FTB Publication 3895B: California Instructions for Federal Forms 1094-B and 1095-B (2024)

FTB Publication 3895B is a guidance document from the California Franchise Tax Board that explains how to fill out federal Forms 1094-B and 1095-B when those forms are used to satisfy California’s health coverage reporting requirements. It doesn’t replace the federal forms — it walks filers through the specific California rules that apply on top of the federal instructions, since California requires proof of minimum essential coverage (MEC) as part of its individual mandate.

What This Publication Actually Covers

Forms 1094-B and 1095-B are federal documents used by insurance providers, government agencies, and certain employers to report that individuals had minimum essential coverage during the tax year. California adopted its own individual mandate back in 2020, which means insurers and coverage providers operating in the state have to report that same information to the FTB, not just to the IRS.

Publication 3895B breaks down how those same federal forms should be completed and transmitted for California purposes — covering things like which entities are required to file, what counts as minimum essential coverage under state law, deadlines that may differ from the federal calendar, and how corrections or amended filings should be handled if the original submission had errors.

Who Needs to Use It

This publication is aimed at:

• Health insurance issuers and carriers that provide coverage to California residents
• Self-insured employers who offer coverage directly to employees
• Government agencies administering programs like Medi-Cal or other public coverage
• Multiemployer plans and other entities responsible for MEC reporting

If your organization already files Forms 1094-B and 1095-B with the IRS, there’s a good chance you also have a California filing obligation, especially if any covered individuals are California residents. The publication clarifies when a separate state submission is required versus when the federal filing alone is sufficient.

When It’s Used

Filers reference this publication during the annual reporting cycle for the prior tax year — for the 2024 tax year, filings are typically due in the first quarter of the following year, mirroring the federal deadline structure but with California-specific submission requirements added on. Entities preparing their year-end health coverage reports use this document alongside the federal instructions to make sure nothing gets missed on the state side.

How to Get and Use the Form

Publication 3895B is not something you fill out and submit yourself — it’s a reference guide, not a fillable form. There are no interactive fields; you download the PDF, print it if needed for reference, and use it to guide how you complete the actual Forms 1094-B and 1095-B before transmitting them to the FTB. Since the underlying forms it explains are filed electronically in most cases, the publication mainly serves as a companion reference during preparation rather than a document you mail in on its own.

It’s worth pulling the current version directly from the FTB’s website each filing season, since coverage reporting rules and thresholds can shift from year to year. Using an outdated version could mean missing a rule change that affects how your organization needs to report.

A Note on State Filing Complexity

Dealing with state-specific instructions layered on top of federal forms is a common headache across different tax and compliance areas, not just health coverage reporting. Employers juggling multi-state obligations often run into similar situations with other state forms — for example, New York employers sometimes need guidance on documents like the Form Y-204 for Yonkers nonresident partner allocations or credits such as the QETC Employment Credit claim. Keeping a checklist of which state publications apply to your filings, similar to how you’d track something like New York’s identity theft declaration form, can save a lot of confusion when reporting season arrives.

For California MEC reporting specifically, treat Publication 3895B as your checklist companion: read it alongside the federal instructions, confirm your entity type and filing thresholds, and double-check submission deadlines before sending anything to the FTB.