{"slug":"us-aca-subsidy-cliff","name":"ACA Subsidy Cliff Checker (2026)","category":"borrow","tags":["health","planning","tax"],"region":"US","tagline":"Where your 2026 marketplace subsidy sits against the restored 400%-of-poverty cliff — and the clawback risk if income crosses it.","endpoint":"https://xearno.tools/api/v1/tools/us-aca-subsidy-cliff","page":"https://xearno.tools/t/us-aca-subsidy-cliff","description":"For 2026 the enhanced ACA premium tax credits have expired, and the pre-2021 structure is back: below 400% of the federal poverty line your premium is capped at a sliding share of income; one dollar above 400% and the subsidy drops to zero. This tool places your household on that curve — your FPL percentage, your expected contribution, your estimated monthly subsidy, and exactly where the cliff falls in dollars. It also flags the 2026 change most people miss: the cap on repaying advance credits was repealed, so if your year-end income lands over 400% you repay every advance dollar with no limit. The decisive input is your FULL-YEAR 2026 MAGI, reconciled at filing — not the estimate you gave at enrollment.","inputSchema":{"type":"object","properties":{"income":{"description":"Expected 2026 household income (MAGI) Your best estimate of full-year 2026 household modified AGI — the number the credit is reconciled against at filing, not just what you report at enrollment. A bonus, capital gain, or extra freelance income counts.","type":"number","minimum":0,"maximum":1000000,"default":60000},"household":{"description":"People in your tax household You, your spouse if filing jointly, and everyone you claim as a dependent — this sets the poverty line the percentage is measured against.","type":"number","minimum":1,"maximum":12,"default":2},"state":{"description":"Which state Alaska and Hawaii have higher federal poverty guidelines, which shifts every threshold up.","type":"string","enum":["contiguous","alaska","hawaii"],"default":"contiguous"},"expansion":{"description":"Did your state expand Medicaid? Decides the bottom end. In expansion states, adults under 138% of poverty get Medicaid instead of a marketplace subsidy. In the 10 non-expansion states, adults below 100% FPL fall into the coverage gap — too rich for Medicaid, too poor for a subsidy. *WI covers adults to 100% FPL by waiver.","type":"string","enum":["yes","no"],"default":"yes"},"benchmark":{"description":"Benchmark Silver premium (monthly, for your household) The second-lowest-cost Silver plan (SLCSP) for your household — the plan the subsidy is pegged to. Find yours on healthcare.gov’s plan preview or the KFF subsidy calculator; it varies a lot by age and county. The default is a rough mid-range family figure — replace it for an accurate dollar subsidy.","type":"number","minimum":0,"maximum":10000,"default":1400}},"required":[],"additionalProperties":false},"methodology":["Places a household on the 2026 ACA premium-tax-credit curve. Your poverty percentage is income ÷ the applicable federal poverty line; the poverty line is the 2025 HHS guideline for your household size and state (2025 guidelines govern 2026 coverage-year eligibility). Alaska and Hawaii use their own higher guidelines.","The applicable (\"required contribution\") percentage is the pre-ARPA §36B sliding scale from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25, interpolated linearly within each band: 2.1% below 133% of poverty, rising to a flat 9.96% from 300% to 400%. Your expected contribution is that percentage of income; your subsidy is the benchmark Silver premium minus that contribution, floored at zero.","Above 400% of poverty there is no row in the table — the credit is zero. That is the cliff. The tool computes where 400% falls in dollars for your household and how much subsidy vanishes on crossing it.","The benchmark premium (the Second-Lowest-Cost Silver Plan for your household) is an input, because it varies widely by age and county — get yours from healthcare.gov’s plan preview or the KFF calculator for an accurate dollar subsidy. The cliff location and the applicable percentage do not depend on it.","New for tax year 2026: the One Big Beautiful Bill Act repealed the cap on repaying excess advance credits (IRS FS-2025-10). Previously repayment was limited by income tier; now, if reconciled income lands over 400% FPL, the entire advance credit is repaid with no cap. This is modeled as a warning, not a dollar figure, because it depends on advance payments actually taken.","Not tax advice, and an estimate: actual eligibility depends on offers of employer coverage, immigration status, and other factors, and the benchmark premium is specific to your county and the ages on the application. The enhanced-credit expiration reflects law as of the verified date; Congress could still act."],"usage":"POST https://xearno.tools/api/v1/tools/us-aca-subsidy-cliff with a JSON body matching inputSchema."}