Staying healthier than you expected to this year is something to celebrate, but it may have the tiny drawback of leaving you with a lot of money left over in your flexible spending account (FSA). Unlike health savings accounts (HSAs), FSA funds typically don't roll over to the next year. You could forfeit the money if you don't spend it before year's end.
Fortunately, you still have a few weeks left to use up the remaining funds in your FSA. You can spend it on doctor visits, medical equipment such as wheelchairs, or over-the-counter medications. The following seven items could also be FSA-eligible, provided you meet certain criteria first.
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1. Therapy
Talk therapy could be an FSA-eligible expense if you use it for the treatment of a diagnosed mental illness. For example, if you're diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and you seek therapy to treat this, you could use your FSA funds to cover costs related to your therapy sessions.
However, services such as couples or family counseling do not qualify as FSA-eligible. This may improve the quality of your life and household, but it's not a treatment for a specific medical condition, so you will have to pay for it another way.
2. Smoking cessation products
If you hope to stop smoking or vaping, products you use for this purpose, like nicotine patches or gum, are FSA-eligible items. Be sure to retain your receipts to prove that you used your FSA funds on approved items.
3. Weight loss programs
Weight loss programs may be FSA-eligible if they're intended to treat a medical condition, such as obesity or high blood pressure. You will need a formal diagnosis from a healthcare provider before you can spend your FSA dollars on these programs.
4. Gym memberships
Similar to weight loss programs, gym memberships may qualify if your sole purpose is to treat a disease or rehabilitate an injury. If you're just hitting the gym to improve your health and well-being, that's great, but you'll have to pay for it on your own.
5. Certain home and vehicle modifications
Using your FSA funds to cover a home remodel may sound unusual, but it's allowed as long as the modification is related to a qualifying medical condition. For example, if you've recently begun using a wheelchair, you can pay for the cost of enlarging doorways, adding a ramp to your home, or modifying your vehicle to be wheelchair-friendly.
6. Guide dogs and service animals
If you have a guide dog or service animal, you can use your FSA funds to pay for the cost of buying, training, and maintaining the animal. This includes their food, grooming, and vet bills. However, it doesn't apply to ordinary house pets.
7. Medical travel expenses
Sometimes, you need to travel far from home to seek medical care. In these cases, transportation, meals, and lodging costs may be FSA-eligible. But the trip's primary purpose must be your medical care.
What if you can't use all of your FSA funds in time?
You typically only have until Dec. 31 to use your FSA money before you forfeit it. However, some employers offer one of two strategies to help their employees retain leftover funds. They can either give you a 2.5-month grace period to use up your remaining funds or allow you to carry $660 over into 2026. You will not have both options.
Consult with your company's HR department if you're unsure about its policies. If you don't have a grace period or a carryover option, you'll need to come up with a plan to use your remaining FSA funds in the next few weeks.
If you plan to schedule upcoming doctor's appointments, keep in mind that you can also use your FSA funds to cover your health insurance deductibles and copays. However, you typically cannot use those funds to pay for your monthly premiums.
