HSA Questions regarding deductions: ownership & misc.

[Babbs3]

Hello Everyone,

Married filing jointly: For 10 months of 2020 I was the primary health insurance holder (Employee & spouse) under a High Deductible Health Plan - and I also had the HSA bank account. Because of COVID, I was unemployed for the last 2 months of 2020, but there was no lapse in health insurance coverage (it only changed to my husband's employer) - and it was still a High Deductible Health Plan. 

That being said, does the HSA bank account have to be in his name since he is now the primary on the health insurance?...in order for the deposits of $7,100 to be tax deductible? Also, If the HSA bank account is in my name but covers both of us since we are married..do I mark it as belongs to "both of us" within TurboTax?

Thanks in advance.

[Mike9241 · Accepted solution]

no, the HSA can be in either name. as a matter of fact if it's in your name originally and you transfer it to an a/c in his name you had an impermissible distribution subject to taxation.

if either spouse has family coverage for a month both are treated as having family coverage for that month.  each HSA account can have only one owner.  there is no such thing as a joint HSA account.

so if there was family coverage all year the maximum contribution is allowed and can be split any way you want between your account and his.   

the question about coverage refers to the coverage of the health plan that the owner of the HSA had for the month. your a/c can be used to pay his medical expenses and vice versa.  

[Babbs3]

Thanks for your response!

[Opus 17 · Accepted solution]

First, an HSA only has one owner.

Second, the owner of the HSA must be covered by an HDHP to be eligible to make contributions, but does not have to be the owner of the HDHP.

If you were covered by an eligible HDHP for the whole year (whether in your name or your spouse's name) then you would indicate you were covered for the whole year.

[Babbs3]

Thank you!