How to Choose the Right ACA Reporting Vendor?

When choosing your ACA vendor, make sure that they are an IRS authorized provider. This guarantees that the vendor provides ACA reporting that is in line with the standards of the IRS.

Be sure that the vendor has the ability to file ACA Forms electronically with the IRS. This means that they have a transmittal control code that allows them to transmit your returns through the IRS AIR System.

The IRS makes changes in the ACA reporting requirements every year. The vendor’s software must be able to adapt to these changes.

Look for a vendor with an in-house expert or specialist. They will be able to guide you through the process. An expert will alert you to any changes in the ACA laws that apply to the specific needs of your business.

If possible, review the vendor’s previous reporting experience.

The vendor should have the ability to handle the expansive amount of employee data that you are providing to them. This data must be tracked and reported accurately to maintain ACA compliance. The vendor should be able to handle all of the file formats that you use, including Excel, and CSV

The vendor should have experience dealing with many types of reporting scenarios such as COBRA coverage, rehires, and terminations.

The IRS requires employers to file an ACA Form 1095-C for every employee in their organization. This form should provide information about the offer of health insurance coverage as well as the safe harbor codes for every employee. Many employers don’t have enough experience in generating these codes and that can lead to errors and penalties.

Make sure that your vendor has experience in generating ACA codes with 100% accuracy.

Most businesses have a payroll or benefits administrator and a risk management team that are responsible for payroll and IRS filings.

Confirm your vendor is able to send generated ACA 1095 Forms or has a risk department team available to review forms, as well as available to assist employers in avoiding common errors prior to submitting forms to the IRS.

A few states like New Jersey, D.C., etc. mandate health care reporting. So, before choosing a vendor make sure they’re capable of handling filing with these states as well.

Late filing leads to tremendous penalties, confirm your vendor has provided you with a clear plan before signing for the reporting needs. As a result, employers are better prepared when it comes to ACA reporting prior to deadlines, ensuring ontime filing to avoid paying unnecessary penalties.

The IRS mandates employers to send copies to each employee. This can be more stressful for employers to print and mail copies to employees.

Be sure your vendor has the ability to handle high volume print and postal mailing for you and distribute the employee copies ontime.

After submitting your forms, the IRS validates them & provides a status update for each return. Sometimes forms are accepted with errors, while some forms may be rejected.

Your vendor should guide you on how to correct any errors & resubmit them with the IRS. Even though forms get rejected, your vendor should assist you further with understanding why your forms were rejected and assist with filing the correct information with the IRS.

Learn more about ACA Form corrections.

• Risk Assessment: If you receive any letters related to penalties from the IRS, your vendor should be able to assist you in responding properly.
• Your vendor should be transparent during each step of the ACA Reporting process.