Anyone here a domestic partner on their significant other’s employer insurance?

[Aguilar]

If you are in a domestic partnership and are on your partner’s employer’s insurance plan, I’d like to here from you.

Is the domestic partner (ie your) portion of the insurance premium each pay period taken out of your partner’s pay pre or post tax?

Does each of your partner’s pay stub include a line item showing the $ amount of the employer’s portion of the domestic partner’s premium? If so, is this aggregated on the pay stubs over time and does your partner have to pay marginal income tax on the employer’s portion of the domestic partner’s premium when they file their taxes?

I read that this is how it works but my partner asked her HR contact and the HR person said they treat the domestic partner like a spouse and so the employee isn’t responsible for paying income tax on the employer portion of the domestic partner’s insurance. This is good news for me but it makes me wonder if the HR dept is mistaken and isn’t following IRS rules.

[quantAndHold]

Employers haven’t had much experience with domestic partnerships in the last decade, so your HR rep may be mistaken. You should have a line somewhere listing imputed income, which is the employer’s portion of the partner’s benefit, and your withholding should be based on the total including the imputed income.

Your payroll department will know more than HR.

[MP123]

I read that this is how it works but my partner asked her HR contact and the HR person said they treat the domestic partner like a spouse and so the employee isn’t responsible for paying income tax on the employer portion of the domestic partner’s insurance. This is good news for me but it makes me wonder if the HR dept is mistaken and isn’t following IRS rules.

Unless the domestic partner is also a qualified tax dependent of the employee then I don't think the HR dept is correct. It's possible that there may be state level rules relating to state taxation, but at a federal level Sec 125 pre-tax insurance contributions can only be made for employees, their spouse, and dependents.

[Aguilar]

Employers haven’t had much experience with domestic partnerships in the last decade, so your HR rep may be mistaken. You should have a line somewhere listing imputed income, which is the employer’s portion of the partner’s benefit, and your withholding should be based on the total including the imputed income.

Your payroll department will know more than HR.

Thanks, in her case HR also handles payroll. So would the employee pay her insurance premium pretax, her partner’s premium (my premium) post tax, and also pay marginal fed income tax on the employer portion of the domestic partner’s premium? This is my understanding from what I’ve found doing research on the topic.

[quantAndHold]

Employers haven’t had much experience with domestic partnerships in the last decade, so your HR rep may be mistaken. You should have a line somewhere listing imputed income, which is the employer’s portion of the partner’s benefit, and your withholding should be based on the total including the imputed income.

Your payroll department will know more than HR.

Thanks, in her case HR also handles payroll. So would the employee pay her insurance premium pretax, her partner’s premium (my premium) post tax, and also pay marginal fed income tax on the employer portion of the domestic partner’s premium? This is my understanding from what I’ve found doing research on the topic.

Yes. That’s my understanding.