Do I need 1095-A and Form 8962 if I'm on my parents' health insurance but filing separately?

This is actually a pretty common situation! The key issue is that Form 1095-A is for Marketplace insurance plans, which is different from most employer plans or other types of insurance. If your parents purchased their insurance through the Health Insurance Marketplace (Healthcare.gov or a state exchange) and received premium tax credits (which is what Form 8962 is used to reconcile), then yes - this gets complicated when family members file separately. Here's what you need to know: When someone receives premium tax credits through the Marketplace, those credits need to be reconciled on the tax return of whoever enrolled in the coverage (in this case, your father). If you're not a dependent but were covered under their policy, you don't actually need to file Form 8962 or use the 1095-A. What you should do is check Box A in the Full-year health care coverage or exempt section on your Form 1040. This indicates you had coverage all year. You shouldn't need to include any information from your parents' 1095-A on your return at all. Your parents will be responsible for filing Form 8962 with their return using the full 1095-A information. The software might be confused because you indicated Marketplace coverage somewhere in your entries.

I ran into the EXACT same nightmare last year with my taxes. I was on my mom's Marketplace plan while living in a different state and filing my own taxes. After going in circles with TurboTax and spending hours on the phone, I finally found the solution using taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai). Their system actually recognized this specific situation right away. You upload your documents and explain your situation, and they'll tell you exactly how to handle it in whatever tax software you're using. For me, they pointed out that I needed to indicate I had "other qualifying health coverage" rather than "Marketplace coverage" since I wasn't the policyholder. They also provided specific guidance on which screens in TurboTax were causing the confusion. The best part was they explained why the software gets confused on this - apparently it's a super common issue their tax experts see all the time with young adults on parent's Marketplace plans.

I wanted to update on my situation since I was skeptical but decided to try taxr.ai after getting nowhere with my tax software. It was honestly exactly what I needed! I uploaded my documents and explained my situation (covered on parents' marketplace plan part of year, then my own plan). Within a couple hours, they gave me specific instructions for how to handle it in TurboTax. Turns out I was answering a question wrong early in the healthcare section that was causing the software to demand forms I didn't have. They showed me exactly which screens were causing the problem and how to fix my entries. The best part was they explained WHY the software was confused so I actually understand the issue now. I was able to file successfully yesterday and my return was already accepted by the IRS. Such a relief after weeks of frustration!

Anyone who's dealt with the IRS knows how impossible it is to get someone on the phone for situations like this. I spent 3 weeks trying to get through to someone about a similar insurance form issue last year. I finally discovered Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) and it completely changed everything. They have this system that navigates the IRS phone tree for you and gets you connected to an actual human being. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c When I had issues with my 1095-A and 8962 forms last year, I used their service and got connected to an IRS agent in about 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours or getting disconnected. The agent was able to look up my information and confirm exactly what I needed to do. For situations like yours where you're getting conflicting advice, speaking directly with the IRS is really the best way to get a definitive answer. They can actually see your tax history and tell you exactly what to do.

I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After posting that skeptical comment, I was desperate enough to try it anyway because I couldn't get through to the IRS about my 1095-A issue. It actually worked exactly as described. Their system navigated all the annoying IRS phone menus and got me in the queue, then called me when an agent was about to pick up. I spoke directly with an IRS representative who confirmed exactly what I needed to do about my marketplace insurance forms. The IRS agent told me that in my situation (similar to the OP's), I didn't need to include the 1095-A information on my return since I wasn't the policyholder. They explained exactly which box to check in my tax software. Saved me hours of frustration and probably saved me from filing incorrectly. I'm honestly shocked at how well it worked after weeks of trying to get through on my own.

This comes up every year with my clients. Here's the simplest explanation: The premium tax credit (which is what Form 8962 is for) can only be claimed by the person who enrolled in the Marketplace coverage. That's your father. If you're not being claimed as a dependent, you should NOT be including any 1095-A information on your return. Period. Your TurboTax is getting confused because you probably indicated somewhere that you had Marketplace coverage. Start over with the healthcare section and when it asks what type of insurance you had, do NOT select Marketplace/Exchange coverage. Instead, choose "other qualifying health coverage" and indicate you were covered all year. That should bypass the 1095-A requirement. Your parents will need to reconcile the FULL premium tax credit on their return using the complete 1095-A, including the amounts that covered you.

Has anyone dealt with this situation while using H&R Block instead of TurboTax? I'm having the exact same problem but with different tax software and can't figure out how to bypass the 1095-A requirement.

I went through this exact same situation two years ago and it was incredibly frustrating! The key thing that finally worked for me was understanding that the tax software assumes if you had Marketplace coverage, YOU were the policyholder who needs to reconcile the premium tax credits. Here's what I learned after dealing with this mess: When your parents enrolled in the Marketplace plan and received premium tax credits, the IRS has a record of your father as the policyholder. The system expects HIM to file Form 8962 with the complete 1095-A information to reconcile those credits. For your return, you need to indicate you had qualifying health coverage without triggering the Marketplace forms. In most tax software, this means being very careful about how you answer the insurance questions. Don't select "Marketplace coverage" - instead choose options like "other qualifying coverage" or "covered under someone else's plan." The reason everyone is giving you different advice is because this is a really common area of confusion, even among tax professionals. But the IRS is clear: premium tax credits are reconciled by the person who enrolled in the coverage, not by each family member covered under the policy. Your parents' accountant is absolutely right about not splitting the 1095-A. That would create a nightmare with the IRS because their records show one policy with one set of premium tax credits, not multiple partial claims.

I'm a tax preparer and see this exact situation multiple times every tax season. You're getting conflicting advice because this is genuinely one of the most confusing areas of tax law, but the solution is actually straightforward once you understand the underlying rules. The core issue is that premium tax credits from Marketplace plans can only be reconciled by the person who enrolled in the coverage - your father. Since you're not being claimed as a dependent, you have no obligation to report anything from their 1095-A on your return. Here's the step-by-step fix for TurboTax: 1. Go back to the health insurance section and delete your previous entries 2. When asked if you had health insurance, answer YES 3. When asked what TYPE of coverage, select "Other qualifying health coverage" or "Covered by someone else's insurance" - NOT "Marketplace coverage" 4. Indicate you had coverage for all 12 months This will satisfy the individual mandate reporting without triggering the 1095-A requirements. Your parents will handle Form 8962 with the complete 1095-A information on their return. The reason TurboTax keeps rejecting your return is because the software thinks YOU purchased Marketplace coverage and received premium tax credits that need to be reconciled. By changing how you categorize your coverage type, you'll bypass this entirely. Don't let your parents' late filing timeline hold up your refund - you can file independently once you fix these entries.