If you have a flexible spending account, you may have a grace period to use your 2012 leftover FSA funds. Many FSA programs offer a grace period extending the deadline to March 15th. Not every plan is the same though, so you should check with your benefit provider to confirm whether or not you can take advantage of this extended deadline.
According to FSAstore.com – the only one-stop-shop exclusively stocked with FSA eligible products – each year consumers lose hundreds of millions of dollars because they do not use tax-free dollars available in their FSAs.
If you have an FSA – it is not too late to check if you are eligible for the grace period and can still use your leftover 2012 FSA funds by March 15. If you are new to FSAs and not sure what a FSA eligible purchase is, here are some of the ways you can use up your FSA funds before the extended deadline of March 15th:
- Consider FSA-eligible over-the-counter products that you could use throughout the year, ranging from baby care items to contact lens care to shoe inserts.
- Be heart healthy and purchase blood pressure monitors or heart rate monitors.
- Prepare an emergency first aid kit stocked with bandages, Band-Aids, gauze and more.
- Gear up for spring and summer with FSA-eligible sunscreen.
- Planning for or expecting a baby? Everything from breast pumps to prenatal vitamins is also FSA eligible on our site.
If you or someone you know has a flexible spending account, check out FSAstore.com. You’ll find thousands of brand name FSA eligible products, a database of FSA eligible services, and much needed information about various types of flexible spending accounts in the FSA Learning Center. The store accepts all FSA and major credit cards, offers 24/7 customer service, one-to-two-day turnaround for all orders, and free shipping on orders $50+. Best of all, there is no need to submit receipts for products purchased with an FSA card.
We already used up our 2012 FSA money because of the pregnancy, but the extended deadline came in handy last year when we needed to use up our 2011 money.
Has the extended deadline ever came in handy for you?
Lisa says
We love our FSA account.
Elaina- @atimeout4mommy says
I have to sign up for this! I hear wonderful things about the tax free program
Liz @ A Nut in a Nutshell says
It’s not a plan that works for me as an individual, but I could see for a family that expects a certain chunk to be spent, it would work well.
Donna says
Having an FSA account has come in handy for us.
LyndaS says
Those are some good tips. Thanks for sharing.
Penelope (NYC Blogger) says
I never applied for the extension, but this year we are being killed with taxes
Nichol says
FSA’s are beneficial for us for prescriptions and some medical. But yeah, it must be used!
Anne - Mommy Has to Work says
We have awesome insurance, so I never had one.
Emily @FamilyNLifeLV says
Thank you for sharing!
Meghan @JaMonkey says
We cashed ours in at the last second last year
Leilani says
We have great insurance, so I’ve never had a FSA.
Tammy says
It’s nice when you’re sick – but when you don’t need the money to use for healthcare expenses, I don’t like “having” to buy things just to use the money up or lose it. We have more band-aids and contact lens solution than we can probably use because we had to spend so much one year! We don’t have one at all anymore, and just have an HSA.
Mellisa says
I just got a FSA this year and LOVE IT!
Maryann says
WE always use it.