Form W-2 Tax Reporting

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires sponsors of group health plans to report the aggregate cost of applicable employer-sponsored health insurance coverage on an employee's Form W-2. Orginally slated to begin with the 2011 W-2 Forms with a distribution due date of January 31, 2012, the effective date was postponed and will begin with 2012 W-2 Forms with a distribution due date of January 31, 2013.

Government Resources
 Analysis

Government Resources

The IRS has posted additional guidance about the Form W-2 reporting required by the ACA for the cost of employer-sponsored group health plan coverage. The guidance includes a chart detailing the types of coverage to report, transition relief for many employers and questions and answers about the reporting requirements. 5/2/12 (New) 

The IRS has issued Notice 2012-9 to provide additional guidance on the informational reporting to employees of the cost of their employer-sponsored group health plan coverage on Form W-2. The IRS requested public comments on the W-2 reporting requirement in Notice 2011-28. Notice 2012-9 responds to these comments and amends, restates and supersedes Notice 2011-28. Specifically, the new notice includes guidance on the W-2 reporting as it relates to small employers, flexible spending accounts, dental and vision plans, COBRA and health reimbursement arrangements. 1/3/12  

The IRS is offering a webinar on the "Reporting of Employer-Sponsored Health Plan Coverage on Form W-2" on October 31, 2011.  

The IRS created a YouTube video to explain the requirement for reporting health insurance coverage on W-2s. 5/27/11    

Employer-Provided Health Coverage Informational Reporting Requirements: Questions and Answers, IRS, Updated 5/2/12 (New) 

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued interim guidance (Notice 2011-28) to employers on informational reporting on each employee's annual Form W-2 of the cost of the health insurance coverage they sponsor for employees. The IRS emphasized that this new reporting to employees is for their information only, to inform them of the cost of their health coverage, and does not cause excludable employer-provided health coverage to become taxable. 3/30/11    

The IRS has issued Notice 2010-69 which provides interim relief to employers with respect to reporting the cost of coverage under an employer-sponsored group health plan on Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement. Reporting the cost of such coverage will not be mandatory for Forms W-2 issued for 2011. The IRS has determined that this relief is appropriate to provide employers with additional time to make any necessary changes to their payroll systems or procedures in preparation for compliance with the reporting requirement. The IRS is planning to release additional guidance on this reporting requirement before the end of the year.

 

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