The clock is running out on 2021, and so is your chance to exhaust your FSA dollars. The wise choice is to spend them fast, before they expire.
Flexible spending accounts (FSAs) are a tax-advantaged account where you can stash pre-tax money from your pay to cover medical costs that your insurance won't. It's wonderful, but there's a catch: Any money you contribute that isn't spent by the plan's year-end cutoff (usually December 31) is forfeited to your employer, with the exception of up to $550 that employers may allow you to carry over into the following year. The expiration date provides an incentive to spend all of your contributions before they go into your employer's bank account.
Note: There's a chance your employer may have opted into a temporary rule change that allows them to allow their workers to carry over up to 100% of their 2021 FSA contributions into 2022. Look into it.
Here are some fantastic last-minute uses for your FSA funds:
At-home Covid tests, if you can acquire them (into effect in mid-January at the earliest, private insurers may be compelled to reimburse for those tests, but prior purchases won’t qualify).
Over-the-counter medications, like Advil, Tylenol, Aspirin.
A 23AndMe DNA test- (Note: only this specific test applies, but it can be entertaining)
Anything from FSAStore.com. This is a completely independent website that is FSA eligible in its entirety.
Amazon, CVS, and Walgreens also do a great job of identifying FSA eligible items.
