Flexible Spending Account (FSA) Administration Q&A
Participation in the Flexible Spending Account (FSA) ends on the day the Flight Attendant:
- retires,
- goes on a leave of absence,or
- terminates employment.
Payroll contributions to the FSA will stop with your last paycheck.
Health Care Account
1. Can a retiring/separating employee request reimbursement from the FSA health care account up to their elected annual contribution even if it exceeds their payroll deductions to date?
Yes. Eligible expenses that were incurred before your retirement, leave of absence, layoff, or termination effective date will be eligible for reimbursement.
*The following FSA information is reproduced from SkyNet and applies to all (including active) employees:
“Your health care flexible spending account (FSA) reimburses you for the full amount of your claim (up to your total annual contribution). It doesn't matter how much you have contributed to your FSA when you submit the claim. For example, if you incur a $500 claim in January and you elected a total annual contribution of at least $500, you could be reimbursed for the full $500 even if your payroll contributions haven't reached $500 yet. Of course, payroll deductions would continue to be deducted from your paycheck for the remainder of the plan year.”
2. What happens in the case of a retiring/separating employee where there are no more paychecks with which to take a FSA contribution?
Nothing.
3. How can the retiring/separating employee access any balance in the FSA Health Care account after terminating employment with United?
By electing to continue FSA contributions through a COBRA election. FSA COBRA contributions are on a post tax basis. The separated employee may continue the FSA COBRA contributions just long enough to access any remaining balances in their FSA account before discontinuing their FSA COBRA participation. (Note: FSA COBRA contributions may be discontinued at any time due to the character of the post tax contribution.) Otherwise any FSA account balances are forfeited.
4. When is the deadline to submit FSA claims if participating on a COBRA basis?
The same as it is for active F/As - no later than April 30 following the year in which the expenses were incurred.
Dependent Day Care Account
Claims will be reimbursed to the extent that the amount in your account is sufficient to cover the expenses submitted. Only eligible expenses that were incurred before your retirement, leave of absence, layoff, or termination effective date will be eligible for reimbursement.
FSA reimbursement of medical/dental premiums
1. Are the medical and/or dental premiums we must now pay eligible for FSA reimbursement?
No. IRS guidelines indicate that claims against FSA accounts must based on a medical need or medical expense so Insurance Premiums would not qualify. In fact, the IRS guidelines expressly deny the reimbursement of Insurance Premiums from FSA.
FSA Plan Minimum Payment (Updated July 21, 2003)
1. I have a remaining balance in my FSA Health Care account of $24.12. My SHPS statement arrived with no check, just an explanation that the request/balance is below the plan minimum and that the payment will release when met or on the plan schedule. What does this mean?
The FSA plan minimum payment is $25.00. FSA reimbursements below this amount are released, or paid on a quarterly basis. FSA reimbursements below this amount are released, or paid at the end of the Plan year which is December 31. Expect to receive these reimbursements at the beginning of January of the following year.
