This year, over $1 billion may be lost in health-care flexible spending accounts.

• Despite the temporary relaxation of FSA rules to allow more time for spending, not all companies adopted the more lenient provisions.
• More than a third of workers with grace periods end up forfeiting money.
• According to research, those with a Dec. 31 deadline or those who are allowed limited rollovers have a larger share than those with a smaller share.

It's advisable to verify if any of the money in your flexible spending account for health-care expenses is about to expire.

According to FSAstore.com, an estimated $1 billion could be forfeited in 2022 from unused FSA accounts. Some forfeitures may occur soon due to a March 15 deadline at companies with a 2.5-month grace period for spending the previous year's unused FSA funds.

If workers do not comprehend their deadlines, they may lose money, according to Rachel Rouleau, vice president of compliance for Health-E Commerce, the parent company of FSAstore.com.

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Workers can save money for medical expenses or dependent care through FSAs, with a 2022 contribution limit of $2,850, an increase from $2,750 in 2021.

According to research from the Employee Benefit Research Institute, 36% of employers offer a 2.5-month grace period after Dec. 31 for using health-care FSA money, in addition to the standard deadline.

While some employers have adopted a temporary federal rule extending the grace period to December 31, 2022, it's estimated that only about half of companies have made the change.

Your company may have a rollover policy that allows up to $550 to be carried over from 2021 to 2022, and you may have the option to roll over any amount into 2022 without a cap on its usage throughout the year.

According to EBRI, more than a third of workers (37%) with a grace period end up forfeiting part or all of their contributions, which is below the 48% with a traditional Dec. 31 deadline who forfeit money and 49% of those who are allowed to roll over money.

If you're unsure about the rules for your FSA, you can contact your company's human resources department or check your online FSA portal for information. You can also find the phone number on the back of your FSA debit card to call for assistance.

You may be able to save money on eligible medical expenses, regardless of your company, as Congress has expanded the definition of what qualifies as such. However, limited-purpose FSAs typically only cover dental and vision expenses.

Rouleau stated that there are numerous ways to spend money on necessary items before it's too late.

Over-the-counter drugs such as cold medicines, anti-inflammatories, and allergy medicine no longer require a prescription. Additionally, menstrual care products and at-home Covid tests, masks, hand sanitizer, and other personal protection equipment used to combat the virus are now eligible.

FSA administrators determine the specifics of stockpiling, which is generally not allowed by the IRS as it means you can't buy more of a product in a tax year than you can use.

You can use your FSA funds for various health-care services, including doctor and dentist appointments, prescription drugs, acupuncture, and addiction treatment.

FSAstore.com provides a list of eligible items, including sunscreen, thermometers, eyecare products, baby monitors, and pregnancy tests, if you are unsure whether something would qualify.