FSA Rollover Q&A

In December, 2013, the IRS announced that Flexible Spending Plans could allow participants to roll over up to $500 of contributions to the following year. ISIhr announced that this change will take place automatically with our plan, and will apply to 2013 participants. Here is some further clarification on that announcement:

Question: I had a balance that should have rolled over from last year, but I am not seeing it in my account today. Was there a mistake?
Answer: No, there was not a mistake. ISIhr's FSA vendor, National Benefits Services (NBS), has a 30-day grace period to submit reimbursement claims for 2013. The 'claims run-out' deadline for ISIhr's plan is January 30, 2014. The rollover will not happen until after that date. You will see the applicable rollover funds in your account in February, 2014.

Question: If the funds will not appear until February, can I still submit claims for January, 2014?
Answer: Yes. If you have a claim in January, 2014, you can still submit it for reimbursement from your rollover balance, but not until after the claims run-out-deadline on January 30, 2014.

Question: What if I do not contribute to an FSA in 2014, but I still have a balance that will roll over from 2013? Can I still use it in 2014?
Answer: Yes. You can use the rolled over amount from 2013 for qualified 2014 expenses, even if you did not elect to contribute additional funds to an FSA in 2014.