Please note: this article is only for members with our HSA Select feature. It does not apply to other HSA types.
Not sure what type of HSA you have? It's listed at the top of your Health Spending Account page in your online Member Centre.
The dates contributions were made and expenses were incurred affects whether your claim is eligible for reimbursement. This can be a tricky topic, but we're here to make it simple!
It's also important to know what type of expenses are eligible. Check out this handy-dandy article about what's an eligible expense for details.
Important dates for eligible expenses
Benefit Periods
Your Benefit Period is one year beginning on the effective date of your plan. This is listed in your Member Centre in the My Benefits > Health Spending Account section. Funds are contributed during a Benefit Period and are available until the end of that period.
You can use these funds to reimburse eligible expenses incurred during the current Benefit Period or the previous Benefit Period. That means eligible health care expenses with service dates between the start date of your last Benefit Period and end date of your current Benefit Period.
Claim Submission Cutoff
To use current Benefit Period funds to reimburse eligible expenses you must submit claims before the end of the Benefit Period. Your Claim Submission Cutoff date is the same date as the end of your Benefit Period.
When the Benefit Period ends, your HSA balance will be reset to $0 and unused funds credited to the Plan Sponsor Company. Then, contributions for the next Benefit Period will begin funding your HSA again.
Find these dates
If you're not sure what your Benefit Period is or where to find it, check out our article How do I find my Benefit Period and claim submission cutoff?
Explaining with Examples
Let's explain with some simple calendar year examples, based on a Benefit Period of 2022-01-01 to 2022-12-31.
Any eligible expenses dated in 2022 can be reimbursed from funds contributed in 2022. If you exhaust your funds in 2022, you can carry forward any expenses that haven't been reimbursed and reimburse them using 2023 contributions.
Any funds contributed in 2022 can only be used to reimburse eligible expenses dated in 2022 or 2021. You can't carry forward funds to reimburse eligible expenses incurred in 2023.
Expenses greater than contributions
So, let's say you receive $10,000.00 in contributions in 2022, and have $12,000.00 worth of eligible expenses dated in 2022.
Since you only have $10,000.00 available in 2022, you'll be reimbursed $10,000.00 (less claims processing fees), and will exhaust your 2022 funds.
If you have a contribution as of January 2023, you can use that contribution towards the $2,000 not reimbursed on the 2022 eligible expenses.
If you've exhausted your Benefit Period funds on an expense, you'll see a message that you've exhausted funds for the Benefit Period.
Expenses less than contributions
Now let's say you still receive $10,000.00 in contributions in 2022, but had only $5,000.00 worth of eligible expenses dated in 2022.
You will be reimbursed for all $5,000.00 of your eligible expenses (less claims processing fees) and will have funds remaining on 2022-12-31.
You cannot use those remaining funds to reimburse eligible expenses dated 2023-01-01 and later. That is the beginning of a new Benefit Period.
The funds remaining at the end of 2022 will be reset and credited to the Plan Sponsor Company. at the end of the Benefit Period.