Campus & Community

FSA Updates for Faculty and Staff: Now Cover PPE, 2020 Deadline, Increased Contribution Limit for Dependent Care

Tuesday, April 27, 2021, By News Staff

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) offer a great way to save money by allowing you to contribute pre-tax dollars into an account that you can use to pay for eligible health and dependent care expenses.

Effective immediately, personal protective equipment such as face masks and hand sanitizer (containing at least 60% alcohol) purchased to prevent the spread of COVID-19 now qualify for reimbursement from a Health Care FSA. Purchases made as early as Jan. 1, 2020, are eligible for reimbursement with proper documentation.

As a reminder, if you had a Health or Dependent Care FSA through Syracuse University in 2020, the deadline to submit eligible expenses for reimbursement is April 30, 2021. Any unused funds from 2020 will carry over to your FSA for use in 2021. Unlike prior years, there is no limit to the amount you may carry over from 2020.

As previously announced, faculty and staff have new options in 2021 that provide additional flexibility in managing FSA elections. Besides the carryover of all unused funds from 2020, other options include:

  • Carryover of all unused FSA funds from 2021 to 2022;
  • Mid-year FSA election changes allowed without a qualifying event; and
  • Maximum contribution to a Dependent Care FSA in 2021 increased from $5,000 to $10,500 per household.

Faculty and staff can contact HealthEquity/WageWorks at 877.924.3967 (TTY: 866.353.8058) or HR Shared Services at 315.443.4042 with any FSA-related questions.