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If you receive health coverage for yourself or your family through the Health Insurance Marketplace, you will receive a Form 1095-A from your insurer after the year ends. The Form 1095-A only reports medical coverage, not catastrophic coverage or stand-alone dental and vision plans.
The purpose of this form is to provide information about how long you have been covered by the plan, and how much advance premium tax credit (APTC) subsidy you received to assist you in paying the premiums. The amounts recorded on the Form 1095-A are used to reconcile the advance payment received with the actual premium tax credit amount you are due (or must repay).
Additionally, the amount reported on 1095-A can also help you accurately report your eligible premiums for the medical expense deduction on Schedule A or the self-employed health insurance deduction.
While you need to retain your Form 1095-A for your own tax records, you do not need to attach any forms from the 1095 series to your actual tax return.
You will receive one 1095-A for every health insurance policy you had during the 2020 tax year. If you change policies mid-year due to relocation or other life changes, you will receive a separate form from each insurer.
You must contact your Marketplace and confirm you should have a 1095-A. If you receive a Form 1095-A that appears inconsistent with your payment records, you should contact the Marketplace to issue you a corrected form.
If you have coverage that is NOT provided by the marketplace, then you will not receive a Form 1095-A. Private health insurance is not generally eligible for the Advance Premium Tax Credit and no advanced payments are made.
Forms 1095-B and 1095-C are information forms reporting health insurance coverage. While these forms are not needed to file your tax return, you should keep them for your records.
While the individual mandate to have insurance was repealed for 2019 going forward, you may still qualify for insurance-related tax benefits like the medical expense deduction or highly beneficial self-employment health insurance deduction if you are self-employed.
Additionally, if you are a resident of California, District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, or Vermont, these states have their own individual mandates and you may need to prove you had coverage throughout the year.
About the Author
Jo Willetts, Director of Tax Resources at Jackson Hewitt, has more than 25 years of experience in the tax industry. As an Enrolled Agent, Jo has attained the highest level of certification for a tax professional. She began her career at Jackson Hewitt as a Tax Pro, working her way up to General Manager of a franchise store. In her current role, Jo provides expert knowledge company-wide to ensure that tax information distributed through all Jackson Hewitt channels is current and accurate.
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UPDATED ON: December 23, 2020
In late December 2020, Congress passed the Omnibus Spending Bill which included the COVID Tax Reform Act of 2020 (COVIDTRA 2020). It’s an extension to the CARES Act designed to provide additional help to protect businesses and individuals from the economic effects of the Coronavirus.
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