Quick Tips: Managing Your Health Insurance Docs

April 10, 2016 Robert Sheen Affordable Care Act, Applicable Large Employer (ALE), Health Care Coverage, Tax Filings

As you prepare your 2015 tax return, keep in mind that new health insurance coverage documents may reach your mailbox this year that you hadn’t seen previously. As the Affordable Care Act has made a move to promise affordable health care coverage for all, mandatory forms reflecting the health coverage of many individuals will be sent to them this year. The forms need not be filed with your tax return but they contain information about your healthcare coverage in order to help you complete your tax return.

For most, the only line item on the actual 2015 tax return is a box to check, which indicates that yes you (and your dependents) did in fact have coverage for the entire year. No further input is needed. Proof of such coverage will be mailed as one of three forms: Form 1095A – Health Insurance Marketplace Statement, which indicates you received your health care coverage through the Health Insurance Marketplace, Form 1095B – Health Coverage, which details health care coverage for those who received minimal essential coverage through an insurer or health plan sponsor, and Form 1095C – Employer Provided Health Insurance Offer And Coverage, which reflects coverage (or lack thereof) for those who were full-time employees for one or more months for an applicable large employer (ALE).

While these forms will not be submitted to the IRS, they should be retained in your records for a minimum of three years after filing, along with your other tax documents. If you do not receive these forms, you will need to obtain the same information through any applicable health care coverage you and your dependents may have had, including the timeframe within which you and your dependents had minimum essential coverage and paid premium information.

Should you be claiming a premium tax credit, you must file Form 8962 – Premium Tax Credit – with your 2015 tax return. For any approved exemptions for health care coverage, you must file Form 8965 – Health Coverage Exemptions – with your 2015 tax return. Be sure to keep copies of these forms and all other tax documentation together for the applicable year. When it comes to tax documents, organization is key. For more information on this and any other aspects of the Affordable Care Act tax filing, visit here for the IRS website.

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