HSA Premium Pass Through - How to count it correctly on Form 8889?

The HSA premium pass through should definitely be reported as your employer's contribution on Form 8889, not as your own contribution. This goes on line 9 of the form where it specifically asks for amounts contributed to your HSA by your employer. The key thing to remember is that HSA contributions work on a combined limit basis. For 2025, the total combined limit is $4,150 for individual coverage or $8,300 for family coverage (plus $1,000 catch-up if you're 55+). Any amount your employer contributes reduces how much you can contribute personally while staying under that limit. So if your employer is giving you $75/month ($900/year), that means you can only contribute $3,250 personally for individual coverage to stay under the $4,150 limit (or $7,400 for family coverage to stay under the $8,300 limit).

I was really confused about HSA premium pass-throughs last year too until I discovered taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai). I took a picture of my W-2 and Form 8889, uploaded them, and it immediately identified where my premium pass-through needed to go. The tool explained that employer contributions, including premium pass-throughs from insurers, go on line 9 of Form 8889, and then it calculated my remaining contribution limit automatically. What made the difference for me was that it actually explained WHY the premium pass-through counts as an employer contribution - something my regular tax software couldn't do. Saved me from making a costly mistake since I was about to double-count those funds.

Wanted to follow up about my experience with taxr.ai after asking about it. I was skeptical at first but gave it a try with my HSA documents. Wow, it saved me from making a big mistake! I had been counting my premium pass-through ($850) as my own contribution instead of my employer's. The tool showed me exactly where on Form 8889 to report it and explained that I needed to reduce my personal contribution limit accordingly. Also figured out that some of my medical expenses weren't actually HSA-eligible that I was planning to claim. Definitely recommend for anyone dealing with HSA tax complications!

If you're still having trouble with your HSA form and need to speak with someone at the IRS for clarification, I highly recommend using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I spent days trying to get through to the IRS about a similar HSA question last month - kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. Finally tried Claimyr and they got me connected to an IRS agent in about 20 minutes. You can see how it works in their video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent confirmed that yes, premium pass-throughs must be reported as employer contributions on line 9 of Form 8889, and they also helped me understand how this affected my excess contribution from last year that I needed to fix. Saved me hours of frustration and got me a definitive answer straight from the IRS.

Just want to update on my skepticism about Claimyr. I tried it yesterday out of desperation after spending literally 3 hours on hold with the IRS about my HSA premium pass-through question. The service actually worked! Got connected to an IRS agent in about 35 minutes (which honestly still felt miraculous compared to my previous attempts). The agent confirmed that my insurance company's $750 premium pass-through needs to go on line 9 of Form 8889 as an employer contribution, not as my own contribution. Also got clarity on how to handle the fact that I changed insurance mid-year. Actually worth it for the time saved and peace of mind getting an official answer.

Another important thing to consider with HSA premium pass-throughs is that they count toward your annual limit but you don't get to deduct them since they're pre-tax already. I made this mistake last year and ended up with an excess contribution because I didn't realize the pass-through from my insurance company counted toward my limit! For 2025, if you have family coverage with an $8,300 limit and your pass-through is $900, you can only contribute $7,400 yourself. Make sure you adjust your regular HSA contributions accordingly or you'll end up paying a 6% excise tax on the excess amount.

I just want to clarify something... Do HSA premium pass-throughs from your insurance count toward the annual HSA contribution limit? I thought they were separate and I could still max out my contributions regardless of the pass-through amount?

This is a really common confusion point! Just to add some clarity - the HSA premium pass-through from your employer absolutely goes on line 9 of Form 8889 as an employer contribution. The $75/month ($900 annually) that your employer is contributing reduces your personal contribution limit by that same amount. One thing that trips people up is that these contributions might appear in different places on your W-2 depending on how your employer handles them. Look for Box 12 with code W - that should show the total of all employer HSA contributions including your premium pass-through. Also make sure you're not accidentally double-counting this amount elsewhere on your return. The premium pass-through is already tax-advantaged money, so you don't get an additional deduction for it. It just reduces how much you can personally contribute while staying within the annual limits.

Just wanted to share my experience since I went through this exact same confusion last year! The HSA premium pass-through definitely goes on line 9 of Form 8889 as an employer contribution, even though it might feel like "your" money since it's part of your benefits package. One thing that really helped me was keeping track of all my HSA-related documents throughout the year. I created a simple spreadsheet with my monthly employer contributions ($75 like yours), any personal contributions I made, and my HSA account statements. This made filling out Form 8889 much easier because I could see exactly how much came from where. Also, don't forget that if you're 55 or older, you get that extra $1,000 catch-up contribution on top of the regular limits. And if you changed jobs or insurance coverage during the year, the contribution limits might be prorated based on your months of HDHP coverage. The key thing to remember is that ALL contributions to your HSA count toward the same annual limit - doesn't matter if they come from you, your employer, or insurance pass-throughs. It all goes into the same bucket!