FSA Medical & Dependent Plans
Best Practices for FSA Account from WEX HERE
Can I use FSA funds for my daughter's doctor visits
Correct, you may utilize your Medical FSA funds to cover qualified dependent expenses.
No this is a family household maximum for all dependents.
An employee and their spouse may be able to elect into their employers FSA plans and contribute to both. They do need to be cognizant that they cannot double dip, meaning submit for reimbursement for the same expense under both plans. Also they cannot contribute over the $5000 Dependent Care maximum combined between both plans. Employees may enroll in both Medical and Dependent Care FSA plans.
Enroll now for 2024 or have to wait until OE for 2025?
That is correct. Open enrollment for FSA will be November every year.
Open Enrollment for our Medical,Dental Vision will be separate from this in June, Correct?
This is also correct.
By what date do you need to use the funds?
The plan has a 90 day grace period ending March 31st, that means you would have until March 15, 2024 to incur expenses for your FSA’s 2023 plan year.
Examples of qualifying life events
Change in legal marital status (i.e., marriage, legal separation, divorce, or death of employee's spouse).
Change in employment status (for employee, their spouse, or dependent) that affects eligibility for health insurance benefits.
Change in number of tax dependents.
Birth or date an employee adopts a child, or placement for adoption.
Death of spouse or dependent.
Change in dependent’s eligibility (for example, employee's child reaches age 13 where he/she is no longer eligible under a Child & Elderly Care FSA).
For Child & Elderly Care FSAs only, a change in child care/elder care provider or cost or coverage, such as a significant cost increase charged by the current day care provider, or a change in the day care provider.
Changes to an existing FSA must reflect the nature of the event.
You have 30 days from the QLE to make changes or enroll in an FSA. The change to the FSA or the enrollment into the FSA will be effective the first of the month in which the employee incurred the QLE
For the dependent care, how do you get access to the funds?
This video should help clarify HERE
Would it include invisi-line (orthodontics)?
Orthodontia services are covered under a Medical FSA plan
Would it include mental health services, such as psychotherapy or couples therapy?
For Psychological Care this will qualify if provided for medical care, and not just for the general improvement of mental health, relief of stress, or personal enjoyment. Counseling expenses will qualify if the purpose is to treat a diagnosed medical condition and not just for the general improvement of mental health or relief of stress. Marriage or career counseling, life coaching, and parenting skill counseling will not qualify.
Can we enroll at any point in time or do we need to do it in this window? ex: i wont need day care until next summer?
Would need to wait until the baby is born AND enrolled in daycare or in the care of someone with a tax ID. Would also not be eligible to enroll until after TM comes back to work.
This means TM would need to make sure to sign up within 30 days of starting in care.
Life circumstances are not always predictable and your need for dependent care plans may change unexpectedly if your child has unforeseen needs or a family member suddenly volunteers to help out. Once you enroll in the Dependent Care FSA, you are only able to change your election if you experience a new set of circumstances that qualify as a permitted election change event. If you enroll in anticipation of dependent care expenses or even the anticipated addition of a new family member, there is no “change” later in the year to act on.
The expenses of an employee's child who is under age 27 as of the end of the taxable year will qualify for tax-free reimbursement from a health FSA, even if the child does not qualify as the employee's tax dependent (i.e., as a qualifying child or qualifying relative as discussed in subsection E.3). Consequently, the age limit, residency, support, and other tests that would otherwise have to be met in order for an individual to qualify as a tax dependent under the Code do not apply to such a child for purposes of the tax-favored treatment of health coverage that is available under Code §§105(b) and 106.
For this purpose, a "child" is an individual who is the employee's son, daughter, stepson, or stepdaughter, and includes both a legally adopted individual of the employee and an individual lawfully placed with the employee for legal adoption by the employee. The term "child" also includes an eligible foster child, which is defined as a child placed with the employee by an authorized placement agency or by judgment, decree, or other order of any court of competent jurisdiction. IRS guidance further provides that for this purpose, the taxable year is the employee's taxable year, which employers may assume is the calendar year, and that employers may rely on an employee's representation as to a child's date of birth.
Code §105(b) establishes requirements that an individual must meet in order to be an employee's tax dependent for health coverage purposes. These requirements are similar but not identical to the requirements to be a tax dependent under Code §152.