Instructions For Form 8965 - Health Coverage Exemptions

Department of the Treasury

Internal Revenue Service

2017 Instructions for Form 8965

Health Coverage

For each month you must either:

Exemptions

Have Health Coverage

See the instructions for your tax return for

information on reporting full-year coverage.

(and Instructions

for Figuring Your

Claim a Coverage Exemption

on Form 8965

Shared

Responsibility

Make a Shared Responsibility

Payment

Payment)

See Shared Responsibility Payment for information on

how to figure your shared responsibility payment.

your tax household is claiming a coverage exemption on your tax

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless otherwise

noted.

return, complete Part II or Part III of Form 8965. Depending on

your situation, you may need to complete one or more parts of

Future developments.

the form.

Shared responsibility payment. You must make a shared re-

For the latest information about developments related to Form

sponsibility payment if, for any month, you or another member of

8965 and its instructions, such as legislation enacted after they

your tax household didn't have health care coverage (referred to

were published, go to IRS.gov/Form8965.

“minimum essential

coverage”) or a coverage exemption. See

Shared Responsibility

Payment, later, to figure your payment, if

What's New

any. Report your shared responsibility payment on your tax re-

turn (Form 1040, line 61; Form 1040A, line 38; or Form 1040EZ,

line 11).

Changes to coverage exemptions. Some changes have

been made to the coverage exemptions available for 2017. See

Who Must File

the

Types of Coverage Exemptions

chart to review the coverage

exemptions that are available.

File Form 8965 to report or claim a coverage exemption if all of

the following apply.

General Instructions

You are filing a Form 1040, 1040A, or 1040EZ (even if you

are filing it because you are a dual-status alien for your first year

Purpose of Form

of U.S. residency or a nonresident or dual-status alien who elec-

ted to file a joint return with a U.S. spouse),

The individual shared responsibility provision requires each indi-

You can't be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer,

vidual to have health care coverage, have a health coverage ex-

For one or more months of 2017, you or someone else in

emption, or make a shared responsibility payment with their tax

your tax household didn't have minimum essential coverage,

return. Use Form 8965 to report a coverage exemption granted

and

by the Marketplace (also called the “Exchange”) or to claim a

You want to report or claim a coverage exemption for your-

coverage exemption on your tax return. In addition, use these in-

self or another member of your tax household.

structions to figure your shared responsibility payment if for any

Attach Form 8965 to your tax return (Form 1040, Form 1040A, or

month you or another member of your

tax household

(defined

Form 1040EZ).

later) had neither health care coverage nor a coverage exemp-

Form 8965 is used only to claim and report coverage

tion.

exemptions. If you are unable to check the Full-year

TIP

Reminder: If you need health coverage, visit

coverage box on your tax return, you don’t need to re-

to learn about health insurance options

port the months when you and other members of your tax house-

that are available for you and your family, how to purchase

hold had minimum essential coverage on Form 8965, but you

health insurance, and how you might qualify to get financial as-

may need to report a shared responsibility payment on your

sistance with the cost of insurance.

Form 1040, 1040A, or 1040EZ. First check to see if you’re eligi-

ble for any coverage exemptions for some or all of the months

Coverage exemptions. If you or another member of your tax

that you or a member of your tax household weren’t covered.

household was granted a coverage exemption from the Market-

place, complete Part I of Form 8965. If you or another member of

-1-

Dec 20, 2017

Cat. No. 60810G

Instructions For Form 8965 - Health Coverage Exemptions - 2016

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