Georgia deduction for HDHP premium

[Egoydich]

Hi all,

Could someone please help with this statement regarding deductibility on HDHP premiums?

'You can only deduct the amount to the extent the deduction has not been included in federal adjusted income and the expenses have not been provided from a health reimbursement arrangement and have not been included in itemized deductions."

EX: If my HDHP premiums total  $2,000 but they were pretax on my paycheck, is it deductible for Georgia or not?   I'm not stupid, but that sentence (found in Turbo Tax's help tab on the issue)  is confusing!

Thanks!!

[JohnW152]

Yes, pre-tax income confuses a lot of people.  If your HDHP premiums total $2,000 but they were pretax on your paycheck, that means that they're based on income you've earned, but they're re not included on Box 1 of your Form W-2, which are the wages you report on your federal Form 1040. 

So when you report your W-2 on your return, you're already getting a tax break.  To deduct that $2,000 again -- aka "double dipping" -- you'd be getting twice the tax break that you're actually entitled to.

And since Georgia's computation begins with your federal Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), your tax break would carry over to your Georgia return.  So, you don't need to make any adjustment to your state return to reflect the HDHP.

[tsfllmsb]

if I am retired with a retie HDHP medical plan where I cover 30% of premiums with after tax dollars and no W-2 so no income is included for plan in AGI am I allowed to take this deduction?  Also assume there was not something I missed in the federal tax section that would allow me to deduct the premium (did not have enough medical expenses to meet the 7.5% for itemized deduction). 

[AnnetteB6]

Yes, you are allowed to take the deduction. 

Medical insurance premiums that are paid with after-tax money would be entered and deducted as part of your medical expenses.  Some exceptions to this would be self-employed medical insurance premiums, the cost of an Affordable Care Act insurance plan, or premiums reported on Form 1095-A.

@tsfllmsb