Choosing Medical Coverage

Choosing Dental Coverage

Choosing Vision Coverage

Choosing Flexible Spending Accounts

Choosing Disability Coverage

Choosing Life Insurance

Tips for Choosing TriNet Flexible Spending Accounts

When deciding if you want to participate in the TriNet FSA plans, you may want to ask yourself:

• Do you have regular, out-of-pocket health care expenses like a deductible, doctor visits or prescriptions? If so, you might want to participate in a health care FSA to help save money on eligible medical, prescription drug, dental, vision and hearing care expenses.
• Do you have day care expenses for your children (under 13 years of age) or an adult dependent? Then the dependent day care FSA is a great way for you to reduce your dependent day care costs so you can work.
• Are you looking for ways to save money? Health care costs continue to rise, which means the services you receive may cost more than they have in past years. Participating in a health care FSA is one thing you can do to make the most of the money you spend on health care—for you and your dependents. When you use your FSA to pay for eligible expenses, you will save money on your income tax because you will be paying with "tax-free" dollars.
• Do you plan to use a health savings account (HSA) to pay for medical expenses, but want to set aside additional money for dental and vision expenses? If you are enrolled in a high-deductible health plan and have an HSA (with contributions from you or your employer), you may use the limited health care FSA for out-of-pocket dental and vision expenses only.

Use the FSA worksheet to estimate your eligible health care and dependent day care expenses. This will help you identify how much you should contribute to each FSA. Remember, you can contribute up to $2,550 to your health care FSA and up to $5,000 to your dependent day care FSA each benefits plan year.

FSA Rules to Remember

If you choose to participate in the TriNet FSA plans, keep the following rules in mind:

• You must use all the money you have set aside in the FSA for eligible expenses incurred during the benefits plan year while you are an FSA participant—otherwise, you will lose it. Be sure to estimate carefully, and use your FSA dollars by the deadline.

  Important Deadlines for FSAs

  Timing is everything when you are using an FSA. So how long do you have to make purchases and submit expenses?

  If you are an active participant in the health care FSA on the last day of the benefits plan year, you have:

  • 2½ months after the last day of the benefits plan year to incur (make) eligible purchases; and
  • Until the end of the fourth month following the last day of the benefits plan year to submit claims for eligible expenses incurred.

  Note for health care FSA: If your FSA participation ends during the benefits plan year, you may only incur eligible expenses through the end of the month in which your benefits terminate. You have until the end of the fourth month following the last day of the benefits plan year to submit your claim(s).

  If you are an active participant in the dependent day care FSA, you have:

  • Until the last day of the benefits plan year to incur (make) eligible expenses; and
  • Until the end of the fourth month following the last day of the benefits plan year to submit claims for eligible expenses incurred by the last day of the benefits plan year.

  Note for dependent day care FSA: If your FSA participation ends during the benefits plan year, you can continue to incur and submit claims for eligible dependent day care expenses through the end of the benefits plan year or until your account balance is zero, whichever comes first.

• Your health care FSA and dependent day care FSA are separate accounts. You cannot use money in one account to pay for expenses related to the other.
• Once you set up an FSA for the benefits plan year, you cannot change your contribution amount until the next Open Enrollment period. The only exception is if you experience a qualified life status change—for example, you get married or have a baby. The same rule applies if you do not enroll in the FSA plan for a benefits plan year; you cannot participate unless you experience a life status change later in the year.
• Some health care and dependent day care expenses are not eligible for reimbursement. For example, over-the-counter medications are not eligible health care expenses, unless they have been prescribed by a doctor.
• Save your receipts! Your FSA debit card is a convenient way to pay for eligible expenses, and reduces, but does not eliminate, the need to submit documentation for your claims. Typically, documentation is required for FSA debit card purchases—excluding medical copayments, prescription drug expenses or charges incurred at merchants that use an Inventory Information Approval System.