COMPLIANCE CORNER
Welcome to Apta Health's Compliance Corner, where transparency meets expertise in your new benefit program. We understand the evolving nature of compliance and how it can quickly become complex. At Apta Health, our commitment to transparency ensures that you receive accurate and actionable information. Our webpage serves as a reliable resource for groups and advisors, offering insights, updates, and solutions tailored to navigate new compliance laws effortlessly.
Types of Coverage Subject to Form W-2 Reporting
December 2024
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires employers to report the aggregate cost of employer-sponsored group health coverageon employees’ Forms W-2. This reporting requirement is intended to provide employees with useful and comparableinformation on the cost of their health coverage. It does not cause employer-provided health coverage to become taxable.
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This ACA Overview includes a chart provided by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to outline the types of coverage subject tothe Form W-2 reporting requirement. This chart reviews the Form W-2 reporting requirements for health coverage and has noimpact on requirements to report these items elsewhere.
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It includes only the information that must be reported in box 12 of Form W-2, using Code DD, as required under InternalRevenue Code (Code) Section 6051(a)(14) (enacted as part of the ACA). It does not cover any existing Form W-2 reportingrequirements.
Links & Resources
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This chart is available on the IRS website
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The information in this chart is based, in part, on IRS Notice 2012-9
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IRS Questions & Answers on Form W-2 reporting are available
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Form W-2 and general instructions are also available
Coverage Chart
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This chart includes information that must be reported in box 12 of Form W-2, using Code DD .
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"Optional" items are designated this way based on transition relief, and their optional status may be changed by future IRS guidance.
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Any change will not be applicable until the tax year beginning at least six months after the date that the new guidance is issued.​
Effective Date
W-2 reporting is optional for small employers (those that filed fewer than 250 Forms W-2 for the preceding calendaryear) until the IRS issues further guidance.
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All other employers were required to comply with this reporting requirement beginning in 2012.
*This ACA reporting does not apply to amounts contributed to an Archer MSA or amounts contributed to an HSA. Those amountsare already required to be separately accounted for on the Form W-2. Thus, even small employers must report all employercontributions (including an employee's contributions through a cafeteria plan) to an HSA on Form W-2.
