Can Part-Time Employees Get an ICHRA, and Who Actually Qualifies?¿Pueden los empleados a tiempo parcial recibir un ICHRA, y quién califica realmente?

ICHRA treats part-time and full-time employees as separate classes, not an eligibility cutoff. Here is how the 2026 class rules work.

El ICHRA trata a los empleados de tiempo parcial y completo como clases separadas, no como un límite de elegibilidad. Así funcionan las reglas de clase en 2026.

What counts as a "part-time employee" under ICHRA rules?¿Qué cuenta como "empleado de tiempo parcial" bajo las reglas del ICHRA?

ICHRA regulations define part-time employees by borrowing the ACA employer mandate's full-time standard from section 4980H(c)(4): anyone who does not average at least 30 hours of service per week, or 130 hours per month, falls outside the full-time class and into the part-time one. The 2019 final ICHRA rule (Federal Register 2019-12571) and 26 CFR §54.9802-4 both incorporate this threshold rather than creating a new one specific to ICHRA.

That borrowed definition matters because it means an employer does not need to invent its own part-time cutoff. A payroll system already tracking hours for ACA employer-mandate purposes can reuse the same measurement period to sort employees into the full-time and part-time classes for ICHRA design.

Las reglas del ICHRA definen a los empleados de tiempo parcial tomando prestado el estándar de tiempo completo del mandato patronal de la ACA en la sección 4980H(c)(4): cualquiera que no promedie al menos 30 horas de servicio por semana, o 130 horas al mes, queda fuera de la clase de tiempo completo y entra en la de tiempo parcial. La regla final de ICHRA de 2019 (Federal Register 2019-12571) y el 26 CFR §54.9802-4 incorporan este umbral en lugar de crear uno nuevo específico del ICHRA.

Can an employer offer an ICHRA only to part-time employees?¿Puede un empleador ofrecer un ICHRA solo a empleados de tiempo parcial?

Yes. 26 CFR §54.9802-4 lists "full-time employees" and "part-time employees" among 11 permitted classes, so an employer can fund an ICHRA for part-time workers while offering a traditional group plan, a different ICHRA allowance, or nothing at all to the full-time class. The regulation does not require symmetry between classes, only that within a given class every employee is offered the same terms, subject to permitted variations by age and family size.

Sí. El 26 CFR §54.9802-4 enumera a los "empleados de tiempo completo" y "empleados de tiempo parcial" entre las 11 clases permitidas, por lo que un empleador puede financiar un ICHRA para trabajadores de tiempo parcial mientras ofrece un plan grupal tradicional, un monto de ICHRA diferente, o nada en absoluto a la clase de tiempo completo. El reglamento no exige simetría entre clases, solo que dentro de una clase dada todos los empleados reciban los mismos términos, sujeto a variaciones permitidas por edad y tamaño familiar.

Is there a minimum hours requirement to qualify for an ICHRA?¿Existe un requisito mínimo de horas para calificar para un ICHRA?

No separate hours floor exists for ICHRA eligibility itself; the 30-hour line only separates the full-time class from the part-time class under 26 CFR §54.9802-4. An employee working 5 hours a week and one working 29 hours a week both land in the same part-time class and receive the same allowance terms, since the regulation does not subdivide part-time further by hours worked.

Employers sometimes confuse the ACA employer-mandate hours test, which determines whether a large employer owes a shared-responsibility payment, with ICHRA eligibility, which is governed separately by 26 CFR §54.9802-4. An employer under 50 full-time-equivalent employees has no ACA mandate exposure at all but can still use the full-time/part-time class split for ICHRA design purposes.

No existe un piso de horas separado para la elegibilidad del ICHRA en sí; la línea de 30 horas solo separa la clase de tiempo completo de la clase de tiempo parcial bajo el 26 CFR §54.9802-4. Un empleado que trabaja 5 horas por semana y otro que trabaja 29 horas por semana caen en la misma clase de tiempo parcial y reciben los mismos términos de asignación.

Can a part-time employee's ICHRA allowance differ from a full-time employee's?¿Puede el monto del ICHRA de un empleado de tiempo parcial diferir del de uno de tiempo completo?

Yes, allowances can vary by class under 26 CFR §54.9802-4: an employer might set $300 per month for the part-time class and $550 per month for the full-time class, as long as every employee within each class is treated uniformly except for permitted variation by age (up to a 3:1 ratio) and family size. The regulation does not set a required ratio between full-time and part-time allowances; the gap is an employer design choice, not a compliance threshold.

Sí, los montos pueden variar por clase bajo el 26 CFR §54.9802-4: un empleador podría fijar $300 mensuales para la clase de tiempo parcial y $550 mensuales para la clase de tiempo completo, siempre que cada empleado dentro de cada clase reciba trato uniforme salvo la variación permitida por edad (hasta una proporción de 3:1) y tamaño familiar.

What happens if a part-time employee declines the ICHRA?¿Qué pasa si un empleado de tiempo parcial rechaza el ICHRA?

A part-time employee who declines an ICHRA offered at an "affordable" level under the 2026 threshold of 9.96% of household income (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25) is generally blocked from claiming Advance Premium Tax Credits on the Marketplace, per the IRS Q&A on the premium tax credit. If the offer is deemed unaffordable using one of the three IRS safe harbors (W-2 wages, rate of pay, or federal poverty line), the employee can decline the ICHRA and remain eligible for Marketplace subsidies instead.

This affordability math runs independently for each class, so a part-time class with a smaller allowance is more likely to fail the 9.96% test than a full-time class with a richer one, which in practice preserves subsidy eligibility for lower-hour workers more often than for full-time staff.

Un empleado de tiempo parcial que rechaza un ICHRA ofrecido a un nivel "asequible" bajo el umbral de 2026 de 9.96% del ingreso familiar (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25) generalmente queda bloqueado para reclamar créditos fiscales anticipados de prima en el Mercado. Si la oferta se considera inasequible usando uno de los tres métodos seguros del IRS, el empleado puede rechazar el ICHRA y conservar la elegibilidad para subsidios del Mercado.

26 CFR §54.9802-4 treats full-time and part-time employees as two of eleven permitted classes an employer may use to vary ICHRA contributions, not as two different eligibility outcomes.

El 26 CFR §54.9802-4 trata a los empleados de tiempo completo y tiempo parcial como dos de once clases permitidas que un empleador puede usar para variar las contribuciones del ICHRA, no como dos resultados de elegibilidad distintos.

How do minimum class size rules affect a part-time ICHRA class?¿Cómo afectan las reglas de tamaño mínimo de clase a una clase ICHRA de tiempo parcial?

Minimum class size rules under 26 CFR §54.9802-4 require at least 10 employees in a class for employers with fewer than 100 total employees, 10% of the workforce for employers with 100 to 200 employees, and 20 employees for employers above 200, when the class distinction is used to vary ICHRA terms. A small restaurant group with 6 part-time servers cannot carve them into their own ICHRA class with different terms until headcount in that class clears the 10-employee floor.

Las reglas de tamaño mínimo de clase bajo el 26 CFR §54.9802-4 exigen al menos 10 empleados en una clase para empleadores con menos de 100 empleados totales, 10% de la fuerza laboral para empleadores de 100 a 200 empleados, y 20 empleados para empleadores de más de 200, cuando la distinción de clase se usa para variar los términos del ICHRA.

Can seasonal or variable-hour workers be part of a part-time ICHRA class?¿Pueden los trabajadores de temporada o de horas variables formar parte de una clase ICHRA de tiempo parcial?

Seasonal employees are a separate, twelfth-adjacent permitted class under 26 CFR §54.9802-4, distinct from the part-time class, so an employer can build a dedicated seasonal class rather than folding seasonal workers into the part-time one. Variable-hour staff who average below the 30-hour full-time threshold over a defined measurement period are typically grouped into the part-time class, and the measurement method used should match what is documented in the plan's governing documents.

ICHRA covered an estimated 400,000 to 800,000 lives in 2025, up 2.8 times year over year, and employer retention of HRA programs ran at 92% among those already offering one (HRA Council, cited by Remodel Health), figures consistent with growing interest from industries with high turnover and variable schedules such as restaurants and hospitality, even though vendor research on that segment specifically remains thin.

Los empleados de temporada son una clase permitida separada bajo el 26 CFR §54.9802-4, distinta de la clase de tiempo parcial, por lo que un empleador puede construir una clase de temporada dedicada en lugar de incluir a los trabajadores de temporada en la de tiempo parcial. El ICHRA cubrió entre 400,000 y 800,000 vidas en 2025, un aumento de 2.8 veces interanual (HRA Council).

What do employers typically check before setting a part-time ICHRA class?¿Qué suelen revisar los empleadores antes de fijar una clase ICHRA de tiempo parcial?

Employers working through a full-time/part-time split typically explore: (1) running payroll hours through the same measurement period already used for ACA employer-mandate tracking, (2) confirming the part-time headcount clears the 10-employee minimum class size threshold under 26 CFR §54.9802-4, (3) checking the 9.96% affordability math separately for each class using the CMS Lowest Cost Silver Plan table, and (4) reviewing plan documents with a benefits advisor or licensed agent before the required employee notice goes out.

Los empleadores que trabajan en una división de tiempo completo/tiempo parcial suelen explorar: (1) usar el mismo período de medición ya utilizado para el seguimiento del mandato patronal de la ACA, (2) confirmar que el número de empleados de tiempo parcial supere el umbral mínimo de 10 empleados, (3) verificar la asequibilidad del 9.96% por separado para cada clase, y (4) revisar los documentos del plan con un asesor de beneficios o agente con licencia.