On Dec. 22, 2017, the IRS released Notice 2018-06, which delays the date by which informational statements must be provided to individuals and provides transitional good faith relief for reasonable mistakes made in reporting Sections 6055 and 6056 information about 2017.
Specifically, the due date for providing individuals with Form 1095-B (by a carrier or self-insured employer) and Form 1095-C (by an applicable large employer) has been extended by 30 days, to March 2, 2018 (changed from Jan. 31, 2018). The deadline for filing these forms with the IRS hasn’t changed. That date remains April 2, 2018, if filing electronically, or Feb. 28, 2018, if not filing electronically. If an employer doesn’t comply with the deadlines, the employer could be subject to penalties.
Despite the extended due date, employers and other coverage providers are encouraged to furnish 2017 statements as soon as they’re able. But if individuals haven’t received these forms by the time they file their individual tax returns, they may rely upon other information received from employers or coverage providers to attest that they had minimum essential coverage as required by the individual mandate. Individuals need not amend their returns once they receive the forms, but they should keep them with their tax records.
In addition, Notice 2018-06 extends good faith effort relief to employers for incorrect or incomplete returns filed in 2018 (as to 2017 information). The IRS previously provided relief for penalties stemming from 2017 reporting failures (as to 2016 data), and the relief appears to be outlined in the 2017 Instructions for Forms 1094-C and 1095-C. Accordingly, for 2017 and prior filings, relief is available to entities that could show that they made good faith efforts to comply with the information reporting requirements, even if they reported incorrect or incomplete information. In determining what constitutes a good faith effort, the IRS will take into account whether an employer or other coverage provider made reasonable efforts to prepare for reporting, such as gathering and transmitting the necessary data to a reporting service provider or testing its ability to use the AIR electronic submission process. This relief doesn’t apply to a failure to timely furnish or file a statement or return, and doesn’t extend to employer mandate penalties (for large employers that didn’t offer affordable coverage to full-time employees pursuant to the ACA’s employer mandate).
IRS Notice 2018-06 »