ICHRA Notice Deadline Is October 3, 2026. That's Less Than 7 Weeks Away.

Employers offering an ICHRA for the 2027 plan year must deliver the required employee notice by October 3, 2026, for calendar-year plans. That's the 90-day minimum required under 29 CFR § 2590.702-2. Miss it, and you've got a compliance gap that touches affordability, premium tax credits, and your ACA employer mandate exposure.

This isn't a complicated notice. But it has to go out on time, with the right content, to the right people. Most employers get tripped up on one of those three things.

Who is responsible for sending the ICHRA notice?

The employer is on the hook, full stop. If you've delegated ICHRA administration to a TPA or compliance administrator, confirm in writing that they're generating and distributing this notice, not just building the plan document. That distinction matters under ERISA, and your TPA is not your fiduciary.

The notice requirement applies to every employee eligible for the ICHRA, before the plan year begins. For calendar-year plans, that means before January 1, 2027. The 90-day rule sets October 3, 2026 as the outer boundary.

Don't confuse eligibility with enrollment. Eligible employees get the notice whether or not they've opted in.

What exactly does the ICHRA notice have to say?

The notice must give employees enough information to make a real decision. That means six things, at minimum: the ICHRA is available to them, the amount of the employer's allowance, that they have a right to opt out, how the ICHRA affects their ability to claim a premium tax credit on the exchange, whether the ICHRA is considered affordable under ACA rules, and contact information for someone who can answer questions.

The affordability piece is where most employers underinvest. CMS publishes an ICHRA Employer Lowest Cost Silver Plan Premium Look-Up Table specifically for affordability determinations under the employer mandate. A notice without a real affordability analysis is an incomplete notice.

A DOL model notice exists and you can use it. Don't treat it as a fill-in-the-blank form you can rush through. The allowance amounts and affordability calculations need to be accurate for your specific employee classes.

What are the most common mistakes employers make with this notice?

Missing the deadline entirely is first. Close behind it: sending the notice with a placeholder allowance amount, skipping the premium tax credit language, or failing to address new hires separately.

New hires don't get a grace period. Per the rule, the notice goes to a new hire no later than the date they first become eligible to participate. If your ICHRA is also brand-new and was established less than 120 days before the plan year starts, the first-year notice can go out no later than the date the ICHRA takes effect.

Those are two separate carve-outs. Conflating them causes problems. The third common mistake: sending the notice to the wrong employee class.

If your ICHRA uses multiple employee classes, each class gets its own notice reflecting that class's allowance amount. One generic notice for all employees doesn't cut it.

What should you do this week if you haven't started?

Start today. You have 6-7 weeks. That's enough time if you move now, and not enough time if you wait two more weeks.

First, confirm who owns this. HR, your TPA, or your compliance administrator needs someone assigned by the end of the week. Second, pull your employee class list and allowance amounts. You can't draft an accurate notice without them.

Third, locate or request the DOL model notice and begin populating it with your plan's actual numbers. Fourth, run the affordability calculation. Use the HRA Council's research as context, but your affordability determination has to be based on CMS's look-up table for your employees' zip codes. Your ICHRA vendor and broker/advisor should be guiding this.

This is where the notice most often goes wrong. Track everything in your ICHRA Notice compliance calendar entry so you have a dated record of when the notice went out and to whom. That paper trail is your protection if questions come later.

For a broader view of what else is on the compliance radar this fall, the ICHRA compliance stack article covers the full picture beyond just this notice.

October 3 is the action date. Not the planning date.

ICHRA adoption among large employers jumped 34% between 2024 and 2025, according to HRA Council data. More plans in force means more notices owed this fall. Don't be the employer who built a compliant ICHRA and then missed the notice deadline.

Frequently asked questions

What happens if an employer misses the October 3, 2026 ICHRA notice deadline?

Missing the deadline creates a compliance gap under 29 CFR § 2590.702-2. Employees who don't receive proper notice may claim premium tax credits on the exchange, which can trigger ACA employer mandate penalties. There's no automatic cure period. The further past the deadline you are, the harder it is to demonstrate good-faith compliance. The ICHRA compliance stack article covers the downstream exposure in detail.

Does the ICHRA notice requirement apply to part-time or seasonal employees?

It depends on how you've structured your employee classes. Any employee class that is eligible for the ICHRA must receive the notice before the plan year begins. If part-time or seasonal workers are excluded from ICHRA eligibility entirely, they don't get the notice. But if they're in an eligible class, even a limited one, the notice is required.

Can the ICHRA notice be delivered electronically?

Yes, subject to ERISA's electronic disclosure safe harbor rules. Employees who regularly use a computer as an integral part of their job can receive the notice electronically without additional consent. Employees who don't meet that standard need either paper delivery or affirmative electronic consent on file. Confirm your distribution method satisfies the safe harbor before you send.