I presume you are asking about the individual mandate requirement of the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) and the tax penalty associated with not having health insurance or health insurance that meets the requirements of the Affordable Care Act. The term "levy" is technically inaccurate as that is an assessment applied to a population in general.
Persons without health insurance in 2014 will be subject to a tax penalty when they file their 2014 tax returns in 2015. The penalty for being uninsured in 2014 will be $95 per adult and $47.50 per child (up to $285 per household) or 1% of their Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI), whichever is greater. The tax penalty for being uninsured in 2015 will increase to $325 per adult and $162.50 per child (up to $975 per household) or 2% of their MAGI, whichever is greater. If you persist in being uninsured in 2016 the tax penalty jumps to $695 per adult and $347.50 per child (up to $2085 per household) or 2.5% of MAGI, whichever is greater. In subsequent years the tax penalty will be adjusted upward by the inflation rate.
As the law is currently constructed, the tax penalties described above can only be collected by the IRS from any income tax refund that the taxpayer would have received. The IRS cannot bill the taxpayer for the penalty, place a lien on their assets or criminally prosecute the taxpayer. Obviously, this means that an uninsured person's tax penalty on paper and what their true penalty (if any) might be will be directly related to whether they are eligible for a tax refund. So, a person's ability to structure their tax withholding during the course of the year, or in the case of self-employed persons making estimated tax payments, so that they have little or no refund or owe additional taxes when filing their tax return may largely negate or eliminate the tax penalty for being uninsured.
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Persons without health insurance in 2014 will be subject to a tax penalty when they file their 2014 tax returns in 2015. The penalty for being uninsured in 2014 will be $95 per adult and $47.50 per child (up to $285 per household) or 1% of their Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI), whichever is greater. The tax penalty for being uninsured in 2015 will increase to $325 per adult and $162.50 per child (up to $975 per household) or 2% of their MAGI, whichever is greater. If you persist in being uninsured in 2016 the tax penalty jumps to $695 per adult and $347.50 per child (up to $2085 per household) or 2.5% of MAGI, whichever is greater. In subsequent years the tax penalty will be adjusted upward by the inflation rate.
As the law is currently constructed, the tax penalties described above can only be collected by the IRS from any income tax refund that the taxpayer would have received. The IRS cannot bill the taxpayer for the penalty, place a lien on their assets or criminally prosecute the taxpayer. Obviously, this means that an uninsured person's tax penalty on paper and what their true penalty (if any) might be will be directly related to whether they are eligible for a tax refund. So, a person's ability to structure their tax withholding during the course of the year, or in the case of self-employed persons making estimated tax payments, so that they have little or no refund or owe additional taxes when filing their tax return may largely negate or eliminate the tax penalty for being uninsured.