IRS Delays ACA Reporting Requirement

The IRS recently issued Notice 2016-70 granting an automatic 30-day extension for Applicable Large Employers (ALEs) to furnish Form 1095-C to full-time employees. Under the existing reporting rules of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), ALEs normally need to issue the 2016 Form 1095-C to all full-time employees by January 31, 2017. Under Notice 2016-70, ALEs have until March 2, 2017, to distribute the 1095-Cs to full-time employees. This extension also applies to insurers and other providers of minimum essential coverage who will be furnishing the Form 1095-B to individuals who are enrolled in such coverage. The IRS notes that any requests for a 30-day extension that were previously filed by employers will be ignored.

We do want to stress that only the January 31 deadline to furnish Forms 1095-B and 1095-C to employees has been extended. The deadline to file these 1095 forms along with the transmittal Forms 1094-B and 1094-C with the IRS has not changed! The deadline remains February 28, 2017, if not filing electronically, or March 31, 2017, if filing electronically, which is required for any ALEs issuing 250 or more Form 1095. Employers may still request an extension of this February 28/March 31 deadline by filing a Form 8809 with the IRS.

Finally, the IRS has also extended the transition relief from penalties under the Internal Revenue Code to employers and reporting entities that can show that they made “good-faith efforts” to comply with the reporting requirements.

If you have questions or concerns regarding your ACA reporting duties, please contact Jillian Gordon Foerster (210-554-5365 or jgfoerster@dykema.com), Josh Sutin (210-554-5309 or jsutin@dykema.com), Amy Christen (248-203-0760 or achristen@dykema.com), or your Dykema relationship attorney.