On June 16, 2015, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released draft forms for 2015 to help employers prepare for the new information reporting provisions under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Certain employers are required to report for the first time in early 2016 for calendar year 2015.
The reporting requirements come under IRS Code Sections 6055 and 6056. The purpose of the reporting is primarily to gather information from employers about the health plan coverage they offer (or do not offer) or provide to their employees, as well as their compliance with the employer shared responsibility provisions (“pay or play”). This reporting will be done through the applicable forms listed below:
- Form 1094-B and Form 1095-B will be used by entities reporting under Section 6055, including sponsors of self-insured group health plans that are not reporting as applicable large employers
- Form 1094-C and Form 1095-C will be used by applicable large employers that are reporting under Section 6056, as well as for combined reporting by applicable large employers who sponsor self-insured plans that are required to report under both Sections 6055 and 6056
As a reminder, these forms must be filed with the IRS annually, no later than February 28 (or March 31, if filed electronically) of the year following the calendar year to which the return relates. The first returns required to be filed are for the 2015 calendar year and are due no later than February 29, 2016, (February 28, 2016, being a Sunday), or March 31, 2016, if filed electronically.
Any reporting entity that is required to file at least 250 returns must file electronically.
Applicable large employers (generally those with 50 or more full-time employees, including full-time equivalents) will need to action now to identify how their organization will fulfill these reporting requirements.
While many payroll providers and some benefits administration systems are adding functionality to handle this reporting, there are alternative, standalone solutions as well.
To learn how CBG Benefits can help your organization understand and meet its ACA compliance requirements, please contact our team at 781-759-1222 or via email at info@CBGBenefits.com.