{"id":53,"date":"2014-07-29T14:54:06","date_gmt":"2014-07-29T19:54:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/?page_id=53"},"modified":"2026-04-07T11:59:30","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T16:59:30","slug":"fsa","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/spending-savings-accts\/fsa\/","title":{"rendered":"Flexible Spending Accounts"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"toc\" class=\"uwsa-toc callout hidden-print\"><\/div><style>@media (min-width: 768px) {#toc { max-width: 40%} <\/style><script>jQuery(document).ready(function() {\n \t\t\t\t\tgenerateTOC(\"Flexible Spending Accounts\", \"\", \"div.entry-content\" ,1 ,\"true\", \"toc\");\n \t\t\t\t\t });<\/script>\n<h2><strong>Overview<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The Universities of Wisconsin offers eligible employees the opportunity to pay certain health care and dependent day care expenses with tax-free dollars through Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs). To comply with IRS requirements, documentation is necessary to substantiate eligible expenses.<\/p>\n<p>Review this page for eligibility, contribution amounts, eligible expenses, and deadlines.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>NOTE:<\/strong> The administrator for the Flexible Spending Accounts changed from Optum to TASC January 1, 2026. For additional information and key dates regarding this change, review the <a href=\"https:\/\/wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/fsahsavendorchange\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FSA &amp; HSA Vendor Change web page<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Eligibility<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>All employees, including rehired annuitants, are eligible for this program, <strong>except:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Student Hourly employees<\/li>\n<li>University Staff Temporary employees<\/li>\n<li>Student Assistant with one of the following titles: Fellows, Scholars, Trainees<\/li>\n<li>Employee-in-Training with one of the following titles: Grad Intern\/Trainee, Post-Doc Fellow\/Trainee<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Account Types<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"background: white;margin: 0in 0in 8.25pt 0in\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt;font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif;color: #333333\">Below are the different types of Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) offered to Universities of Wisconsin employees.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Health Care FSA<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p style=\"background: white;margin: 0in 0in 8.25pt 0in\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt;font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif;color: #333333\">Covers eligible expenses not covered or partially covered by health insurance plans, such as deductibles, copays, and coinsurance amounts. You may also use this account to pay for eligible out-of-pocket pharmacy, dental, and vision expenses, and some over-the-counter drugs\/supplies. Eligible expenses can be incurred by you, your spouse, and qualifying child or relative. Review the annual contribution and carryover amounts (per employee) in the chart below.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"background: white;margin: 0in 0in 8.25pt 0in\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt;font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif;color: #333333\">If you enroll in either the High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) or Access HDHP with a Health Savings Account (HSA) through the Universities of Wisconsin, you are not eligible for the Health Care FSA but you are eligible for the Limited Purpose FSA.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Limited Purpose FSA<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p style=\"background: white;margin: 0in 0in 8.25pt 0in\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt;font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif;color: #333333\">Covers eligible expenses not covered or partially covered by your dental or vision insurance plans. Once you have met your medical deductible for the HDHP or Access HDHP, the Limited Purpose FSA may also cover medical expenses. Contact the administrator to find out how to begin to use your Limited Purpose FSA for post-deductible medical expenses. Eligible expenses can be incurred by you, your spouse, and qualifying child or relative. Review the annual contribution and carryover maximums (per employee) in the chart below.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt;font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif;color: #333333\">If you enroll in either the Health Plan or Access Health Plan through the Universities of Wisconsin, you are not eligible for the Limited Purpose FSA but you are eligible for the Health Care FSA. <\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Dependent Day Care Account<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p style=\"background: white;margin: 0in 0in 8.25pt 0in\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt;font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif;color: #333333\">Covers eligible expenses for the physical care of dependents, either inside or outside the home so you and your spouse (if applicable) are able to work, actively look for work or attend school full-time. This account may be used for <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt;font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif;color: #333333\">after-school care, baby-sitting, adult or child daycare, and preschool. Eligible dependents include your qualifying child, spouse, and qualifying relative. This account does <em><span style=\"font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif\">not<\/span><\/em> pay for medical expenses for your eligible dependents. The annual contribution limit in the chart below is based on tax filing status and is a household limit.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Contribution and Carryover Amounts<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The contribution minimum is established by the Department of Employee Trust Funds (ETF) and approved by the Group Insurance Board (GIB). The contribution maximum is established by the IRS on an annual basis, reviewed by ETF and approved by the GIB.<\/p>\n<table class=\"table-bordered\" style=\"width: 825px\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"width: 114px;text-align: center;vertical-align: middle\" rowspan=\"2\"><strong>FSA Account Type<\/strong><\/th>\n<th style=\"width: 354px;text-align: center;vertical-align: middle\" colspan=\"2\"><strong>2025 Amounts<\/strong><\/th>\n<th style=\"width: 356px;text-align: center\" colspan=\"2\"><strong>2026 Amounts<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"width: 228px;text-align: center\"><strong>Contribution<\/strong><\/th>\n<th style=\"width: 126px;text-align: center\"><strong>Carryover<\/strong><\/th>\n<th style=\"width: 240px;text-align: center\"><strong>Contribution<\/strong><\/th>\n<th style=\"width: 116px;text-align: center\"><strong>Carryover<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 114px\"><strong>Health Care<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 228px;text-align: center\">$50 &#8211; $3,200<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 126px;text-align: center\">$50* &#8211; $640<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 240px;text-align: center\">$50 &#8211; $3,300<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 116px;text-align: center\">$50* &#8211; $660<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 114px\"><strong>Dependent Day Care<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 228px;text-align: center;vertical-align: middle\">$0 &#8211; $2,500 or $5,000 (depending on tax filing status)<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 126px;text-align: center;vertical-align: middle\">NA<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 240px;text-align: center;vertical-align: middle\">$0 &#8211; $3,750 or $7,500 (depending on tax filing status)<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 116px;text-align: center;vertical-align: middle\">NA<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>The carryover provision for the health care FSA allows you to carry over up to a certain amount from one year to the next as long as you remain an active employee on December 31st.<\/p>\n<p><strong>*Reminder:<\/strong> To be eligible for carryover from 2025 to 2026, you must have a minimum balance of $50 in your health care FSA at the end of the run-out period (March 31, 2026) OR re-enroll during the benefits enrollment period (October 6 &#8211; October 31, 2025) for the upcoming calendar year.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For most employees, carryover funds will appear in their TASC health care FSA around April 30, 2026. If you go through the payroll withholding process due to unsubstantiated claims from the 2025 plan year, carryover funds will appear in your TASC health care FSA around May 20, 2026.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Enrollment<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>When you enroll in an FSA, you designate an annual contribution amount. Contributions are deducted from two paychecks each month. Plan carefully when determining your annual FSA contribution amount since you cannot change your contribution amount or stop your payroll deductions during the year unless you have a qualifying life event, as defined by the IRS. See <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/life-events\/\">Life Events<\/a>\u00a0for more information.<\/p>\n<p>FSAs are considered \u201cuse-it-or-lose-it\u201d accounts. For the Health Care FSA and Limited Purpose FSA, this means that if you do not use the full amount, then you will forfeit:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Anything greater than the carryover amount<\/li>\n<li>Anything less than a balance of $50 if you did not re-enroll for the following plan year during the benefits enrollment period in the fall<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For the Dependent Day Care Account, if you do not use the full amount, the remaining balance will forfeit.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Newly hired or newly eligible employees:<\/strong> You have 30 days from your date of employment or newly benefits-eligible job to enroll in the FSAs. You may begin to incur eligible expenses on the first of the month on or following your eligibility date.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Current employees:<\/strong> If you do not enroll in the FSAs during your initial 30-day enrollment period, you may enroll during the benefits enrollment period each fall for coverage effective the following January 1 or if you have a qualifying event. See Life Events for more information. <strong>You must re-enroll each year to participate.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"float: none;background-color: transparent;color: #333333;cursor: text;font-family: 'Open Sans','Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size: 14px;font-style: normal;font-variant: normal;font-weight: 400;letter-spacing: normal;text-align: left;text-decoration: none;text-indent: 0px;text-transform: none\">For information on whose expenses you can cover, review the <span class=\"doc-icon\"><a class=\"doc-type pdf\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/download\/Dependent-Eligibility-Chart-UWS-25.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">Dependent Eligibility Chart (UWS 25)<span class=\"sr-only\"> pdf<\/span><\/a><\/span>\r\n.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Claims Submission<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>If you pay for your expenses out-of-pocket, there are several methods by which you may submit your claims for reimbursement.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You have <strong>until March 31, 2026<\/strong>\u00a0to submit claims for <strong>2025<\/strong> expenses (services incurred in 2025).<\/li>\n<li>You have <strong>until March 31, 2027<\/strong>\u00a0to submit claims for <strong>2026<\/strong> expenses (services incurred in 2026).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>Electronic Claims Submission<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Mobile App: Allows you to access your account information wherever you are, 24\/7\/365.\n<ul>\n<li>2025 claims: Visit the Apple App Store or Android Marketplace to download the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optum.com\/library\/health-finances\/page.hub.optum-financial-mobile-app.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Optum Financial Mobile App<\/a><\/li>\n<li>2026 claims: Visit the Apple App Store or Android Marketplace to download the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tasconline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/TC-ETF-4808-TASC-Mobile-App-Guide.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">TASC Mobile App<\/a>\u00a0(green icon)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Website:\n<ul>\n<li>2025 claims: <a href=\"https:\/\/my.optum.com\/etf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Optum website<\/a><\/li>\n<li>2026 claims: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.etf-tasc.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">TASC website<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>Paper Claims Submission<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Complete the FSA Reimbursement Claim Form from the administrators website and submit it with the required documentation to the mailing address on the form.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Automatic Premium Conversion<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>If enrolled, you will automatically have premiums for the following benefit plans deducted from earnings on a pre-tax basis:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>State Group Health Insurance<\/li>\n<li>State Group Life Insurance (premium for first $50,000 of coverage)<\/li>\n<li>Dental Insurance<\/li>\n<li>Vision Insurance<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You may waive automatic premium conversion and have your premiums taken on a post-tax basis by filling out the Automatic Premium Conversion Waiver (available in the Forms &amp; Resources section below).<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Forms &amp; Resources<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><span class=\"doc-icon\"><a class=\"doc-type pdf\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/download\/era\/fsahandbook.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">2025 FSA Handbook<span class=\"sr-only\"> pdf<\/span><\/a><\/span>\r\n<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tasconline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/TC-ETF-6855-Employee-Reimbursement-Account-Enrollment-Brochure.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2026 FSA Handbook<\/a><\/li>\n<li><span class=\"doc-icon\"><a class=\"doc-type pdf\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/download\/flexspend\/fsa-enrollment.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">FSA Enrollment Form (healthcare, dependent day care, parking &amp; transit)<span class=\"sr-only\"> pdf<\/span><\/a><\/span>\r\n<\/li>\n<li><span class=\"doc-icon\"><a class=\"doc-type pdf\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/download\/qualifyinglifeevents.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">Qualifying Life Events Permitted by the IRS<span class=\"sr-only\"> pdf<\/span><\/a><\/span>\r\n<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/pub\/irs-pdf\/p502.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">IRS Publication 502: Medical and Dental Expenses<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/pub\/irs-pdf\/p969.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">IRS Publication 969: Health Savings Accounts and Other Tax-Favored Health Plans<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/terms-conditions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Terms and Conditions<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Administrator<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>2025:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/my.optum.com\/etf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Optum<\/a> | (833) 881-8158<\/li>\n<li>2026: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.etf-tasc.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">TASC<\/a> | (888) 276-3147<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Overview The Universities of Wisconsin offers eligible employees the opportunity to pay certain health care and dependent day care expenses with tax-free dollars through Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs). To comply with IRS requirements, documentation is necessary to substantiate eligible expenses. Review this page for eligibility, contribution amounts, eligible expenses, and deadlines. NOTE: The administrator for [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":0,"parent":7658,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/42.7563.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-53","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/53","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53"}],"version-history":[{"count":30,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/53\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36994,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/53\/revisions\/36994"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7658"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/ohrwd\/benefits\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}