The Internal Revenue Service has been sending Letter 5699 to employers that have not complied with their ACA reporting requirements under Internal Revenue Code Section 6056 for the 2015 calendar year.

On May 21, 2018, the IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2018-34 to index the contribution percentages in 2019 for purposes of determining affordability of an employer’s plan under the Affordable Care Act. These updated affordability percentages are effective for taxable years and plan years beginning Jan. 1, 2019. This is a significant increase from the affordability contribution percentages for 2018. As a result, some employers may have additional flexibility with respect to their employee contributions for 2019 to meet the adjusted percentage.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The IRS has issued three new tools for 2018 tax withholding.
• The updates reflect changes made by a tax reform law enacted in 2017.
• Employers must use the new tables but do not have to use the new Form W-4 for 2018.
• An updated calculator allows taxpayers to check withholdings.

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HIGHLIGHTS

• The IRS reduced the HSA contribution limit for 2018 for individuals with family HDHP coverage by $50 to $6,850.
• All other HSA and HDHP limits for 2018 remain the same as those previously announced by the IRS.
• Employees with family HDHP coverage may need to change their HSA elections to comply with the new limit.

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A sure way to avoid ACA-IRS Reporting Fines at your fingertips.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Employers can no longer take a tax deduction for qualified transportation fringe benefits.
• Except for bicycle commuting reimbursements, qualified transportation benefits are still nontaxable to employees.
• Employers that provide paid family and medical leave may qualify for a temporary tax credit.

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On Dec. 22, 2017, the Internal Revenue Service issued Notice 2018-06 to:

On Dec. 20, 2017, the tax reform bill, called the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, passed both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill is expected to be signed into law by President Donald Trump shortly.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The IRS issued guidance on the employer shared responsibility enforcement process.
• The IRS plans to issue Letter 226J to propose and assess employer shared responsibility penalties.
• No penalties have been assessed under the employer shared responsibility rules at this time.

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HIGHLIGHTS

• Employees’ salary reduction contributions to health FSAs are subject to a maximum dollar limit.
• The initial dollar limit was $2,500. For 2017, the dollar limit was increased to $2,600.
• For the 2018 plan year, the health FSA dollar limit will be further increased to $2,650.

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