Form 1095-A: get it, check it, use it.

Where Form 1095-A comes from

Form 1095-A, the Health Insurance Marketplace Statement, comes from the Marketplace where you enrolled, not from the IRS. If you or anyone in your household had a Marketplace plan during the year (Catastrophic plans excepted), HealthCare.gov says to expect the form in the mail by mid-February, and the form may be in your Marketplace account as early as mid-January if you enrolled through HealthCare.gov. If you enrolled through a state Marketplace, your form comes from that state exchange. The Form 8962 instructions say the Marketplace must provide or send the form to the individuals named on the enrollment application by January 31.

How to find it online

HealthCare.gov’s steps: log into your Marketplace account, select the application for the year you want (for example the 2025 application, not the 2026 one), choose “Tax forms” in the menu and under “Your Form 1095-A” choose “Download PDF”. If a corrected form exists, use it instead of the earlier version. If the form is voided, do not file with it, but keep it. HealthCare.gov says not to file your taxes until you have an accurate 1095-A.

What the columns mean

Part III lists each month of coverage in three columns.

• Column A, monthly enrollment premium. What the plan cost for the month. It may not match what you paid. HealthCare.gov lists reasons: the plan included benefits beyond the essential health benefits, you started or ended coverage mid-month, or a stand-alone dental plan included a child.
• Column B, monthly second lowest cost Silver plan (SLCSP) premium. The benchmark that the credit is measured against. It is not your premium unless you enrolled in that plan.
• Column C, monthly advance payment of the premium tax credit. What the Marketplace paid your insurer each month on your behalf.

The blank column B trap

HealthCare.gov says column B is wrong if it shows 0 or is blank for any month someone in your household had the plan, or if your household changed in a way you never told the Marketplace (a baby, a move, a marriage or divorce, a lost dependent). The Form 8962 instructions add that if no advance payments were paid, column B may be wrong, blank or zero, and you must determine the correct SLCSP premium yourself; you do not have to ask for a corrected 1095-A. HealthCare.gov has a tax tool for that figure. If your name, address or Social Security number is wrong, you do not need a corrected form; update that on your return.

How it flows into Form 8962

You file Form 8962 with your return if advance payments were paid for anyone in your tax family, or if you want the premium tax credit without any advance payment. Form 8962 compares the credit you qualify for, based on your final income, with the advance payments in column C. If the advance payments were more, you have excess advance payments and repay them. If the credit is more, the difference lowers your tax or raises your refund. When columns A and B do not change over a full year, the annual line 11 on Form 8962 can be used; if they change, use the monthly lines 12 to 23. The tool above totals the three columns and tells you which applies.

How much do you repay?

For tax year 2025, Table 5 in the Form 8962 instructions limits the repayment: when household income is below 200% of the poverty line the cap is $375 for single filers and $750 for all other statuses; from 200% to under 300% it is $975 and $1,950; from 300% to under 400% it is $1,625 and $3,250; at 400% or more there is no cap. Public Law 119-21 section 71305 removes that limit for tax years beginning after December 31, 2025, so on a 2026 return the full excess is repaid. That change makes keeping your income estimate current during the year more important.

Worked example

For 2025, a single filer at 250% of the poverty line received $4,800 in advance payments and qualifies for a $3,100 credit. The excess is $1,700. The cap for single filers from 200% to under 300% is $975, so $975 is repaid. The same $1,700 excess on a 2026 return has no cap, so the full $1,700 is repaid.

Sources

• Instructions for Form 8962 (2025) — Form 1095-A, Table 5 repayment limits, SLCSP, filing
• About Form 1095-A (IRS) — what the Marketplace reports
• HealthCare.gov: How to use Form 1095-A — finding the form, checking column B, enrollment premium
• Public Law 119-21, section 71305 — removes the repayment limit for tax years after 2025

Figures and rules above were retrieved November 2026. Table 5 figures are from the 2025 Form 8962 instructions, which govern the return for tax year 2025. The repayment-limit repeal is from the text of Public Law 119-21 section 71305, effective for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2025.

Frequently asked questions

Where do I get Form 1095-A?

From the Marketplace where you enrolled, not from the IRS. On HealthCare.gov, log in, select the right year’s application, choose Tax forms and download the PDF. A state Marketplace sends its own form.

When does Form 1095-A arrive?

The Marketplace must provide or send it by January 31. HealthCare.gov says to expect it in the mail by mid-February, and it may be in your account as early as mid-January.

What if column B is blank or zero?

HealthCare.gov says that is wrong if someone in your household had a plan that month. The Form 8962 instructions say you work out the correct second lowest cost Silver plan premium yourself, and you do not have to request a corrected 1095-A.

Do I have to file Form 8962?

Yes if advance payments of the premium tax credit were paid for anyone in your tax family, or if you want to claim the premium tax credit.

Is there still a limit on repaying excess advance payments?

For tax year 2025, yes: Table 5 caps the repayment unless income is 400% of the poverty line or more. For tax years beginning after December 31, 2025, Public Law 119-21 section 71305 removed the cap.