Updated October 21, 2026. Quick answer: Publication 974 is the IRS guide to the premium tax credit for health plans bought through a Marketplace, and the web edition is for 2025 returns. It says you must file Form 8962 if you are taking the credit or if advance payments were made for your tax family. For 2025 it calls employer coverage affordable at not more than 9.02% of household income.
Quick reference
| Item | As the IRS publication states it |
|---|---|
| Employer coverage affordability, share of household income for 2025 (Employer-Sponsored Plans) | 9.02% |
| Minimum value, share of total allowed costs a plan pays (Employer-Sponsored Plans) | 60% |
| Household income floor for the PTC, share of the federal poverty line (Who Can Take the PTC) | 100% |
| Household income above which a PTC may still be allowed for 2025 (Reminders) | 400% of the federal poverty line |
| Deadline for a requested Form 1095-B or 1095-C (What’s New) | January 31 or 30 days |
What the publication covers
The publication defines the credit this way: “The PTC is a tax credit for certain people who enroll, or whose family member enrolls, in a qualified health plan offered through a Marketplace.” The IRS cover line reads “For use in preparing 2025 Returns”.
It also explains advance payments: “The APTC is a payment made during the year to your insurance provider that pays for part or all of the premiums for a qualified health plan covering you or an individual in your tax family.”
Parts of the publication in plain words
- What Is the Premium Tax Credit, including advance payments and changes in circumstances.
- Who Must File Form 8962, and Who Can Take the PTC, with Figure A, Can You Take the PTC?
- Terms You May Need To Know, such as tax family, household income, modified AGI, coverage family and applicable SLCSP premium.
- Minimum Essential Coverage: individual market, government programs, employer plans, affordability and minimum value.
- Qualified small employer health reimbursement arrangements, with Worksheet N and Worksheet Q.
- Family members not lawfully present, and how to find enrollment premiums and the applicable SLCSP premium, with Worksheet A.
- How To Determine the Excess APTC That Must Be Repaid, with an illustrated example.
Forms and worksheets it connects to
The publication works alongside Form 8962 and Form 1095-A. On this site, see Form 8962, Form 1095-A column B, the SLCSP premium and Form 8962 lines 27 to 29, repayment of excess advance credit.
The figures that matter
On who must file, the IRS says “You must file Form 8962 with your income tax return (Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR) if any of the following apply to you.” The list begins with “You are taking the PTC.” and “APTC was paid for you or another individual in your tax family.”
On income, the publication says “Your household income for 2025 is at least 100% of the federal poverty line for your family size”
The Reminders section adds “For tax year 2025, taxpayers with household income that exceeds 400% of the federal poverty line for their family size may be allowed a PTC.”
On affordability, “Your employer coverage is generally considered affordable for you if your share of the annual cost for self-only coverage, which is sometimes referred to as the “employee required contribution,” is not more than 9.02% of your tax family’s household income for 2025.”
On minimum value, “An employer-sponsored plan provides minimum value only if the plan pays at least 60% of the total allowed costs of benefits for a standard population and provides substantial coverage of inpatient hospitalization services and physician services.”
What’s New also notes that “If requested by the individual, the form must be provided by January 31 or 30 days after the date of request, whichever is later.”
Where it points elsewhere
Household income and the federal poverty line are worked through on Form 8962. This site covers Form 8962 lines 3 to 6, the ACA subsidy cliff for 2026 and the ACA affordability percentage for 2026.
Where this comes from
The IRS page About Publication 974 opens with “Publication 974 covers the following general topics:” It links the PDF and eBook editions and the earlier revisions of the publication.
This page describes the web edition of Publication 974 (2025), Premium Tax Credit (PTC), as served on irs.gov on October 21, 2026. The IRS can revise a publication after we read it, and the IRS page controls. General information, not tax or legal advice.
Common mistakes
- Reading the 9.02% affordability figure as a rule for every year. The IRS text ties it to “household income for 2025”.
- Skipping Form 8962 because no credit is wanted. The IRS says you must file it if “APTC was paid for you or another individual in your tax family.”
- Treating the affordability test as based only on self-only coverage for family members. The Reminders section says “Affordability of the employer coverage for these family members is now based on the portion of the annual premium the employee must pay for coverage of the employee and these other family members.”
- Assuming the household income floor has no exception. The IRS page says “having household income below 100% of the federal poverty line will not disqualify you from taking the PTC if you meet certain requirements”
Related: IRS publications by number, Form 8962, Form 1095-A line 33 and Form 8962, Form 8962 lines 11 to 23, Form 8962 lines 24 to 26, ACA subsidy calculator, and Schedule 3 line 9, net premium tax credit.
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Answer againSources
- IRS, Publication 974 (2025), Premium Tax Credit (PTC) (irs.gov): https://www.irs.gov/publications/p974
- IRS, About Publication 974, Premium Tax Credit (PTC) (irs.gov): https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-publication-974
Read from the IRS pages linked above on October 21, 2026. General information, not tax or legal advice. The IRS publication and the instructions for your own form control, and your own facts decide the outcome.