Learn about the 1095 form, what it is, and how to use it. Specifically, we'll go over the 1095-A, 1095-B, and 1095-C forms and their differences.
If you are enrolled in a health insurance plan, then you will receive a 1095 form from your insurance provider at the beginning of each tax year. There are 3 different types of the 1095 form you might receive.
You could get a 1095 A, B, or C form. These documents report your health insurance coverage to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). It verifies that you and any dependents had the minimum essential coverage (MEC) for health insurance.
Which of these 3 documents you get will depend on a few factors like what kind of health coverage you have and from where.
In this article, we’ll go over each of these tax forms and the differences between them so you can know what to expect.
What is a 1095 Form?
The 1095 form is a tax form that provides information about an individual's health insurance coverage and is used to verify compliance with the Affordable Care Act.
There are 3 types of 1095 forms: The 1095 A form, 1095 B form, and 1095 C form. All three of these versions provide information about the terms of your health insurance coverage.
Primarily it shows whether individuals and their dependents had health insurance coverage for the tax year and if that coverage met the individual shared responsibility provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
What is the Affordable Care Act?
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is a health care reform law that was enacted in 2010. This law endeavors to make affordable health care more available to more people.
It helps people find and enroll in health insurance that they can afford and take part in tax credits that help lower health insurance costs for low-income households.
There is a provision in the ACA that requires most individuals to have minimum essential coverage each year.
If individuals do not meet this requirement, they could have to pay a penalty fee. Your 1095 form will help report your coverage and compliance to the ACA to the IRS.
The 1095 A Form
The 1095 A form is a tax form used to report insurance plan information if you are enrolled with insurance through the Marketplace Exchange.
The 1095 A tax form can also be referenced as the Health Insurance Marketplace Statement. This tax document is for anyone who has health insurance through the Heath Insurance Marketplace, also called the Health Insurance Exchange or Marketplace.
What is the Health Insurance Marketplace?
The Health Insurance Marketplace can also be called the Health Insurance Exchange or just the Marketplace. The Marketplace is a service from the government that helps people find and enroll in affordable health insurance. Individuals can access this service online at HealthCare.gov where they can make use of these services online or over the phone.
Your 1095 form will be given to you by the Marketplace each year and you'll include this form when filing your income tax return (or form 1040).
This form will include information like your insurance plan, premiums, premium tax credits, and any other information about your plan.
The 1095 B Form
The 1095 B form is a tax form that reports minimum essential coverage for those who have insurance through a government-sponsored or private health plan.
This form can also be referenced as the Health Coverage Form. It outlines the type of coverage, the months the coverage was provided for, and the names of those covered by the plan.
The 1095 C Form
The 1095 C form is a tax form for employees who are enrolled in an employer-provided health insurance plan.
The 1095 C tax form is also referenced as the Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage Insurance Form. If an employer has 50 or more full-time employees, and provides a health insurance plan, then they will provide this form to their employees during the tax season.
This form includes information about the employer-provided health insurance plan like the coverage offered, monthly premiums, enrolled months, and contributions to the plan.
1095 A vs 1095 B Forms
The 1095 A and the 1095 B forms are similar in that they both outline and report on a person's health insurance coverage.
But they are different because tax form 1095 A is for people with health insurance from the Health Insurance Marketplace and the 1095 B is for people with health insurance from a government-sponsored or private health plan.
These forms also provide slightly different information about your health insurance plan.
The 1095 A form outlines information about the premium tax credit. This is a subsidy provided by the government to help lower-income individuals pay for health insurance premiums. It also outlines information about the coverage purchased and the months the coverage was in effect.
Meanwhile, the 1095 B form outlines information about the months the person had minimum essential coverage. This shows that the person met the MEC requirements of the ACA.
1095 A vs 1095 C Forms
The 1095 A and the 1095 C forms are similar in that they both outline and report on a person's health insurance coverage.
But they are different because the 1095 A is for people with health insurance from the Health Insurance Marketplace and the 1095 C is for people with health insurance from their employer.
These forms also provide slightly different information about your health insurance plan.
The 1095 A form outlines information about the premium credits to help lower-income individuals pay for health insurance premiums. It also outlines information about the coverage purchased and the months the coverage was in effect.
Meanwhile, the 1095 C outlines information about the health insurance coverage the employee offers, the employee's share of the monthly premium, the months the employee was enrolled, and employer contributions to the health plan.
How Do I Get My 1095 Form?
To get your 1095 form you will either receive the form in the mail or need to contact your health insurance provider. Your health insurance provider may send you a hardcopy of your 1095 in the mail or you may need to log into an online account with your health insurance to download a digital copy.
You want to receive this form by January 31st each year so that you have enough time filing your return with all your documents. If February comes and you still haven't gotten your form, you may need to contact your health insurance provider directly.
If you get your insurance through the Marketplace, then you can get the documents you need through HealthCare.gov. This website will usually have forms ready to download by mid-January.
How to Use the 1095 Tax Form
The first thing you should do when you get this form is read over it to double-check that all the information is correct.
If you find an error, contact your insurance provider directly to get the error corrected. One possible error that could occur is if something changed within your household (like having a baby, getting married, getting divorced, or a death in the family) and you forgot to update your plan accordingly.
You will also need the 1095 form so that you can fill out form 8962, if this applies to you. This is the Premium Tax Credit Form.
This form will help calculate the difference between how much of this tax credit you qualify for and how much you actually used. This action is sometimes referred to as “reconciling.”
