After year-end, any money left over in an employee FSA will be turned over to the employer with three small exceptions (these are are at the discretion of the employer):
- Grace Period: An additional two and a half months (until March 15th assuming a plan year that starts on January 1st) is granted to the employee for any new expenses that can be used from money in the FSA from the prior year. After the grace period, any remaining money will be turned over the employer.
- Roll-Over: Employees can roll over a maximum of $550 from plan year to plan year if allowed by his/her employer. Any additional dollars above $550 will be forfeited. Please note, the $550 maximum is in addition to the current year pre-tax contribution limit set by the IRS.
- Run-Out Period - This is the additional time, after the plan year ends, that an employee can file a claim that occurred in that plan year.
An employer can only provide one of these two options (grace period or rollover) at the end of the year - not both.
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