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June 6, 2019
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My single owner Scorp company paid my health insurance premiums but I did not add to my W-2 wages. Should I add that amount to distributions or to my wages? Thanks

  • June 6, 2019
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Best answer by GeoffreyG

If your S-corp paid your health insurance premiums, you should include this total (annual) amount in Box 1 of your W-2 (but not Boxes 3 or 5).  That will record the health insurance as a deductible compensation expense for your S-corp on its Form 1120S (and as taxable wage income to you, on your personal Form 1040 tax return).  You will then be further eligible to take a self-employed health insurance deduction on your Form 1040 . . . thus eliminating the extra taxation to you individually, that was created by reporting the extra W-2 Box 1 wage income.

For more information on this, as well as a formal discussion, please refer to the following IRS.gov webpage:

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/s-corporation-compensation-and-medical-insurance-issues


In particular, you may find the sections titled "Treating Medical Insurance Premiums as Wages" and "Health Insurance Purchased in Name of Shareholder" especially relevant.

For mechanical instructions on how to take the self-employed health insurance deduction for 2% + S-corp shareholders in TurboTax, you can refer to the details and steps found here:

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/2966948-s-corp-self-employed-health-insurance-deduction


Thank you for asking this important question.

2 replies

GeoffreyGAnswer
Employee
June 6, 2019

If your S-corp paid your health insurance premiums, you should include this total (annual) amount in Box 1 of your W-2 (but not Boxes 3 or 5).  That will record the health insurance as a deductible compensation expense for your S-corp on its Form 1120S (and as taxable wage income to you, on your personal Form 1040 tax return).  You will then be further eligible to take a self-employed health insurance deduction on your Form 1040 . . . thus eliminating the extra taxation to you individually, that was created by reporting the extra W-2 Box 1 wage income.

For more information on this, as well as a formal discussion, please refer to the following IRS.gov webpage:

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/s-corporation-compensation-and-medical-insurance-issues


In particular, you may find the sections titled "Treating Medical Insurance Premiums as Wages" and "Health Insurance Purchased in Name of Shareholder" especially relevant.

For mechanical instructions on how to take the self-employed health insurance deduction for 2% + S-corp shareholders in TurboTax, you can refer to the details and steps found here:

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/2966948-s-corp-self-employed-health-insurance-deduction


Thank you for asking this important question.

June 6, 2019
Very helpful! Thank you Geoffrey!
February 23, 2024

An S-Corporation more then 2% shareholder's health insurance premiums should be reported as wage income on the W-2 form in box 1. That way when the shareholder enters the wages on his or her personal tax return, the taxpayer may be able to deduct the premiums as self-employed health insurance. If they weren't entered as such on a W-2 form, technically they are not deductible by the S Corporation, so they shouldn't be entered on the S corporation tax return. 

 

This is so because the deduction for the premiums is a personal tax issue in that they aren't always deductible. For instance, if the shareholder was eligible to be on the health insurance policy of a spouse, then the shareholder heath insurance would not be deductible. So, you can't deduct it on the S corporation return as it may not be deductible by the shareholder. @davidsimshomes 

 

You don't deduct health insurance premiums as such for a more than 2% shareholder on an S corporation return. You just enter the deduction as a part of officer wages. When you enter your W-2 income on your personal return, that increases your income by the amount of the officer/shareholder insurance premiums. You then deduct them as self-employed health insurance as is allowed on your personal return. Thus the insurance premiums are deducted on the S corporation return as wages, then added as wage income on form 1040, then deducted as self-employed health insurance. So there are two deductions and one add to income, which nets out to one deduction! @June YW 

 

 

 

 

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February 23, 2024

Thank you so much for the explanation!  I am still a little confused.  I am a one person s corp. and my payroll processor surepayroll did not put my medical insurance premium in box 1 of W2. In fact, they did not report the medical insurance premiums on W 2 at all. I have asked them to correct and issue me an amended W2.  But, can I issue myself an amended W2 using Turbotax bussiness?  Secondly, when I get the amended W2, Do I enter box 1 plus solo 401k contribution as income for the officer and medical insurance premium in the Deduction section of 1120S?  

 

Thank you for your help