A termination recorded once notifies the COBRA administrator automatically, so the notice goes out on time.
The clock starts when the qualifying event happens, not when someone remembers to tell the administrator.
Three deadlines in the first weeks.
They run in sequence, and a delay at the start carries forward.
The Employer’s Notice
The employer has 30 days from a qualifying event to notify the plan administrator (29 U.S.C. 1166).
The Election Notice
The administrator then has 14 days to send the election notice to the qualified beneficiary.
The Election Period
The qualified beneficiary has at least 60 days to elect, and 45 days after electing to make the first premium payment.
The ordinary failures.
Almost all of them are late information.
A Termination Nobody Reported
Payroll knows. The administrator does not.
A Date Entered Wrong
A wrong termination date moves every deadline that follows.
Coverage Ending Before the Notice
The employee loses coverage and learns of their rights afterwards.
Record it once.
And let the record do the work.
One Entry
A termination recorded once triggers the notice to the administrator without a second form.
Dates Checked
Termination and coverage end dates are checked against each other.
Applies From 20 Employees
COBRA reaches employers with 20 or more employees (29 U.S.C. 1161), so smaller groups are often surprised to learn it applies.
Closing the gap between the event and the notice.
The delay in most COBRA problems is not in the notice. It is in the time between the event and the moment the administrator learns about it. A termination that payroll knows about but nobody reports can use up most of the deadline before the clock is noticed. The fix is a single entry that triggers everything else.
Check the dates, too. A wrong date can shorten a deadline or make a notice look late. Compare the date in the record to the actual last day worked and the date coverage ends. COBRA rules have conditions and exceptions, so confirm your obligations with your administrator or counsel.
Questions that come up.
Short answers to the questions we hear most. Each links to the full page.
How long do we have to notify the COBRA administrator after an employee leaves?
The employer has 30 days from the qualifying event to notify the plan administrator, under 29 U.S.C. 1166. The administrator then has 14 days to send the election notice. Because the deadlines run in sequence, an early delay carries forward into every later step.
What usually causes a COBRA notice to go out late?
Most failures come from late information. A termination that payroll knows about but the administrator never hears about is the common one. A wrong termination date shifts every later deadline, and coverage can end before the employee learns their rights.
Does COBRA apply to a small employer like ours?
Federal COBRA generally applies to group health plans of employers that normally had 20 or more employees on a typical business day in the prior year, under 29 U.S.C. 1161. Where it applies, we record a termination once so the administrator notice starts without a second form and the dates are cross-checked.
Ready? Send us your renewal, or talk it through with someone first. No cost, no obligation.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Plan-specific questions belong with the plan documents, the carrier and counsel.
What events trigger COBRA notices?
Common ones include termination, reduced hours, divorce and a dependent aging out. Your administrator can list the events that apply to your plan.
Do small employers have to offer COBRA?
Applicability depends on size, and some states have their own continuation rules. Confirm with your advisor or counsel.
Send us your renewal.
We’ll tell you whether it looks competitive, where we see opportunity, and the five questions we’d put to your carrier. No cost, and no obligation to move anything.
The renewal letter
Your current plan summary
Contribution split by tier
Enrolled counts by tier
Four documents — two more if your group is 50 or more. Nothing else; every extra one is a reason to postpone.
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