QUESTION: I am undocumented and have an ITIN, I was wondering if I’m going to be affected by the Obama Care (ACA) penalty?

ANSWER: No. You must be lawfully present in the U.S. to be eligible to buy health insurance for yourself through the marketplace or through your employer. If you don’t qualify for the minimum essential coverage due to being an illegal or undocumented immigrant, then in most cases you will exempted from the ACA Penalty.

An ITIN is a tax-processing number issued to taxpayers who are not eligible to obtain an SSN, and to their dependents, so that they can file federal income tax returns. The federal health care marketplace –www.healthcare.gov — cannot use an ITIN to verify your income with the IRS.

The Act provides exemptions to the penalty for certain groups, such as illegal immigrants and members of certain Native American tribes or religious sects.