Beginning in 2020, residents of Rhode Island are required to maintain minimum essential health coverage. According to the State of Rhode Island, "The Rhode Island Individual Health Insurance Mandate requires each applicable individual to have health insurance coverage, have a health coverage exemption, or make a shared responsibility payment with their Rhode Island personal income tax return."
Who must file this form?
You are required to file Form IND-HEALTH, along with the Shared Responsibility Worksheet, if all of the following apply:
- You are filing a Form RI-1040 or RI-1040NR.
- You cannot be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer.
- For one or more months of 2025, you or someone else in your tax household did not have minimum essential coverage.
If you are not required to file a tax return, your tax household is exempt from the shared responsibility payment and you do not need to file a tax return to claim the coverage exemption.
Program Entry
To complete the state form questions about health insurance, go to:
- State section
- 3 dots to Edit the State return
- Health Care Information - Form IND-HEALTH
Part-Year Residents
If you are a part-year resident filing form RI-1040NR, all members of the tax household are required to have minimum essential coverage during the months they were Rhode Island residents.
During the tax year, if each member of your tax household had coverage for all the months they were members of your tax household and residents of Rhode Island, you will check the “Full-year health
care coverage” box on your return.
Dependent Information
If your dependent filed their own federal return, you will need to enter additional information from their tax return. Please review the dependent's return to find the following information:
- Federal Tax Exempt Interest
- Federal AGI
- Foreign earned income exclusion from Form 2555
- Housing deduction from Form 2555
Shared Responsibility Payment (Penalty)
The program will automatically figure your shared responsibility payment based on your entries. The amount will be added to your state return.
The Shared Responsibility Payment is determined by comparing the results of three different calculations listed below and taking the higher of percentage of income method OR the Flat Dollar Method (but not to exceed the Average Bronze Plan amount).
- Percentage of Income Method - 2.5 % of your Modified Adjusted Gross Income above the tax filing threshold.
- Flat Dollar Amount Penalty - The maximum penalty amount is $2,085 (300% of the flat dollar amount penalty). For tax year 2025, the Monthly Penalty Rates are $57.92 (Adult) and $28.96 (Child).
- Average Bronze Plan amount as determined by HealthSource RI. For tax year 2025, the Average Bronze Plan amount is $357 per month.
Exemptions
Below is a partial list of the exemptions available. A full list of exemptions can be found on the Rhode Island Healthsource website.
| Exemption | Description |
| Hardship | You experienced a hardship that prevented you from obtaining coverage under a qualified health plan. See below for more information. |
| Members of certain religious sects | You are a member of a recognized religious sect. |
| Coverage Considered Unaffordable | The individual is eligible for an employer plan and the coverage is considered unaffordable, or isn't eligible for employer plan and coverage under Marketplace is unaffordable. Complete Affordability Worksheet. |
| Part-year Rhode Island Resident | A part year resident who, along with all members of his/her tax household did not maintain minimum essential coverage for all of the months when they were Rhode Island residents, may claim this Coverage Exemption for those months during which he or she was not a resident of Rhode Island as well as the month in which the individual either became or ceased to be a Rhode Island resident. |
| Member of Tax Household Born or Adopted During the Year | The months before and including the month that an individual was added to your tax household by birth or adoption. |
| Member of Tax Household Died During the Year | The months after the month that a member of your tax household died during the year. |