IRS Releases Final 2018 Forms 1094 and 1095 and Related Instructions and Publications

The IRS has finalized Forms 1094/1095-B (B Forms) and Forms 1094/1095-C (C Forms), and related instructions, for the 2018 tax year. As a reminder, the B Forms are filed by minimum essential coverage providers (mostly insurers and government-sponsored programs, but also some self-insuring employers and others) to report coverage information in accordance with Code § 6055. The C Forms are filed by applicable large employers (ALEs) to comply with Code § 6056, providing information that the IRS needs to administer employer shared responsibility under Code § 4980H, as well as receipt of premium tax credits. (In addition to being filed with the IRS, Forms 1095-B and 1095-C are furnished to individuals.) ALEs with self-insured health plans also report coverage information on Form 1095-C.

The forms and instructions are largely unchanged from 2017. The Plan Start Month box continues to be optional on Form 1095-C for 2018. Parts I and III of Form 1095-C include separate fields for each individual’s first name, middle initial, and last name, rather than a single blank for the individual’s full name. (This change is reflected in the C Form instructions; a similar change is made to Parts I and IV of Form 1095-B.) Penalty amounts for reporting failures reflect indexed increases. Both sets of instructions explain, as in prior years, that the 250-return threshold that triggers mandatory electronic filing with the IRS applies separately for each type of form (i.e., separately for Form 1095-B and 1095-C) and for original and corrected returns. The IRS has also released updated Publications 5164, 5165, 5258, and 5308, which provide technical details related to electronic filing.

EBIA Comment: Those responsible for filing will undoubtedly appreciate the absence of large changes from the 2017 forms and instructions. Notably, the instructions do not refer to proposed regulations that would require aggregation of most information returns when determining the 250-return threshold for mandatory electronic filing (see our Checkpoint article), seemingly indicating a delay in the proposed January 1, 2019 effective date. The instructions update the filing deadlines—January 31, 2019, to furnish returns to individuals; February 28, 2019, to file with the IRS on paper; and April 1, 2019, to file with the IRS electronically. These deadlines come quickly after the end of the year, so it is essential to have a strategy for collecting and organizing the required information. For more information, see EBIA’s Form 1094/1095 Workbook at Sections VII (“Form 1094-C: Transmittal of Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage Information Returns”) and VIII (“Form 1095-C Report/Employee Statement: Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage”). See also EBIA’s Health Care Reform manual at Sections XXXVI.C (“Information Reporting of Minimum Essential Coverage (Insurers and Employers That Self-Insure)”) and XXXVI.D (“Information Reporting of Employer-Sponsored Coverage (Applicable Large Employers)”). You may also be interested in our upcoming webinar “1094/1095 Reporting for 2018” (live on 11/15/2018).

Contributing Editors: EBIA Staff.