Health care reform places two new reporting requirements on employers starting next year. The guidance offers specific clarifications for controlled groups. For reference, a controlled group is determined from the basic IRS definitions under Code section 414(b), (c), (m), or (o).
Section 6055 reporting
The Section 6055 report requires any employer offering a self-funded health plan to document to the IRS and to employees that the plan offers minimum essential coverage.
- One employer member of a controlled group may file reports with the IRS and furnish employee statements on behalf of all members.
- Each employer member of the controlled group is responsible for ensuring that the reporting requirement is satisfied for its employees. This holds true even if another employer member files the report on its behalf.
Section 6056 reporting
All applicable large employers (those with at least 50 or more full-time employees, including full-time equivalents) must file the Section 6056 report. It indicates to the IRS and to employees that they offer affordable, minimum value coverage to all full-time employees and their dependents in accordance with the Employer Shared Responsibility provision.
- When determining if a controlled group is an applicable large employer, the employees of all employer members are considered.
- If a full-time employee performs services for multiple employer members of a controlled group during a given calendar month, the employee is treated as an employee of the employer for which she worked the majority of hours. Only one employee statement from one employer in the controlled group will be provided to the employee.
- Reporting is required on an employer-by-employer basis for each employer in the group. Each member of the group will be responsible for making its own reporting and providing its own employee statements using its own Employer Identification Number (EIN).
For a look at how all employers can comply with Section 6055 and Section 6056 reporting, please review our resources.
