract markets are highly volatile, and futures contracts may be illiquid. Futures exchanges may limit fluctuations in futures contract prices by imposing a maximum permissible daily price movement. The Fund may be disadvantaged if it is prohibited from executing a trade outside the daily permissible price movement. At or prior to maturity of a futures contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in futures contract prices. The liquidity of the futures markets depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the futures market could be reduced. Positions in futures contracts may be closed out only on the exchange on which they were entered into or through a linked exchange, and no secondary market exists for such contracts. Futures positions are marked to market each day and variation margin payment must be paid to or by the Fund. Because of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, it is possible that the Fund may employ a high degree of leverage in the portfolio. As a result, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. For certain types of futures contracts, losses are potentially unlimited. Futures markets are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s net asset value. Futures contracts executed (if any) on foreign exchanges may not provide the same protection as U.S. exchanges. Futures contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

■	A currency future , also an FX future or foreign exchange future, is a derivative that is an agreement to exchange one currency for another at a specified date in the future at a price (exchange rate) that is fixed on the purchase date.

■	An equity future is a derivative that is an agreement for the contract holder to buy or sell a specified amount of an individual equity, a basket of equities or the securities in an equity index on a specified date at a predetermined price.

■	An interest rate future is a derivative that is an agreement whereby the buyer and seller agree to the future delivery of an interest-bearing instrument on a specific date at a pre-determined price. Examples include Treasury-bill futures, Treasury-bond futures and Eurodollar futures.

Derivatives Risk – Options Risk. Options are derivatives that give the purchaser the option to buy (call) or sell (put) an underlying reference from or to a counterparty at a specified price (the strike price) on or before an expiration date. The Fund may purchase or write (i.e., sell) put and call options on an underlying reference it is otherwise permitted to invest in. By investing in options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that it may be required to buy or sell the underlying reference at a disadvantageous price on or before the expiration date. If the Fund sells a put option, the Fund may be required to buy the underlying reference at a strike price that is above market price, resulting in a loss. If the Fund sells a call option, the Fund may be required to sell the underlying reference at a strike price that is below market price, resulting in a loss. If the Fund sells a call option that is not covered (it does not own the underlying reference), the Fund's losses are potentially unlimited. Options may involve economic leverage, which could result in greater volatility in price movement. Options may be traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market. At or prior to maturity of an options contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in options prices. Options can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Swaps Risk. In a typical swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the return earned on a specified underlying reference for a fixed return or the return from another underlying reference during a specified period of time. Swaps may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Swaps could result in Fund losses if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Swaps create significant investment leverage such that a relatively small price movement in a swap may result in immediate and substantial losses to the Fund. The

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Fund may only close out a swap with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. Certain swaps, such as short swap transactions and total return swaps, have the potential for unlimited losses, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Swaps can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, inflation risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

■

A credit default swap (including a swap on a credit default index, sometimes referred to as a credit default swap index) is a derivative and special type of swap where one party pays, in effect, an insurance premium through a stream of payments to another party in exchange for the right to receive a specified return upon the occurrence of a particular credit event by one or more third parties, such as bankruptcy, default or a similar event. A credit default swap may be embedded within a structured note or other derivative instrument. Credit default swaps enable an investor to buy or sell protection against such a credit event (such as an issuer’s bankruptcy, restructuring or failure to make timely payments of interest or principal). Credit default swap indices are indices that reflect the performance of a basket of credit default swaps and are subject to the same risks as credit default swaps. If such a default were to occur, any contractual remedies that the Fund may have may be subject to bankruptcy and insolvency laws, which could delay or limit the Fund's recovery. Thus, if the counterparty under a credit default swap defaults on its obligation to make payments thereunder, as a result of its bankruptcy or otherwise, the Fund may lose such payments altogether, or collect only a portion thereof, which collection could involve costs or delays. The Fund’s return from investment in a credit default swap index may not match the return of the referenced index. Further, investment in a credit default swap index could result in losses if the referenced index does not perform as expected. Unexpected changes in the composition of the index may also affect performance of the credit default swap index. If a referenced index has a dramatic intraday move that causes a material decline in the Fund’s net assets, the terms of the Fund’s credit default swap index may permit the counterparty to immediately close out the transaction. In that event, the Fund may be unable to enter into another credit default swap index or otherwise achieve desired exposure, even if the referenced index reverses all or a portion of its intraday move.

Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) Risk. An ETF’s share price may not track its specified market index (if any) and may trade below its NAV. Certain ETFs use a “passive” investment strategy and do not take defensive positions in volatile or declining markets. Other ETFs in which the Fund may invest are actively managed ETFs (i.e., they do not track a particular benchmark), which indirectly subjects the Fund to active management risk. An active secondary market in ETF shares may not develop or be maintained and may be halted or interrupted due to actions by its listing exchange, unusual market conditions or other reasons. There can be no assurance that an ETF’s shares will continue to be listed on an active exchange. In addition, shareholders bear both their proportionate share of the Fund’s expenses and similar expenses incurred through ownership of the ETF. There is a risk that ETFs in which the Fund invests may terminate due to extraordinary events. For example, any of the service providers to ETFs, such as the trustee or sponsor, may close or otherwise fail to perform their obligations to the ETF, and the ETF may not be able to find a substitute service provider. Also, certain ETFs may be dependent upon licenses to use various indexes as a basis for determining their compositions and/or otherwise to use certain trade names. If these licenses are terminated, the ETFs may also terminate. In addition, an ETF may terminate if its net assets fall below a certain amount.

Forward Commitments on Mortgage-Backed Securities (including Dollar Rolls) Risk. When purchasing mortgage-backed securities in the “to be announced” (TBA) market (MBS TBAs), the seller agrees to deliver mortgage-backed securities for an agreed upon price on an agreed upon date, but may make no guarantee as to the specific securities to be delivered. In lieu of taking delivery of mortgage-backed securities, the Fund could enter into dollar rolls, which are transactions in which the Fund sells securities to a counterparty and simultaneously agrees to purchase those or similar securities in the future at a predetermined price. Dollar rolls involve the risk that the market value of the securities the Fund is obligated to repurchase may decline below the repurchase price, or that the counterparty may default on its obligations. These transactions may also increase the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate. If the Fund reinvests the proceeds of the security sold, the Fund will also be subject to the risk that the investments purchased with such proceeds will decline in value (a form of leverage risk). MBS TBAs and dollar rolls are subject to the risk that the counterparty to the instrument may not perform or be unable to perform in accordance with the terms of the instrument.

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Frequent Trading Risk.  The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade investments in the Fund's portfolio to carry out its investment strategies. Frequent trading can mean higher brokerage and other transaction costs, which could reduce the Fund's return. The trading costs associated with portfolio turnover may adversely affect the Fund’s performance.

Fund-of-Funds Risk. Determinations regarding asset classes or underlying funds and the Fund’s allocations thereto may not successfully achieve the Fund’s investment objective, in whole or in part. The selected underlying funds’ performance may be lower than the performance of the asset class they were selected to represent or may be lower than the performance of alternative underlying funds that could have been selected to represent the asset class. The Fund also is exposed to the same risks as the underlying funds in direct proportion to the allocation of its assets among the underlying funds. Therefore, to the extent that the Fund invests significantly in a particular underlying fund, the Fund’s performance would be significantly impacted by the performance of such underlying fund. Generally, by investing in a combination of underlying funds, the Fund has exposure to the risks of many areas of the market. By concentrating its investments in relatively few underlying funds, the Fund may have more concentrated market exposures, subjecting the Fund to greater risk of loss should those markets decline or fail to rise. The ability of the Fund to realize its investment objective will depend, in large part, on the extent to which the underlying funds realize their investment objectives. There is no guarantee that the underlying funds will achieve their respective investment objectives. The performance of underlying funds could be adversely affected if other entities that invest in the same underlying funds make relatively large investments or redemptions in such underlying funds. The Fund, and its shareholders, indirectly bear a portion of the expenses of any funds in which the Fund invests. Because the expenses and costs of each underlying fund are shared by its investors, redemptions by other investors in an underlying fund could result in decreased economies of scale and increased operating expenses for such underlying fund. These transactions might also result in higher brokerage, tax or other costs for an underlying fund. This risk may be particularly important when one investor owns a substantial portion of an underlying fund. The Investment Manager may have potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds over unaffiliated funds for investment by the Fund, and may also face potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds, because the fees the Investment Manager receives from some underlying funds may be higher than the fees paid by other underlying funds. Also, to the extent that the Fund is constrained/restricted from investing (or investing further) in a particular underlying fund for one or more reasons (e.g., underlying fund capacity constraints or regulatory restrictions) or if the Fund chooses to sell its investment in an underlying fund because of poor investment performance or for other reasons, the Fund may have to invest in another underlying fund(s), including less desirable funds – from a strategy or investment performance standpoint – which could have a negative impact on Fund performance. In addition, Fund performance could be negatively impacted if an appropriate alternate underlying fund(s) does not present itself in a timely manner or at all.

Growth Securities Risk. Growth securities typically trade at a higher multiple of earnings than other types of equity securities. Accordingly, the market values of growth securities may never reach their expected market value and may decline in price. In addition, growth securities, at times, may not perform as well as value securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

High-Yield Investments Risk. Securities and other debt instruments held by the Fund that are rated below investment grade (commonly called “high-yield” or “junk” bonds) and unrated debt instruments of comparable quality tend to be more sensitive to credit risk than higher-rated debt instruments and may experience greater price fluctuations in response to perceived changes in the ability of the issuing entity or obligor to pay interest and principal when due than to changes in interest rates. These investments are generally more likely to experience a default than higher-rated debt instruments. High-yield debt instruments are considered to be predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal. These debt instruments typically pay a premium – a higher interest rate or yield – because of the increased risk of loss, including default. High-yield debt instruments may require a greater degree of judgment to establish a price, may be difficult to sell at the time and price the Fund desires, may carry high transaction costs, and also are generally less liquid than higher-rated debt instruments. The ratings provided by third party rating agencies are based on analyses by these ratings agencies of the credit quality of the debt instruments and may not take into account every risk related to whether interest or principal will be timely repaid. In adverse economic and other circumstances, issuers of lower-rated debt instruments are more likely to have difficulty making principal and interest payments than issuers of higher-rated debt instruments.

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Inflation-Protected Securities Risk. Inflation-protected debt securities tend to react to changes in real interest rates. Real interest rates can be described as nominal interest rates minus the expected impact of inflation. In general, the price of an inflation-protected debt security falls when real interest rates rise, and rises when real interest rates fall. Interest payments on inflation-protected debt securities will vary as the principal and/or interest is adjusted for inflation and may be more volatile than interest paid on ordinary bonds. In periods of deflation, the Fund may have no income at all from such investments. Income earned by a shareholder depends on the amount of principal invested, and that principal will not grow with inflation unless the shareholder reinvests the portion of Fund distributions that comes from inflation adjustments.

Interest Rate Risk. Interest rate risk is the risk of losses attributable to changes in interest rates. In general, if prevailing interest rates (which are at historic lows) rise, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to fall, and if interest rates fall, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to rise. Changes in the value of a fixed-income instrument usually will not affect the amount of income the Fund receives from it but will generally affect the value of the Fund's shares. In general, the longer the maturity or duration of a fixed-income instrument, the greater its sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Interest rate declines also may increase prepayments of debt obligations, which, in turn, would increase prepayment risk. Similarly, a period of rising interest rates may negatively impact the Fund’s performance. Actions by governments and central banking authorities can result in increases in interest rates. Such actions may negatively affect the value of fixed-income instruments held by the Fund, resulting in a negative impact on the Fund's performance and NAV. Debt instruments with floating coupon rates are typically less sensitive to interest rate changes, but these debt instruments may decline in value if their coupon rates do not rise as much as, or keep pace with, yields on such types of debt instruments. Because rates on certain floating rate loans and other debt instruments reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause fluctuations in the Fund’s NAV. Any interest rate increases could cause the value of the Fund’s investments in fixed-income instruments to decrease. Rising interest rates may prompt redemptions from the Fund, which may force the Fund to sell investments at a time when it is not advantageous to do so, which could result in losses.

Issuer Risk. An issuer in which the Fund invests or to which it has exposure may perform poorly, and the value of its loans or securities may therefore decline, which would negatively affect the Fund’s performance. Poor performance may be caused by poor management decisions, competitive pressures, breakthroughs in technology, reliance on suppliers, labor problems or shortages, corporate restructurings, fraudulent disclosures, natural disasters or other events, conditions or factors.

Leverage Risk. Leverage occurs when the Fund increases its assets available for investment using borrowings, derivatives, or similar instruments or techniques. Use of leverage can produce volatility and may exaggerate changes in the net asset value of Fund shares and in the return on the Fund’s portfolio, which may increase the risk that the Fund will lose more than it has invested. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations or to meet any required asset segregation or position coverage requirements. Futures contracts, options on futures contracts, forward contracts and other derivatives can allow the Fund to obtain large investment exposures in return for meeting relatively small margin requirements. As a result, investments in those transactions may be highly leveraged. If the Fund uses leverage, through the purchase of particular instruments such as derivatives, the Fund may experience capital losses that exceed the net assets of the Fund. Leverage can create an interest expense that may lower the Fund's overall returns. Leverage presents the opportunity for increased net income and capital gains, but may also exaggerate the Fund's volatility and risk of loss. There can be no guarantee that a leveraging strategy will be successful.

Liquidity Risk. Liquidity risk is the risk associated with any event, circumstance, or characteristic of an investment or market that negatively impacts the Fund’s ability to sell, or realize the proceeds from the sale of, an investment at a desirable time or price. Liquidity risk may arise because of, for example, a lack of marketability of the investment, which means that when seeking to sell its portfolio investments, the Fund could find that selling is more difficult than anticipated, especially during times of high market volatility. Decreases in the number of financial institutions, including banks and broker-dealers, willing to make markets (match up sellers and buyers) in the Fund’s investments or decreases in their capacity or willingness to trade such investments may increase the Fund’s exposure to this risk. The debt market has experienced considerable growth, and financial institutions making markets in instruments purchased and sold by the Fund (e.g., bond dealers) have been subject to increased regulation. The impact of that

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growth and regulation on the ability and willingness of financial institutions to engage in trading or “making a market” in such instruments remains unsettled. Certain types of investments, such as lower-rated securities or those that are purchased and sold in over-the-counter markets, may be especially subject to liquidity risk. Securities or other assets in which the Fund invests may be traded in the over-the-counter market rather than on an exchange and therefore may be more difficult to purchase or sell at a fair price, which may have a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. Market participants attempting to sell the same or a similar instrument at the same time as the Fund could exacerbate the Fund’s exposure to liquidity risk. The Fund may have to accept a lower selling price for the holding, sell other, liquid or more liquid, investments that it might otherwise prefer to hold (thereby increasing the proportion of the Fund’s investments in less liquid or illiquid securities), or forego another more appealing investment opportunity. Certain investments that were liquid when purchased by the Fund may later become illiquid, particularly in times of overall economic distress. Changing regulatory, market or other conditions or environments (for example, the interest rate or credit environments) may also adversely affect the liquidity and the price of the Fund's investments. Judgment plays a larger role in valuing illiquid or less liquid investments as compared to valuing liquid or more liquid investments. Price volatility may be higher for illiquid or less liquid investments as a result of, for example, the relatively less frequent pricing of such securities (as compared to liquid or more liquid investments). Generally, the less liquid the market at the time the Fund sells a portfolio investment, the greater the risk of loss or decline of value to the Fund. Overall market liquidity and other factors can lead to an increase in Fund redemptions, which may negatively impact Fund performance and NAV, including, for example, if the Fund is forced to sell investments in a down market.

Market Risk. Market risk refers to the possibility that the market values of securities or other investments that the Fund holds will fall, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, or fail to rise. The value of Fund investments may fall or fail to rise because of a variety of actual or perceived factors affecting an issuer (e.g., an unfavorable earnings report), the industry or sector in which it operates, or the market as a whole, which may reduce the value of an investment in the Fund. Accordingly, an investment in the Fund could lose money over short or long periods. The market values of the investments the Fund holds can be affected by changes or perceived changes in U.S. or foreign economies and financial markets, and the liquidity of these investments, among other factors.

Mortgage- and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk.  The value of any mortgage-backed and other asset-backed securities held by the Fund may be affected by, among other things, changes or perceived changes in: interest rates; factors concerning the interests in and structure of the issuer or the originator of the mortgages or other assets; the creditworthiness of the entities that provide any supporting letters of credit, surety bonds or other credit enhancements; or the market's assessment of the quality of underlying assets. Mortgage-backed securities represent interests in, or are backed by, pools of mortgages from which payments of interest and principal (net of fees paid to the issuer or guarantor of the securities) are distributed to the holders of the mortgage-backed securities. Other types of asset-backed securities typically represent interests in, or are backed by, pools of receivables such as credit, automobile, student and home equity loans. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities can have a fixed or an adjustable rate. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk, which is the possibility that the underlying mortgage or other asset may be refinanced or prepaid prior to maturity during periods of declining or low interest rates, causing the Fund to have to reinvest the money received in securities that have lower yields. In addition, the impact of prepayments on the value of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities may be difficult to predict and may result in greater volatility. Rising or high interest rates tend to extend the duration of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, making them more volatile and more sensitive to changes in interest rates. Payment of principal and interest on some mortgage-backed securities (but not the market value of the securities themselves) may be guaranteed (i) by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government (in the case of securities guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association) or (ii) by its agencies, authorities, enterprises or instrumentalities (in the case of securities guaranteed by the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC)), which are not insured or guaranteed by the U.S. Government (although FNMA and FHLMC may be able to access capital from the U.S. Treasury to meet their obligations under such securities). Mortgage-backed securities issued by non-governmental issuers (such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers) may be supported by various credit enhancements, such as pool insurance,

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guarantees issued by governmental entities, letters of credit from a bank or senior/subordinated structures, and may entail greater risk than obligations guaranteed by the U.S. Government, whether or not such obligations are guaranteed by the private issuer.

Prepayment and Extension Risk. Prepayment and extension risk is the risk that a bond or other security or investment might, in the case of prepayment risk, be called or otherwise converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity and, in the case of extension risk, that the investment might not be called as expected. In the case of prepayment risk, if the investment is converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity, the portfolio managers may not be able to invest the proceeds in other investments providing as high a level of income, resulting in a reduced yield to the Fund. In the case of mortgage- or other asset-backed securities, as interest rates decrease or spreads narrow, the likelihood of prepayment increases. Conversely, extension risk is the risk that an unexpected rise in interest rates will extend the life of a mortgage- or asset-backed security beyond the prepayment time. If the Fund's investments are locked in at a lower interest rate for a longer period of time, the portfolio managers may be unable to capitalize on securities with higher interest rates or wider spreads.

U.S. Government Obligations Risk. While U.S. Treasury obligations are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government, such securities are nonetheless subject to credit risk ( i.e. , the risk that the U.S. Government may be, or may be perceived to be, unable or unwilling to honor its financial obligations, such as making payments). Securities issued or guaranteed by federal agencies or authorities and U.S. Government-sponsored instrumentalities or enterprises may or may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. For example, securities issued by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Banks are neither insured nor guaranteed by the U.S. Government. These securities may be supported by the ability to borrow from the U.S. Treasury or only by the credit of the issuing agency, authority, instrumentality or enterprise and, as a result, are subject to greater credit risk than securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury.

Value Securities Risk. Value securities are securities of companies that may have experienced, for example, adverse business, industry or other developments or may be subject to special risks that have caused the securities to be out of favor and, in turn, potentially undervalued. The market value of a portfolio security may not meet the portfolio manager's perceived value assessment of that security, or may decline in price, even though the portfolio manager(s) believe(s) the securities are already undervalued. There is also a risk that it may take longer than expected for the value of these investments to rise to the portfolio manager’s perceived value. In addition, value securities, at times, may not perform as well as growth securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

Volatility and Volatility Management Risk. Although the Fund seeks to manage equity market volatility within its portfolio, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful. Despite the Fund’s name, the Fund’s portfolio may experience more than its targeted level of volatility, subjecting the Fund to market risk. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Funds’ portfolios may be subject to price volatility, and the Fund’s share price may not be any less volatile than the market as a whole and could be more volatile. The Investment Manager’s determinations/expectations regarding volatility may be incorrect or inaccurate, which may also adversely affect the Fund’s actual volatility within the portfolio. The Fund also may underperform other funds with similar investment objectives and/or strategies. Additionally, because the Fund seeks to target a particular level of effective equity market exposure (EEME), as stated above under “Principal Investment Strategies”, the Fund may provide protection in volatile markets by potentially curbing or mitigating the risk of loss in declining equity markets, but the Fund’s opportunity to achieve returns when the equity markets are rising may also be curbed. In general, the greater the protection against downside loss (as reflected in a smaller target level of EEME), the lesser the Fund’s opportunity to participate in the returns generated by rising equity markets; however, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in protecting the value of its portfolio in down markets. Additionally, to the extent that the Fund maximizes its EEME in low volatility markets, if the equity markets should decline in such low volatility markets, the Fund may experience greater loss than if it had not maximized its EEME. To the extent that the Fund underestimates or misinterprets volatility signals, the Fund’s performance could be negatively affected. Volatility targets and volatility risk are different for all three funds in the U.S. Flexible series, with the Conservative Growth Fund having the lowest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk) and the U.S. Flexible Growth Fund having the highest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk).

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Additional Investment Strategies and Policies

This section describes certain investment strategies and policies that the Fund may utilize in pursuit of its investment objective and some additional factors and risks involved with investing in the Fund.

Investment Guidelines

As a general matter, and except as specifically described in the discussion of the Fund's principal investment strategies in this prospectus or as otherwise required by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act), the rules and regulations thereunder and any applicable exemptive relief, whenever an investment policy or limitation states a percentage of the Fund's assets that may be invested in any security or other asset or sets forth a policy regarding an investment standard, compliance with that percentage limitation or standard will be determined solely at the time of the Fund's investment in the security or asset.

Holding Other Kinds of Investments

The Fund may hold investments that are not part of its principal investment strategies. These investments and their risks are described below and/or in the Statement of Additional Information (SAI). The Fund may choose not to invest in certain securities described in this prospectus and in the SAI, although it has the ability to do so. Information on the Fund’s holdings can be found in the Fund’s shareholder reports or by visiting columbiathreadneedle.com/us.

Transactions in Derivatives

The Fund may enter into derivative transactions or otherwise have exposure to derivative transactions through underlying investments. Derivatives are financial contracts whose values are, for example, based on (or “derived” from) traditional securities (such as a stock or bond), assets (such as a commodity like gold or a foreign currency), reference rates (such as the London Interbank Offered Rate (commonly known as LIBOR)) or market indices (such as the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 ^® Index). The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity which involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. Derivatives involve special risks and may result in losses or may limit the Fund's potential gain from favorable market movements. Derivative strategies often involve leverage, which may exaggerate a loss, potentially causing the Fund to lose more money than it would have lost had it invested in the underlying security or other asset directly. The values of derivatives may move in unexpected ways, especially in unusual market conditions, and may result in increased volatility in the value of the derivative and/or the Fund’s shares, among other consequences. Other risks arise from the Fund's potential inability to terminate or to sell derivative positions. A liquid secondary market may not always exist for the Fund's derivative positions at times when the Fund might wish to terminate or to sell such positions. Over-the-counter instruments (investments not traded on an exchange) may be illiquid, and transactions in derivatives traded in the over-the-counter market are subject to the risk that the other party will not meet its obligations. The use of derivatives also involves the risks of mispricing or improper valuation and that changes in the value of the derivative may not correlate perfectly with the underlying security, asset, reference rate or index. The Fund also may not be able to find a suitable derivative transaction counterparty, and thus may be unable to engage in derivative transactions when it is deemed favorable to do so, or at all. U.S. federal legislation has been enacted that provides for new clearing, margin, reporting and registration requirements for participants in the derivatives market. These changes could restrict and/or impose significant costs or other burdens upon the Fund’s participation in derivatives transactions. For more information on the risks of derivative investments and strategies, see the SAI.

Affiliated Fund Investing

The Investment Manager or an affiliate serves as investment adviser to funds using the Columbia brand (Columbia Funds), including those that are structured as “fund-of-funds” (such as the Fund(s) offered in this prospectus), and provides asset-allocation services to (i) shareholders by investing in shares of other Columbia Funds (collectively referred to in this section as Underlying Funds), and (ii) discretionary managed accounts (collectively referred to as affiliated products) that invest exclusively in Underlying Funds. These affiliated products, individually or collectively, may own a significant percentage of the outstanding shares of one or more Underlying Funds, and the Investment Manager seeks to balance potential conflicts of interest between the affiliated products and the Underlying Funds in which they invest. The affiliated products’ investment in the Underlying Funds may have the effect of creating economies of scale, possibly resulting in lower expense ratios for the Underlying Funds, because the affiliated

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products may own substantial portions of the shares of Underlying Funds. However, redemption of Underlying Fund shares by one or more affiliated products could cause the expense ratio of an Underlying Fund to increase, as its fixed costs would be spread over a smaller asset base. Because of large positions of certain affiliated products, the Underlying Funds may experience relatively large inflows and outflows of cash due to affiliated products’ purchases and sales of Underlying Fund shares. Although the Investment Manager or its affiliate may seek to minimize the impact of these transactions where possible, for example, by structuring them over a reasonable period of time or through other measures, Underlying Funds may experience increased expenses as they buy and sell portfolio securities to manage the cash flow effect related to these transactions. Further, when the Investment Manager or its affiliate structures transactions over a reasonable period of time in order to manage the potential impact of the buy and sell decisions for the affiliated products, those affiliated products, including funds-of-funds, may pay more or less (for purchase activity), or receive more or less (for redemption activity), for shares of the Underlying Funds than if the transactions were executed in one transaction. In addition, substantial redemptions by affiliated products within a short period of time could require the Underlying Fund to liquidate positions more rapidly than would otherwise be desirable, which may have the effect of reducing or eliminating potential gain or causing it to realize a loss. In order to meet such redemptions, an Underlying Fund may be forced to sell its liquid (or more liquid) positions, leaving the Underlying Fund holding, post-redemption, a relatively larger position in illiquid securities (securities that are not readily marketable or that cannot be sold or disposed of in the ordinary course of business, within seven days, at approximately the value at which the holder has valued the security) or less liquid securities. Substantial redemptions may also adversely affect the ability of the Underlying Fund to implement its investment strategy. The Investment Manager or its affiliate also has an economic conflict of interest in determining the allocation of affiliated products’ assets among the Underlying Funds, as it earns different fees from the various Underlying Funds.

Affiliated Products

As of the date of this prospectus, shares of the Fund are available to holders of variable annuity contracts and in variable life insurance policies (collectively, Contracts) issued by RiverSource Life Insurance Company and RiverSource Life Insurance Co. of New York (collectively, RiverSource Life).

RiverSource Life is an affiliate of Ameriprise Financial, Inc., which is the parent company of Columbia Management, the Fund’s investment manager. Under certain variable annuity contracts, contract holders have elected a guaranteed benefit rider that requires investment in the Fund (the Rider). RiverSource Life has financial obligations to holders of the Riders arising from guarantee obligations under such Riders, which vary based upon the investment performance of the Fund. RiverSource Life expects to benefit financially by offering this Fund, compared to offering other types of funds, in variable annuity contracts with Riders. For example, RiverSource Life expects to reduce its costs to purchase hedge investments associated with variable annuity contract liabilities tied to this Fund. It also expects to benefit from the greater liquidity of hedge investments used to meet its obligations under the Riders. In addition, it expects to reduce its capital requirements, which represent assets RiverSource Life sets aside to back the guarantees offered in its variable annuity contracts. As described above, RiverSource Life has a financial interest in reducing its potential exposure with respect to variable annuity contract values invested under the Riders. This may present a potential conflict of interest with respect to the interests of the holders of the Riders (who are required to allocate their variable annuity contract value to the Fund). In particular, RiverSource Life’s interest in reducing volatility within the Fund’s portfolio may present a potential conflict between it and Columbia Management as the latter seeks to achieve the Fund’s investment objective of “total return while seeking to manage the Fund’s exposure to equity market volatility.”

Columbia Management has a framework in place to ensure its management of the Fund is effected in the best interests of the Fund, without undue influence from RiverSource Life. Although an investment in the Fund may have the effect of mitigating declines in your Contract value (whether or not you have elected a Rider in your variable annuity contract), in the event of a significant decline in the equity markets, the strategy followed by the Fund, if successful, will also generally result in your Contract value increasing to a lesser degree than the equity markets, or decreasing when the values of equity investments are stable or rising. Depending on future market conditions and considering only the potential return on your investment in the Fund, a variable annuity contract holder electing the Rider might benefit (or benefit more) from selecting an investment option offered in connection with a different

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guaranteed benefit rider (if available) or alternate investments and a variable annuity contract holder who did not elect the Rider might benefit (or benefit more) from selecting an alternative investment option. In addition, there is no guarantee that the Fund’s strategy will have its intended effect, or that it will work as effectively as is intended.

Investing in Money Market Funds

The Fund may invest cash in, or hold as collateral for certain investments, shares of registered or unregistered money market funds, including funds advised by the Investment Manager or its affiliates. These funds are not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or any other government agency. The Fund and its shareholders indirectly bear a portion of the expenses of any money market fund or other fund in which the Fund may invest.

Investing Defensively

The Fund may from time to time take temporary defensive investment positions that may be inconsistent with the Fund’s principal investment strategies in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political, social or other conditions, including, without limitation, investing some or all of its assets in money market instruments or shares of affiliated or unaffiliated money market funds or holding some or all of its assets in cash or cash equivalents. The Fund may take such defensive investment positions for as long a period as deemed necessary.

The Fund may not achieve its investment objective while it is investing defensively. Investing defensively may adversely affect Fund performance. During these times, the portfolio managers may make frequent portfolio holding changes, which could result in increased trading expenses and decreased Fund performance. See also Investing in Money Market Funds above for more information.

Other Strategic and Investment Measures

The Fund may also from time to time take temporary portfolio positions that may or may not be consistent with the Fund’s principal investment strategies in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political, social or other conditions, including, without limitation, investing in derivatives, such as forward contracts, futures contracts, options, structured investments and swaps, for various purposes, including among others, investing in particular derivatives in seeking to reduce investment exposures, or in seeking to achieve indirect investment exposures, to a sector, country, region or currency where the Investment Manager believes such positioning is appropriate. The Fund may take such portfolio positions for as long a period as deemed necessary. While the Fund is so positioned, derivatives could comprise a substantial portion of the Fund’s investments and the Fund may not achieve its investment objective. Investing in this manner may adversely affect Fund performance. During these times, the portfolio managers may make frequent portfolio holding changes, which could result in increased trading expenses and decreased Fund performance. For information on the risks of investing in derivatives, see Transactions in Derivatives above.

Portfolio Holdings Disclosure

The Board has adopted policies and procedures that govern the timing and circumstances of disclosure to shareholders and third parties of information regarding the securities owned by the Fund. A description of these policies and procedures is included in the SAI. Fund policy generally permits the disclosure of portfolio holdings information on the Fund's website (columbiathreadneedle.com/us) only after a certain amount of time has passed, as described in the SAI.

Purchases and sales of portfolio securities can take place at any time, so the portfolio holdings information available on the Fund's website may not always be current.

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Cash Flows

The timing and magnitude of cash inflows from investors buying Fund shares could prevent the Fund from always being fully invested. Conversely, the timing and magnitude of cash outflows to shareholders redeeming Fund shares could require the Fund to sell portfolio securities at less than opportune times or to hold ready reserves of uninvested cash in amounts larger than might otherwise be the case to meet shareholder redemptions. Either situation could adversely impact the Fund’s performance.

Understanding Annual Fund Operating Expenses

The Fund’s annual operating expenses, as presented in the Annual Fund Operating Expenses table in the Fees and Expenses of the Fund section of this prospectus, generally are based on estimated expenses for the Fund’s current fiscal period and are expressed as a percentage (expense ratio) of the Fund’s average net assets. The expense ratio reflects current fee arrangements.

In addition to the total annual Fund operating expenses that the Fund bears directly, the Fund’s shareholders indirectly bear the expenses of the underlying funds (or acquired funds) in which the Fund invests. The Fund’s “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” shown are based on its estimated allocations to the underlying funds. Because acquired funds will have varied expense and fee levels and the Fund may own different proportions of acquired funds at different times, the amount of fees and expenses incurred by the Fund with respect to such investments will vary.

Fee Waiver/Expense Reimbursement Arrangements

The Investment Manager and certain of its affiliates have contractually agreed to waive fees and/or reimburse expenses (excluding certain fees and expenses described below) through April 30, 2017, unless sooner terminated at the sole discretion of the Fund's Board, so that the Fund’s net operating expenses, after giving effect to fees waived/expenses reimbursed and any balance credits and/or overdraft charges from the Fund’s custodian, do not exceed the annual rate of:

    

Columbia Variable Portfolio - U.S. Flexible Growth
Class 2	1.10%

Under the agreement, the following fees and expenses are excluded from the Fund’s operating expenses when calculating the waiver/reimbursement commitment, and therefore will be paid by the Fund, if applicable: taxes (including foreign transaction taxes), transaction costs and brokerage commissions, costs related to any securities lending program, dividend expenses associated with securities sold short, inverse floater program fees and expenses, transaction charges and interest on borrowed money, interest, infrequent and/or unusual expenses and any other expenses the exclusion of which is specifically approved by the Fund’s Board. This agreement may be modified or amended only with approval from all parties.

Primary Service Providers

The Fund enters into contractual arrangements (Contracts) with various parties, including, among others, the Investment Manager, the Distributor, Columbia Management Investment Services Corp. (the Transfer Agent) and the Fund’s custodian. The Fund’s Contracts are solely among the parties thereto. Shareholders are not parties to, or intended to be third-party beneficiaries of, any Contracts. Further, this prospectus, the SAI and any Contracts are not intended to give rise to any agreement, duty, special relationship or other obligation between the Fund and any investor, or give rise to any contractual, tort or other rights in any individual shareholder, group of shareholders or

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other person, including any right to assert a fiduciary or other duty, enforce the Contracts against the parties or to seek any remedy thereunder, either directly or on behalf of the Fund. Nothing in the previous sentence should be read to suggest any waiver of any rights under federal or state securities laws.

The Investment Manager, the Distributor and the Transfer Agent are all affiliates of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (Ameriprise Financial). They and their affiliates currently provide key services, including investment advisory, administration, distribution, shareholder servicing and transfer agency services, to the Fund and various other funds, including the Columbia Funds, and are paid for providing these services. These service relationships are described below.

The Investment Manager

Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC is located at 225 Franklin Street, Boston, MA 02110 and serves as investment adviser and administrator to the Columbia Funds. The Investment Manager is a registered investment adviser and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ameriprise Financial. The Investment Manager’s management experience covers all major asset classes, including equity securities, fixed-income securities and money market instruments. In addition to serving as an investment adviser to traditional mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and closed-end funds, the Investment Manager acts as an investment adviser for itself, its affiliates, individuals, corporations, retirement plans, private investment companies and financial intermediaries.

Subject to oversight by the Board, the Investment Manager manages the day-to-day operations of the Fund, determining what securities and other investments the Fund should buy or sell and executing portfolio transactions. The Investment Manager may use the research and other capabilities of its affiliates and third parties in managing the Fund’s investments. The Investment Manager is also responsible for overseeing the administrative operations of the Fund, including the general supervision of the Fund’s operations, the coordination of the Fund’s other service providers and the provision of related clerical and administrative services.

The SEC has issued an order that permits the Investment Manager, subject to the approval of the Board, to appoint an unaffiliated subadviser or to change the terms of a subadvisory agreement, including fees paid thereunder, for the Fund without first obtaining shareholder approval, thereby avoiding the expense and delays typically associated with obtaining shareholder approval. The Investment Manager and its affiliates may have other relationships, including significant financial relationships, with current or potential subadvisers or their affiliates, which may create certain conflicts of interest. When making recommendations to the Board to appoint or to change a subadviser, or to change the terms of a subadvisory agreement, the Investment Manager discloses to the Board the nature of any such material relationships. At present, the Investment Manager has not engaged any investment subadviser for the Fund.

The Fund pays the Investment Manager a fee for its management services, which include investment advisory and administrative services. The fee is calculated as a percentage of the average daily net assets of the Fund. The fee is paid monthly, as follows:

    

Annual Management Fee, as a % of Average Daily Net Assets:
Assets invested in affiliated underlying funds (including ETFs and closed-end funds) that pay a management fee (or advisory fee, as applicable) to the Investment Manager	0.02%
Assets invested in securities (other than affiliated underlying funds (including ETFs and closed-end funds) that pay a management fee (or advisory fee, as applicable) to the Investment Manager), including other funds advised by the Investment Manager that do not pay a management fee, third party funds, derivatives and individual securities	$0 - $500	0.720%
	>$500 - $1,000	0.670%
	>$1,000 - $1,500	0.620%
	>$1,500 - $3,000	0.570%
	>$3,000 - $6,000	0.550%
	>$6,000 - $12,000	0.530%
	>$12,000	0.520%

A discussion regarding the basis for the Board approving the adoption of the management agreement will be available in the Fund’s annual report to shareholders for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016.

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Other Roles and Relationships of Ameriprise Financial and its Affiliates — Certain Conflicts of Interest

The Investment Manager, Distributor and Transfer Agent, all affiliates of Ameriprise Financial, provide various services to the Fund and other Columbia Funds for which they are compensated. Ameriprise Financial and its other affiliates may also provide other services to these funds and be compensated for them.

The Investment Manager and its affiliates may provide investment advisory and other services to other clients and customers substantially similar to those provided to the Columbia Funds. These activities, and other financial services activities of Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, may present actual and potential conflicts of interest and introduce certain investment constraints.

Ameriprise Financial is a major financial services company, engaged in a broad range of financial activities beyond the mutual fund-related activities of the Investment Manager, including, among others, insurance, broker-dealer (sales and trading), asset management, banking and other financial activities. These additional activities may involve multiple advisory, financial, insurance and other interests in securities and other instruments, and in companies that issue securities and other instruments, that may be bought, sold or held by the Columbia Funds.

Conflicts of interest and limitations that could affect a Columbia Fund may arise from, for example, the following:

■	compensation and other benefits received by the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates related to the management/administration of a Columbia Fund and the sale of its shares;

■	the allocation of, and competition for, investment opportunities among the Fund, other funds and accounts advised/managed by the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates, or Ameriprise Financial itself and its affiliates;

■	separate and potentially divergent management of a Columbia Fund and other funds and accounts advised/managed by the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates;

■	regulatory and other investment restrictions on investment activities of the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates and accounts advised/managed by them;

■	insurance and other relationships of Ameriprise Financial affiliates with companies and other entities in which a Columbia Fund invests;

■	regulatory and other restrictions relating to the sharing of information between Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, including the Investment Manager, and a Columbia Fund; and

■

insurance companies investing in the Fund may be affiliates of Ameriprise Financial; these affiliated insurance companies, individually and collectively, may hold through separate accounts a significant portion of the Fund's shares and may also invest in separate accounts managed by the Investment Manager that have the same or substantially similar investment objectives and strategies as the Fund.

The Investment Manager and Ameriprise Financial have adopted various policies and procedures that are intended to identify, monitor and address conflicts of interest. However, there is no assurance that these policies, procedures and disclosures will be effective.

Additional information about Ameriprise Financial and the types of conflicts of interest and other matters referenced above is set forth in the Investment Management and Other Services — Other Roles and Relationships of Ameriprise Financial and its Affiliates — Certain Conflicts of Interest section of the SAI. Investors in the Columbia Funds should carefully review these disclosures and consult with their financial advisor if they have any questions.

Certain Legal Matters

Ameriprise Financial and certain of its affiliates have historically been involved in a number of legal, arbitration and regulatory proceedings, including routine litigation, class actions and governmental actions, concerning matters arising in connection with the conduct of their business activities. Ameriprise Financial believes that the Fund is not currently the subject of, and that neither Ameriprise Financial nor any of its affiliates are the subject of, any pending legal, arbitration or regulatory proceedings that are likely to have a material adverse effect on the Fund or the ability of Ameriprise Financial or its affiliates to perform under their contracts with the Fund. Information regarding certain

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pending and settled legal proceedings may be found in the Fund’s shareholder reports and in the SAI. Additionally, Ameriprise Financial is required to make quarterly (10-Q), annual (10-K) and, as necessary, 8-K filings with the SEC on legal and regulatory matters that relate to Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates. Copies of these filings may be obtained by accessing the SEC website at sec.gov.

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About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

affiliated broker-dealers and insurance companies, may be separately incented to include shares of the Columbia Funds in Contracts offered by affiliated insurance companies, as employee compensation and business unit operating goals at all levels are generally tied to the success of Ameriprise Financial. Certain employees, directly or indirectly, may receive higher compensation and other benefits as investment in the Columbia Funds increases. In addition, management, sales leaders and other employees may spend more of their time and resources promoting Ameriprise Financial and its subsidiary companies, including the Distributor and the Investment Manager, and the products they offer, including the Fund.

In addition to the payments described above, the Distributor, the Investment Manager and their affiliates may make other payments or allow promotional incentives to broker-dealers to the extent permitted by SEC and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) rules and by other applicable laws and regulations.

Amounts paid by the Distributor and the Investment Manager and their affiliates are paid out of the Distributor’s and the Investment Manager’s own resources and do not increase the amount paid by you or the Fund. You can find further details in the SAI about the payments made by the Distributor and the Investment Manager and their affiliates, as well as a list of the selling agents, including Ameriprise Financial affiliates, to which the Distributor and the Investment Manager have agreed to make marketing/sales support payments.

Your selling agent may charge you fees and commissions in addition to those described herein. You should consult with your selling agent and review carefully any disclosure your selling agent provides regarding its services and compensation. Depending on the financial arrangement in place at any particular time, a selling agent may have a conflict of interest or financial incentive with respect to its recommendations regarding the Fund or any Contract that includes the Fund.

Share Price Determination

The price you pay or receive when you buy, sell or transfer shares is the Fund's next determined net asset value (or NAV) per share. The Fund calculates the NAV per share at the end of each business day. Any affiliated underlying funds calculate their NAV in the same manner as the Fund calculates its NAV.

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Equity securities are valued primarily on the basis of market quotations reported on stock exchanges and other securities markets around the world. If an equity security is listed on a national exchange, the security is valued at the closing price or, if the closing price is not readily available, the mean of the closing bid and asked prices. Certain equity securities, debt securities and other assets are valued differently. For instance, bank loans trading in the secondary market are valued primarily on the basis of indicative bids, fixed-income investments maturing in 60 days or less are valued primarily using the amortized cost method, unless this methodology results in a valuation that does not approximate the market value of these securities, and those maturing in excess of 60 days are valued primarily using a market-based price obtained from a pricing service, if available. Investments in other open-end funds are valued at their latest NAVs. Both market quotations and indicative bids are obtained from outside pricing services approved and monitored pursuant to a policy approved by the Fund's Board. For a money market fund, the Fund's investments are generally valued at amortized cost, which approximates market value.

If a market price is not readily available or is deemed not to reflect market value, the Fund will determine the price of a portfolio security based on a determination of the security's fair value pursuant to a policy approved by the Fund's Board. In addition, the Fund may use fair valuation to price securities that trade on a foreign exchange when a significant event has occurred after the foreign exchange closes but before the time at which the Fund's share price is calculated. Foreign exchanges typically close before the time at which Fund share prices are calculated, and may be closed altogether on some days when the Fund is open. Such significant events affecting a foreign security may include, but are not limited to: (1) corporate actions, earnings announcements, litigation or other events impacting a single issuer; (2) governmental action that affects securities in one sector or country; (3) natural disasters or armed conflicts affecting a country or region; or (4) significant domestic or foreign market fluctuations. The Fund uses various criteria, including an evaluation of U.S. market moves after the close of foreign markets, in determining whether a foreign security's market price is readily available and reflective of market value and, if not, the fair value of the security. To the extent the Fund has significant holdings of small cap stocks, high-yield bonds, floating rate loans, or tax-exempt, foreign or other securities that may trade infrequently, fair valuation may be used more frequently than for other funds.

Fair valuation may have the effect of reducing stale pricing arbitrage opportunities presented by the pricing of Fund shares. However, when the Fund uses fair valuation to price securities, it may value those securities higher or lower than another fund would have priced the security. Also, the use of fair valuation may cause the Fund's performance to diverge to a greater degree from the performance of various benchmarks used to compare the Fund's performance because benchmarks generally do not use fair valuation techniques. Because of the judgment involved in fair valuation decisions, there can be no assurance that the value ascribed to a particular security is accurate. The Fund has retained one or more independent fair valuation pricing services to assist in the fair valuation process for foreign securities.

Shareholder Information

Shares of the Fund are generally available for purchase only by participating insurance companies in connection with Contracts.

Shares of the Fund may not be purchased or sold directly by individual Contract owners. When you sell your shares through your Contract, the Fund is effectively buying them back. This is called a redemption. The right of redemption may be suspended or payment postponed whenever permitted by applicable laws and regulations.

Depending on the context, references to “you” or “your” herein refer either to the holder of a Contract who may select Fund shares to fund his or her investment in the Contract or to the participating insurance company as the holder of Fund shares through one or more separate accounts.

Potential Conflicts of Interest – Mixed and Shared Funding

The Fund is available for purchase through Contracts offered by the separate accounts of participating insurance companies and may also be available to other eligible investors authorized by the Distributor. Due to differences in tax treatment and other considerations, the interests of various Contract owners may conflict. The Fund does not foresee any disadvantages to investors arising from these potential conflicts of interest at this time. Nevertheless, the Board of the Fund intends to monitor events to identify any material irreconcilable conflicts which may arise, and

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to determine what action, if any, should be taken in response to any conflicts. If such a conflict were to arise, one or more separate accounts might be required to withdraw its investments in the Fund or shares of another mutual fund may be substituted. This might force the Fund to sell securities at disadvantageous prices.

Additional Discussion of Potential Conflicts of Interest Relating to Funds Used Exclusively by Affiliated Insurance Companies

The Fund is sold exclusively as underlying investment options of the Contracts offered by RiverSource Life Insurance Company (RiverSource Life) and its wholly-owned subsidiary, RiverSource Life Insurance Co. of New York (collectively, the Companies). The Investment Manager and its affiliates make or support payments out of their own resources to the Companies as a result of the Companies including the Fund as an investment option in the Contracts. These allocations may be significant. In addition, employees of Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, including employees of the Companies, may be separately incented to include the Fund in the Contracts, as employee compensation and business unit operating goals at all levels are tied to the company’s success. These Contracts may also include unaffiliated mutual funds as investment options, and the Companies receive payments from the sponsors of these unaffiliated mutual funds as a result of including these funds in the products. The amount of payment from sponsors of unaffiliated funds or allocation from the Investment Manager and its affiliates varies, and may be significant. The amount of the payment or allocation the Companies receive from a Fund may create an incentive for the Companies and may influence their decision regarding which funds to include in a Contract. Employees of Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, including employees of affiliated broker-dealers, may be separately incented to recommend or sell shares of the Fund, as employee compensation and business unit operating goals at all levels are tied to the company’s success. Certain employees, directly or indirectly, may receive higher compensation and other benefits as investments in the Fund increase. In addition, management, sales leaders and other employees may spend more of their time and resources promoting Ameriprise Financial and its subsidiary companies, including Columbia Management, and the Distributor, and the products they offer, including the Fund. These arrangements are sometimes referred to as “revenue sharing payments,” and are in addition to any Rule 12b-1 distribution and/or service fees or other amounts paid by the Fund for account maintenance, sub-accounting or recordkeeping services provided directly by the Companies. See About Fund Shares and Transactions - Selling Agent Compensation for more information generally about selling agent compensation and the Contract prospectus for more information regarding these payments and allocations relating to your Contract.

Order Processing

Orders to buy and sell shares of the Fund that are placed by your participating insurance company are processed on business days. Orders received in “good form” by the Transfer Agent or a selling agent, including your participating insurance company , before the end of a business day are priced at the Fund’s NAV per share on that day. Orders received after the end of a business day will receive the next business day’s NAV per share. An order is in “good form” if the Transfer Agent or your selling agent has all of the information and documentation it deems necessary to effect your order. The market value of the Fund’s investments may change between the time you submit your order and the time the Fund next calculates its NAV per share. The business day that applies to your order is also called the trade date.

There is no sales charge associated with the purchase of Fund shares, but there may be charges associated with your Contract. Any charges that apply to your Contract, and any charges that apply to separate accounts of participating insurance companies that may own shares directly, are described in your Contract prospectus.

You may transfer all or part of your investment in the Fund to one or more of the other investment options available under your Contract. You may provide instructions to sell any amount allocated to the Fund. Proceeds will be mailed within seven days after your surrender or withdrawal request is received in good form by an authorized agent. The amount you receive may be more or less than the amount you invested.

Please refer to your Contract prospectus for more information about transfers as well as surrenders and withdrawals.

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Information Sharing Agreements

As required by Rule 22c-2 under the 1940 Act, the Funds or certain of their service providers will enter into information sharing agreements with selling agents, including participating life insurance companies and selling agents that sponsor or offer retirement plans through which shares of the Funds are made available for purchase. Pursuant to Rule 22c-2, selling agents are required, upon request, to: (i) provide shareholder account and transaction information; and (ii) execute instructions from the Fund to restrict or prohibit further purchases of Fund shares by shareholders who have been identified by the Fund as having engaged in transactions that violate the Fund's excessive trading policies and procedures.

Excessive Trading Practices Policy of Non-Money Market Funds

Right to Reject or Restrict Share Transaction Orders — The Fund is intended for investors with long-term investment purposes and is not intended as a vehicle for frequent trading activity (market timing) that is excessive. Investors should transact in Fund shares primarily for investment purposes. The Board has adopted excessive trading policies and procedures that are designed to deter excessive trading by investors (the Excessive Trading Policies and Procedures). The Fund discourages and does not accommodate excessive trading.

The Fund reserves the right to reject, without any prior notice, any buy or transfer order for any reason, and will not be liable for any loss resulting from rejected orders. For example, the Fund may in its sole discretion restrict or reject a buy or transfer order even if the transaction is not subject to the specific limitation described below if the Fund or its agents determine that accepting the order could interfere with efficient management of the Fund's portfolio or is otherwise contrary to the Fund's best interests. The Excessive Trading Policies and Procedures apply equally to buy or transfer transactions communicated directly to the Transfer Agent and to those received by selling agents.

Specific Buying and Transferring Limitations — If a Fund detects that an investor has made two “material round trips” in any 28-day period, it will generally reject the investor's future purchase orders, including transfer buy orders, involving any Fund.

For these purposes, a “round trip” is a purchase or transfer into the Fund followed by a sale or transfer out of the Fund, or a sale or transfer out of the Fund followed by a purchase or transfer into the Fund. A “material” round trip is one that is deemed by the Fund to be material in terms of its amount or its potential detrimental impact on the Fund. Independent of this limit, the Fund may, in its sole discretion, reject future buy orders by any person, group or account that appears to have engaged in any type of excessive trading activity.

These limits generally do not apply to automated transactions or transactions by registered investment companies in a “fund-of-funds” structure. These limits do not apply to payroll deduction contributions by retirement plan participants, transactions initiated by a retirement plan sponsor or certain other retirement plan transactions consisting of rollover transactions, loan repayments and disbursements, and required minimum distribution redemptions. They may be modified or rescinded for accounts held by certain retirement plans to conform to plan limits, for considerations relating to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 or regulations of the Department of Labor, and for certain asset allocation or wrap programs. Accounts known to be under common ownership or control generally will be counted together, but accounts maintained or managed by a common intermediary generally will not be considered to be under common ownership or control. The Fund retains the right to modify these restrictions at any time without prior notice to shareholders. In addition, the Fund may, in its sole discretion, reinstate trading privileges that have been revoked under the Fund's Excessive Trading Policies and Procedures.

Limitations on the Ability to Detect and Prevent Excessive Trading Practices — The Fund takes various steps designed to detect and prevent excessive trading, including daily review of available shareholder transaction information. However, the Fund receives buy, sell or transfer orders through selling agents, and cannot always know of or reasonably detect excessive trading that may be facilitated by selling agents or by the use of the omnibus account arrangements they offer. Omnibus account arrangements are common forms of holding shares of mutual funds, particularly among certain selling agents such as broker-dealers, retirement plans and variable insurance products. These arrangements often permit selling agents to aggregate their clients' transactions and accounts, and in these circumstances, the identity of the shareholders is often not known to the Fund.

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About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

Some selling agents apply their own restrictions or policies to underlying investor accounts, which may be more or less restrictive than those described here. This may impact the Fund's ability to curtail excessive trading, even where it is identified. For these and other reasons, it is possible that excessive trading may occur despite the Fund's efforts to detect and prevent it.

Although these restrictions and policies involve judgments that are inherently subjective and may involve some selectivity in their application, the Fund seeks to act in a manner that it believes is consistent with the best interests of shareholders in making any such judgments.

Risks of Excessive Trading — Excessive trading creates certain risks to the Fund's long-term shareholders and may create the following adverse effects:

■	negative impact on the Fund's performance;

■	potential dilution of the value of the Fund's shares;

■	interference with the efficient management of the Fund's portfolio, such as the need to maintain undesirably large cash positions, the need to use its line of credit or the need to buy or sell securities it otherwise would not have bought or sold;

■	losses on the sale of investments resulting from the need to sell securities at less favorable prices; and

■	increased brokerage and administrative costs.

To the extent that the Fund invests significantly in foreign securities traded on markets that close before the Fund's valuation time, it may be particularly susceptible to dilution as a result of excessive trading. Because events may occur after the close of foreign markets and before the Fund's valuation time that influence the value of foreign securities, investors may seek to trade Fund shares in an effort to benefit from their understanding of the value of foreign securities as of the Fund's valuation time. This is often referred to as price arbitrage. The Fund has adopted procedures designed to adjust closing market prices of foreign securities under certain circumstances to reflect what the Fund believes to be the fair value of those securities as of its valuation time. To the extent the adjustments do not work fully, investors engaging in price arbitrage may cause dilution in the value of the Fund's shares held by other shareholders.

Similarly, to the extent that the Fund invests significantly in thinly traded high-yield bonds (junk bonds) or equity securities of small-capitalization companies, because these securities are often traded infrequently, investors may seek to trade Fund shares in an effort to benefit from their understanding of the value of these securities. This is also a type of price arbitrage. Any such frequent trading strategies may interfere with efficient management of the Fund's portfolio to a greater degree than would be the case for mutual funds that invest in highly liquid securities, in part because the Fund may have difficulty selling those portfolio securities at advantageous times or prices to satisfy large and/or frequent sell orders. Any successful price arbitrage may also cause dilution in the value of Fund shares held by other shareholders. The risks of excessive trading described above also apply to any Underlying Funds in which the Fund invests.

Excessive Trading Practices Policy of Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund

A money market fund is designed to offer investors a liquid cash option that they may buy and sell as often as they wish. Accordingly, the Board has not adopted policies and procedures designed to discourage excessive or short-term trading of Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund shares. However, since frequent purchases and sales of Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund shares could in certain instances harm shareholders in various ways, including reducing the returns to long-term shareholders by increasing costs (such as spreads paid to dealers who trade money market instruments with Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund) and disrupting portfolio management strategies, Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund reserves the right, but has no obligation, to reject any purchase or transfer transaction at any time. Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund has no limits on purchase or transfer transactions. In addition, Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund reserves the right to impose or modify restrictions on purchases, transfers or trading of Fund shares at any time.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Distributions and Taxes (continued)

Prospectus 2016

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

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Appendix A (continued)

investment a majority of the Fund’s net assets would be invested in Focus Stocks. The Fund may continue to hold, and to make additional investments in, Focus Stocks whose market capitalization has grown to exceed $5 billion, regardless of whether the Fund’s investments in Focus Stocks are a majority of the Fund’s net assets.

The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its net assets in foreign securities. The Fund may invest directly in foreign securities or indirectly through depositary receipts. The Fund may from time to time emphasize one or more economic sectors in selecting its investments, including the financial services sector. The Fund also may invest in real estate investment trusts.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, including futures (including equity futures and index futures) and options, for hedging or investment purposes.

Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC (Columbia Management or the Investment Manager) serves as the investment manager for the Fund and will attempt to achieve the Fund’s objective by managing a portion of the Fund’s assets (the Columbia Management sleeve) and selecting one or more subadvisers to manage other sleeves independently of each other and Columbia Management. A portion of the Fund’s assets is subadvised by Columbia Wanger Asset Management, LLC (CWAM), a wholly-owned affiliate of the Investment Manager. The subadviser and Columbia Management each make investment decisions for their respective sleeves independently of one another.

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Government Mortgage Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Government Mortgage Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with current income as its primary objective and, as its secondary objective, preservation of capital.

The Fund’s assets primarily are invested in mortgage-related securities. Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the Fund’s net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) are invested in mortgage-related securities that either are issued or guaranteed as to principal and interest by the U.S. Government, its agencies, authorities or instrumentalities. This includes, but is not limited to, Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA or Ginnie Mae) mortgage-backed bonds, which are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government; and Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA or Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC or Freddie Mac) mortgage-backed bonds. FNMA and FHLMC are chartered or sponsored by Acts of Congress; however, their securities are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury.

The Fund’s investments in mortgage-related securities include investments in stripped mortgage-backed securities such as interest-only (IO) and principal-only (PO) securities.

The Fund may invest in debt instruments of any maturity and does not seek to maintain a particular dollar-weighted average maturity.

The Fund may invest in privately placed and other securities or instruments that are purchased and sold pursuant to Rule 144A or other exemptions under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the 1933 Act), subject to liquidity determinations and certain regulatory restrictions.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, including futures (including interest rate futures) to manage duration and yield curve exposure and to manage exposure to movements in interest rates.

The Fund may purchase or sell securities on a when-issued, delayed delivery or forward commitment basis. Such securities may include mortgage-backed securities acquired or sold in the “to be announced” (TBA) market and those in a dollar roll transaction.

The Fund’s investment strategy may involve the frequent trading of portfolio securities.

Variable Portfolio – American Century Diversified Bond Fund

Variable Portfolio - American Century Diversified Bond Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with a high level of current income.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in bonds and other debt securities. At least 50% of the Fund’s net assets will be invested in securities like those included in the Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index (the Index), which are investment grade and denominated in U.S. dollars. The Index includes securities issued by the U.S. Government, corporate

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Appendix A (continued)

bonds, and mortgage- and asset-backed securities. Although the Fund emphasizes high- and medium-quality debt securities, it may assume increased credit risk by investing in below investment-grade fixed-income securities (commonly referred to as “high-yield” investments or “junk” bonds).

The Fund may invest in securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury and certain U.S. Government agencies or instrumentalities such as the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae). Ginnie Mae is supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. Securities issued or guaranteed by other U.S. Government agencies or instrumentalities, such as the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), and the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) are not guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. However, they are authorized to borrow from the U.S. Treasury to meet their obligations.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, including forward contracts (including forward foreign currency contracts), futures (including interest rate futures) and swaps (including credit default swaps and credit default swap indexes) in an effort to manage interest rate exposure, to produce incremental earnings, to hedge existing positions, and to increase market exposure and investment flexibility.

The Fund may purchase or sell securities on a when-issued, delayed delivery or forward commitment basis. Such securities may include mortgage-backed securities acquired or sold in the “to be announced” (TBA) market and those in a dollar roll transaction.

Variable Portfolio – CenterSquare Real Estate Fund (prior to June 1, 2016 Variable Portfolio – Morgan Stanley Global Real Estate Fund)

Variable Portfolio – CenterSquare Real Estate Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with current income and capital appreciation.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in equity and equity-related securities issued by companies in the real estate industry. A company is considered to be in the real estate industry if it (i) derives at least 50% of its revenues or profits from the ownership, construction, management, financing or sale of residential, commercial or industrial real estate or (ii) has at least 50% of the fair market value of its assets invested in residential, commercial or industrial real estate. Companies in the real estate industry include, among others, real estate operating companies (REOCs) and real estate investment trusts (REITs).

Variable Portfolio – Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Fund

Variable Portfolio - Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with a high level of current income.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in income producing floating rate loans and other floating rate debt securities. These debt instruments will generally be rated non-investment grade by recognized rating agencies (similar to “high-yield” investments or “junk bonds”) or, if unrated, determined to be of comparable quality. The Fund invests in senior floating rate loans of borrowers (Senior Loans). The Fund may also purchase secured and unsecured subordinated loans, second lien loans and subordinate bridge loans (Junior Loans), or other floating rate debt instruments, fixed income debt instruments and money market instruments. For purposes of the 80% policy, money market holdings with a remaining maturity of less than 60 days will be deemed floating rate assets.

The Fund may invest up to 25% of its net assets in foreign investments.

Floating rate loans are debt obligations of companies and other similar entities that have interest rates that adjust or “float” periodically (normally on a daily, monthly, quarterly or semiannual basis by reference to a base lending rate (such as London Interbank Offered Rate (commonly known as LIBOR)) plus a premium). Floating rate loans are typically structured and administered by a financial institution that acts as the agent of the lenders participating in the floating rate loan. The Fund may acquire loans directly through the agent or from another holder of the loan by assignment. They are generally valued on a daily basis by independent pricing services.

Variable Portfolio – J.P. Morgan Core Bond Fund

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Appendix A (continued)

capitalization range and composition of the companies in the Index are subject to change. The Fund may from time to time emphasize one or more economic sectors in selecting its investments, including the health care sector and the technology and technology-related sectors.

Multiple subadvisers provide the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio. Each subadviser employs an active investment strategy.

Variable Portfolio – Partners Small Cap Value Fund

Variable Portfolio - Partners Small Cap Value Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with long-term capital appreciation.

Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the Fund’s net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) are invested in small cap companies. For these purposes, small cap companies are those that have a market capitalization, at the time of investment, that falls within the range of the Russell 2000 ^® Value Index (the Index) or up to $2.5 billion, whichever is greater. The Fund may buy and hold stock in a company that is not included in the Index. The market capitalization range of the companies included within the Index was $13.6 million to $5.8 billion as of March 31, 2016. The market capitalization range and composition of the companies in the Index are subject to change. The Fund may invest in any type of security, including common stocks and depositary receipts.

The Fund may invest up to 25% of its net assets in foreign investments. The Fund may from time to time emphasize one or more economic sectors in selecting its investments, including the financial services sector and the industrials sector.

Multiple subadvisers provide the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio. Each of the subadvisers employs an active investment strategy that focuses on small cap companies in an attempt to take advantage of what are believed to be undervalued securities.

Variable Portfolio – TCW Core Plus Bond Fund

Variable Portfolio - TCW Core Plus Bond Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide shareholders with total return through current income and capital appreciation.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in bonds and other debt securities, including debt securities issued by the U.S. Government, its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations, debt securities issued by corporations, mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, dollar-denominated securities issued by foreign governments, companies or other entities, bank loans and other obligations. For purposes of its 80% test, the Fund treats investment in loans as “debt securities,” even though loans may not be “securities” under certain of the federal securities laws. The Fund invests at least 60% of its net assets in debt securities that, at the time of purchase, are rated in at least one of the three highest rating categories or are unrated securities determined to be of comparable quality. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in debt instruments that, at the time of purchase, are rated below investment grade or are unrated but determined to be of comparable quality (commonly referred to as “high-yield” investments or “junk” bonds). The Fund may invest in fixed income securities of any maturity and does not seek to maintain a particular dollar-weighted average maturity or duration at the Fund level.

Up to 25% of the Fund’s net assets may be invested in foreign investments, which may include investments in non-U.S. dollar denominated securities, as well as investments in emerging markets securities. In connection with its strategy relating to foreign investments, the Fund may buy or sell foreign currencies in lieu of or in addition to non-dollar denominated fixed-income securities in order to increase or decrease its exposure to foreign interest rate and/or currency markets.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, including futures contracts (including interest rate futures) to manage exposure of the Fund.

The Fund’s investments in mortgage-related securities include investments in stripped mortgage-backed securities such as interest-only (IO) and principal-only (PO) securities.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Appendix A (continued)

enter into mortgage dollar rolls and reverse repurchase agreements. In addition, the Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by U.S. Government agencies, and to a lesser extent, other securities rated AA- or Aa3 that the Fund’s subadviser believes will sufficiently outperform U.S. Treasuries. Generally, the portfolio’s overall dollar-weighted average effective duration is less than that of a 3-year U.S. Treasury note.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, such as futures contracts (including interest rate futures) to hedge interest rate exposure of the Fund.

The Fund’s investment strategy may involve the frequent trading of portfolio securities.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

interest previously paid by the borrower. Any such actions by a court could adversely affect the Fund’s performance. A default or expected default of a loan could also make it difficult for the Fund to sell the loan at a price approximating the value previously placed on it. In order to enforce its rights in the event of a default, bankruptcy or similar situation, the Fund may be required to retain legal or similar counsel. This may increase the Fund’s operating expenses and adversely affect its NAV. Loans that have a lower priority for repayment in an issuer’s capital structure may involve a higher degree of overall risk than more senior loans of the same borrower.

Depositary Receipts Risk. Depositary receipts are receipts issued by a bank or trust company reflecting ownership of underlying securities issued by foreign companies. Some foreign securities are traded in the form of American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). Depositary receipts involve risks similar to the risks associated with investments in foreign securities, including those associated with investing in the particular country of an issuer, which may be related to the particular political, regulatory, economic, social and other conditions or events, including, for example, military confrontations, war and terrorism, occurring in the country and fluctuations in its currency, as well as market risk tied to the underlying foreign company. In addition, ADR holders may have limited voting rights, may not have the same rights afforded typical company stockholders in the event of a corporate action such as an acquisition, merger or rights offering and may experience difficulty in receiving company stockholder communications.

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives may involve significant risks. Derivatives are financial instruments with a value in relation to, or derived from, the value of an underlying asset(s) or other reference, such as an index, rate or other economic indicator (each an underlying reference). Derivatives may include those that are privately placed or otherwise exempt from SEC registration, including certain Rule 144A eligible securities. Derivatives could result in Fund losses if the underlying reference does not perform as anticipated. Use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that can involve investment techniques, risks, and tax planning different from those associated with more traditional investment instruments. A Fund’s derivatives strategy may not be successful and use of certain derivatives could result in substantial, potentially unlimited, losses to the Fund regardless of the Fund’s actual investment. A relatively small movement in the price, rate or other economic indicator associated with the underlying reference may result in substantial loss for the Fund. Derivatives may be more volatile than other types of investments. The value of derivatives may be influenced by a variety of factors, including national and international political and economic developments. Potential changes to the regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the market for derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Derivatives can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Forward Contracts Risk. A forward contract is an over-the-counter derivative transaction between two parties to buy or sell a specified amount of an underlying reference at a specified price (or rate) on a specified date in the future. Forward contracts are negotiated on an individual basis and are not standardized or traded on exchanges. The market for forward contracts is substantially unregulated and can experience lengthy periods of illiquidity, unusually high trading volume and other negative impacts, such as political intervention, which may result in volatility or disruptions in such markets. A relatively small price movement in a forward contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. Forward contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Futures Contracts Risk. A futures contract is an exchange-traded derivative transaction between two parties in which a buyer (holding the “long” position) agrees to pay a fixed price (or rate) at a specified future date for delivery of an underlying reference from a seller (holding the “short” position). The seller hopes that the market price on the delivery date is less than the agreed upon price, while the buyer hopes for the contrary. Certain futures contract markets are highly volatile, and futures contracts may be illiquid. Futures exchanges may limit fluctuations in futures contract prices by imposing a maximum permissible daily price movement. The Fund may be disadvantaged if it is prohibited from executing a trade outside the daily permissible price movement. At or prior to maturity of a futures contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in futures contract prices. The liquidity of the futures markets depends on participants

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Appendix B (continued)

entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the futures market could be reduced. Because of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, it is possible that the Fund may employ a high degree of leverage in the portfolio. As a result, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. For certain types of futures contracts, losses are potentially unlimited. Futures markets are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s net asset value. Futures contracts executed (if any) on foreign exchanges may not provide the same protection as U.S. exchanges. Futures contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Inverse Floaters Risk. Inverse variable or floating rate obligations, sometimes referred to as inverse floaters, are a type of over-the-counter derivative debt instrument with a variable or floating coupon rate that moves in the opposite direction of an underlying reference, typically short-term interest rates. While inverse floaters tend to provide more income than similar term and credit quality fixed-rate bonds, they also exhibit greater volatility in price movement, which could result in significant losses for the Fund. An inverse floater may have the effect of investment leverage to the extent that its coupon rate varies by a magnitude that exceeds the magnitude of the change in the index or reference rate of interest, which could result in increased losses for the Fund. Inverse floaters can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Options Risk. Options are derivatives that give the purchaser the option to buy (call) or sell (put) an underlying reference from or to a counterparty at a specified price (the strike price) on or before an expiration date. By investing in options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that it may be required to buy or sell the underlying reference at a disadvantageous price on or before the expiration date. Options may involve economic leverage, which could result in greater volatility in price movement. The Fund's losses could be significant, and are potentially unlimited for certain types of options. Options may be traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market. At or prior to maturity of an options contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in options prices. Options can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Structured Investments Risk. Structured investments are over-the-counter derivatives that provide principal and/or interest payments based on the value of an underlying reference(s). Structured investments may lack a liquid secondary market and their prices or value can be volatile which could result in significant losses for the Fund. Structured investments may create economic leverage which may increase the volatility of the value of the investment. Structured investments can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Swaps Risk. In a typical swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the return earned on a specified underlying reference for a fixed return or the return from another underlying reference during a specified period of time. Swaps may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Swaps could result in Fund losses if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Swaps create significant investment leverage such that a relatively small price movement in a swap may result in immediate and substantial losses to the Fund. The Fund may only close out a swap with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. Certain swaps, such as short swap transactions and total return swaps, have the potential for unlimited losses, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Swaps can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, inflation risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

bankers and other secondary market issuers) may entail greater risk than obligations guaranteed by the U.S. Government. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk, which is the possibility that the underlying mortgage or other asset may be refinanced or prepaid prior to maturity during periods of declining or low interest rates, causing the Fund to have to reinvest the money received in securities that have lower yields. Rising or high interest rates tend to extend the duration of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, making their prices more volatile and more sensitive to changes in interest rates.

Multi-Adviser Risk. The Fund has multiple advisory firms that each manage a portion of the Fund’s net assets on a daily basis. Each adviser makes investment decisions independently from the other adviser(s). It is possible that the security selection process of one adviser will not complement or may conflict or even contradict that of the other adviser(s), including making off-setting trades that have no net effect to the Fund, but which may increase Fund expenses. As a result, the Fund's exposure to a given security, industry, sector or market capitalization could be smaller or larger than if the Fund were managed by a single adviser, which could adversely affect the Fund's performance.

Non-Diversified Fund Risk.  The Fund is non-diversified, which generally means that it will invest a greater percentage of its total assets in the securities of fewer issuers than a “diversified” fund. This increases the risk that a change in the value of any one investment held by the Fund could affect the overall value of the Fund more than it would affect that of a diversified fund holding a greater number of investments. Accordingly, the Fund's value will likely be more volatile than the value of a more diversified fund.

Preferred Stock Risk. Preferred stock is a type of stock that generally pays dividends at a specified rate and that has preference over common stock in the payment of dividends and the liquidation of assets. Preferred stock does not ordinarily carry voting rights. The price of a preferred stock is generally determined by earnings, type of products or services, projected growth rates, experience of management, liquidity, and general market conditions of the markets on which the stock trades. The most significant risks associated with investments in preferred stock include issuer risk, market risk and interest rate risk ( i.e. , the risk of losses attributable to changes in interest rates).

Prepayment and Extension Risk. Prepayment and extension risk is the risk that a bond or other security or investment might, in the case of prepayment risk, be called or otherwise converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity and, in the case of extension risk, that the investment might not be called as expected. In the case of prepayment risk, if the investment is converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity, the portfolio managers may not be able to invest the proceeds in other investments providing as high a level of income, resulting in a reduced yield to the Fund. In the case of mortgage- or asset-backed securities, as interest rates decrease or spreads narrow, the likelihood of prepayment increases. Conversely, extension risk is the risk that an unexpected rise in interest rates will extend the life of a mortgage- or asset-backed security beyond the prepayment time. If the Fund’s investments are locked in at a lower interest rate for a longer period of time, the portfolio managers may be unable to capitalize on securities with higher interest rates or wider spreads.

Quantitative Model Risk. Investments selected using quantitative methods may perform differently from the market as a whole. There can be no assurance that these methodologies will enable the Fund to achieve its objective.

Real Estate-Related Investment Risk. Investments in real estate investment trusts (REITs) and in securities of other companies (wherever organized) principally engaged in the real estate industry subject the Fund to, among other things, risks similar to those of direct investments in real estate and the real estate industry in general. These include risks related to general and local economic conditions, possible lack of availability of financing and changes in interest rates or property values. REITs are entities that either own properties or make construction or mortgage loans, and also may include operating or finance companies. The value of interests in a REIT may be affected by, among other factors, changes in the value of the underlying properties owned by the REIT, changes in the prospect for earnings and/or cash flow growth of the REIT itself, defaults by borrowers or tenants, market saturation, decreases in market rates for rents, and other economic, political, or regulatory matters affecting the real estate industry, including REITs. REITs and similar non-U.S. entities depend upon specialized management skills, may have limited financial resources, may have less trading volume in their securities, and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than the overall securities markets. REITs are also subject to the risk of failing to qualify for

Prospectus 2016

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

favorable tax treatment under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Some REITs (especially mortgage REITs) are affected by risks similar to those associated with investments in debt securities including changes in interest rates and the quality of credit extended.

Reinvestment Risk. Reinvestment risk is the risk that the Fund will not be able to reinvest income or principal at the same return it is currently earning.

Repurchase Agreements  Risk. Repurchase agreements are agreements in which the seller of a security to the Fund agrees to repurchase that security from the Fund at a mutually agreed upon price and time. Repurchase agreements carry the risk that the counterparty may not fulfill its obligations under the agreement. This could cause the Fund's income and the value of your investment in the Fund to decline.

Reverse Repurchase Agreements Risk. Reverse repurchase agreements are agreements in which a Fund sells a security to a counterparty, such as a bank or broker-dealer, in return for cash and agrees to repurchase that security at a mutually agreed upon price and time. Reverse repurchase agreements carry the risk that the market value of the security sold by the Fund may decline below the price at which the Fund must repurchase the security. Reverse repurchase agreements also may be viewed as a form of borrowing, and borrowed assets used for investment creates leverage risk. Leverage can create an interest expense that may lower the Fund's overall returns. Leverage presents the opportunity for increased net income and capital gains, but may also exaggerate the Fund’s volatility and risk of loss. There can be no guarantee that this strategy will be successful.

Rule 144A and Other Exempted Securities Risk. The Fund may invest in privately placed and other securities or instruments exempt from SEC registration (collectively “private placements”), subject to liquidity and other regulatory restrictions. In the U.S. market, private placements are typically sold only to qualified institutional buyers, or qualified purchasers, as applicable. An insufficient number of buyers interested in purchasing private placements at a particular time could affect adversely the marketability of such investments and the Fund might be unable to dispose of them promptly or at reasonable prices, subjecting the Fund to liquidity risk. The Fund may invest in private placements determined to be liquid as well as those determined to be illiquid. Even if determined to be liquid, the Fund’s holdings of private placements may increase the level of Fund illiquidity if eligible buyers are unable or unwilling to purchase them at a particular time. Issuers of Rule 144A eligible securities are required to furnish information to potential investors upon request. However, the required disclosure is much less extensive than that required of public companies and is not publicly available since the offering is not filed with the SEC. Further, issuers of Rule 144A eligible securities can require recipients of the information (such as the Fund) to agree contractually to keep the information confidential, which could also adversely affect the Fund’s ability to dispose of the security.

Sector Risk. At times, the Fund may have a significant portion of its assets invested in securities of companies conducting business in a related group of industries within an economic sector, including the consumer discretionary sector, health care sector and information technology sector. Companies in the same economic sector may be similarly affected by economic, regulatory, political or market events or conditions, which may make the Fund more vulnerable to unfavorable developments in that economic sector than funds that invest more broadly. Generally, the more broadly the Fund invests, the more it spreads risk and potentially reduces the risks of loss and volatility.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the consumer discretionary sector than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the consumer discretionary sector are subject to certain risks, including fluctuations in the performance of the overall domestic and international economy, interest rate changes, increased competition and consumer confidence. Performance of such companies may be affected by factors including reduced disposable household income, reduced consumer spending, changing demographics and consumer tastes.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the financial services sector than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the financial services sector are subject to certain risks, including the risk of regulatory change, decreased liquidity in credit markets and unstable interest rates. Such companies may have concentrated portfolios, such as a high level of loans to real estate developers, which makes them vulnerable to economic conditions that affect that industry. Performance of such companies may be affected by competitive pressures and exposure to investments or agreements that, under certain circumstances, may lead to losses (e.g., subprime loans). Companies in the financial services sector are

B-10	Prospectus 2016

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

subject to extensive governmental regulation that may limit the amount and types of loans and other financial commitments they can make, and interest rates and fees that they may charge. In addition, profitability of such companies is largely dependent upon the availability and the cost of capital.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the health care sector than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the health care sector are subject to certain risks, including restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, government approval of medical products and services, competitive pricing pressures, and the rising cost of medical products and services (especially for companies dependent upon a relatively limited number of products or services). Performance of such companies may be affected by factors including, government regulation, obtaining and protecting patents (or the failure to do so), product liability and other similar litigation as well as product obsolescence.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the industrials sector than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the industrials sector are subject to certain risks, including changes in supply and demand for their specific product or service and for industrial sector products in general, including decline in demand for such products due to rapid technological developments and frequent new product introduction. Performance of such companies may be affected by factors including government regulation, world events and economic conditions and risks for environmental damage and product liability claims.

The Fund may be more susceptible to the particular risks that may affect companies in the information technology sector, as well as other technology-related sectors (collectively, the technology sectors) than if it were invested in a wider variety of companies in unrelated sectors. Companies in the technology sectors are subject to certain risks, including the risk that new services, equipment or technologies will not be accepted by consumers and businesses or will become rapidly obsolete. Performance of such companies may be affected by factors including obtaining and protecting patents (or the failure to do so) and significant competitive pressures, including aggressive pricing of their products or services, new market entrants, competition for market share and short product cycles due to an accelerated rate of technological developments. Such competitive pressures may lead to limited earnings and/or falling profit margins. As a result, the value of their securities may fall or fail to rise. In addition, many technology sector companies have limited operating histories and prices of these companies’ securities historically have been more volatile than other securities, especially over the short term.

Short Positions Risk. The Fund may establish short positions which introduce more risk to the Fund than long positions (where the Fund owns the instrument or other asset) because the maximum sustainable loss on an instrument or other asset purchased (held long) is limited to the amount paid for the instrument or other asset plus the transaction costs, whereas there is no maximum price of the shorted instrument or other asset when purchased in the open market. Therefore, in theory, short positions have unlimited risk. The Fund’s use of short positions in effect “leverages” the Fund. Leverage potentially exposes the Fund to greater risks of loss due to unanticipated market movements, which may magnify losses and increase the volatility of returns. To the extent the Fund takes a short position in a derivative instrument or other asset, this involves the risk of a potentially unlimited increase in the value of the underlying instrument or other asset.

Small- and Mid-Cap Company Securities Risk. Investments in small- and mid-capitalization companies (small- and mid-cap companies) often involve greater risks than investments in larger, more established companies (larger companies) because small- and mid-cap companies tend to have less predictable earnings and may lack the management experience, financial resources, product diversification and competitive strengths of larger companies. Securities of small- and mid-cap companies may be less liquid and more volatile than the securities of larger companies.

Small Company Securities Risk. Investments in small-capitalization companies (small-cap companies) often involve greater risks than investments in larger, more established companies (larger companies) because small-cap companies tend to have less predictable earnings and may lack the management experience, financial resources, product diversification and competitive strengths of larger companies, and securities of small-cap companies may be less liquid and more volatile than the securities of larger companies.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

Appendix B (continued)

by being able to buy newly issued shares. Rights allow shareholders to buy the shares below the current market price. Holders can exercise the rights and purchase the stock, sell the rights or let them expire. Their value, and their risk of investment loss, is a function of that of the underlying security.

Prospectus 2016

B-13

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Growth Fund

P.O. Box 8081
Boston, MA 02266-8081

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

  

The Fund may offer Class 2 shares to separate accounts funding certain variable annuity contracts and variable life insurance policies (Contracts) issued by affiliated life insurance companies and other qualified institutional investors authorized by Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. (the Distributor), as set forth herein. There are no exchange ticker symbols associated with shares of the Fund.

As with all mutual funds, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

Columbia Management makes adjustments to Fund’s investment exposure based on historical volatility, the actual market volatility experienced in the recent past. Volatility refers to the ups and down in the market and can run in cycles of several months or even years.

Strategic Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 40% to 90% of its net assets in Underlying Funds managed by Columbia Management, including those for which Columbia Management provides day-to-day portfolio management and those for which day-to-day portfolio management is provided by investment subadvisers hired by Columbia Management. Of the assets allocated to the Underlying Funds, the Fund may invest up to 100% of those assets in Equity Underlying Funds or Fixed-Income Underlying Funds (or some combination of the two).

The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds across various sectors and industries within the U.S. equity and fixed-income/debt asset classes and markets, including Underlying Funds that invest in securities of different investment strategies and styles (e.g., alternatives, growth, value and core/blend) and market capitalizations (e.g., large, mid and small cap), as well as those that invest in real estate securities and fixed-income or debt instruments, including investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS and mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures.

Underlying Fund selections and allocations are reviewed periodically by Columbia Management. Changes to Underlying Fund selections and allocations may be driven by various factors, including the risks and potential benefits of investing in a particular Underlying Fund as a means of achieving total return. During times of relatively high equity market volatility as determined by Columbia Management, Columbia Management may reduce or eliminate entirely the Fund’s allocation to Equity Underlying Funds and may alter Underlying Fund selections and allocations with more frequency in seeking to achieve desired levels of EEME.

Columbia Management also considers the independent analysis of an independent investment consultant with respect to the performance of the Underlying Funds, the types of investment categories represented by the Underlying Funds, and the consideration of additional asset classes or segments. Columbia Management retains full discretion over the Fund’s investment activities.

Tactical Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 10% to 60% of its net assets in the Tactical Allocation strategy, which includes derivative instruments (such as forward contracts (including forward foreign currency contracts), futures (including currency, equity, index and interest rate futures), options and swaps (including credit default swaps and credit default swap indexes), as well as direct investments in ETFs and fixed-income or debt instruments (such as investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS, mortgage- and asset-backed securities, and mortgage dollar rolls, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures). The Fund may invest well below the range for Tactical Assets during a reasonable start-up period from the commencement of Fund investment operations (currently expected to be up to 3 months) until assets accumulate to a level sufficient for the efficient implementation of the tactical allocation strategy.

Through investments in Tactical Assets, Columbia Management seeks to adjust the Fund’s exposures to equity and fixed-income/ debt markets and to segments within those markets in response to its assessment of the relative risks and potential returns of these markets and segments. As with the Underlying Funds, the Fund may, through its tactical allocation strategy, reduce (or, in certain extreme cases, eliminate entirely) its EEME and, correspondingly, increase the Fund’s effective fixed-income/debt market exposure. Conversely, the Fund may also increase its EEME by employing the Tactical Assets to adjust upward the volatility level in the Fund’s portfolio closer to desired levels.

The Fund also seeks to reduce equity market volatility in the portfolio by purchasing or writing call and put options on liquid equity indices to protect against periods of decline in equity markets.

The Investment Manager believes that the use of the Tactical Assets, the derivative instruments and ETFs in particular, may provide more efficient and economical exposure to asset classes and segments than investments in or withdrawals from the Underlying Funds. As a result, Columbia Management expects to use derivatives and ETFs as primary tools for adjusting the Fund’s EEME.

Prospectus 2016

5

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

The Fund may hold a significant amount of cash, money market instruments or other high quality, short-term investments, including shares of affiliated or unaffiliated money market funds which may have a floating net asset value, to cover obligations with respect to, or that may result from, the Fund’s investments in derivatives. The Fund’s use of certain derivatives may create significant leveraged exposure to the equity and debt markets. Leverage occurs when investments in derivatives create greater economic exposure than the amount invested. This means that the Fund could lose more than originally invested in the derivative.

The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade securities in the Fund’s portfolio to carry out its principal strategies.

Underlying Funds

Appendix A includes the list of the Underlying Funds available to the Fund, as well as a description of the Underlying Funds’ investment objectives and principal investment strategies. A description of the principal risks associated with the Underlying Funds is included in Appendix B. Columbia Management may add new or remove existing Underlying Funds at any time without the approval of shareholders.

Principal Risks

An investment in the Fund involves risks, including specific risks relating to the investment in the Fund based on its investment process and its "fund-of-funds" structure, as well as specific risks related to the underlying funds in which it invests, including among others, those described below. More information about underlying funds, including their principal risks, is available in their prospectuses, which are incorporated by reference into this prospectus. This prospectus is not an offer for any of the underlying funds. There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective and you may lose money . The value of the Fund’s holdings may decline, and the Fund’s net asset value (NAV) and share price may go down. An investment in the Fund is not a bank deposit and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

Allocation Risk. Because the Fund uses an asset allocation strategy in pursuit of its investment objective, there is a risk that the Fund's allocation among asset classes, investments, managers, strategies and/or investment styles will cause the Fund's shares to lose value or cause the Fund to underperform other funds with similar investment objectives and/or strategies, or that the investments themselves will not produce the returns expected.

Alternative Strategies Investment Risk. An investment in alternative investment strategies (Alternative Strategies), whether through direct investment or through one or more underlying funds that use Alternative Strategies, involves risks, which may be significant. Alternative Strategies may include strategies, instruments or other assets, such as derivatives, that seek investment returns uncorrelated with the broad equity and fixed income/debt markets, as well as those providing exposure to other markets, including but not limited to absolute (positive) return strategies. Alternative Strategies may fail to achieve their desired performance, market or other exposure, or their returns (or lack thereof) may be more correlated with the broad equity and/or fixed income/debt markets than was anticipated, and the Fund may lose money. Some Alternative Strategies may be considered speculative.

Counterparty Risk. Counterparty risk is the risk that a counterparty to a financial instrument held by the Fund or by a special purpose or structured vehicle invested in by the Fund may become insolvent or otherwise fail to perform its obligations. As a result, the Fund may obtain no or limited recovery of its investment, and any recovery may be significantly delayed.

Credit Risk. Credit risk is the risk that the value of loans or other debt instruments may decline if the borrower or the issuer thereof defaults or otherwise becomes unable or unwilling, or is perceived to be unable or unwilling, to honor its financial obligations, such as making payments to the Fund when due. Rating agencies assign credit ratings to certain loans and fixed-income securities to indicate their credit risk. Lower quality or unrated loans or securities held by the Fund may present increased credit risk as compared to higher-rated loans or securities. Non-investment grade loans or fixed-income instruments (commonly called “high-yield” or “junk”) may be subject to greater price fluctuations and are more likely to experience a default than investment grade loans or fixed-income instruments and therefore may expose the Fund to increased credit risk. If the Fund purchases unrated loans or securities, or if the ratings of loans or securities held by the Fund are lowered after purchase, the Fund will depend on analysis of credit

6	Prospectus 2016

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

risk more heavily than usual. If the issuer of a loan declares bankruptcy or is declared bankrupt, there may be a delay before the Fund can act on the collateral securing the loan, which may adversely affect the Fund. Further, there is a risk that a court could take action with respect to a loan that is adverse to the holders of the loan. Such actions may include invalidating the loan, the lien on the collateral, the priority status of the loan, or ordering the refund of interest previously paid by the borrower. Any such actions by a court could adversely affect the Fund’s performance. A default or expected default of a loan could also make it difficult for the Fund to sell the loan at a price approximating the value previously placed on it. In order to enforce its rights in the event of a default, bankruptcy or similar situation, the Fund may be required to retain legal or similar counsel. This may increase the Fund’s operating expenses and adversely affect its NAV. Loans that have a lower priority for repayment in an issuer’s capital structure may involve a higher degree of overall risk than more senior loans of the same borrower.

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives may involve significant risks. Derivatives are financial instruments with a value in relation to, or derived from, the value of an underlying asset(s) or other reference, such as an index, rate or other economic indicator (each an underlying reference). Derivatives may include those that are privately placed or otherwise exempt from SEC registration, including certain Rule 144A eligible securities. Derivatives could result in Fund losses if the underlying reference does not perform as anticipated. Use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that can involve investment techniques, risks, and tax planning different from those associated with more traditional investment instruments. A Fund’s derivatives strategy may not be successful and use of certain derivatives could result in substantial, potentially unlimited, losses to the Fund regardless of the Fund’s actual investment. A relatively small movement in the price, rate or other economic indicator associated with the underlying reference may result in substantial loss for the Fund. Derivatives may be more volatile than other types of investments. The value of derivatives may be influenced by a variety of factors, including national and international political and economic developments. Potential changes to the regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the market for derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Derivatives can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Forward Contracts Risk. A forward contract is an over-the-counter derivative transaction between two parties to buy or sell a specified amount of an underlying reference at a specified price (or rate) on a specified date in the future. Forward contracts are negotiated on an individual basis and are not standardized or traded on exchanges. The market for forward contracts is substantially unregulated and can experience lengthy periods of illiquidity, unusually high trading volume and other negative impacts, such as political intervention, which may result in volatility or disruptions in such markets. A relatively small price movement in a forward contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. Forward contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Futures Contracts Risk. A futures contract is an exchange-traded derivative transaction between two parties in which a buyer (holding the “long” position) agrees to pay a fixed price (or rate) at a specified future date for delivery of an underlying reference from a seller (holding the “short” position). The seller hopes that the market price on the delivery date is less than the agreed upon price, while the buyer hopes for the contrary. Certain futures contract markets are highly volatile, and futures contracts may be illiquid. Futures exchanges may limit fluctuations in futures contract prices by imposing a maximum permissible daily price movement. The Fund may be disadvantaged if it is prohibited from executing a trade outside the daily permissible price movement. At or prior to maturity of a futures contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in futures contract prices. The liquidity of the futures markets depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the futures market could be reduced. Because of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, it is possible that the Fund may employ a high degree of leverage in the portfolio. As a result, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. For certain types of futures contracts, losses are potentially unlimited. Futures markets

Prospectus 2016

7

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s net asset value. Futures contracts executed (if any) on foreign exchanges may not provide the same protection as U.S. exchanges. Futures contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Options Risk. Options are derivatives that give the purchaser the option to buy (call) or sell (put) an underlying reference from or to a counterparty at a specified price (the strike price) on or before an expiration date. By investing in options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that it may be required to buy or sell the underlying reference at a disadvantageous price on or before the expiration date. Options may involve economic leverage, which could result in greater volatility in price movement. The Fund's losses could be significant, and are potentially unlimited for certain types of options. Options may be traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market. At or prior to maturity of an options contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in options prices. Options can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Swaps Risk. In a typical swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the return earned on a specified underlying reference for a fixed return or the return from another underlying reference during a specified period of time. Swaps may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Swaps could result in Fund losses if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Swaps create significant investment leverage such that a relatively small price movement in a swap may result in immediate and substantial losses to the Fund. The Fund may only close out a swap with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. Certain swaps, such as short swap transactions and total return swaps, have the potential for unlimited losses, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Swaps can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, inflation risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) Risk. ETFs are subject to, among other risks, tracking risk and passive and, in some cases, active investment risk. In addition, shareholders bear both their proportionate share of the Fund’s expenses and similar expenses incurred through ownership of the ETF.

Forward Commitments on Mortgage-Backed Securities (including Dollar Rolls) Risk. When purchasing mortgage-backed securities in the “to be announced” (TBA) market (MBS TBAs), the seller agrees to deliver mortgage-backed securities for an agreed upon price on an agreed upon date, but may make no guarantee as to the specific securities to be delivered. In lieu of taking delivery of mortgage-backed securities, the Fund could enter into dollar rolls, which are transactions in which the Fund sells securities to a counterparty and simultaneously agrees to purchase those or similar securities in the future at a predetermined price. Dollar rolls involve the risk that the market value of the securities the Fund is obligated to repurchase may decline below the repurchase price, or that the counterparty may default on its obligations. These transactions may also increase the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate. If the Fund reinvests the proceeds of the security sold, the Fund will also be subject to the risk that the investments purchased with such proceeds will decline in value (a form of leverage risk). MBS TBAs and dollar rolls are subject to the risk that the counterparty to the instrument may not perform or be unable to perform in accordance with the terms of the instrument.

Frequent Trading Risk.  The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade investments in the Fund's portfolio to carry out its investment strategies. Frequent trading can mean higher brokerage and other transaction costs, which could reduce the Fund's return. The trading costs associated with portfolio turnover may adversely affect the Fund’s performance.

Fund-of-Funds Risk. Determinations regarding asset classes or underlying funds and the Fund’s allocations thereto may not successfully achieve the Fund’s investment objective, in whole or in part. The ability of the Fund to realize its investment objective will depend, in large part, on the extent to which the underlying funds realize their investment

8	Prospectus 2016

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

objective. There is no guarantee that the underlying funds will achieve their respective investment objectives. The Fund is exposed to the same risks as the underlying funds in direct proportion to the allocation of its assets among the underlying funds. Therefore, to the extent that the Fund invests significantly in a particular underlying fund, the Fund’s performance would be significantly impacted by the performance of such underlying fund. Generally, by investing in a combination of underlying funds, the Fund has exposure to the risks of many areas of the market. By concentrating its investments in relatively few underlying funds, the Fund may have more concentrated market exposures, subjecting the Fund to greater risk of loss should those markets decline or fail to rise. The performance of underlying funds could be adversely affected if other entities that invest in the same underlying funds make relatively large investments or redemptions in such underlying funds. The Fund, and its shareholders, indirectly bear a portion of the expenses of any funds in which the Fund invests. Because the expenses and costs of each underlying fund are shared by its investors, redemptions by other investors in an underlying fund could result in decreased economies of scale and increased operating expenses for such fund. The Investment Manager may have potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds over unaffiliated funds for investment by the Fund, and may also face potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds, because the fees the Investment Manager receives from some underlying funds may be higher than the fees paid by other underlying funds. Also, to the extent that the Fund is constrained/restricted from investing (or investing further) in a particular underlying fund for one or more reasons (e.g., underlying fund capacity constraints or regulatory restrictions) or if the Fund chooses to sell its investment in an underlying fund because of poor investment performance or for other reasons, the Fund may have to invest in another underlying fund(s), including less desirable funds – from a strategy or investment performance standpoint – which could have a negative impact on Fund performance. In addition, Fund performance could be negatively impacted if an appropriate alternate underlying fund(s) does not present itself in a timely manner or at all.

Growth Securities Risk. Growth securities typically trade at a higher multiple of earnings than other types of equity securities. Accordingly, the market values of growth securities may never reach their expected market value and may decline in price. In addition, growth securities, at times, may not perform as well as value securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

High-Yield Investments Risk. Securities and other debt instruments held by the Fund that are rated below investment grade (commonly called “high-yield” or “junk” bonds) and unrated debt instruments of comparable quality expose the Fund to a greater risk of loss of principal and income than a fund that invests solely or primarily in investment grade debt instruments. In addition, these investments have greater price fluctuations, are less liquid and are more likely to experience a default than higher-rated debt instruments. High-yield debt instruments are considered to be predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal.

Inflation-Protected Securities Risk. Inflation-protected debt securities tend to react to changes in real interest rates (i.e., nominal interest rates minus the expected impact of inflation). In general, the price of such securities falls when real interest rates rise, and rises when real interest rates fall. Interest payments on these securities will vary and may be more volatile than interest paid on ordinary bonds. In periods of deflation, the Fund may have no income at all from such investments.

Interest Rate Risk. Interest rate risk is the risk of losses attributable to changes in interest rates. In general, if prevailing interest rates (which are at historic lows) rise, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to fall, and if interest rates fall, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to rise. Changes in the value of a fixed-income instrument usually will not affect the amount of income the Fund receives from it but will generally affect the value of the Fund's shares. In general, the longer the maturity or duration of a fixed-income instrument, the greater its sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Interest rate declines also may increase prepayments of debt obligations, which, in turn, would increase prepayment risk. Similarly, a period of rising interest rates may negatively impact the Fund’s performance. Actions by governments and central banking authorities can result in increases in interest rates. Such actions may negatively affect the value of fixed-income instruments held by the Fund, resulting in a negative impact on the Fund's performance and NAV. Debt instruments with floating coupon rates are typically less sensitive to interest rate changes, but these debt instruments may decline in value if their coupon rates do not rise as much as, or keep pace with, yields on such types of debt instruments. Because rates on certain floating rate loans and other debt instruments reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause fluctuations in the Fund’s NAV. Any interest

Prospectus 2016

9

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

rate increases could cause the value of the Fund’s investments in fixed-income instruments to decrease. Rising interest rates may prompt redemptions from the Fund, which may force the Fund to sell investments at a time when it is not advantageous to do so, which could result in losses.

Issuer Risk. An issuer in which the Fund invests or to which it has exposure may perform poorly, and the value of its loans or securities may therefore decline, which would negatively affect the Fund’s performance. Poor performance may be caused by poor management decisions, competitive pressures, breakthroughs in technology, reliance on suppliers, labor problems or shortages, corporate restructurings, fraudulent disclosures, natural disasters or other events, conditions or factors.

Leverage Risk. Leverage occurs when the Fund increases its assets available for investment using borrowings, derivatives, or similar instruments or techniques. Use of leverage can produce volatility and may exaggerate changes in the net asset value of Fund shares and in the return on the Fund’s portfolio, which may increase the risk that the Fund will lose more than it has invested. If the Fund uses leverage, through the purchase of particular instruments such as derivatives, the Fund may experience capital losses that exceed the net assets of the Fund. Leverage can create an interest expense that may lower the Fund's overall returns. Leverage presents the opportunity for increased net income and capital gains, but may also exaggerate the Fund’s volatility and risk of loss. There can be no guarantee that a leveraging strategy will be successful.

Liquidity Risk. Liquidity risk is the risk associated with any event, circumstance, or characteristic of an investment or market that negatively impacts the Fund’s ability to sell, or realize the proceeds from the sale of, an investment at a desirable time or price. Liquidity risk may arise because of, for example, a lack of marketability of the investment, which means that when seeking to sell its portfolio investments, the Fund could find that selling is more difficult than anticipated, especially during times of high market volatility. Decreases in the number of financial institutions, including banks and broker-dealers, willing to make markets (match up sellers and buyers) in the Fund’s investments or decreases in their capacity or willingness to trade such investments may increase the Fund’s exposure to this risk. The debt market has experienced considerable growth, and financial institutions making markets in instruments purchased and sold by the Fund (e.g., bond dealers) have been subject to increased regulation. The impact of that growth and regulation on the ability and willingness of financial institutions to engage in trading or “making a market” in such instruments remains unsettled. Certain types of investments, such as lower-rated securities or those that are purchased and sold in over-the-counter markets, may be especially subject to liquidity risk. Securities or other assets in which the Fund invests may be traded in the over-the-counter market rather than on an exchange and therefore may be more difficult to purchase or sell at a fair price, which may have a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. Market participants attempting to sell the same or a similar instrument at the same time as the Fund could exacerbate the Fund’s exposure to liquidity risk. The Fund may have to accept a lower selling price for the holding, sell other, liquid or more liquid, investments that it might otherwise prefer to hold (thereby increasing the proportion of the Fund’s investments in less liquid or illiquid securities), or forego another more appealing investment opportunity. Certain investments that were liquid when purchased by the Fund may later become illiquid, particularly in times of overall economic distress. Changing regulatory, market or other conditions or environments (for example, the interest rate or credit environments) may also adversely affect the liquidity and the price of the Fund's investments. Judgment plays a larger role in valuing illiquid or less liquid investments as compared to valuing liquid or more liquid investments. Price volatility may be higher for illiquid or less liquid investments as a result of, for example, the relatively less frequent pricing of such securities (as compared to liquid or more liquid investments). Generally, the less liquid the market at the time the Fund sells a portfolio investment, the greater the risk of loss or decline of value to the Fund. Overall market liquidity and other factors can lead to an increase in Fund redemptions, which may negatively impact Fund performance and NAV, including, for example, if the Fund is forced to sell investments in a down market.

Market Risk. Market risk refers to the possibility that the market values of securities or other investments that the Fund holds will fall, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, or fail to rise. An investment in the Fund could lose money over short or long periods.

Mortgage- and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk.  The value of any mortgage-backed and other asset-backed securities held by the Fund may be affected by, among other things, changes or perceived changes in: interest rates; factors concerning the interests in and structure of the issuer or the originator of the mortgages or other assets; the

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Summary of the Fund (continued)

creditworthiness of the entities that provide any supporting letters of credit, surety bonds or other credit enhancements; or the market's assessment of the quality of underlying assets. Payment of principal and interest on some mortgage-backed securities (but not the market value of the securities themselves) may be guaranteed by the full faith and credit of a particular U.S. Government agency, authority, enterprise or instrumentality, and some, but not all, are also insured or guaranteed by the U.S. Government. Mortgage-backed securities issued by non-governmental issuers (such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers) may entail greater risk than obligations guaranteed by the U.S. Government. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk, which is the possibility that the underlying mortgage or other asset may be refinanced or prepaid prior to maturity during periods of declining or low interest rates, causing the Fund to have to reinvest the money received in securities that have lower yields. Rising or high interest rates tend to extend the duration of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, making their prices more volatile and more sensitive to changes in interest rates.

Prepayment and Extension Risk. Prepayment and extension risk is the risk that a bond or other security or investment might, in the case of prepayment risk, be called or otherwise converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity and, in the case of extension risk, that the investment might not be called as expected. In the case of prepayment risk, if the investment is converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity, the portfolio managers may not be able to invest the proceeds in other investments providing as high a level of income, resulting in a reduced yield to the Fund. In the case of mortgage- or asset-backed securities, as interest rates decrease or spreads narrow, the likelihood of prepayment increases. Conversely, extension risk is the risk that an unexpected rise in interest rates will extend the life of a mortgage- or asset-backed security beyond the prepayment time. If the Fund’s investments are locked in at a lower interest rate for a longer period of time, the portfolio managers may be unable to capitalize on securities with higher interest rates or wider spreads.

U.S. Government Obligations Risk. While U.S. Treasury obligations are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government, such securities are nonetheless subject to credit risk (i.e., the risk that the U.S. Government may be, or be perceived to be, unable or unwilling to honor its financial obligations, such as making payments). Securities issued or guaranteed by federal agencies or authorities and U.S. Government-sponsored instrumentalities or enterprises may or may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government.

Value Securities Risk. Value securities are securities of companies that may have experienced, for example, adverse business, industry or other developments or may be subject to special risks that have caused the securities to be out of favor and, in turn, potentially undervalued. The market value of a portfolio security may not meet the portfolio manager's perceived value assessment of that security, or may decline in price, even though the portfolio manager(s) believe(s) the securities are already undervalued. There is also a risk that it may take longer than expected for the value of these investments to rise to the portfolio manager’s perceived value. In addition, value securities, at times, may not perform as well as growth securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

Volatility and Volatility Management Risk. Although the Fund seeks to manage equity market volatility within its portfolio, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful. Despite the Fund’s name, the Fund’s portfolio may experience more than its targeted level of volatility, subjecting the Fund to market risk. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Funds’ portfolios may be subject to price volatility, and the Fund’s share price may not be any less volatile than the market as a whole and could be more volatile. The Investment Manager’s determinations/expectations regarding volatility may be incorrect or inaccurate, which may also adversely affect the Fund’s actual volatility within the portfolio. The Fund also may underperform other funds with similar investment objectives and/or strategies. Additionally, because the Fund seeks to target a particular level of effective equity market exposure (EEME), as stated above under “Principal Investment Strategies”, the Fund may provide protection in volatile markets by potentially curbing or mitigating the risk of loss in declining equity markets, but the Fund’s opportunity to achieve returns when the equity markets are rising may also be curbed. In general, the greater the protection against downside loss (as reflected in a smaller target level of EEME), the lesser the Fund’s opportunity to participate in the returns generated by rising equity markets; however, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in protecting the value of its portfolio in down markets. Additionally, to the extent that the Fund maximizes its EEME in low volatility markets, if the equity markets should decline in such low volatility markets, the Fund may

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Summary of the Fund (continued)

experience greater loss than if it had not maximized its EEME. To the extent that the Fund underestimates or misinterprets volatility signals, the Fund’s performance could be negatively affected. Volatility targets and volatility risk are different for all three funds in the U.S. Flexible series, with the Conservative Growth Fund having the lowest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk) and the U.S. Flexible Growth Fund having the highest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk).

Performance Information

The Fund is new as of the date of this prospectus and therefore performance information is not available.

When available, the Fund intends to compare its performance to the performance of a Blended Index, consisting of 50% S&P 500 Index and 50% Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index, and to the performance of the S&P 500 Index and the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index.

When available, updated performance information can be obtained by calling toll-free 800.345.6611 or visiting columbiathreadneedle.com/us.

Fund Management

Investment Manager: Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC

    

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund is available for purchase through Contracts offered by the separate accounts of participating insurance companies or by other eligible investors authorized by Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. (the Distributor). Shares of the Fund may not be purchased or sold by individual owners of Contracts. If you are a Contract holder, please refer to your Contract prospectus for information about minimum investment requirements and how to purchase and redeem shares of the Fund.

Tax Information

The Fund expects to be treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and does not expect to make regular distributions (other than in redemption of Fund shares) to shareholders which are generally the participating insurance companies investing in the Fund through separate accounts or certain other eligible investors authorized by the Distributor. You should consult with the participating insurance company that issued your Contract, plan sponsor or other eligible investor through which your investment in the Fund is made regarding the U.S. federal income taxation of your investment.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you make allocations to the Fund, the Fund, its Distributor or other related companies may pay participating insurance companies or other financial intermediaries for the allocation (sale) of Fund shares and related services in connection with such allocations to the Fund. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the participating insurance company, other financial intermediary or your salesperson to recommend an allocation to the Fund over another fund or other investment option. Ask your financial advisor or salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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More Information About the Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

Investment Process

Columbia Management uses the following two-part investment process that, together, pursues total return while seeking to manage the Fund’s exposure to equity market volatility:

■	Selects and determines allocations to the Underlying Funds (referred to as the Strategic Allocation); and

■	Invests in and determines allocations to the Tactical Assets to modify desired asset class exposures (referred to as the Tactical Allocation).

Columbia Management makes adjustments to Fund’s investment exposure based on historical volatility, the actual market volatility experienced in the recent past. Volatility refers to the ups and down in the market and can run in cycles of several months or even years.

Strategic Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 40% to 90% of its net assets in Underlying Funds managed by Columbia Management, including those for which Columbia Management provides day-to-day portfolio management and those for which day-to-day portfolio management is provided by investment subadvisers hired by Columbia Management. Of the assets allocated to the Underlying Funds, the Fund may invest up to 100% of those assets in Equity Underlying Funds or Fixed-Income Underlying Funds (or some combination of the two).

The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds across various sectors and industries within the U.S. equity and fixed-income/debt asset classes and markets, including Underlying Funds that invest in securities of different investment strategies and styles (e.g., alternatives, growth, value and core/blend) and market capitalizations (e.g., large, mid and small cap), as well as those that invest in real estate securities and fixed-income or debt instruments, including investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS and mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures.

Underlying Fund selections and allocations are reviewed periodically by Columbia Management. Changes to Underlying Fund selections and allocations may be driven by various factors, including the risks and potential benefits of investing in a particular Underlying Fund as a means of achieving total return. During times of relatively high equity market volatility as determined by Columbia Management, Columbia Management may reduce or eliminate entirely the Fund’s allocation to Equity Underlying Funds and may alter Underlying Fund selections and allocations with more frequency in seeking to achieve desired levels of EEME.

Columbia Management also considers the independent analysis of an independent investment consultant with respect to the performance of the Underlying Funds, the types of investment categories represented by the Underlying Funds, and the consideration of additional asset classes or segments. Columbia Management retains full discretion over the Fund’s investment activities.

Tactical Allocation

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests 10% to 60% of its net assets in the Tactical Allocation strategy, which includes derivative instruments (such as forward contracts (including forward foreign currency contracts), futures (including currency, equity, index and interest rate futures), options and swaps (including credit default swaps and credit default swap indexes), as well as direct investments in ETFs and fixed-income or debt instruments (such as investment grade corporate bonds, high yield (i.e., junk) instruments, U.S. Government bonds and notes, TIPS, mortgage- and asset-backed securities, and mortgage dollar rolls, each with varying interest rates, terms, durations and credit exposures). The Fund may invest well below the range for Tactical Assets during a reasonable start-up period from the commencement of Fund investment operations (currently expected to be up to 3 months) until assets accumulate to a level sufficient for the efficient implementation of the tactical allocation strategy.

Through investments in Tactical Assets, Columbia Management seeks to adjust the Fund’s exposures to equity and fixed-income/ debt markets and to segments within those markets in response to its assessment of the relative risks and potential returns of these markets and segments. As with the Underlying Funds, the Fund may, through its tactical allocation strategy, reduce (or, in certain extreme cases, eliminate entirely) its EEME and, correspondingly, increase the Fund’s effective fixed-income/debt market exposure. Conversely, the Fund may also increase its EEME by employing the Tactical Assets to adjust upward the volatility level in the Fund’s portfolio closer to desired levels.

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The Fund also seeks to reduce equity market volatility in the portfolio by purchasing or writing call and put options on liquid equity indices to protect against periods of decline in equity markets.

The Investment Manager believes that the use of the Tactical Assets, the derivative instruments and ETFs in particular, may provide more efficient and economical exposure to asset classes and segments than investments in or withdrawals from the Underlying Funds. As a result, Columbia Management expects to use derivatives and ETFs as primary tools for adjusting the Fund’s EEME.

The Fund may hold a significant amount of cash, money market instruments or other high quality, short-term investments, including shares of affiliated or unaffiliated money market funds which may have a floating net asset value, to cover obligations with respect to, or that may result from, the Fund’s investments in derivatives. The Fund’s use of certain derivatives may create significant leveraged exposure to the equity and debt markets. Leverage occurs when investments in derivatives create greater economic exposure than the amount invested. This means that the Fund could lose more than originally invested in the derivative.

The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade securities in the Fund’s portfolio to carry out its principal strategies.

Underlying Funds

Appendix A includes the list of the Underlying Funds available to the Fund, as well as a description of the Underlying Funds’ investment objectives and principal investment strategies. A description of the principal risks associated with the Underlying Funds is included in Appendix B. Columbia Management may add new or remove existing Underlying Funds at any time without the approval of shareholders.

Below are the Underlying Funds available to the Fund for investment within each asset class category. The Investment Manager may add new Underlying Funds for investment or change Underlying Funds without the approval of shareholders. Certain Underlying Funds, due to their characteristics, may fit into more than one category, and may be used by the Investment Manager to provide exposure to more than one of these categories. A description of the Underlying Funds’ investment objectives and strategies is included in Appendix A. A description of the principal risks associated with the Underlying Funds is included in Appendix B. The prospectuses and Statements of Additional Information for the Underlying Funds include more detailed information about these Underlying Funds and are available free of charge by calling 800.345.6611.Columbia Variable Portfolio – Contrarian Core Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Disciplined Core Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Dividend Opportunity Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – High Yield Bond Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Income Opportunities Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Intermediate Bond Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Large Cap Growth Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Large Cap Index Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Long Government/Credit Bond Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Limited Duration Credit Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Mid Cap Growth Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Mid Cap Value Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Select Large Cap Growth Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Select Large-Cap Value Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Select Smaller-Cap Value Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – Strategic Income Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Equities Fund, Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Government Mortgage Fund, Variable Portfolio – American Century Diversified Bond Fund, Variable Portfolio – CenterSquare Real Estate Fund, Variable Portfolio – Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Fund, Variable Portfolio – J.P. Morgan Core Bond Fund, Variable Portfolio – Jennison Mid Cap Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – Loomis Sayles Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – MFS ^® Blended Research ^® Core Equity Fund, Variable Portfolio – MFS ^® Value Fund, Variable Portfolio – Morgan Stanley Advantage Fund, Variable Portfolio – NFJ Dividend Value Fund*,Variable Portfolio – Nuveen Winslow Large Cap Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – Partners Small Cap Growth Fund, Variable Portfolio – Partners Small Cap Value Fund, Variable Portfolio – TCW Core Plus Bond Fund, Variable Portfolio – Victory Sycamore Established Value Fund and Variable Portfolio – Wells Fargo Short Duration Government Fund

*Effective November 14, 2016, Variable Portfolio – T. Rowe Price Large Cap Value Fund.

The Fund’s investment policy with respect to 80% of its net assets may be changed by the Fund’s Board of Trustees without shareholder approval as long as shareholders are given 60 days’ advance written notice of the change. Additionally, shareholders will be given 60 days’ notice of any change to the Fund’s investment objective made to comply with the SEC rule governing investment company names.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives may involve significant risks. Derivatives are financial instruments, traded on an exchange or in the over-the-counter (OTC) markets, with a value in relation to, or derived from, the value of an underlying asset(s) (such as a security, commodity or currency) or other reference, such as an index, rate or other economic indicator (each an underlying reference). Derivatives may include those that are privately placed or otherwise exempt from SEC registration, including certain Rule 144A eligible securities. Derivatives could result in Fund losses if the underlying references do not perform as anticipated. Use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that can involve investment techniques, risks, and tax planning different from those associated with more traditional investment instruments. A Fund’s derivatives strategy may not be successful and use of certain derivatives could result in substantial, potentially unlimited, losses to the Fund regardless of the Fund’s actual investment. A relatively small movement in the price, rate or other economic indicator associated with the underlying reference may result in substantial loss for the Fund. Derivatives may be more volatile than other types of investments. Derivatives can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, including the risk of an adverse credit event associated with the underlying reference (credit risk), the risk of adverse movement in the value, price or rate of the underlying reference (market risk), the risk of adverse movement in the value of underlying currencies (foreign currency risk) and the risk of adverse movement in underlying interest rates (interest rate risk). Derivatives may expose the Fund to additional risks, including the risk of loss due to a derivative position that is imperfectly correlated with the underlying reference it is intended to hedge or replicate (correlation risk), the risk that a counterparty will fail to perform as agreed (counterparty risk), the risk that a hedging strategy may fail to mitigate losses, and may offset gains (hedging risk), the risk that losses may be greater than the amount invested (leverage risk), the risk that the Fund may be unable to sell an investment at an advantageous time or price (liquidity risk), the risk that the investment may be difficult to value (pricing risk), and the risk that the price or value of the investment fluctuates significantly over short periods of time (volatility risk). The value of derivatives may be influenced by a variety of factors, including national and international political and economic developments. Potential changes to the regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the market for derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives.

Derivatives Risk – Forward Contracts Risk. A forward contract is an over-the-counter derivative transaction between two parties to buy or sell a specified amount of an underlying reference at a specified price (or rate) on a specified date in the future. Forward contracts are negotiated on an individual basis and are not standardized or traded on exchanges. The market for forward contracts is substantially unregulated (there is no limit on daily price movements and speculative position limits are not applicable). The principals who deal in certain forward contract markets are not required to continue to make markets in the underlying references in which they trade and these markets can experience periods of illiquidity, sometimes of significant duration. There have been periods during which certain participants in forward contract markets have refused to quote prices for certain underlying references or have quoted prices with an unusually wide spread between the price at which they were prepared to buy and that at which they were prepared to sell. At or prior to maturity of a forward contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in forward contract prices. The liquidity of the markets for forward contracts depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the market for forwards could be reduced. A relatively small price movement in a forward contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. Forward contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

■

A forward foreign currency contract is a derivative (forward contract) in which the underlying reference is a country's or region’s currency. The Fund may agree to buy or sell a country's or region’s currency at a specific price on a specific date in the future. These instruments may fall in value (sometimes dramatically) due to foreign market downswings or foreign currency value fluctuations, subjecting the Fund to foreign currency risk (the risk that Fund performance may be negatively impacted by foreign currency strength or weakness relative to the U.S. dollar, particularly if the Fund exposes a significant percentage of its assets to currencies other than the U.S. dollar). Unanticipated changes in the currency markets could result in reduced performance for the Fund. When the Fund converts its foreign currencies into U.S. dollars, it may incur currency conversion costs due to the spread between the prices at which it may buy and sell various currencies in the market.

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Derivatives Risk – Futures Contracts Risk. A futures contract is an exchange-traded derivative transaction between two parties in which a buyer (holding the “long” position) agrees to pay a fixed price (or rate) at a specified future date for delivery of an underlying reference from a seller (holding the “short” position). The seller hopes that the market price on the delivery date is less than the agreed upon price, while the buyer hopes for the contrary. Certain futures contract markets are highly volatile, and futures contracts may be illiquid. Futures exchanges may limit fluctuations in futures contract prices by imposing a maximum permissible daily price movement. The Fund may be disadvantaged if it is prohibited from executing a trade outside the daily permissible price movement. At or prior to maturity of a futures contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in futures contract prices. The liquidity of the futures markets depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants make or take delivery, liquidity in the futures market could be reduced. Positions in futures contracts may be closed out only on the exchange on which they were entered into or through a linked exchange, and no secondary market exists for such contracts. Futures positions are marked to market each day and variation margin payment must be paid to or by the Fund. Because of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, it is possible that the Fund may employ a high degree of leverage in the portfolio. As a result, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in substantial losses to the Fund, exceeding the amount of the margin paid. For certain types of futures contracts, losses are potentially unlimited. Futures markets are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s net asset value. Futures contracts executed (if any) on foreign exchanges may not provide the same protection as U.S. exchanges. Futures contracts can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

■	A currency future , also an FX future or foreign exchange future, is a derivative that is an agreement to exchange one currency for another at a specified date in the future at a price (exchange rate) that is fixed on the purchase date.

■	An equity future is a derivative that is an agreement for the contract holder to buy or sell a specified amount of an individual equity, a basket of equities or the securities in an equity index on a specified date at a predetermined price.

■	An interest rate future is a derivative that is an agreement whereby the buyer and seller agree to the future delivery of an interest-bearing instrument on a specific date at a pre-determined price. Examples include Treasury-bill futures, Treasury-bond futures and Eurodollar futures.

Derivatives Risk – Options Risk. Options are derivatives that give the purchaser the option to buy (call) or sell (put) an underlying reference from or to a counterparty at a specified price (the strike price) on or before an expiration date. The Fund may purchase or write (i.e., sell) put and call options on an underlying reference it is otherwise permitted to invest in. By investing in options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that it may be required to buy or sell the underlying reference at a disadvantageous price on or before the expiration date. If the Fund sells a put option, the Fund may be required to buy the underlying reference at a strike price that is above market price, resulting in a loss. If the Fund sells a call option, the Fund may be required to sell the underlying reference at a strike price that is below market price, resulting in a loss. If the Fund sells a call option that is not covered (it does not own the underlying reference), the Fund's losses are potentially unlimited. Options may involve economic leverage, which could result in greater volatility in price movement. Options may be traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market. At or prior to maturity of an options contract, the Fund may enter into an offsetting contract and may incur a loss to the extent there has been adverse movement in options prices. Options can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

Derivatives Risk – Swaps Risk. In a typical swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the return earned on a specified underlying reference for a fixed return or the return from another underlying reference during a specified period of time. Swaps may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Swaps could result in Fund losses if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Swaps create significant investment leverage such that a relatively small price movement in a swap may result in immediate and substantial losses to the Fund. The

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

Fund may only close out a swap with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. Certain swaps, such as short swap transactions and total return swaps, have the potential for unlimited losses, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Swaps can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, foreign currency risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to correlation risk, counterparty risk, hedging risk, inflation risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

■

A credit default swap (including a swap on a credit default index, sometimes referred to as a credit default swap index) is a derivative and special type of swap where one party pays, in effect, an insurance premium through a stream of payments to another party in exchange for the right to receive a specified return upon the occurrence of a particular credit event by one or more third parties, such as bankruptcy, default or a similar event. A credit default swap may be embedded within a structured note or other derivative instrument. Credit default swaps enable an investor to buy or sell protection against such a credit event (such as an issuer’s bankruptcy, restructuring or failure to make timely payments of interest or principal). Credit default swap indices are indices that reflect the performance of a basket of credit default swaps and are subject to the same risks as credit default swaps. If such a default were to occur, any contractual remedies that the Fund may have may be subject to bankruptcy and insolvency laws, which could delay or limit the Fund's recovery. Thus, if the counterparty under a credit default swap defaults on its obligation to make payments thereunder, as a result of its bankruptcy or otherwise, the Fund may lose such payments altogether, or collect only a portion thereof, which collection could involve costs or delays. The Fund’s return from investment in a credit default swap index may not match the return of the referenced index. Further, investment in a credit default swap index could result in losses if the referenced index does not perform as expected. Unexpected changes in the composition of the index may also affect performance of the credit default swap index. If a referenced index has a dramatic intraday move that causes a material decline in the Fund’s net assets, the terms of the Fund’s credit default swap index may permit the counterparty to immediately close out the transaction. In that event, the Fund may be unable to enter into another credit default swap index or otherwise achieve desired exposure, even if the referenced index reverses all or a portion of its intraday move.

Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) Risk. An ETF’s share price may not track its specified market index (if any) and may trade below its NAV. Certain ETFs use a “passive” investment strategy and do not take defensive positions in volatile or declining markets. Other ETFs in which the Fund may invest are actively managed ETFs (i.e., they do not track a particular benchmark), which indirectly subjects the Fund to active management risk. An active secondary market in ETF shares may not develop or be maintained and may be halted or interrupted due to actions by its listing exchange, unusual market conditions or other reasons. There can be no assurance that an ETF’s shares will continue to be listed on an active exchange. In addition, shareholders bear both their proportionate share of the Fund’s expenses and similar expenses incurred through ownership of the ETF. There is a risk that ETFs in which the Fund invests may terminate due to extraordinary events. For example, any of the service providers to ETFs, such as the trustee or sponsor, may close or otherwise fail to perform their obligations to the ETF, and the ETF may not be able to find a substitute service provider. Also, certain ETFs may be dependent upon licenses to use various indexes as a basis for determining their compositions and/or otherwise to use certain trade names. If these licenses are terminated, the ETFs may also terminate. In addition, an ETF may terminate if its net assets fall below a certain amount.

Forward Commitments on Mortgage-Backed Securities (including Dollar Rolls) Risk. When purchasing mortgage-backed securities in the “to be announced” (TBA) market (MBS TBAs), the seller agrees to deliver mortgage-backed securities for an agreed upon price on an agreed upon date, but may make no guarantee as to the specific securities to be delivered. In lieu of taking delivery of mortgage-backed securities, the Fund could enter into dollar rolls, which are transactions in which the Fund sells securities to a counterparty and simultaneously agrees to purchase those or similar securities in the future at a predetermined price. Dollar rolls involve the risk that the market value of the securities the Fund is obligated to repurchase may decline below the repurchase price, or that the counterparty may default on its obligations. These transactions may also increase the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate. If the Fund reinvests the proceeds of the security sold, the Fund will also be subject to the risk that the investments purchased with such proceeds will decline in value (a form of leverage risk). MBS TBAs and dollar rolls are subject to the risk that the counterparty to the instrument may not perform or be unable to perform in accordance with the terms of the instrument.

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Frequent Trading Risk.  The portfolio managers may actively and frequently trade investments in the Fund's portfolio to carry out its investment strategies. Frequent trading can mean higher brokerage and other transaction costs, which could reduce the Fund's return. The trading costs associated with portfolio turnover may adversely affect the Fund’s performance.

Fund-of-Funds Risk. Determinations regarding asset classes or underlying funds and the Fund’s allocations thereto may not successfully achieve the Fund’s investment objective, in whole or in part. The selected underlying funds’ performance may be lower than the performance of the asset class they were selected to represent or may be lower than the performance of alternative underlying funds that could have been selected to represent the asset class. The Fund also is exposed to the same risks as the underlying funds in direct proportion to the allocation of its assets among the underlying funds. Therefore, to the extent that the Fund invests significantly in a particular underlying fund, the Fund’s performance would be significantly impacted by the performance of such underlying fund. Generally, by investing in a combination of underlying funds, the Fund has exposure to the risks of many areas of the market. By concentrating its investments in relatively few underlying funds, the Fund may have more concentrated market exposures, subjecting the Fund to greater risk of loss should those markets decline or fail to rise. The ability of the Fund to realize its investment objective will depend, in large part, on the extent to which the underlying funds realize their investment objectives. There is no guarantee that the underlying funds will achieve their respective investment objectives. The performance of underlying funds could be adversely affected if other entities that invest in the same underlying funds make relatively large investments or redemptions in such underlying funds. The Fund, and its shareholders, indirectly bear a portion of the expenses of any funds in which the Fund invests. Because the expenses and costs of each underlying fund are shared by its investors, redemptions by other investors in an underlying fund could result in decreased economies of scale and increased operating expenses for such underlying fund. These transactions might also result in higher brokerage, tax or other costs for an underlying fund. This risk may be particularly important when one investor owns a substantial portion of an underlying fund. The Investment Manager may have potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds over unaffiliated funds for investment by the Fund, and may also face potential conflicts of interest in selecting affiliated funds, because the fees the Investment Manager receives from some underlying funds may be higher than the fees paid by other underlying funds. Also, to the extent that the Fund is constrained/restricted from investing (or investing further) in a particular underlying fund for one or more reasons (e.g., underlying fund capacity constraints or regulatory restrictions) or if the Fund chooses to sell its investment in an underlying fund because of poor investment performance or for other reasons, the Fund may have to invest in another underlying fund(s), including less desirable funds – from a strategy or investment performance standpoint – which could have a negative impact on Fund performance. In addition, Fund performance could be negatively impacted if an appropriate alternate underlying fund(s) does not present itself in a timely manner or at all.

Growth Securities Risk. Growth securities typically trade at a higher multiple of earnings than other types of equity securities. Accordingly, the market values of growth securities may never reach their expected market value and may decline in price. In addition, growth securities, at times, may not perform as well as value securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

High-Yield Investments Risk. Securities and other debt instruments held by the Fund that are rated below investment grade (commonly called “high-yield” or “junk” bonds) and unrated debt instruments of comparable quality tend to be more sensitive to credit risk than higher-rated debt instruments and may experience greater price fluctuations in response to perceived changes in the ability of the issuing entity or obligor to pay interest and principal when due than to changes in interest rates. These investments are generally more likely to experience a default than higher-rated debt instruments. High-yield debt instruments are considered to be predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal. These debt instruments typically pay a premium – a higher interest rate or yield – because of the increased risk of loss, including default. High-yield debt instruments may require a greater degree of judgment to establish a price, may be difficult to sell at the time and price the Fund desires, may carry high transaction costs, and also are generally less liquid than higher-rated debt instruments. The ratings provided by third party rating agencies are based on analyses by these ratings agencies of the credit quality of the debt instruments and may not take into account every risk related to whether interest or principal will be timely repaid. In adverse economic and other circumstances, issuers of lower-rated debt instruments are more likely to have difficulty making principal and interest payments than issuers of higher-rated debt instruments.

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Inflation-Protected Securities Risk. Inflation-protected debt securities tend to react to changes in real interest rates. Real interest rates can be described as nominal interest rates minus the expected impact of inflation. In general, the price of an inflation-protected debt security falls when real interest rates rise, and rises when real interest rates fall. Interest payments on inflation-protected debt securities will vary as the principal and/or interest is adjusted for inflation and may be more volatile than interest paid on ordinary bonds. In periods of deflation, the Fund may have no income at all from such investments. Income earned by a shareholder depends on the amount of principal invested, and that principal will not grow with inflation unless the shareholder reinvests the portion of Fund distributions that comes from inflation adjustments.

Interest Rate Risk. Interest rate risk is the risk of losses attributable to changes in interest rates. In general, if prevailing interest rates (which are at historic lows) rise, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to fall, and if interest rates fall, the values of loans and other fixed-income instruments tend to rise. Changes in the value of a fixed-income instrument usually will not affect the amount of income the Fund receives from it but will generally affect the value of the Fund's shares. In general, the longer the maturity or duration of a fixed-income instrument, the greater its sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Interest rate declines also may increase prepayments of debt obligations, which, in turn, would increase prepayment risk. Similarly, a period of rising interest rates may negatively impact the Fund’s performance. Actions by governments and central banking authorities can result in increases in interest rates. Such actions may negatively affect the value of fixed-income instruments held by the Fund, resulting in a negative impact on the Fund's performance and NAV. Debt instruments with floating coupon rates are typically less sensitive to interest rate changes, but these debt instruments may decline in value if their coupon rates do not rise as much as, or keep pace with, yields on such types of debt instruments. Because rates on certain floating rate loans and other debt instruments reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause fluctuations in the Fund’s NAV. Any interest rate increases could cause the value of the Fund’s investments in fixed-income instruments to decrease. Rising interest rates may prompt redemptions from the Fund, which may force the Fund to sell investments at a time when it is not advantageous to do so, which could result in losses.

Issuer Risk. An issuer in which the Fund invests or to which it has exposure may perform poorly, and the value of its loans or securities may therefore decline, which would negatively affect the Fund’s performance. Poor performance may be caused by poor management decisions, competitive pressures, breakthroughs in technology, reliance on suppliers, labor problems or shortages, corporate restructurings, fraudulent disclosures, natural disasters or other events, conditions or factors.

Leverage Risk. Leverage occurs when the Fund increases its assets available for investment using borrowings, derivatives, or similar instruments or techniques. Use of leverage can produce volatility and may exaggerate changes in the net asset value of Fund shares and in the return on the Fund’s portfolio, which may increase the risk that the Fund will lose more than it has invested. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations or to meet any required asset segregation or position coverage requirements. Futures contracts, options on futures contracts, forward contracts and other derivatives can allow the Fund to obtain large investment exposures in return for meeting relatively small margin requirements. As a result, investments in those transactions may be highly leveraged. If the Fund uses leverage, through the purchase of particular instruments such as derivatives, the Fund may experience capital losses that exceed the net assets of the Fund. Leverage can create an interest expense that may lower the Fund's overall returns. Leverage presents the opportunity for increased net income and capital gains, but may also exaggerate the Fund's volatility and risk of loss. There can be no guarantee that a leveraging strategy will be successful.

Liquidity Risk. Liquidity risk is the risk associated with any event, circumstance, or characteristic of an investment or market that negatively impacts the Fund’s ability to sell, or realize the proceeds from the sale of, an investment at a desirable time or price. Liquidity risk may arise because of, for example, a lack of marketability of the investment, which means that when seeking to sell its portfolio investments, the Fund could find that selling is more difficult than anticipated, especially during times of high market volatility. Decreases in the number of financial institutions, including banks and broker-dealers, willing to make markets (match up sellers and buyers) in the Fund’s investments or decreases in their capacity or willingness to trade such investments may increase the Fund’s exposure to this risk. The debt market has experienced considerable growth, and financial institutions making markets in instruments purchased and sold by the Fund (e.g., bond dealers) have been subject to increased regulation. The impact of that

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growth and regulation on the ability and willingness of financial institutions to engage in trading or “making a market” in such instruments remains unsettled. Certain types of investments, such as lower-rated securities or those that are purchased and sold in over-the-counter markets, may be especially subject to liquidity risk. Securities or other assets in which the Fund invests may be traded in the over-the-counter market rather than on an exchange and therefore may be more difficult to purchase or sell at a fair price, which may have a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. Market participants attempting to sell the same or a similar instrument at the same time as the Fund could exacerbate the Fund’s exposure to liquidity risk. The Fund may have to accept a lower selling price for the holding, sell other, liquid or more liquid, investments that it might otherwise prefer to hold (thereby increasing the proportion of the Fund’s investments in less liquid or illiquid securities), or forego another more appealing investment opportunity. Certain investments that were liquid when purchased by the Fund may later become illiquid, particularly in times of overall economic distress. Changing regulatory, market or other conditions or environments (for example, the interest rate or credit environments) may also adversely affect the liquidity and the price of the Fund's investments. Judgment plays a larger role in valuing illiquid or less liquid investments as compared to valuing liquid or more liquid investments. Price volatility may be higher for illiquid or less liquid investments as a result of, for example, the relatively less frequent pricing of such securities (as compared to liquid or more liquid investments). Generally, the less liquid the market at the time the Fund sells a portfolio investment, the greater the risk of loss or decline of value to the Fund. Overall market liquidity and other factors can lead to an increase in Fund redemptions, which may negatively impact Fund performance and NAV, including, for example, if the Fund is forced to sell investments in a down market.

Market Risk. Market risk refers to the possibility that the market values of securities or other investments that the Fund holds will fall, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, or fail to rise. The value of Fund investments may fall or fail to rise because of a variety of actual or perceived factors affecting an issuer (e.g., an unfavorable earnings report), the industry or sector in which it operates, or the market as a whole, which may reduce the value of an investment in the Fund. Accordingly, an investment in the Fund could lose money over short or long periods. The market values of the investments the Fund holds can be affected by changes or perceived changes in U.S. or foreign economies and financial markets, and the liquidity of these investments, among other factors.

Mortgage- and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk.  The value of any mortgage-backed and other asset-backed securities held by the Fund may be affected by, among other things, changes or perceived changes in: interest rates; factors concerning the interests in and structure of the issuer or the originator of the mortgages or other assets; the creditworthiness of the entities that provide any supporting letters of credit, surety bonds or other credit enhancements; or the market's assessment of the quality of underlying assets. Mortgage-backed securities represent interests in, or are backed by, pools of mortgages from which payments of interest and principal (net of fees paid to the issuer or guarantor of the securities) are distributed to the holders of the mortgage-backed securities. Other types of asset-backed securities typically represent interests in, or are backed by, pools of receivables such as credit, automobile, student and home equity loans. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities can have a fixed or an adjustable rate. Mortgage- and other asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk, which is the possibility that the underlying mortgage or other asset may be refinanced or prepaid prior to maturity during periods of declining or low interest rates, causing the Fund to have to reinvest the money received in securities that have lower yields. In addition, the impact of prepayments on the value of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities may be difficult to predict and may result in greater volatility. Rising or high interest rates tend to extend the duration of mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, making them more volatile and more sensitive to changes in interest rates. Payment of principal and interest on some mortgage-backed securities (but not the market value of the securities themselves) may be guaranteed (i) by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government (in the case of securities guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association) or (ii) by its agencies, authorities, enterprises or instrumentalities (in the case of securities guaranteed by the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC)), which are not insured or guaranteed by the U.S. Government (although FNMA and FHLMC may be able to access capital from the U.S. Treasury to meet their obligations under such securities). Mortgage-backed securities issued by non-governmental issuers (such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers) may be supported by various credit enhancements, such as pool insurance,

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guarantees issued by governmental entities, letters of credit from a bank or senior/subordinated structures, and may entail greater risk than obligations guaranteed by the U.S. Government, whether or not such obligations are guaranteed by the private issuer.

Prepayment and Extension Risk. Prepayment and extension risk is the risk that a bond or other security or investment might, in the case of prepayment risk, be called or otherwise converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity and, in the case of extension risk, that the investment might not be called as expected. In the case of prepayment risk, if the investment is converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity, the portfolio managers may not be able to invest the proceeds in other investments providing as high a level of income, resulting in a reduced yield to the Fund. In the case of mortgage- or other asset-backed securities, as interest rates decrease or spreads narrow, the likelihood of prepayment increases. Conversely, extension risk is the risk that an unexpected rise in interest rates will extend the life of a mortgage- or asset-backed security beyond the prepayment time. If the Fund's investments are locked in at a lower interest rate for a longer period of time, the portfolio managers may be unable to capitalize on securities with higher interest rates or wider spreads.

U.S. Government Obligations Risk. While U.S. Treasury obligations are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government, such securities are nonetheless subject to credit risk ( i.e. , the risk that the U.S. Government may be, or may be perceived to be, unable or unwilling to honor its financial obligations, such as making payments). Securities issued or guaranteed by federal agencies or authorities and U.S. Government-sponsored instrumentalities or enterprises may or may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. For example, securities issued by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Banks are neither insured nor guaranteed by the U.S. Government. These securities may be supported by the ability to borrow from the U.S. Treasury or only by the credit of the issuing agency, authority, instrumentality or enterprise and, as a result, are subject to greater credit risk than securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury.

Value Securities Risk. Value securities are securities of companies that may have experienced, for example, adverse business, industry or other developments or may be subject to special risks that have caused the securities to be out of favor and, in turn, potentially undervalued. The market value of a portfolio security may not meet the portfolio manager's perceived value assessment of that security, or may decline in price, even though the portfolio manager(s) believe(s) the securities are already undervalued. There is also a risk that it may take longer than expected for the value of these investments to rise to the portfolio manager’s perceived value. In addition, value securities, at times, may not perform as well as growth securities or the stock market in general, and may be out of favor with investors for varying periods of time.

Volatility and Volatility Management Risk. Although the Fund seeks to manage equity market volatility within its portfolio, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful. Despite the Fund’s name, the Fund’s portfolio may experience more than its targeted level of volatility, subjecting the Fund to market risk. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Funds’ portfolios may be subject to price volatility, and the Fund’s share price may not be any less volatile than the market as a whole and could be more volatile. The Investment Manager’s determinations/expectations regarding volatility may be incorrect or inaccurate, which may also adversely affect the Fund’s actual volatility within the portfolio. The Fund also may underperform other funds with similar investment objectives and/or strategies. Additionally, because the Fund seeks to target a particular level of effective equity market exposure (EEME), as stated above under “Principal Investment Strategies”, the Fund may provide protection in volatile markets by potentially curbing or mitigating the risk of loss in declining equity markets, but the Fund’s opportunity to achieve returns when the equity markets are rising may also be curbed. In general, the greater the protection against downside loss (as reflected in a smaller target level of EEME), the lesser the Fund’s opportunity to participate in the returns generated by rising equity markets; however, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in protecting the value of its portfolio in down markets. Additionally, to the extent that the Fund maximizes its EEME in low volatility markets, if the equity markets should decline in such low volatility markets, the Fund may experience greater loss than if it had not maximized its EEME. To the extent that the Fund underestimates or misinterprets volatility signals, the Fund’s performance could be negatively affected. Volatility targets and volatility risk are different for all three funds in the U.S. Flexible series, with the Conservative Growth Fund having the lowest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk) and the U.S. Flexible Growth Fund having the highest relative volatility  target (and volatility risk).

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

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Additional Investment Strategies and Policies

This section describes certain investment strategies and policies that the Fund may utilize in pursuit of its investment objective and some additional factors and risks involved with investing in the Fund.

Investment Guidelines

As a general matter, and except as specifically described in the discussion of the Fund's principal investment strategies in this prospectus or as otherwise required by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act), the rules and regulations thereunder and any applicable exemptive relief, whenever an investment policy or limitation states a percentage of the Fund's assets that may be invested in any security or other asset or sets forth a policy regarding an investment standard, compliance with that percentage limitation or standard will be determined solely at the time of the Fund's investment in the security or asset.

Holding Other Kinds of Investments

The Fund may hold investments that are not part of its principal investment strategies. These investments and their risks are described below and/or in the Statement of Additional Information (SAI). The Fund may choose not to invest in certain securities described in this prospectus and in the SAI, although it has the ability to do so. Information on the Fund’s holdings can be found in the Fund’s shareholder reports or by visiting columbiathreadneedle.com/us.

Transactions in Derivatives

The Fund may enter into derivative transactions or otherwise have exposure to derivative transactions through underlying investments. Derivatives are financial contracts whose values are, for example, based on (or “derived” from) traditional securities (such as a stock or bond), assets (such as a commodity like gold or a foreign currency), reference rates (such as the London Interbank Offered Rate (commonly known as LIBOR)) or market indices (such as the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 ^® Index). The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity which involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. Derivatives involve special risks and may result in losses or may limit the Fund's potential gain from favorable market movements. Derivative strategies often involve leverage, which may exaggerate a loss, potentially causing the Fund to lose more money than it would have lost had it invested in the underlying security or other asset directly. The values of derivatives may move in unexpected ways, especially in unusual market conditions, and may result in increased volatility in the value of the derivative and/or the Fund’s shares, among other consequences. Other risks arise from the Fund's potential inability to terminate or to sell derivative positions. A liquid secondary market may not always exist for the Fund's derivative positions at times when the Fund might wish to terminate or to sell such positions. Over-the-counter instruments (investments not traded on an exchange) may be illiquid, and transactions in derivatives traded in the over-the-counter market are subject to the risk that the other party will not meet its obligations. The use of derivatives also involves the risks of mispricing or improper valuation and that changes in the value of the derivative may not correlate perfectly with the underlying security, asset, reference rate or index. The Fund also may not be able to find a suitable derivative transaction counterparty, and thus may be unable to engage in derivative transactions when it is deemed favorable to do so, or at all. U.S. federal legislation has been enacted that provides for new clearing, margin, reporting and registration requirements for participants in the derivatives market. These changes could restrict and/or impose significant costs or other burdens upon the Fund’s participation in derivatives transactions. For more information on the risks of derivative investments and strategies, see the SAI.

Affiliated Fund Investing

The Investment Manager or an affiliate serves as investment adviser to funds using the Columbia brand (Columbia Funds), including those that are structured as “fund-of-funds” (such as the Fund(s) offered in this prospectus), and provides asset-allocation services to (i) shareholders by investing in shares of other Columbia Funds (collectively referred to in this section as Underlying Funds), and (ii) discretionary managed accounts (collectively referred to as affiliated products) that invest exclusively in Underlying Funds. These affiliated products, individually or collectively, may own a significant percentage of the outstanding shares of one or more Underlying Funds, and the Investment Manager seeks to balance potential conflicts of interest between the affiliated products and the Underlying Funds in which they invest. The affiliated products’ investment in the Underlying Funds may have the effect of creating economies of scale, possibly resulting in lower expense ratios for the Underlying Funds, because the affiliated

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products may own substantial portions of the shares of Underlying Funds. However, redemption of Underlying Fund shares by one or more affiliated products could cause the expense ratio of an Underlying Fund to increase, as its fixed costs would be spread over a smaller asset base. Because of large positions of certain affiliated products, the Underlying Funds may experience relatively large inflows and outflows of cash due to affiliated products’ purchases and sales of Underlying Fund shares. Although the Investment Manager or its affiliate may seek to minimize the impact of these transactions where possible, for example, by structuring them over a reasonable period of time or through other measures, Underlying Funds may experience increased expenses as they buy and sell portfolio securities to manage the cash flow effect related to these transactions. Further, when the Investment Manager or its affiliate structures transactions over a reasonable period of time in order to manage the potential impact of the buy and sell decisions for the affiliated products, those affiliated products, including funds-of-funds, may pay more or less (for purchase activity), or receive more or less (for redemption activity), for shares of the Underlying Funds than if the transactions were executed in one transaction. In addition, substantial redemptions by affiliated products within a short period of time could require the Underlying Fund to liquidate positions more rapidly than would otherwise be desirable, which may have the effect of reducing or eliminating potential gain or causing it to realize a loss. In order to meet such redemptions, an Underlying Fund may be forced to sell its liquid (or more liquid) positions, leaving the Underlying Fund holding, post-redemption, a relatively larger position in illiquid securities (securities that are not readily marketable or that cannot be sold or disposed of in the ordinary course of business, within seven days, at approximately the value at which the holder has valued the security) or less liquid securities. Substantial redemptions may also adversely affect the ability of the Underlying Fund to implement its investment strategy. The Investment Manager or its affiliate also has an economic conflict of interest in determining the allocation of affiliated products’ assets among the Underlying Funds, as it earns different fees from the various Underlying Funds.

Affiliated Products

As of the date of this prospectus, shares of the Fund are available to holders of variable annuity contracts and in variable life insurance policies (collectively, Contracts) issued by RiverSource Life Insurance Company and RiverSource Life Insurance Co. of New York (collectively, RiverSource Life).

RiverSource Life is an affiliate of Ameriprise Financial, Inc., which is the parent company of Columbia Management, the Fund’s investment manager. Under certain variable annuity contracts, contract holders have elected a guaranteed benefit rider that requires investment in the Fund (the Rider). RiverSource Life has financial obligations to holders of the Riders arising from guarantee obligations under such Riders, which vary based upon the investment performance of the Fund. RiverSource Life expects to benefit financially by offering this Fund, compared to offering other types of funds, in variable annuity contracts with Riders. For example, RiverSource Life expects to reduce its costs to purchase hedge investments associated with variable annuity contract liabilities tied to this Fund. It also expects to benefit from the greater liquidity of hedge investments used to meet its obligations under the Riders. In addition, it expects to reduce its capital requirements, which represent assets RiverSource Life sets aside to back the guarantees offered in its variable annuity contracts. As described above, RiverSource Life has a financial interest in reducing its potential exposure with respect to variable annuity contract values invested under the Riders. This may present a potential conflict of interest with respect to the interests of the holders of the Riders (who are required to allocate their variable annuity contract value to the Fund). In particular, RiverSource Life’s interest in reducing volatility within the Fund’s portfolio may present a potential conflict between it and Columbia Management as the latter seeks to achieve the Fund’s investment objective of “total return while seeking to manage the Fund’s exposure to equity market volatility.”

Columbia Management has a framework in place to ensure its management of the Fund is effected in the best interests of the Fund, without undue influence from RiverSource Life. Although an investment in the Fund may have the effect of mitigating declines in your Contract value (whether or not you have elected a Rider in your variable annuity contract), in the event of a significant decline in the equity markets, the strategy followed by the Fund, if successful, will also generally result in your Contract value increasing to a lesser degree than the equity markets, or decreasing when the values of equity investments are stable or rising. Depending on future market conditions and considering only the potential return on your investment in the Fund, a variable annuity contract holder electing the Rider might benefit (or benefit more) from selecting an investment option offered in connection with a different

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guaranteed benefit rider (if available) or alternate investments and a variable annuity contract holder who did not elect the Rider might benefit (or benefit more) from selecting an alternative investment option. In addition, there is no guarantee that the Fund’s strategy will have its intended effect, or that it will work as effectively as is intended.

Investing in Money Market Funds

The Fund may invest cash in, or hold as collateral for certain investments, shares of registered or unregistered money market funds, including funds advised by the Investment Manager or its affiliates. These funds are not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or any other government agency. The Fund and its shareholders indirectly bear a portion of the expenses of any money market fund or other fund in which the Fund may invest.

Investing Defensively

The Fund may from time to time take temporary defensive investment positions that may be inconsistent with the Fund’s principal investment strategies in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political, social or other conditions, including, without limitation, investing some or all of its assets in money market instruments or shares of affiliated or unaffiliated money market funds or holding some or all of its assets in cash or cash equivalents. The Fund may take such defensive investment positions for as long a period as deemed necessary.

The Fund may not achieve its investment objective while it is investing defensively. Investing defensively may adversely affect Fund performance. During these times, the portfolio managers may make frequent portfolio holding changes, which could result in increased trading expenses and decreased Fund performance. See also Investing in Money Market Funds above for more information.

Other Strategic and Investment Measures

The Fund may also from time to time take temporary portfolio positions that may or may not be consistent with the Fund’s principal investment strategies in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political, social or other conditions, including, without limitation, investing in derivatives, such as forward contracts, futures contracts, options, structured investments and swaps, for various purposes, including among others, investing in particular derivatives in seeking to reduce investment exposures, or in seeking to achieve indirect investment exposures, to a sector, country, region or currency where the Investment Manager believes such positioning is appropriate. The Fund may take such portfolio positions for as long a period as deemed necessary. While the Fund is so positioned, derivatives could comprise a substantial portion of the Fund’s investments and the Fund may not achieve its investment objective. Investing in this manner may adversely affect Fund performance. During these times, the portfolio managers may make frequent portfolio holding changes, which could result in increased trading expenses and decreased Fund performance. For information on the risks of investing in derivatives, see Transactions in Derivatives above.

Portfolio Holdings Disclosure

The Board has adopted policies and procedures that govern the timing and circumstances of disclosure to shareholders and third parties of information regarding the securities owned by the Fund. A description of these policies and procedures is included in the SAI. Fund policy generally permits the disclosure of portfolio holdings information on the Fund's website (columbiathreadneedle.com/us) only after a certain amount of time has passed, as described in the SAI.

Purchases and sales of portfolio securities can take place at any time, so the portfolio holdings information available on the Fund's website may not always be current.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

More Information About the Fund (continued)

Cash Flows

The timing and magnitude of cash inflows from investors buying Fund shares could prevent the Fund from always being fully invested. Conversely, the timing and magnitude of cash outflows to shareholders redeeming Fund shares could require the Fund to sell portfolio securities at less than opportune times or to hold ready reserves of uninvested cash in amounts larger than might otherwise be the case to meet shareholder redemptions. Either situation could adversely impact the Fund’s performance.

Understanding Annual Fund Operating Expenses

The Fund’s annual operating expenses, as presented in the Annual Fund Operating Expenses table in the Fees and Expenses of the Fund section of this prospectus, generally are based on estimated expenses for the Fund’s current fiscal period and are expressed as a percentage (expense ratio) of the Fund’s average net assets. The expense ratio reflects current fee arrangements.

In addition to the total annual Fund operating expenses that the Fund bears directly, the Fund’s shareholders indirectly bear the expenses of the underlying funds (or acquired funds) in which the Fund invests. The Fund’s “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” shown are based on its estimated allocations to the underlying funds. Because acquired funds will have varied expense and fee levels and the Fund may own different proportions of acquired funds at different times, the amount of fees and expenses incurred by the Fund with respect to such investments will vary.

Fee Waiver/Expense Reimbursement Arrangements

The Investment Manager and certain of its affiliates have contractually agreed to waive fees and/or reimburse expenses (excluding certain fees and expenses described below) through April 30, 2017, unless sooner terminated at the sole discretion of the Fund's Board, so that the Fund’s net operating expenses, after giving effect to fees waived/expenses reimbursed and any balance credits and/or overdraft charges from the Fund’s custodian, do not exceed the annual rate of:

    

Columbia Variable Portfolio - U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth
Class 2	1.10%

Under the agreement, the following fees and expenses are excluded from the Fund’s operating expenses when calculating the waiver/reimbursement commitment, and therefore will be paid by the Fund, if applicable: taxes (including foreign transaction taxes), transaction costs and brokerage commissions, costs related to any securities lending program, dividend expenses associated with securities sold short, inverse floater program fees and expenses, transaction charges and interest on borrowed money, interest, infrequent and/or unusual expenses and any other expenses the exclusion of which is specifically approved by the Fund’s Board. This agreement may be modified or amended only with approval from all parties.

Primary Service Providers

The Fund enters into contractual arrangements (Contracts) with various parties, including, among others, the Investment Manager, the Distributor, Columbia Management Investment Services Corp. (the Transfer Agent) and the Fund’s custodian. The Fund’s Contracts are solely among the parties thereto. Shareholders are not parties to, or intended to be third-party beneficiaries of, any Contracts. Further, this prospectus, the SAI and any Contracts are not intended to give rise to any agreement, duty, special relationship or other obligation between the Fund and any investor, or give rise to any contractual, tort or other rights in any individual shareholder, group of shareholders or

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More Information About the Fund (continued)

other person, including any right to assert a fiduciary or other duty, enforce the Contracts against the parties or to seek any remedy thereunder, either directly or on behalf of the Fund. Nothing in the previous sentence should be read to suggest any waiver of any rights under federal or state securities laws.

The Investment Manager, the Distributor and the Transfer Agent are all affiliates of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (Ameriprise Financial). They and their affiliates currently provide key services, including investment advisory, administration, distribution, shareholder servicing and transfer agency services, to the Fund and various other funds, including the Columbia Funds, and are paid for providing these services. These service relationships are described below.

The Investment Manager

Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC is located at 225 Franklin Street, Boston, MA 02110 and serves as investment adviser and administrator to the Columbia Funds. The Investment Manager is a registered investment adviser and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ameriprise Financial. The Investment Manager’s management experience covers all major asset classes, including equity securities, fixed-income securities and money market instruments. In addition to serving as an investment adviser to traditional mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and closed-end funds, the Investment Manager acts as an investment adviser for itself, its affiliates, individuals, corporations, retirement plans, private investment companies and financial intermediaries.

Subject to oversight by the Board, the Investment Manager manages the day-to-day operations of the Fund, determining what securities and other investments the Fund should buy or sell and executing portfolio transactions. The Investment Manager may use the research and other capabilities of its affiliates and third parties in managing the Fund’s investments. The Investment Manager is also responsible for overseeing the administrative operations of the Fund, including the general supervision of the Fund’s operations, the coordination of the Fund’s other service providers and the provision of related clerical and administrative services.

The SEC has issued an order that permits the Investment Manager, subject to the approval of the Board, to appoint an unaffiliated subadviser or to change the terms of a subadvisory agreement, including fees paid thereunder, for the Fund without first obtaining shareholder approval, thereby avoiding the expense and delays typically associated with obtaining shareholder approval. The Investment Manager and its affiliates may have other relationships, including significant financial relationships, with current or potential subadvisers or their affiliates, which may create certain conflicts of interest. When making recommendations to the Board to appoint or to change a subadviser, or to change the terms of a subadvisory agreement, the Investment Manager discloses to the Board the nature of any such material relationships. At present, the Investment Manager has not engaged any investment subadviser for the Fund.

The Fund pays the Investment Manager a fee for its management services, which include investment advisory and administrative services. The fee is calculated as a percentage of the average daily net assets of the Fund. The fee is paid monthly, as follows:

    

Annual Management Fee, as a % of Average Daily Net Assets:
Assets invested in affiliated underlying funds (including ETFs and closed-end funds) that pay a management fee (or advisory fee, as applicable) to the Investment Manager	0.02%
Assets invested in securities (other than affiliated underlying funds (including ETFs and closed-end funds) that pay a management fee (or advisory fee, as applicable) to the Investment Manager), including other funds advised by the Investment Manager that do not pay a management fee, third party funds, derivatives and individual securities	$0 - $500	0.720%
	>$500 - $1,000	0.670%
	>$1,000 - $1,500	0.620%
	>$1,500 - $3,000	0.570%
	>$3,000 - $6,000	0.550%
	>$6,000 - $12,000	0.530%
	>$12,000	0.520%

A discussion regarding the basis for the Board approving the adoption of the management agreement will be available in the Fund’s annual report to shareholders for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016.

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Other Roles and Relationships of Ameriprise Financial and its Affiliates — Certain Conflicts of Interest

The Investment Manager, Distributor and Transfer Agent, all affiliates of Ameriprise Financial, provide various services to the Fund and other Columbia Funds for which they are compensated. Ameriprise Financial and its other affiliates may also provide other services to these funds and be compensated for them.

The Investment Manager and its affiliates may provide investment advisory and other services to other clients and customers substantially similar to those provided to the Columbia Funds. These activities, and other financial services activities of Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, may present actual and potential conflicts of interest and introduce certain investment constraints.

Ameriprise Financial is a major financial services company, engaged in a broad range of financial activities beyond the mutual fund-related activities of the Investment Manager, including, among others, insurance, broker-dealer (sales and trading), asset management, banking and other financial activities. These additional activities may involve multiple advisory, financial, insurance and other interests in securities and other instruments, and in companies that issue securities and other instruments, that may be bought, sold or held by the Columbia Funds.

Conflicts of interest and limitations that could affect a Columbia Fund may arise from, for example, the following:

■	compensation and other benefits received by the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates related to the management/administration of a Columbia Fund and the sale of its shares;

■	the allocation of, and competition for, investment opportunities among the Fund, other funds and accounts advised/managed by the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates, or Ameriprise Financial itself and its affiliates;

■	separate and potentially divergent management of a Columbia Fund and other funds and accounts advised/managed by the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates;

■	regulatory and other investment restrictions on investment activities of the Investment Manager and other Ameriprise Financial affiliates and accounts advised/managed by them;

■	insurance and other relationships of Ameriprise Financial affiliates with companies and other entities in which a Columbia Fund invests;

■	regulatory and other restrictions relating to the sharing of information between Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, including the Investment Manager, and a Columbia Fund; and

■

insurance companies investing in the Fund may be affiliates of Ameriprise Financial; these affiliated insurance companies, individually and collectively, may hold through separate accounts a significant portion of the Fund's shares and may also invest in separate accounts managed by the Investment Manager that have the same or substantially similar investment objectives and strategies as the Fund.

The Investment Manager and Ameriprise Financial have adopted various policies and procedures that are intended to identify, monitor and address conflicts of interest. However, there is no assurance that these policies, procedures and disclosures will be effective.

Additional information about Ameriprise Financial and the types of conflicts of interest and other matters referenced above is set forth in the Investment Management and Other Services — Other Roles and Relationships of Ameriprise Financial and its Affiliates — Certain Conflicts of Interest section of the SAI. Investors in the Columbia Funds should carefully review these disclosures and consult with their financial advisor if they have any questions.

Certain Legal Matters

Ameriprise Financial and certain of its affiliates have historically been involved in a number of legal, arbitration and regulatory proceedings, including routine litigation, class actions and governmental actions, concerning matters arising in connection with the conduct of their business activities. Ameriprise Financial believes that the Fund is not currently the subject of, and that neither Ameriprise Financial nor any of its affiliates are the subject of, any pending legal, arbitration or regulatory proceedings that are likely to have a material adverse effect on the Fund or the ability of Ameriprise Financial or its affiliates to perform under their contracts with the Fund. Information regarding certain

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More Information About the Fund (continued)

pending and settled legal proceedings may be found in the Fund’s shareholder reports and in the SAI. Additionally, Ameriprise Financial is required to make quarterly (10-Q), annual (10-K) and, as necessary, 8-K filings with the SEC on legal and regulatory matters that relate to Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates. Copies of these filings may be obtained by accessing the SEC website at sec.gov.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

affiliated broker-dealers and insurance companies, may be separately incented to include shares of the Columbia Funds in Contracts offered by affiliated insurance companies, as employee compensation and business unit operating goals at all levels are generally tied to the success of Ameriprise Financial. Certain employees, directly or indirectly, may receive higher compensation and other benefits as investment in the Columbia Funds increases. In addition, management, sales leaders and other employees may spend more of their time and resources promoting Ameriprise Financial and its subsidiary companies, including the Distributor and the Investment Manager, and the products they offer, including the Fund.

In addition to the payments described above, the Distributor, the Investment Manager and their affiliates may make other payments or allow promotional incentives to broker-dealers to the extent permitted by SEC and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) rules and by other applicable laws and regulations.

Amounts paid by the Distributor and the Investment Manager and their affiliates are paid out of the Distributor’s and the Investment Manager’s own resources and do not increase the amount paid by you or the Fund. You can find further details in the SAI about the payments made by the Distributor and the Investment Manager and their affiliates, as well as a list of the selling agents, including Ameriprise Financial affiliates, to which the Distributor and the Investment Manager have agreed to make marketing/sales support payments.

Your selling agent may charge you fees and commissions in addition to those described herein. You should consult with your selling agent and review carefully any disclosure your selling agent provides regarding its services and compensation. Depending on the financial arrangement in place at any particular time, a selling agent may have a conflict of interest or financial incentive with respect to its recommendations regarding the Fund or any Contract that includes the Fund.

Share Price Determination

The price you pay or receive when you buy, sell or transfer shares is the Fund's next determined net asset value (or NAV) per share. The Fund calculates the NAV per share at the end of each business day. Any affiliated underlying funds calculate their NAV in the same manner as the Fund calculates its NAV.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

Equity securities are valued primarily on the basis of market quotations reported on stock exchanges and other securities markets around the world. If an equity security is listed on a national exchange, the security is valued at the closing price or, if the closing price is not readily available, the mean of the closing bid and asked prices. Certain equity securities, debt securities and other assets are valued differently. For instance, bank loans trading in the secondary market are valued primarily on the basis of indicative bids, fixed-income investments maturing in 60 days or less are valued primarily using the amortized cost method, unless this methodology results in a valuation that does not approximate the market value of these securities, and those maturing in excess of 60 days are valued primarily using a market-based price obtained from a pricing service, if available. Investments in other open-end funds are valued at their latest NAVs. Both market quotations and indicative bids are obtained from outside pricing services approved and monitored pursuant to a policy approved by the Fund's Board. For a money market fund, the Fund's investments are generally valued at amortized cost, which approximates market value.

If a market price is not readily available or is deemed not to reflect market value, the Fund will determine the price of a portfolio security based on a determination of the security's fair value pursuant to a policy approved by the Fund's Board. In addition, the Fund may use fair valuation to price securities that trade on a foreign exchange when a significant event has occurred after the foreign exchange closes but before the time at which the Fund's share price is calculated. Foreign exchanges typically close before the time at which Fund share prices are calculated, and may be closed altogether on some days when the Fund is open. Such significant events affecting a foreign security may include, but are not limited to: (1) corporate actions, earnings announcements, litigation or other events impacting a single issuer; (2) governmental action that affects securities in one sector or country; (3) natural disasters or armed conflicts affecting a country or region; or (4) significant domestic or foreign market fluctuations. The Fund uses various criteria, including an evaluation of U.S. market moves after the close of foreign markets, in determining whether a foreign security's market price is readily available and reflective of market value and, if not, the fair value of the security. To the extent the Fund has significant holdings of small cap stocks, high-yield bonds, floating rate loans, or tax-exempt, foreign or other securities that may trade infrequently, fair valuation may be used more frequently than for other funds.

Fair valuation may have the effect of reducing stale pricing arbitrage opportunities presented by the pricing of Fund shares. However, when the Fund uses fair valuation to price securities, it may value those securities higher or lower than another fund would have priced the security. Also, the use of fair valuation may cause the Fund's performance to diverge to a greater degree from the performance of various benchmarks used to compare the Fund's performance because benchmarks generally do not use fair valuation techniques. Because of the judgment involved in fair valuation decisions, there can be no assurance that the value ascribed to a particular security is accurate. The Fund has retained one or more independent fair valuation pricing services to assist in the fair valuation process for foreign securities.

Shareholder Information

Shares of the Fund are generally available for purchase only by participating insurance companies in connection with Contracts.

Shares of the Fund may not be purchased or sold directly by individual Contract owners. When you sell your shares through your Contract, the Fund is effectively buying them back. This is called a redemption. The right of redemption may be suspended or payment postponed whenever permitted by applicable laws and regulations.

Depending on the context, references to “you” or “your” herein refer either to the holder of a Contract who may select Fund shares to fund his or her investment in the Contract or to the participating insurance company as the holder of Fund shares through one or more separate accounts.

Potential Conflicts of Interest – Mixed and Shared Funding

The Fund is available for purchase through Contracts offered by the separate accounts of participating insurance companies and may also be available to other eligible investors authorized by the Distributor. Due to differences in tax treatment and other considerations, the interests of various Contract owners may conflict. The Fund does not foresee any disadvantages to investors arising from these potential conflicts of interest at this time. Nevertheless, the Board of the Fund intends to monitor events to identify any material irreconcilable conflicts which may arise, and

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About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

to determine what action, if any, should be taken in response to any conflicts. If such a conflict were to arise, one or more separate accounts might be required to withdraw its investments in the Fund or shares of another mutual fund may be substituted. This might force the Fund to sell securities at disadvantageous prices.

Additional Discussion of Potential Conflicts of Interest Relating to Funds Used Exclusively by Affiliated Insurance Companies

The Fund is sold exclusively as underlying investment options of the Contracts offered by RiverSource Life Insurance Company (RiverSource Life) and its wholly-owned subsidiary, RiverSource Life Insurance Co. of New York (collectively, the Companies). The Investment Manager and its affiliates make or support payments out of their own resources to the Companies as a result of the Companies including the Fund as an investment option in the Contracts. These allocations may be significant. In addition, employees of Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, including employees of the Companies, may be separately incented to include the Fund in the Contracts, as employee compensation and business unit operating goals at all levels are tied to the company’s success. These Contracts may also include unaffiliated mutual funds as investment options, and the Companies receive payments from the sponsors of these unaffiliated mutual funds as a result of including these funds in the products. The amount of payment from sponsors of unaffiliated funds or allocation from the Investment Manager and its affiliates varies, and may be significant. The amount of the payment or allocation the Companies receive from a Fund may create an incentive for the Companies and may influence their decision regarding which funds to include in a Contract. Employees of Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, including employees of affiliated broker-dealers, may be separately incented to recommend or sell shares of the Fund, as employee compensation and business unit operating goals at all levels are tied to the company’s success. Certain employees, directly or indirectly, may receive higher compensation and other benefits as investments in the Fund increase. In addition, management, sales leaders and other employees may spend more of their time and resources promoting Ameriprise Financial and its subsidiary companies, including Columbia Management, and the Distributor, and the products they offer, including the Fund. These arrangements are sometimes referred to as “revenue sharing payments,” and are in addition to any Rule 12b-1 distribution and/or service fees or other amounts paid by the Fund for account maintenance, sub-accounting or recordkeeping services provided directly by the Companies. See About Fund Shares and Transactions - Selling Agent Compensation for more information generally about selling agent compensation and the Contract prospectus for more information regarding these payments and allocations relating to your Contract.

Order Processing

Orders to buy and sell shares of the Fund that are placed by your participating insurance company are processed on business days. Orders received in “good form” by the Transfer Agent or a selling agent, including your participating insurance company , before the end of a business day are priced at the Fund’s NAV per share on that day. Orders received after the end of a business day will receive the next business day’s NAV per share. An order is in “good form” if the Transfer Agent or your selling agent has all of the information and documentation it deems necessary to effect your order. The market value of the Fund’s investments may change between the time you submit your order and the time the Fund next calculates its NAV per share. The business day that applies to your order is also called the trade date.

There is no sales charge associated with the purchase of Fund shares, but there may be charges associated with your Contract. Any charges that apply to your Contract, and any charges that apply to separate accounts of participating insurance companies that may own shares directly, are described in your Contract prospectus.

You may transfer all or part of your investment in the Fund to one or more of the other investment options available under your Contract. You may provide instructions to sell any amount allocated to the Fund. Proceeds will be mailed within seven days after your surrender or withdrawal request is received in good form by an authorized agent. The amount you receive may be more or less than the amount you invested.

Please refer to your Contract prospectus for more information about transfers as well as surrenders and withdrawals.

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About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

Information Sharing Agreements

As required by Rule 22c-2 under the 1940 Act, the Funds or certain of their service providers will enter into information sharing agreements with selling agents, including participating life insurance companies and selling agents that sponsor or offer retirement plans through which shares of the Funds are made available for purchase. Pursuant to Rule 22c-2, selling agents are required, upon request, to: (i) provide shareholder account and transaction information; and (ii) execute instructions from the Fund to restrict or prohibit further purchases of Fund shares by shareholders who have been identified by the Fund as having engaged in transactions that violate the Fund's excessive trading policies and procedures.

Excessive Trading Practices Policy of Non-Money Market Funds

Right to Reject or Restrict Share Transaction Orders — The Fund is intended for investors with long-term investment purposes and is not intended as a vehicle for frequent trading activity (market timing) that is excessive. Investors should transact in Fund shares primarily for investment purposes. The Board has adopted excessive trading policies and procedures that are designed to deter excessive trading by investors (the Excessive Trading Policies and Procedures). The Fund discourages and does not accommodate excessive trading.

The Fund reserves the right to reject, without any prior notice, any buy or transfer order for any reason, and will not be liable for any loss resulting from rejected orders. For example, the Fund may in its sole discretion restrict or reject a buy or transfer order even if the transaction is not subject to the specific limitation described below if the Fund or its agents determine that accepting the order could interfere with efficient management of the Fund's portfolio or is otherwise contrary to the Fund's best interests. The Excessive Trading Policies and Procedures apply equally to buy or transfer transactions communicated directly to the Transfer Agent and to those received by selling agents.

Specific Buying and Transferring Limitations — If a Fund detects that an investor has made two “material round trips” in any 28-day period, it will generally reject the investor's future purchase orders, including transfer buy orders, involving any Fund.

For these purposes, a “round trip” is a purchase or transfer into the Fund followed by a sale or transfer out of the Fund, or a sale or transfer out of the Fund followed by a purchase or transfer into the Fund. A “material” round trip is one that is deemed by the Fund to be material in terms of its amount or its potential detrimental impact on the Fund. Independent of this limit, the Fund may, in its sole discretion, reject future buy orders by any person, group or account that appears to have engaged in any type of excessive trading activity.

These limits generally do not apply to automated transactions or transactions by registered investment companies in a “fund-of-funds” structure. These limits do not apply to payroll deduction contributions by retirement plan participants, transactions initiated by a retirement plan sponsor or certain other retirement plan transactions consisting of rollover transactions, loan repayments and disbursements, and required minimum distribution redemptions. They may be modified or rescinded for accounts held by certain retirement plans to conform to plan limits, for considerations relating to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 or regulations of the Department of Labor, and for certain asset allocation or wrap programs. Accounts known to be under common ownership or control generally will be counted together, but accounts maintained or managed by a common intermediary generally will not be considered to be under common ownership or control. The Fund retains the right to modify these restrictions at any time without prior notice to shareholders. In addition, the Fund may, in its sole discretion, reinstate trading privileges that have been revoked under the Fund's Excessive Trading Policies and Procedures.

Limitations on the Ability to Detect and Prevent Excessive Trading Practices — The Fund takes various steps designed to detect and prevent excessive trading, including daily review of available shareholder transaction information. However, the Fund receives buy, sell or transfer orders through selling agents, and cannot always know of or reasonably detect excessive trading that may be facilitated by selling agents or by the use of the omnibus account arrangements they offer. Omnibus account arrangements are common forms of holding shares of mutual funds, particularly among certain selling agents such as broker-dealers, retirement plans and variable insurance products. These arrangements often permit selling agents to aggregate their clients' transactions and accounts, and in these circumstances, the identity of the shareholders is often not known to the Fund.

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About Fund Shares and Transactions (continued)

Some selling agents apply their own restrictions or policies to underlying investor accounts, which may be more or less restrictive than those described here. This may impact the Fund's ability to curtail excessive trading, even where it is identified. For these and other reasons, it is possible that excessive trading may occur despite the Fund's efforts to detect and prevent it.

Although these restrictions and policies involve judgments that are inherently subjective and may involve some selectivity in their application, the Fund seeks to act in a manner that it believes is consistent with the best interests of shareholders in making any such judgments.

Risks of Excessive Trading — Excessive trading creates certain risks to the Fund's long-term shareholders and may create the following adverse effects:

■	negative impact on the Fund's performance;

■	potential dilution of the value of the Fund's shares;

■	interference with the efficient management of the Fund's portfolio, such as the need to maintain undesirably large cash positions, the need to use its line of credit or the need to buy or sell securities it otherwise would not have bought or sold;

■	losses on the sale of investments resulting from the need to sell securities at less favorable prices; and

■	increased brokerage and administrative costs.

To the extent that the Fund invests significantly in foreign securities traded on markets that close before the Fund's valuation time, it may be particularly susceptible to dilution as a result of excessive trading. Because events may occur after the close of foreign markets and before the Fund's valuation time that influence the value of foreign securities, investors may seek to trade Fund shares in an effort to benefit from their understanding of the value of foreign securities as of the Fund's valuation time. This is often referred to as price arbitrage. The Fund has adopted procedures designed to adjust closing market prices of foreign securities under certain circumstances to reflect what the Fund believes to be the fair value of those securities as of its valuation time. To the extent the adjustments do not work fully, investors engaging in price arbitrage may cause dilution in the value of the Fund's shares held by other shareholders.

Similarly, to the extent that the Fund invests significantly in thinly traded high-yield bonds (junk bonds) or equity securities of small-capitalization companies, because these securities are often traded infrequently, investors may seek to trade Fund shares in an effort to benefit from their understanding of the value of these securities. This is also a type of price arbitrage. Any such frequent trading strategies may interfere with efficient management of the Fund's portfolio to a greater degree than would be the case for mutual funds that invest in highly liquid securities, in part because the Fund may have difficulty selling those portfolio securities at advantageous times or prices to satisfy large and/or frequent sell orders. Any successful price arbitrage may also cause dilution in the value of Fund shares held by other shareholders. The risks of excessive trading described above also apply to any Underlying Funds in which the Fund invests.

Excessive Trading Practices Policy of Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund

A money market fund is designed to offer investors a liquid cash option that they may buy and sell as often as they wish. Accordingly, the Board has not adopted policies and procedures designed to discourage excessive or short-term trading of Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund shares. However, since frequent purchases and sales of Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund shares could in certain instances harm shareholders in various ways, including reducing the returns to long-term shareholders by increasing costs (such as spreads paid to dealers who trade money market instruments with Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund) and disrupting portfolio management strategies, Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund reserves the right, but has no obligation, to reject any purchase or transfer transaction at any time. Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund has no limits on purchase or transfer transactions. In addition, Columbia Variable Portfolio - Government Money Market Fund reserves the right to impose or modify restrictions on purchases, transfers or trading of Fund shares at any time.

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Distributions and Taxes (continued)

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Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund

Columbia Variable Portfolio – U.S. Flexible Moderate Growth Fund