This may help the discussion. There is no such thing as an "employer" HSA. All HSAs are owned by the employee. Whether your employer sends a check to your Fidelity HSA (that you chose) or whether they mandated that employer contributions be sent to an HSA company of their choosing...it's all identical from a tax/mechanics perspective.
That check being received by the Fidelity HSA can certainly be 1) exempt from income tax and 2) exempt from payroll tax. It's NOT after-tax, unless the employer codes it incorrectly on your paystub and/or W2.
Edit to add: Suppose your employer sends a $1000 check to your HSA (whether "they" provide that many in addition to your pay or whether they subtracted that $1000 from your paycheck). At the end of the year you'll receive a W2 which will indicate exactly how much the employer contributed to the HSA. If that $1000 payment is coded as an HSA payment on the W2, you won't owe income taxes nor payroll taxes. But suppose there is no mention of that HSA contributions (for example, your full pay including that $1000 is included as taxable income on the W2. In that case YOU can report that $1000 contribution on your taxes directly as a "personal" contribution. You'll get the identical income tax deduction, but you won't get the "deduction" for payroll taxes.
With that information, can you re-state your current questions/confusion?
That check being received by the Fidelity HSA can certainly be 1) exempt from income tax and 2) exempt from payroll tax. It's NOT after-tax, unless the employer codes it incorrectly on your paystub and/or W2.
Edit to add: Suppose your employer sends a $1000 check to your HSA (whether "they" provide that many in addition to your pay or whether they subtracted that $1000 from your paycheck). At the end of the year you'll receive a W2 which will indicate exactly how much the employer contributed to the HSA. If that $1000 payment is coded as an HSA payment on the W2, you won't owe income taxes nor payroll taxes. But suppose there is no mention of that HSA contributions (for example, your full pay including that $1000 is included as taxable income on the W2. In that case YOU can report that $1000 contribution on your taxes directly as a "personal" contribution. You'll get the identical income tax deduction, but you won't get the "deduction" for payroll taxes.
With that information, can you re-state your current questions/confusion?
Statistics: Posted by neurosphere — Tue Jul 30, 2024 9:48 am — Replies 15 — Views 689