If you are an employer with more than 50 employees, there are ACA compliance actions you need to take now.  These changes went into effect on January 1st, 2015 due to the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare).

To satisfy the IRS reporting requirements, you'll need to start tracking employee work hours, wages, and coverage in order to complete twelve months or more of reporting before the filing deadline.

Your payroll service provider should be able to help you with tracking, compliance, and filing the appropriate forms at the end of the tax year.

The new information reporting systems will be similar to the current Form W-2 reporting systems in that an information return (Form 1095-B or 1095-C) will be prepared for each applicable employee, and these returns will be filed with the IRS using a single transmittal form (Form 1094-B or 1094-C).

Employers must file these returns annually by Feb. 28 (March 31 if filed electronically).  Therefore, employers will be filing these forms for the 2015 calendar year by Feb. 28 or March 31, 2016.

A copy of the Form 1095, or a substitute statement, must be given to the employee by Jan. 31 and can be provided electronically with the employee's consent.  Employers will be subject to penalties of up to $200 per return for failing to timely file the returns or furnish statements to employees.

The filing requirements are based on an employer's health plan and number of employees.

As you can see, the reporting requirements are a bit more complex for larger employer groups so be sure to consult your payroll provider and CPA throughout the year.  If you enjoy reading the details yourself, we've included several resource links above and below:

UPDATE: May 28,2015 - Midsize businesses seek relief from Federal Health Law:
Firms with 51 to 100 workers say the Affordable Care Act will significantly raise their costs, so they are pushing for an exemption.  Read more in this article from the Wall Street Journal: