It is important to know what information to gather before you begin the ACA reporting process. We’ve identified the following 7 key topics that may help with completing your ACA reporting in our Getting Started Checklist.
Getting Started Checklist – ACA Reporting
Identify common law employees
First, you will need to identify all common law employees. According to the IRS, anyone who performs services for you is your employee if you can control what will be done and how it will be done.
Identify full-time employees for each month
Next, you’ll want to identify full-time employees for each month. The IRS is very specific regarding how it counts full-time employees.
Click here to find additional help calculating the number of full-time employees.
Verify your employees’ TIN information
Verifying your employees’ TINs prior to filing is crucial to avoid having to re-file your forms, issue corrected forms to employees, and avoid potentially hefty fines from the IRS.
TINCorrect: Payee Verification Made Easy
Calculate whether you have satisfied the thresholds of ACA requirements
Beginning in Tax Year 2016, an employer must offer at least 95% of full-time employees affordable coverage.
Determine which affordability safe harbor to use
You will need to determine if the coverage offered is affordable using 1 of the 3 available safe harbors.
Determine a contact phone number for forms you’ll send to your employees
Probably one of the easier parts of the ACA preparation process, you will need to make sure your employees have a good contact number to reach you if they have questions about their Form 1095-C.
Self-insured plans need to identify covered individuals (employee, spouse, and their dependents) and their social security numbers. A date of birth will work in lieu of a social security number if you’ve made a reasonable attempt to gather these SSNs.
Looking for additional information?
Check out our Knowledge Base for answers to our most popular questions regarding ACA Reporting. You can also contact us at [email protected].
If you’d like to learn more about ACA reporting, keep reading here:
- ACA Draft Instructions Released
- Form 1095-C Import Spreadsheet
- Prepare Employees for 1095-C Form
- ACA Reporting Deadlines
- New Updates for Non-Calendar Year Plans
- IRS Releases AIR Production Shutdown/Cutover Schedule
- BoomTax API: A RESTful API for the IRS AIR System
- Secure Your Account with Our SecureWipe Service
- Two Factor Authentication Now Available
- Looking for an ACA filing solution?
- Free ACA E-filing Service for Small Businesses
BoomTax, The Boom Post, and its affiliates do not provide tax, legal or accounting advice. This material has been prepared for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on for, tax, legal or accounting advice. You should consult your own tax, legal and accounting advisors prior to engaging in any transaction.