ICHRA Enrollment: How Employees Choose a Plan

Step 1: choosing a plan

Employees shop the individual market — on the ACA marketplace or off-exchange — and pick a plan that fits their family and budget, using your monthly allowance as the funding. Unlike a one-size group plan, they choose the network and coverage level they actually want.

Step 2: proving coverage

To keep reimbursements tax-free, employees submit proof of their plan (substantiation). This is light paperwork that an administration platform or broker handles, so it doesn''t fall on you or your team.

Step 3: getting reimbursed

Once coverage is verified, employees are reimbursed up to their allowance, tax-free, typically through payroll. From then on it runs monthly in the background.

The difference-maker: support

A broker walks employees through plan selection so nobody is left guessing. That''s the whole reason a guided ICHRA rollout tends to beat handing people a portal and hoping for the best — and it''s what makes the enrollment experience smooth.

When employees can enroll

Getting a new ICHRA offer generally opens a special enrollment period, giving employees a window (typically 60 days) to pick an individual plan outside the usual open enrollment. Employees who miss that window may have to wait for open enrollment, so timing the rollout and communicating the deadline matters.

What documents employees need

The paperwork is light but specific.

• Proof of enrollment in a qualifying individual plan.
• The premium amount and payment confirmation for reimbursement.
• Attestation that they are and will remain covered.

Common enrollment mistakes

A few missteps cause most of the friction: missing the special enrollment window, buying a plan that is not qualifying individual coverage (short-term or sharing-ministry plans usually do not count), or forgetting to submit proof before the first reimbursement. A little guidance up front prevents all three.