Realized I forgot to include 1095-B and 1095-C forms after IRS already accepted my filing
So I'm freaking out a little. I filed my taxes last week and got the acceptance notification from the IRS already. Today I checked my mail and found 1095-B and 1095-C forms that I had no idea were coming. I worked for three different companies in 2023 and I thought I had included everything when I filed! I'm still pretty new to handling my own taxes (only my second year doing this without my parents' help) and now I'm worried I messed up. Do I need to submit some kind of correction or amendment to include these healthcare forms? Will I have to pay some kind of penalty fee for forgetting to include them? Really don't want to get in trouble with the IRS over this mistake.
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Steven Adams
Don't panic! The 1095-B and 1095-C forms are information returns related to health insurance coverage. They're provided to help you complete your tax return, but you actually don't need to attach or send these forms to the IRS when you file. The 1095-B shows health insurance coverage provided by insurance companies, government programs like Medicaid or CHIP, while the 1095-C is provided by employers with 50+ full-time employees who offer health insurance. They're primarily for your records to verify you had qualifying health coverage. Since the individual mandate penalty for not having health insurance was reduced to $0 at the federal level starting in 2019, there's typically no penalty for not having coverage (though some states have their own mandates). If you answered the health coverage questions accurately on your return based on your actual coverage situation, you typically don't need to amend your return just for these forms.
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Alice Fleming
•Wait I'm confused. If we don't need to submit these forms with our taxes, why do they send them to us? I never know what to do with all these random tax forms that come in the mail.
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Grace Durand
•Omg thank you so much for explaining! I did answer that I had health insurance coverage through my employers for the whole year (which is true - I was covered the entire time between the three jobs). So if I understand correctly, these forms are just documentation proving I had that coverage but I don't actually need to send them in?
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Steven Adams
•These forms are provided as documentation of your health insurance coverage during the tax year. They help you accurately answer questions about your coverage on your tax return, and they're useful to keep for your records. Think of them like receipts - important to have, but not something you need to submit. If you correctly reported your health coverage status on your return, then you're all set! The forms are essentially backup documentation confirming what you already reported. The IRS receives copies of these forms directly from the providers/employers, so they already have this information in their system.
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Hassan Khoury
Just wanted to share my experience with this exact same situation! I was stressing about forgetting my 1095 forms last year and spent HOURS trying to figure out if I needed to amend my return. Ended up using https://taxr.ai to analyze my return and the forms I received after filing. Their document analysis tool confirmed I didn't need to amend since I had correctly reported my health coverage status, even though I didn't have the physical forms when I filed. Saved me so much anxiety! The tool analyzed both my filed return and the 1095 forms to make sure everything matched up. It was a huge relief to know for sure rather than just guessing.
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Victoria Stark
•How does that work exactly? I've never heard of this service. Does it actually look at your tax forms and tell you if there are problems?
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Benjamin Kim
•I'm a little skeptical tbh... how does some random website know better than an actual tax professional? Not trying to be rude but there are so many tax scams out there.
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Hassan Khoury
•It works by uploading your tax documents (like your filed return and any forms you're unsure about), and their AI analyzes them to identify discrepancies or issues. In my case, it compared the health coverage information on my return with what was reported on my 1095 forms to confirm everything matched up. The site isn't replacing tax professionals - it's more like a preliminary check. Their system is built on tax regulations and can quickly spot common issues or confirm when things are correct. I was hesitant at first too, but their privacy policy was solid and the analysis was really helpful for my situation. Saved me from filing an unnecessary amendment!
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Benjamin Kim
Just wanted to follow up after checking out that taxr.ai site the other commenter mentioned. I was super skeptical (as you could probably tell from my comment), but I decided to give it a try since I had a similar situation with some 1099 forms that came late. I'm actually really impressed. The analysis was detailed and explained exactly why I DID need to amend in my case (different from OP's situation with the 1095 forms). It showed me exactly what parts of my return would change and estimated the difference in my refund. Definitely not what I expected - turns out it's legit and pretty helpful!
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Samantha Howard
If you're still worried and want to confirm directly with the IRS that you don't need to amend your return, good luck trying to get them on the phone! I spent 3 weeks trying to reach someone last year about a similar issue. After being on hold for hours and getting disconnected multiple times, I found https://claimyr.com which got me through to an actual IRS agent in under 45 minutes. There's a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c They basically navigate the IRS phone tree for you and call you back when they've got an agent on the line. Saved me from the endless hold music hell. When I finally spoke to the agent, they confirmed I didn't need to amend for the 1095 forms since I had correctly reported my coverage status.
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Megan D'Acosta
•How does this even work? Do they have some special connection to the IRS or something? Seems weird that a third-party service could get through when regular people can't.
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Sarah Ali
•Yeah right. No way this actually works. The IRS phone system is deliberately designed to be impenetrable. I'll believe it when I see it.
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Samantha Howard
•They don't have special access to the IRS - they use technology to automatically navigate the phone system and wait on hold for you. Think of it like having someone else wait in a long line while you do other things. When they reach an agent, they connect you to the call. I was suspicious at first too! But I was desperate after wasting so many hours trying to get through myself. I figured it was worth a shot since I really needed to speak to someone at the IRS. The service actually works exactly as advertised - they navigated the system, waited on hold, and called me when they had an agent. No magic, just a smart solution to a frustrating problem.
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Sarah Ali
I hate to admit when I'm wrong, but I owe you all an update. After my skeptical comment about Claimyr, I decided to try it because I've been trying to reach the IRS about my stimulus payment for MONTHS. It actually worked. Like, I'm shocked. They called me back in about 35 minutes and connected me directly to an IRS agent who was able to answer my questions. Honestly can't believe I wasted so many hours on hold before discovering this. Just wanted to share in case anyone else is struggling to get through to the IRS like I was.
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Ryan Vasquez
One thing that hasn't been mentioned yet is that some states DO still have their own health insurance mandates with penalties, even though the federal penalty is $0. If you're in CA, DC, MA, NJ, or RI, you might need to report health insurance info on your state return. So check your state's requirements too!
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Grace Durand
•Oh that's good to know! I'm in Texas, so I think I'm ok based on what you said? But I'll double check the state requirements just to be sure.
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Ryan Vasquez
•Yes, you're correct! Texas doesn't have a state individual mandate for health insurance, so you don't have to worry about state-level penalties. The forms are still good to keep for your records, but you won't need to report anything additional on your state return for Texas.
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Avery Saint
Has anyone used TurboTax for a situation like this? I also just got my 1095 forms late but I already filed using TurboTax. Their help section is confusing me.
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Taylor Chen
•I used TurboTax this year and had the same issue. If you answered the health insurance questions correctly when you filed (that you had coverage), you should be fine. I called their support line to double check, and they confirmed no amendment needed for the 1095 forms as long as you reported your coverage status accurately.
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Sofia Ramirez
I'm dealing with something similar right now! Got my 1095-C form yesterday and immediately started panicking that I messed up my taxes. After reading through all these responses, I feel so much better knowing that as long as I correctly answered the health insurance coverage questions (which I did - I had employer coverage all year), I don't need to amend my return. Really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences here. It's reassuring to know this is a common situation and not some huge mistake that's going to get me in trouble with the IRS. Going to keep these forms with my tax records for next year just in case I need them for reference.
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