Still receiving 1095-C forms from an employer I left 5 years ago
Title: Still receiving 1095-C forms from an employer I left 5 years ago 3 I'm a bit confused about something that keeps happening year after year. I left a job back in 2019, but I still get a 1095-C form in the mail from them every single year. It's been 5 years now! I've tried reaching out to their HR department a couple times but never get any response back. I've basically been tossing these forms in a drawer and ignoring them, but I'm starting to worry this might cause problems down the road. Like what if I get audited? Would the IRS think I'm still working there or something? Has anyone dealt with this before? Should I be doing something with these 1095-C forms even though I don't work there anymore? Or am I fine just continuing to ignore them?
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Nia Jackson
14 This is actually a common issue and nothing to worry about too much. The 1095-C form is just documentation that shows you were offered health insurance that meets ACA requirements. Companies are required to send these to current employees and sometimes their systems don't properly update when people leave. The good news is that receiving these forms shouldn't cause any tax issues for you. You don't need to file the 1095-C with your tax return - it's just for your records. The IRS gets their own copy of this information directly from your former employer, and they'll have your actual W-2 income information which will show you're not currently employed there. If you want to stop receiving them, try contacting the benefits department specifically (not just HR) or the company's health insurance administrator. Sometimes a direct message to someone on LinkedIn who works in their benefits department can also help resolve this.
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Nia Jackson
•5 Thanks for explaining, that's a relief! Do you know if there's any downside to just continuing to ignore these forms? Like could it somehow affect my health insurance coverage now or mess up any subsidies I might be getting through the marketplace?
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Nia Jackson
•14 There's virtually no downside to ignoring them if you're not working there anymore. The 1095-C just documents that you were offered coverage that meets minimum requirements. It won't affect your current health insurance or marketplace subsidies. If you're currently getting insurance through the ACA marketplace with premium subsidies, the marketplace already has systems in place to verify your current employment and insurance eligibility status. They don't rely on you to forward these old 1095-Cs.
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Nia Jackson
7 I had this exact same problem after leaving my job at a large retail chain. I kept getting 1095-C forms for like 3 years after! What helped me was using https://taxr.ai to analyze all my tax documents and explain what was necessary to keep vs. what I could ignore. The tool confirmed that these old 1095-Cs weren't something I needed to worry about for my tax filing. It also helped me organize all my actual tax documents and highlighted which ones needed attention. Honestly would've been lost trying to sort through everything without it, especially with these random forms showing up years later.
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Nia Jackson
•11 Does this tool actually work for figuring out if I need specific tax forms? I get so many documents every year and never know which ones matter for filing and which ones are just informational.
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Nia Jackson
•18 I'm curious - does it handle more complicated tax situations? I have a small business and rental property income along with my regular W-2 job. Would it be able to help organize all those different documents?
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Nia Jackson
•7 Yes, it absolutely works for sorting through which tax forms matter for your specific situation. It analyzes each document and tells you exactly what you need to file and what you can just keep for your records. It definitely handles complex tax situations including small businesses and rental properties. You can upload all your various documents (W-2s, 1099s, property tax statements, etc.) and it will organize everything by category and tell you exactly which schedules you'll need to file. It's especially helpful for identifying deductions you might have missed.
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Nia Jackson
18 Just wanted to follow up - I tried taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here and it was exactly what I needed! I had a stack of tax documents I wasn't sure what to do with, including some old 1095-Cs from a previous employer. The tool immediately identified which ones were relevant for this year's taxes and which ones I could ignore. It even found a deduction I would have completely missed related to my rental property. The document organization feature alone saved me hours of sorting through paperwork. Definitely using this every tax season from now on.
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Nia Jackson
9 If you really want to resolve this instead of just ignoring it, I'd recommend using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) to actually get through to someone at the IRS who can help. I had a similar issue with incorrect forms being sent to me year after year, and I spent WEEKS trying to get through on the IRS phone lines with no luck. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in less than an hour who explained exactly what I needed to do to fix the issue. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. The IRS agent I spoke with sent a notification to my former employer to correct their reporting, and I finally stopped getting those incorrect forms.
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Nia Jackson
•22 Wait, how does this actually work? The IRS phone lines are notoriously impossible to get through. Are you saying this service somehow jumps the queue or something?
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Nia Jackson
•13 Yeah right. Sorry, but this sounds too good to be true. I've tried calling the IRS multiple times and just gave up after being on hold for hours. What's the catch with this service? There's no way they can magically get you through the IRS phone system.
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Nia Jackson
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Nia Jackson
13 I need to eat my words here. After commenting earlier, I decided to try Claimyr out of sheer frustration with a tax notice I'd been trying to resolve for months. I got connected to an IRS agent in about 40 minutes, which is INSANE considering I'd previously wasted entire days on hold. The agent was able to confirm that receiving old 1095-C forms isn't something to worry about for tax purposes, but they also helped me file a request to have the employer update their records. For anyone dealing with stubborn tax issues requiring actual IRS help, this service is legitimately worth it. Never thought I'd be recommending anything related to making IRS calls easier, but here we are.
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Nia Jackson
15 One thing to consider - if you're receiving a 1095-C, it might mean your former employer still has you listed as eligible for benefits in their system. While not directly a tax issue, it could potentially cause problems if there's ever an audit of their benefits program. If you've been unsuccessful reaching HR, try contacting their payroll provider directly. Most large companies outsource payroll and benefits administration, and the provider might be able to update your status in their system.
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Nia Jackson
•21 Could this potentially affect the former employer's healthcare costs if they're still counting ex-employees in their coverage numbers? Like are they possibly paying premiums for people no longer working there?
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Nia Jackson
•15 It absolutely could affect their healthcare costs. Many employers pay premiums based on the number of eligible employees, so if their system is counting former employees, they might be overpaying for coverage. The employer likely isn't actually providing active coverage for former employees, but their reporting system may not be properly updated to remove them from eligibility lists. This is probably costing them money in administrative overhead, and potentially in premium calculations depending on how their plan is structured.
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Nia Jackson
8 I had this happen too. What I found out after finally getting through to someone is that my former employer had me listed as "on leave" rather than "terminated" in their system. That's why I kept getting the forms year after year.
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Nia Jackson
•19 How did you eventually get it fixed? I'm dealing with something similar but with W-2s from a company I haven't worked at since 2020!
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Mohammad Khaled
•I had to contact their payroll department directly and provide documentation of my termination date. They had to manually update my status in their system from "leave of absence" to "terminated." It took a few follow-up calls, but once they fixed it, I stopped getting the forms. For W-2s though, that's a much bigger issue since those actually affect your tax filing - you should definitely get that resolved ASAP!
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