Health Insurance Purchased in Name of Shareholder
Insurance laws in some states do not allow a corporation to buy group health insurance when the corporation only has one employee. Therefore, if the shareholder was the sole employee of the corporation, then the shareholder has to purchase health insurance in the individual’s own name.
Notice 2008-1 provided rules by which a 2-percent shareholder would be allowed an above-the-line deduction even if the health insurance policy was purchased in the name of the shareholder. Notice 2008-1 provided four examples, including three examples in which the shareholder purchased the health insurance and one in which the S corporation purchased the health insurance.
Notice 2008-1 states that if the shareholder purchased the health insurance in the individual’s own name and paid for it with his own funds, the shareholder would not be allowed an above-the-line deduction. On the other hand, if the corporation obtains and pays for health insurance in its name, covers the shareholder under the policy, and reports the premiums as W-2 wages to the shareholder, then the shareholder is allowed an above-the-line deduction. Similarly, if the shareholder purchased the health insurance in his own name but the S corporation either directly paid for the health insurance or reimbursed the shareholder for the health insurance and also included the premium payment in the shareholder's W-2, the shareholder would be allowed an above-the-line deduction.
The bottom line is that in order for a shareholder to claim an above-the-line deduction, the health insurance premiums must ultimately be paid by the S corporation and must be reported as taxable compensation in the shareholder's W-2.
