A life change event is an unanticipated change in your life that constitutes as a valid reason to justify changes to Health Spending Account contributions on a Plan outside of the renewal period.
So, you might ask, what is a life event in this context. What kind of life events qualify?
Changes in job status.
- Have you gone from part-time to full-time hours?
- What about a change in position or salary renegotiation?
- Maybe a promotion from junior to senior level?
These are examples of changes in the employment agreement that qualify as a life event.
Changes in number of dependants.
- Recently married? Separated or divorced?
- Have you just had a baby?
- Have your elderly parents become financially dependent upon you?
So maybe having a baby is not necessarily unanticipated but nevertheless, these examples are valid changes in the number of dependants that justify changes to contributions outside of the renewal period.
Changes in spousal coverage.
- Has your spouse just got a new full-time job that comes with a great benefits package (...we hope through us!)?
- Has your spouse lost their benefits coverage through a lay-off?
Did we mention HSA coverage is great as a stand-alone or complementary benefit?! It is!
Nevertheless, the above examples are types of changes in spousal coverage that would qualify as life events.
On the other hand, some of the circumstances below unfortunately don't qualify:
- Purchasing a new home
- Renovations to your home - although this might qualify if the renovations are related to addressing a new disability in your family
- Extended travel plans
- Exhausting Benefit Period funds earlier than anticipated
- Getting a puppy
As you'll see, not everything qualifies as a life event in order to make changes to contributions outside of the renewal period. It's a bummer but it's our duty to protect you from any potential negative tax implications and we're sure that's a pretty fair trade-off!