COBRA Notice Deadlines: The 30-Day and 14-Day Clock Employers Must Meet
COBRA runs on two notice clocks, and when the employer is also the plan administrator they stack to 44 days.
Missing a COBRA notice deadline is one of the most common ways a plan sponsor gets into trouble. This guide lays out who owes which notice, to whom, and by when, using the federal regulations.
Who Owes Which Notice
Three parties have deadlines: the employer, the plan administrator and the employee.
Employer to administrator. Under 29 CFR 2590.606-2 the employer must notify the plan administrator no later than 30 days after a qualifying event such as death, termination, reduction in hours, Medicare entitlement or employer bankruptcy. Where the plan starts continuation on the date coverage is lost, the 30 days run from the loss of coverage.
Administrator to the qualified beneficiary. Under 29 CFR 2590.606-4 the administrator must send the election notice no later than 14 days after receiving the employer’s notice of the qualifying event.
When the employer is the administrator. If the employer is also the administrator, the deadline is 44 days from the trigger date, which is the qualifying event or, for plans that start continuation on the date of coverage loss, the loss of coverage.
What the Employee Must Report
Some events only the employee knows about.
Divorce, separation and dependents. The qualified beneficiary must notify the plan within 60 days of a divorce, a legal separation or a child losing dependent status, according to the Department of Labor’s consumer FAQ.
The general notice. New participants are due an initial general notice within 90 days of enrollment, according to the same DOL FAQ.
Why it matters. An employer cannot act on an event it is never told about, so the plan’s procedures for reporting these events should be written down and given to employees.
Election and Payment Windows
Once the notice goes out, the beneficiary’s clock starts.
Sixty days to elect. The election period must be at least 60 days under 26 U.S.C. 4980B(f)(5).
Forty-five days to pay. No premium may be required before 45 days after the initial election.
The price. The plan may charge up to 102 percent of the applicable premium, and up to 150 percent for months after the 18th for the disability extension.
An Employer That Is Also the Administrator
Counting the days from the trigger date shows how little time there is.
The facts. A 60-employee company administers its own COBRA. An employee is terminated on March 1 and her coverage ends the same day.
The deadline. Because the employer is also the administrator, the election notice is due 44 days from March 1, which is April 14.
The takeaway. Treat the termination date as the start of a 44-day clock, not 14, and set a calendar reminder at the time the termination is entered in payroll.
Related Rules and Sources
The regulations behind each deadline.
COBRA Continuation Coverage Law
Who is covered, for how long and at what cost.
How Much COBRA Costs
Worked examples of the 102 percent premium.
COBRA and Medicare
How Medicare entitlement changes the notices.
29 CFR 2590.606-2, employer notice to administrator · 29 CFR 2590.606-4, administrator election notice · 26 U.S.C. 4980B, COBRA continuation coverage
We keep the notice clock on your calendar.
We help you decide who administers COBRA, set the reporting steps and check the notice language before it goes out.
Related pages.
COBRA Continuation Coverage Law
The rules in full.
How Much COBRA Costs
The 102 percent premium in practice.
COBRA and Medicare
The Medicare interaction.
State Continuation and Mini-COBRA
State laws for smaller employers.
COBRA in Colorado
Colorado state continuation.
COBRA in Texas
Texas state continuation.
Questions that come up.
Short answers to the questions we hear most. Each links to the full page.
How long does the employer have to notify the COBRA administrator?
30 days after the qualifying event, or after the loss of coverage for plans that start continuation then.
How long does the administrator have to send the election notice?
14 days after receiving the notice. If the employer is also the administrator, 44 days from the trigger date.
How long does an employee have to elect COBRA?
At least 60 days, and no premium can be required until 45 days after the election.
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