by Susan Burnoski, CPA, Director of Audit & Assurance, Senior Manager
While the Affordable Care Act (ACA) individual mandate for having health insurance will be eliminated in 2019, the employer mandate to offer health insurance to employees remains. Therefore, employers need to be aware of the reporting requirements to avoid the significant penalties for noncompliance. Apple Growth Partners can ensure your company has a plan to meet these critical reporting requirements to prevent massive financial consequences.
Documentation and Deadlines
Instructions for employers and final forms for the 2018 reporting year are now available through the IRS. Completed forms to employees are due by January 31, 2019, and filed with the IRS by February 28, 2019, for paper filing and April 1, 2019, for electronic filing.
Noncompliance Penalties
The IRS has begun to issue notices for noncompliance for both reporting and coverage for calendar years 2015 and 2016. Companies will face financial penalties in 2018 for:
- Failure to offer minimum essential coverage – $2,320 per employee
- Failure to offer coverage that meets affordability and minimum value – $3,480 per employee
Not complying with reporting requirements – $270/per return
Better Late Than Never
If your company is behind in the ACA mandates, filing late is better than not filing at all. Late filing results in reduced penalties, lowering to $100/per return. Partnering with Apple Growth Partners to help complete the requirements ensures all forms are correctly completed and filed accordingly to reduce any or all penalties.
We Can Help
The ACA reporting requirements are applicable for any employer that is self-insured or has 50 full-time or full-time equivalent (FTE) employees (also known as an Applicable Large Employer (ALE)). If your company is an ALE and has not complied with reporting requirements, our expert team can help. Contact me today to review your progress to ensure an action plan is in place with the upcoming deadlines.