Reimbursement for health insurance
originally posted: 11/22/2006 reposted: 2/18/2011 This post has not been recently reviewed or revised by the author and may be out of date. If you notice an error or are in doubt, please send a new question by email or ask for an update. Email asktony@tonynovak.com.
Q: As Senior Pastor of a church, I've been told that as long as the church pays my health insurance premium directly to the provider, the benefit is considered tax exempt. Some providers will only accept payments directly from the insured via his/her check, draft, or automatic debit. However, if the church pays me a health insurance allowance, I've been told that it is not tax exempt, even though I can demonstrate the premium was essentially a reimbursement for the premium. In our specific context, a group plan is out of the question. Could you please elaborate how this fits in with your recent emails regarding benefits for officers/principals.
A: Health insurance reimbursements made by your employer are not taxable income to you. If your tax preparer does not know this, then it is time to find a new tax preparer.
Summary
More resources:
article: "Taxation of Health Insurance Benefits"