The approximate small-employer health care tax credit rate for every headcount from 1 to 24 full-time equivalents and average wages from $20,000 to $67,000, using the 2025 Form 8941 limits.
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The credit pays a percentage of the employer’s share of premiums for a plan bought through SHOP, for two consecutive years, to a taxable employer with fewer than 25 full-time equivalents and average wages under the limit ($67,000 for 2025). The rate starts at 50% and falls in two directions at once: as FTEs rise from 10 toward 25 and as average wages rise from $33,500 toward $67,000. Tax-exempt employers get 35% on the same scale, refundable.
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| FTEs \ average wage | $20,000 | $25,000 | $30,000 | $33,500 | $37,500 | $42,500 | $47,500 | $52,500 | $57,500 | $62,500 | $66,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 2 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 3 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 4 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 5 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 6 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 7 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 8 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 9 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 10 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 44% | 37% | 29% | 22% | 14% | 7% | 1% |
| 11 | 47% | 47% | 47% | 47% | 41% | 33% | 26% | 18% | 11% | 3% | 0 |
| 12 | 43% | 43% | 43% | 43% | 37% | 30% | 22% | 15% | 8% | 0% | 0 |
| 13 | 40% | 40% | 40% | 40% | 34% | 27% | 19% | 12% | 4% | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | 37% | 37% | 37% | 37% | 31% | 23% | 16% | 8% | 1% | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | 33% | 33% | 33% | 33% | 27% | 20% | 12% | 5% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | 30% | 30% | 30% | 30% | 24% | 17% | 9% | 2% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | 27% | 27% | 27% | 27% | 21% | 13% | 6% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | 23% | 23% | 23% | 23% | 17% | 10% | 2% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | 20% | 20% | 20% | 20% | 14% | 7% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | 17% | 17% | 17% | 17% | 11% | 3% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | 13% | 13% | 13% | 13% | 7% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 4% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | 7% | 7% | 7% | 7% | 1% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | 3% | 3% | 3% | 3% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rate = 50% × (1 − FTE excess over 10 ÷ 15 − wage excess over $33,500 ÷ $33,500), floored at zero: the two reductions on the Form 8941 worksheet, using the 2025 inflation-adjusted figures (the 2026 and 2027 figures publish with each year’s instructions). FTEs = total hours ÷ 2,080, owners and their family excluded; average wages = total wages ÷ FTEs, rounded down to the nearest $1,000. The credit is also limited to the premiums the employer would pay at the state’s average small-group premium. Not tax advice; the form’s own worksheet governs.