Hi! It's not tax-free (pre-tax) income. As a Federal Retiree I no longer get that advantaged treatment for my health care premium. I pay my premium out of after-tax income. The $1800 isn't actually reported to me. My 1099R block 5 reports $4115.69 as "employee contributions/designated ROTH contributions or Insurance Premiums", but only $1800 of that HDHP premium is pass-through to the HSA. So the $1800 is contributed to the HSA ultimately by my post-tax income, not by my employer.
