The 2026 ACA subsidy cliff is back. See how close you are.
A free calculator for your 2026 ACA premium tax credit — your percent of the Federal Poverty Level, your estimated subsidy, and exactly how far you are from the restored 400% FPL cliff where the credit drops to $0.
Your ACA subsidy & cliff distance
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The cliff — subsidy vs. income
How the 2026 premium tax credit works
The premium tax credit (PTC) lowers what you pay for a health plan bought on the marketplace. The math is simple in shape: the government decides a percentage of your income you’re “expected to contribute” toward a benchmark plan, and the credit covers the rest of that benchmark’s premium.
The benchmark is the second-lowest-cost silver plan (often abbreviated SLCSP) offered to your household in your area. Your expected contribution is a sliding percentage of income that rises with your percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) — see the table below. Your credit is the benchmark premium minus that expected contribution. If your expected contribution already exceeds the benchmark, your credit is $0. Once it’s calculated, you can apply the credit to any metal tier — bronze, silver, or gold — not just the benchmark plan it’s measured against.
What counts as income
Eligibility is based on modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) for everyone on the plan — roughly your adjusted gross income plus any tax-exempt interest, untaxed Social Security benefits, and excluded foreign income. It’s a household figure that you project for the coverage year, not last year’s actual number. Because the credit is reconciled on your tax return, the income you estimate at enrollment matters: estimate too low and you may have to repay part of the credit — a bigger risk for 2026 than it used to be (see the rule changes below).
What changed for 2026
From 2021 through 2025, a temporary “enhanced” credit removed the upper income limit and capped premiums at 8.5% of income — there was effectively no cliff. That enhancement expired January 1, 2026. For the 2026 plan year the credit reverts to the pre-2021 structure: a sliding subsidy from 100%–400% FPL, and then a hard cliff at 400%.
The premium tax credit itself did not disappear — only the temporary enhancement lapsed. Subsidies still exist for households between 100% and 400% FPL, and the figures on this page use the 2025 HHS poverty guidelines, which are the ones that govern 2026 coverage.
The applicable-percentage table
This is the sliding scale of income you’re expected to contribute toward the benchmark plan, from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25. The value is interpolated linearly within each band — and it simply stops at 400%.
| Household income (% of FPL) | Expected contribution |
|---|---|
| Under 133% | 2.10% |
| 133% – 150% | 3.14% → 4.19% |
| 150% – 200% | 4.19% → 6.60% |
| 200% – 250% | 6.60% → 8.44% |
| 250% – 300% | 8.44% → 9.96% |
| 300% – 400% | 9.96% |
| Over 400% | No credit — the cliff |
At exactly 400% FPL a household is expected to pay 9.96% of income toward the benchmark plan and still receives whatever credit remains. At 400.01% the credit is $0. There is no 8.5% cap above the line anymore — that was part of the expired enhancement. For an older couple buying their own coverage, that single dollar of income can mean five figures a year.
A worked example
Take a single 60-year-old in the contiguous states. For 2026, 400% of FPL for a household of one is $62,600. Suppose the benchmark silver plan runs about $1,060 a month — roughly $12,720 a year. At an income of $62,000, just under the line (about 396% of FPL), the expected contribution is 9.96% of income, about $6,175 — leaving a credit of roughly $6,500 a year. Earn one dollar past $62,600 and that credit becomes $0: the same plan now costs the full $12,720 out of pocket. That ~$6,500 swing is the cliff, and it grows with age and household size, because the benchmark premium does. (The calculator above uses an age-based estimate for the benchmark; enter your own from HealthCare.gov for a sharper number.)
Who the cliff hits hardest
The drop is steepest for older, pre-Medicare households (roughly 55–64) buying their own coverage. Unsubsidized premiums rise sharply with age, so the benchmark premium — and therefore the credit at stake — is largest exactly for the people closest to the cliff.
Other 2026 marketplace changes to know
Beyond the cliff itself, the 2025 reconciliation law (P.L. 119-21) and related rules changed several marketplace mechanics for 2026. These are the operating rules in effect now, stated plainly:
- Repayment caps were removed. If you take the credit in advance and your actual income comes in higher than you estimated, you reconcile the difference on your tax return. The old income-based limits on how much you had to pay back are gone — so underestimating your income near the cliff is riskier than it used to be.
- Automatic re-enrollment ended. Coverage no longer rolls over with the credit attached automatically; you generally must actively verify your information and re-enroll each year to keep the credit.
- Open enrollment is shorter. For 2026 coverage on HealthCare.gov, open enrollment runs roughly November 1 – December 15, 2025, with no January window. State-run exchanges may set their own dates.
- The under-150% FPL year-round sign-up window ended. The monthly special enrollment period that let very-low-income households enroll any time was discontinued.
Dates and rules can change — confirm the current open-enrollment window and your state’s deadlines at HealthCare.gov or your state marketplace before you rely on them.
Ways households get under 400% FPL
If you’re just over the line, certain deductions reduce the MAGI that counts for the credit. These are stated neutrally — they’re common planning levers, not a recommendation, and they depend on your full tax picture.
- Deductible HSA contributions — if you have an HSA-eligible high-deductible plan, contributions lower MAGI.
- Traditional IRA / SEP / solo-401(k) contributions — pre-tax retirement contributions can lower MAGI, especially for the self-employed.
- Timing income — deferring a bonus, a Roth conversion, or a capital gain into a different tax year changes which year the income lands in.
- Self-employed deductions — the self-employed health insurance deduction and ordinary business expenses reduce MAGI.
If you end up over the line anyway, you’re not shut out. You can still buy any marketplace plan at full price, and households over 400% FPL auto-qualify for a hardship exemption to purchase a lower-cost Catastrophic plan. Weigh that against the repayment risk above before taking any advance credit you might have to pay back. None of this is tax advice — your MAGI depends on your whole return, so confirm the effect of any move with a tax professional.
If your income is very low
Below roughly 150% FPL you may qualify for extra cost-sharing reductions on a silver plan, and below 100% FPL (in states that didn’t expand Medicaid) you may fall into the “coverage gap.” You may qualify for Medicaid — check your state’s program. This tool doesn’t model Medicaid eligibility.
Reflects current federal law as of June 1, 2026: the enhanced premium tax credits expired after 2025, and the 400% FPL subsidy cliff applies for the 2026 plan year. A bill to restore the enhancements passed the House in January 2026 but has not become law. The legislative status is live — verify the current status on congress.gov before relying on this.
Common questions
The subsidy cliff is the point at 400% of the Federal Poverty Level where the premium tax credit drops to $0. For the 2026 plan year the cliff is back: at 400.00% of FPL a household still receives a credit, but at 400.01% the credit is zero. One dollar of extra income can cost an older household many thousands of dollars a year.
For 2026 coverage the premium tax credit phases out at 400% of the Federal Poverty Level, calculated from the 2025 poverty guidelines. For the 48 contiguous states and DC that is about $62,600 for a household of one and $84,600 for a household of two. Alaska and Hawaii use higher figures.
No. The premium tax credit still exists for households between 100% and 400% of the Federal Poverty Level. What expired on January 1, 2026 was the temporary “enhanced” credit (2021–2025), which had removed the income cap and capped premiums at 8.5% of income. With that enhancement gone, the credit reverts to the pre-2021 structure and the 400% cliff returns.
You can qualify for a premium tax credit up to 400% of the Federal Poverty Level for your household size and state. Above 400% the credit is $0 under current 2026 law. The exact dollar figure depends on household size and whether you live in the contiguous states, Alaska, or Hawaii.
You are not locked out of coverage. You can still buy any marketplace plan — you just pay full price with no premium tax credit. Households over 400% FPL also auto-qualify for a hardship exemption that allows buying a lower-cost Catastrophic plan. And because repayment caps were removed for 2026, underestimating your income near the cliff is riskier than it used to be.
For 2026 coverage, open enrollment on HealthCare.gov runs roughly November 1 to December 15, 2025 — there is no January window for 2026. State-run marketplaces may set slightly different dates, so confirm your state’s deadline. Outside open enrollment you generally need a qualifying life event to enroll.
Possibly. The credit is reconciled on your tax return against your actual income. For 2026 the income-based caps on repayment were removed, so if you took more advance credit than you ended up qualifying for, you repay the full difference. That makes underestimating your income near the 400% line riskier than it was under the old caps.
Eligibility uses modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) for your whole tax household — roughly your adjusted gross income plus tax-exempt interest, untaxed Social Security benefits, and excluded foreign income. It’s the income you project for the coverage year, not last year’s. Pre-tax contributions such as HSA or traditional retirement contributions reduce MAGI.