Plan ahead to avoid 2016 health tax penalty

Do not be fooled by media reports that say the penalty for not having health insurance next year is $695. Far more people who owe the penalty will pay more than that, up to a maximum of $2,085. Those with more than $84,000 total household income will more likely pay the maximum.

What this means is that if you do not have qualifying insurance coverage it is more important to qualify for an exemption now. If you don’t know if you qualify for an exemption it makes sense to include this in your tax planning review now.