Flexible Spending is Now More Flexible!
The Treasury Department just recently announced that participants can roll over up to $500 of their year-end balances to the next year. Three things to note about this change:
- The rollover amount will not count toward the annual election limit of $2,500, meaning that each participant could have a $3,000 balance at the beginning of 2014.
- The change is effective immediately, meaning that if you're currently enrolled in an FSA, you may roll this year's funds (what remains for the next 6 weeks) into next year's plan.
- Stratus.hr's FSA vendor has a 30-day grace period to submit reimbursement claims for 2013. The 'claims run-out' deadline for Stratus.hr's plan is January 30, 2014. The rollover will not happen until after that date. Participants will see the applicable rollover funds in February, 2014.
Benefits of Flexible Spending Accounts
- An FSA allows you to set aside pre-tax dollars to apply to out-of-pocket expenses for eligible medical, dental, vision, pharmacy and dependent care.
- By using pre-tax dollars for eligible expenses, you ultimately lower your taxable income, which saves you money.
- The FSA can be used in addition to other insurance plans in which you may already participate.
- The use-it-or-lose-it feature no longer applies to your entire balance. Any balance left in your account by then end of the calendar year, up to $500 will be automatically rolled over for use in the next calendar year.
If you participated in Stratus.hr's Flex plan in 2013, you do not need to do anything for this change to take effect. If you have any questions about the FSA or any other benefits offered by Stratus.hr or your worksite employer, visit the FSA Rollover Q&A, or contact your service representative.
Human Resources | Phone: 801.984.1331 | Email: hr@stratus.hr
Benefits | Phone: 801.984.1326 | Email: benefits@stratus.hr