The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Oct. 12 announced that it will defer a new provision contained in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that requires employers to report the cost of coverage under an employer-sponsored group health plan, so that it will not be mandatory to report that information on Forms W-2 issued for 2011.
According to a statement by the IRS, “this relief is appropriate to provide employers with additional time to make any necessary changes to their payroll systems or procedures in preparation for compliance with the reporting requirement.”
Although reporting the cost of coverage under an employer-sponsored group health plan by employers is optional in 2011, the IRS continues to stress that the amounts reportable are not taxable and that the reporting requirement is intended to be informational only.
It is expected that the IRS will issue further guidance on the reporting requirement.
A draft Form W-2 for 2011 may be viewed, here http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/draft_w-2.pdf
Further information may be found on the IRS website, www.irs.gov.