01 Feb IRS Updates FAQs Related to 6055/6056 Reporting
The long-standing IRS FAQs related to reporting under sections 6055 and 6056 on requirements provided by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) have been updated in January 2016 to reflect new information. Final instructions for both the1094-B and 1095-B and the 1094-C and 1095-C were released in September 2015, as were the final forms for 1094-B, 1095-B, 1094-C, and 1095-C. On December 28, 2015, inNotice 2016-04, the IRS extended the information reporting due dates for insurers, self-insuring employers, other health coverage providers and applicable large employers. The updated FAQs take the information from Notice 2016-04 into account.
The 6056 FAQ, which discusses information reporting for applicable large employers (ALEs), and the 6055 FAQ, which discusses reporting on minimum essential coverage (MEC), clarify that the deadlines for fixing mistakes on forms has been extended due to the overall extension for information reporting. For statements furnished to individuals under sections 6055 and 6056, any failures that reporting entities correct by April 30 and October 1, 2016, respectively, will be subject to reduced penalties.
The 6056 FAQ also clarified that an employer may only issue one 1095-C per full-time employee.