I don't understand my HSA contribution - Box 12 has 12a, 12b, 12c and 12d. Which one shows my personal contribution to my HSA - not what my employer contributed

Forum|Forum|6 years ago
June 7, 2019
4 replies
0 views

No text available

TurboTax Premier Online

Best answer by Irene2805

On your W-2, Box 12 with code W indicates "Employer contributions to Health Savings Account."

Even though it says "employer" contributions, it is the sum of the amounts that your employer contributed to your HSA AND that you contributed through a payroll deduction plan. There is no breakdown of what you contributed and what your employer contributed.

For more information on the codes listed in Box 12 of your W-2, please see the following FAQ: What do the letter codes in Box 12 of my W-2 mean?

[Edited | 3/10/2020 | 10:22am PDT]

Irene2805Answer

On your W-2, Box 12 with code W indicates "Employer contributions to Health Savings Account."

For more information on the codes listed in Box 12 of your W-2, please see the following FAQ: What do the letter codes in Box 12 of my W-2 mean?

[Edited | 3/10/2020 | 10:22am PDT]

bjmann69

So my annual income was reduced by the amount I put into a HSA, however then I am required to put in box 12 letter W my contribution and the employers contribution to the HSA. When I insert the amount in box 12 letter W it reduces my tax refunds. I thought HSA was supposed to be non taxed but it looks like it is actually just taxed at end of year. What am I missing?

HH78DD

Why does TurboTax require to withdraw your 12W funds?

VictoriaD75

The most common error I see when entering HSA contributions are double reporting. Typically, these payroll contributions are reported on your W-2 in box 12 with code W. If that is the case, no other contribution needs to be reported in the software.

Under the Deductions & Credits menu, confirm the following:

Expand the menu for Medical
Click Start/Revisit next to HSA, MSA Contributions
Confirm the account ownership and click Continue
Continue in through the screens until you reach Let's enter your HSA contributions
Stop here. If all of your contributions were through payroll deductions and reported on your W2, do not enter anything on this screen. If that is the case, either leave the box empty or type $0 in the box next to Any contributions you personally made

If it turns out you did have an excess contribution, the following applies. Generally, you must pay a 6% excise tax on excess contributions. See Form 5329, Additional Taxes on Qualified Plans (Including IRAs) and Other Tax-Favored Accounts, to figure the excise tax. The excise tax applies to each tax year the excess contribution remains in the account.

You may withdraw some or all of the excess contributions and avoid paying the excise tax on the amount withdrawn if you meet the following conditions.

You withdraw the excess contributions by the due date, including extensions, of your tax return for the year the contributions were made.
You withdraw any income earned on the withdrawn contributions and include the earnings in "Other income" on your tax return for the year you withdraw the contributions and earnings.

Pub 969 Tax-Favored Health Plans

**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post**Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"

fangle56

I may be misunderstanding this response here but it seems that this link's response contradicts yours.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/retirement/discussion/aren-t-hsa-contributions-pretax-why-does-my-refund-drop-by-1500-when-i-input-4000-on-form-w-2-box-12/00/564614

From what i gathered, after you enter when you contributed and verify that you do indeed have a HSA and all purchases were tax deductible, at this point, you will then see the refund go back up.

DaveF1006

Your HSA contribution will have a code 'W" in one of those boxes in box 12. I hope this answers your question.

**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post**Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"

HemmedInGrace

What are the codes on box 12

MayaD

Please check the link below for what the codes in box 12 mean.

What do the letter codes in Box 12 of my W-2 mean?

**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post**Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"

Taxunprofessional

Ok I see that my box 12 W has an amount listed but the “2020 employer and payroll contributions” field is set to $0. So I’m not sure if I’m supposed to enter the info from box 12 as a personal contribution of not. The description below says it’ll show as $0 if I don’t have anything in 12 W but I do. W2 was imported and box 12W was included prior so not sure why it’s showing as $0.

This amount includes contributions to your HSA from your payroll deductions, and any additional contributions from your employer.
If you don't see an amount here, it's because you haven't finished your W-2 info, or you didn't have any HSA contributions through your employer this year.

Opus 17

Employee

@Taxunprofessional

there are several different tax items that can be in box 12, and many taxpayers have more than one item. HSA contributions are indicated with a capital letter W.

If you made HSA contributions via payroll deduction, but you have no amount in box 12 listed with a code W, then you need to get a corrected W-2 from your employer.

Taxunprofessional

Thank you for your response. Yes my W2 shows box 12 W but the turbo tax field is not recognizing it under the detailed HSA portion. It says my amount is zero and they the reason is because my box 12 W might’ve been empty but it’s clearly on my W2 and was entered in. I even redid my tax return to make sure. I don’t want to add the amount again if it’s already been accounted for but I cannot tell based on the language used. My refund charges based on whether or not I manually add the info or not.