Open enrollment is the annual period when your employees can enroll in a new health benefits plan for 2027. If your employees are currently enrolled in a 2026 health benefits plan through Thatch, they have the opportunity to make adjustments to their plan for 2027.

During Open Enrollment insurance companies guarantee coverage beginning January 1, 2027 to individuals who enroll by December 15, 2026. Insurance companies guarantee coverage beginning February 1, 2027 to individuals who enroll by January 15, 2027.

Thatch will hold your platform fees steady for the 2027 contract period with no changes to your per-employee, per-month fee structure. We value your partnership and want you to feel confident as you continue partnering with us.

While Thatch's pricing remains stable, insurance premiums are determined by carriers and are expected to rise this year, which means you may want to consider adjusting your Thatch allowances accordingly. You'll be able to do this with the Thatch tooling described below.

*Any renewing employee that does not take action by November 29 automatically receives a 5-day extension through December 4, with all employee/employer actions closing December 5. While federal open enrollment goes through December 15 for coverage starting January 1 (and January 15 for February 1 coverage), we set an earlier deadline to ensure timely application processing.

Each year, insurance companies review how much people are using healthcare and how the cost of medical care is changing. Rate increases happen nationwide across nearly all insurance companies. In most states, plan costs are also based on the employee's age, which may have changed from when their allowance was last calculated. What's different about Thatch is that as an employer you give your employees an allowance, which they can use to choose the plan that best fits their budget and needs. You give your employees flexibility and control, even when the broader market shifts.

You can make changes until October 28:

Allowance and coverage changes don't take effect until you complete the flow and confirm again, and the page shows a banner reminding you.

In the Thatch employer renewal experience process, we ask you to select which of your employees are eligible for benefits. If you mark an employee as "eligible," we automatically send them an invite to participate in Open Enrollment on the start date you select between November 2 - November 9.

Thatch recommends you instruct your employees to finish their selection before November 29 to ensure enrollments are processed smoothly and without last minute stress.

If November 29 comes around and your employees do still need a few additional days, they'll automatically receive a 5-day extension through December 4 if they haven't yet enrolled.

Yes, if you have an employee who is newly becoming eligible for benefits and needs to enroll in Dec 1, 2026 coverage, you can invite them from your employer dashboard. This includes any new hires or employees who have changed to an eligible class (e.g. moved from part- to full-time employment).

Make sure when inviting your employees for 2026 that you have selected the correct plan year as part of the process, to ensure your employee enrolls for the correct coverage start date.

Insurance carriers expect payments to be made as soon as enrollments are selected and submitted for 2027. To ensure we can quickly process your employees' 2027 enrollment selections and payments with insurance carriers, we require to bill you for costs as soon as November 13 for any employees that have completed their 2027 plan selection in early November.

If you take no action by October 28, Thatch automatically renews your current allowance structure for 2027 and invites your eligible employees (anyone who was invited to choose their benefits for the 2026 plan year) to open enrollment on November 2. If your allowances are based on a percentage of a benchmark plan, the dollar amounts will move with 2027 premiums, so your cost may change. If you use flat dollar amounts, those amounts carry over unchanged, which may cover less of your employees' 2027 premiums.

October 28 is the deadline for all self-serve 2027 renewals, and we aren't currently able to offer self-serve extensions. If you'd like more time before your employees are invited, you can choose an invitation date anywhere from November 2 to November 9 on the Summary step of your renewal. If you have extenuating circumstances, exceptions are reviewed case by case and aren't guaranteed.

These renewal options work like this:

If you use flat dollar allowances, these options are shown as dollar amounts, which you can edit.

None of the options change which plans employees can select from, merely how much they may (or may not) have to pay towards their chosen plan.

If your allowances are “smart” allowances, you’ll be able to update dependent contributions by editing the “Custom” option in your renewal. If your allowances are “flat” allowances, you can directly enter the dollar amount on the Benefits screen of your renewal.

Some states release final rates late, so your estimates may be based on preliminary rates. You can complete your renewal now using preliminary rates. If final rates arrive before October 28, you'll get an email and can go back in to adjust. If you use flat dollar allowances and want to fully cover a premium, make sure you use the “recommended” benefit strategy, or manually adjust your allowances.

Your 2027 allowance strategy is set for the full plan year once open enrollment begins, and your next chance to change your strategy is next year's renewal in October 2027. Changing allowances after employees have chosen plans creates compliance and legal risk for you as the employer, so we generally can't decrease them.

On the Employee eligibility step of your renewal:

Thatch automatically sends open enrollment invitations to every employee you mark as eligible.

Add the employee in the Employees tab of your Thatch admin dashboard first, then return to your renewal and click "Refresh roster." Please don't add new rows to the downloaded spreadsheet, since employees added that way cause an upload error.

If a new employee becomes eligible before January 1, invite them from your employer dashboard for 2026 coverage starting December 1, and make sure you select the 2026 plan year when you invite them. To view them in your 2027 renewal cost estimate, add them in the Employees tab, then return to your renewal and click "Refresh roster."

No. The renewal only sets the allowance (health budget) your employees will have for 2027. Employees still choose their own plans during open enrollment, and they can keep a plan they found on their own.

Salaries are used to check whether allowances meet ACA affordability rules, which apply to applicable large employers (ALEs). If you are not an ALE, answer "No" to the 50+ employee question and you won't be asked for salaries. If you are an ALE, enter accurate annual salaries so the affordability check is correct. Learn more here about how to determine if your company is considered an ALE.

Answer based on whether your company is an applicable large employer (ALE), and check with your advisor if you're unsure. Your answer matters: if you indicate you're an ALE, the renewal applies minimum allowances so coverage is affordable, which can raise your costs. If you haven't confirmed your renewal yet, you can go back to the "Confirm your company information" step, change your answer, and re-confirm your employee list so your options are rebuilt.

The Compliance checks panel flags employees whose allowance may not meet the ACA affordability threshold, which is 10.22% of income for 2027. Thatch's check is usually driven by the lowest salary among your eligible employees and by each employee's lowest-cost on-exchange Silver plan, which depends on their age and location. A single missing, zero, partial-year or incorrect salary can flag many employees, so check the Employee eligibility step for salaries that look wrong, fix them, and re-check the panel.

For 2027, coverage is considered affordable if an employee can buy the offered coverage without paying more than 10.22% of their annual income. The IRS sets this percentage each year; it was 9.96% for 2026. Thatch calculates the minimum contribution for each employee individually, based on the lowest-cost on-exchange Silver plan in their rating area.

Employees enrolled for 2026 who don't take action during open enrollment are automatically renewed into the 2027 version of the same plan wherever possible, with premiums and allowances updated to 2027 amounts. If a carrier discontinues a plan, employees are moved to the carrier's replacement plan where one exists. If there's no replacement, they may not be renewed, and dental and vision won't renew without medical, so we strongly encourage every employee to log in and confirm their 2027 plan. Employees who declined coverage for 2026 need to actively enroll.

Thatch automatically sends invitations to every employee you mark as eligible, on the date you choose between November 2 and November 9. You can change the date with the pencil icon on the Summary step of your renewal. Employees have until November 29 to enroll or make changes. Renewing employees who haven't acted by then get an automatic extension through December 4. Coverage starts January 1, 2027.

Most eligible employees of renewing employers receive a "what to expect" email ahead of open enrollment, an ICHRA notice on November 1, and their open enrollment invitation on the invitation date you chose between November 2 and November 9.

No. Thatch sends the ICHRA notice to employees of renewing employers on November 1. The notice refers to their open enrollment invitation and is required for compliance.

Invitations go out automatically on the invitation date you chose in your renewal. If an employee doesn't receive theirs, first confirm their email address on file is correct, then resend the invitation from your Thatch employer dashboard.

Employees log in to their Thatch dashboard, click the Open Enrollment banner, and review how their health budget and plan costs change for 2027. If everything looks right, they click "Keep current plans," then "Enroll." Employees can also explore new plans or decline coverage from the same flow.

Yes. Employees can schedule a call with Thatch's licensed advisor team from their own dashboard while their enrollment window is open:

It depends. If an employee stays with the same insurance company, Thatch can switch them over. If they pick a plan with a different insurance company, or decline 2027 coverage, they need to call and cancel their 2026 plan before December 15, 2026, or they may be charged the January 2027 premium for their old plan. Employees see a reminder on their dashboard if this applies to them.

Yes. On their dashboard under "Your plans," employees can click "Made a mistake?" to go back into the shopping flow and change their plans or dependents. Thatch can make changes to 2027 enrollments until December 5. After that, a change may not take effect by January 1, 2027.

Employees should log in to Thatch during open enrollment and choose a 2027 plan. Thatch shows employees whether their current plan is still available for 2027. If a plan is discontinued and the carrier has a replacement plan, employees are moved to it if they take no action, but if there's no replacement they may not have 2027 coverage. Choosing a plan actively is the safest option.

Yes. Even if an employee stays on the same plan, their deductible and out-of-pocket maximum reset on January 1, 2027.