Most Marketplace enrollees qualify for premium tax credits (premium subsidies).[efn_note]”The Affordable Care Act 101” (Figure 3) KFF. May 28, 2024[/efn_note] Premium subsidies are a tax credit based on the total annual income earned by everyone in the enrollee’s tax household (everyone listed on your tax return).[efn_note]”The Premium Tax Credit – The Basics” Internal Revenue Service. Accessed June 3, 2024[/efn_note] Married Marketplace enrollees must file a joint tax return to qualify for a premium tax credit.[efn_note]”Questions and answers on the Premium Tax Credit” (Question 5). Internal Revenue Service. Accessed June 3, 2024[/efn_note] But domestic partners cannot file a joint tax return.[efn_note]”Answers to Frequently Asked Questions for Registered Domestic Partners and Individuals in Civil Unions” Internal Revenue Service. Accessed June 3, 2024[/efn_note] And HealthCare.gov clarifies that applicants should not count a domestic partner as part of their household unless they have a child together or will claim the domestic partner as a dependent on their tax return.[efn_note]”Count income & household size” HealthCare.gov. Accessed June 4, 2024[/efn_note] (Note that even if domestic partners share a child, they still have to file separate tax returns; either parent, but not both, can claim the child as a dependent.)[efn_note]”Answers to Frequently Asked Questions for Registered Domestic Partners and Individuals in Civil Unions” IRS.gov. Accessed June 14, 2024[/efn_note] Domestic partners file separate tax returns (assuming one is not the other’s tax dependent),[efn_note]”Tax Tips for Registered Domestic Partners and Unmarried Same Sex Couples in Community Property States” TurboTax. June 6, 2024[/efn_note] and Marketplace premium tax credits are linked to an enrollee’s tax return. If both domestic partners filing separately are covered under one Marketplace policy, the premium tax credit can be allocated across both partners’ tax returns in any way they choose, or all of it can be reconciled on one partner’s tax return. The IRS explains the allocation of premium tax credits in the instructions for Form 8962, which is used to reconcile Marketplace premium tax credits after the coverage year is over.[efn_note]”2023 Instructions for Form 8962” Internal Revenue Service. Accessed June 3, 2024[/efn_note] (To clarify, IRS rules for allocating premium tax credits are applicable in any situation where two or more tax households share a single Marketplace policy. That will typically be the case if domestic partners are allowed to enroll in one policy together, as domestic partners will file separate tax returns unless one is able to claim the other as a dependent.)