Free finder
ACA qualifying life event finder
Outside open enrolment you need a qualifying event to buy a Marketplace plan. Pick what happened and see whether it opens a window, how long the window lasts, and what the Marketplace will ask you to prove.
- 15 events
- Window length
- Document you will need
Check your event
Does what happened open a window?
Your enrolment window
60 days before and 60 days after the last day of cover
It does not matter whether you left or were let go. What matters is that the cover ended and it was minimum essential coverage.
- Event
- Lost job-based coverage
- Opens a Special Enrolment Period?
- Yes
- How long you have
- 60 days before and 60 days after the last day of cover
- When cover would start
- The first of the month after you pick a plan
- Document usually requested
- The termination letter, naming the date cover ends
The Marketplace asks for the document above within 30 days of enrolling. Send it the same week — an unverified plan is cancelled.
Every event
The full list, including the ones that do not count
A Special Enrolment Period is not a favour. It is a rule with a date attached, and the Marketplace verifies it. The three rows marked No below are where most of the disappointment happens — and all three are avoidable if you know in advance.
| Life event | Window? | How long | Cover starts | Document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lost job-based coverage | Yes | 60 days before and 60 days after the last day of cover | The first of the month after you pick a plan | The termination letter, naming the date cover ends |
| Lost Medicaid or PeachCare for Kids | Yes | 60 days before and 60 days after the loss | The first of the month after you pick a plan | The state notice ending the benefit |
| Turned 26 and aged off a parent's plan | Yes | 60 days before and 60 days after the birthday | The first of the month after you pick a plan | The letter from the parent's plan |
| Got married | Yes | 60 days after the wedding | The first of the month after you pick a plan | The marriage certificate |
| Had a baby, adopted, or took a child in foster care | Yes | 60 days after the birth or placement | The day of the birth, adoption or placement — backdated | The birth certificate or the placement order |
| Divorced or legally separated and lost coverage | Yes | 60 days after cover ends | The first of the month after you pick a plan | The divorce decree plus proof the cover ended |
| Moved to a new county or ZIP with different plans | Yes | 60 days after the move | The first of the month after you pick a plan | A lease, a deed, or a utility bill at both addresses |
| A death in the household ended your coverage | Yes | 60 days after cover ends | The first of the month after you pick a plan | The death certificate and the termination notice |
| Became a citizen or a lawfully present resident | Yes | 60 days after the status change | The first of the month after you pick a plan | The naturalisation certificate or immigration document |
| Released from incarceration | Yes | 60 days after release | The first of the month after you pick a plan | The release paperwork |
| Income changed while on a Marketplace plan | Yes | 60 days after the change, if it changes your subsidy eligibility | The first of the month after you pick a plan | Pay stubs or a signed income statement |
| Member of a federally recognised tribe or an ANCSA shareholder | Yes | Once a month, all year round | The first of the month after you pick a plan | Tribal membership or shareholder documentation |
| Dropped my own coverage voluntarily | No | No window — wait for open enrolment | 1 January, if you enrol during open enrolment | Not applicable |
| Coverage cancelled for non-payment | No | No window — wait for open enrolment | 1 January, if you enrol during open enrolment | Not applicable |
| A short-term or limited-benefit plan ended | No | No window — wait for open enrolment | 1 January, if you enrol during open enrolment | Not applicable |
The 30-day trap
What people ask about qualifying events
The date of the event — the last day of cover, the wedding, the move, the birth. Not the date you found out, and not the date a letter arrived. If the event is a loss of coverage you also get the 60 days before it, which is the only way to start the new plan with no gap.
Usually. The Marketplace sends a data-matching notice and gives about 30 days to upload a document. An unverified plan is cancelled, so send the document the same week you enrol rather than waiting for the reminder.
Because short-term, fixed-indemnity and discount plans are not minimum essential coverage. Losing something that never counted as coverage cannot be a loss of coverage. It is the trade-off that rarely gets mentioned at the point of sale.
Usually not. A move only opens a window if you had coverage for at least one day in the 60 days before it. The exceptions are moving from abroad or from a US territory, and release from incarceration.
Check Medicaid and PeachCare first — both enrol all year with no window at all. Otherwise open enrolment runs 1 November to 15 January in most states, with a 1 January start if you finish by 15 December.
2026 plan year
The figures this calculator uses
Sample figures for the 2026 plan year. Medicare and the Marketplace reset these every autumn.
- Standard Special Enrolment Period
- 60 days from the event
- Loss of coverage
- 60 days before and 60 days after
- Verification deadline
- About 30 days to upload the document
- Open enrolment
- 1 November to 15 January in most states
Every figure above is a sample for the 2026 plan year on a demonstration site. Medicare publishes the real ones each autumn at Medicare.gov, and they change every year.