Glossary — Benefits

Employer mandate

The ACA requirement that applicable large employers offer affordable health coverage to full-time employees or pay penalties.

Definition

The Employer Shared Responsibility Mandate (often called the "employer mandate") requires Applicable Large Employers (50+ FTE employees) to offer health coverage meeting minimum value and affordability standards to substantially all full-time employees (30+ hours/week) and their dependents. Failure to offer can result in penalties under IRC §4980H(a); offering unaffordable coverage can result in penalties under §4980H(b).

Compliance requires careful FTE calculation, ongoing affordability monitoring (using one of three safe-harbor methodologies), and accurate 1094/1095-C reporting. PEOs typically handle these calculations automatically for the co-employed workforce.

Common questions about Employer mandate

The ACA requirement that applicable large employers offer affordable health coverage to full-time employees or pay penalties.

The Employer Shared Responsibility Mandate (often called the "employer mandate") requires Applicable Large Employers (50+ FTE employees) to offer health coverage meeting minimum value and affordability standards to substantially all full-time employees (30+ hours/week) and their dependents.

Most PEO buying decisions touch several related concepts at once. Employer mandate typically comes up alongside the other terms in this category. Closely related terms include Affordable Care Act (ACA), Group health insurance.

Browse the full PEO glossary

This is one entry from our PEO glossary covering payroll, benefits, workers comp, HR compliance, and PEO mechanics. Browse all terms.

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