Get Ready for Benefits Open Enrollment: FSA Store®, HSA Store® Share Tips to Help Consumers Choose and Use Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)

Education and awareness for FSAs and HSAs help individuals choose the right plan, maximize tax savings, and simplify access to healthcare products and services

DALLAS, Sept. 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- As open enrollment season kicks off, millions of Americans will face important choices about how to manage healthcare expenses in the year ahead. Flexible spending accounts (FSAs) and health savings accounts (HSAs) are benefit options that lower out-of-pocket healthcare costs and support the health and financial needs of individuals and families. Unfortunately, lack of awareness and education cause people to miss out on or misuse these accounts. To help consumers understand their enrollment options and make wise choices this fall, FSA Store^® and HSA Store^® are providing the following FSA and HSA tips, reminders, and interactive consumer account tools.

1. FSA vs. HSA: How do they differ? FSAs and HSAs are tax-advantaged accounts that allow users to set aside pre-tax income to pay for qualified medical expenses, including everyday healthcare items (as determined by the Internal Revenue Service). The primary difference is that, while an FSA is an employer-owned account that has an annual spending deadline, an HSA is owned by the individual. In addition, the money in an HSA never expires, and accrues tax-free over time and can be used to pay for qualified expenses in retirement. All or most of the funds in an FSA, on the other hand, expire every year and must be spent by the annual spending deadline, but a distinctive benefit of the FSA is that the full annual election is available on the first day of the plan year, even though it's funded via pre-tax payroll deductions evenly throughout the year.
2. How and when can someone enroll? An FSA, if offered by an employer as part of their benefits package, can be opened during the benefits enrollment period or if there is a qualifying event to allow a mid-year election. Because FSAs are employer-owned, any money contributed to the account remains with the employer if an employee leaves their job for any reason (with the exception of any COBRA extension, if applicable). An HSA, on the other hand, can be opened at any time either through an employer's benefit program or individually directly with an HSA administrator or custodian, as long as the person or family covered by the account is eligible to contribute and is enrolled in a qualified high-deductible health plan (HDHP).
3. How much can be contributed? Both employees and employers can contribute to an FSA or an HSA. Employee FSA contributions are made with pre-tax payroll contributions, but employers can also make contributions to the employee's FSA that exceed the employee contribution maximum. While the 2026 employee FSA contribution limits will not be announced by the IRS until later this fall, Mercer is projecting that the new employee limit will be $3,400. The total FSA contribution amount for the year is available on the first day of the plan year. For 2026, individual high deductible health plan (HDHP) participants will be able to contribute $4,400 to their HSA (up from $4,300 in 2025), while families can contribute $8,750 (up from $8,550). Minimum deductibles and out-of-pocket maximums for HDHPs will also increase in 2026. The total amount of employer and employee contributions cannot surpass these amounts. HSA contributions are also tax free, and can be made via automatic payroll contributions or via post-tax contributions throughout the year that can be taken as an above-the-line deduction at tax time. The 2025 FSA employee contribution limit is $3,300, with the full annual election available on the first day of the plan year.
4. Is there a spending deadline? There are no deadlines for when HSA funds must be spent. In fact, unused HSA funds roll over from year to year and always belong to the account holder. An FSA, on the other hand, does have an annual spending deadline or a time by which the balance must be spent or remaining funds are lost. For most people, the FSA deadline is Dec. 31 each year; however, this deadline can vary based on an organization's plan year. An employer may also offer an FSA deadline extension, such as the allowance of a partial rollover of unused funds or a grace period (2.5 months after your plan year end date to incur new expenses; typically March 15), and/or a claims run-out period (up to 3 months following the last day of the plan year to submit for reimbursement of expenses incurred during the plan year).
5. How can FSA and HSA funds be used? The list of qualified expenses for FSAs and HSAs goes well beyond doctor visits and copays. Thanks in part to advocacy efforts from Health-E Commerce^® (parent brand to FSA Store^® and HSA Store^®) and other industry leaders, eligibility has continued to expand to include everyday items like over-the-counter medications, contacts and eyeglasses, hearing aids, menstrual care products, drug-free pain relief, and even high-tech health monitoring and diagnostic devices. It's important to review a comprehensive FSA and HSA eligibility list to understand how these tax-free funds can be used in conjunction with health plan coverage to maximize the health, wellness, and financial wellbeing for individuals and families throughout the coming year.
6. How much can I save? Both FSAs and HSAs can help reduce their taxable income and save an estimated 30% on eligible healthcare expenses, depending on their tax bracket. HSAs also offer a unique triple tax advantage — contributions are tax-free (either through payroll deduction or as an above-the-line deduction at tax time), interest grows tax-free, and distributions for qualified medical expenses are also tax-free.

To help individuals plan their contributions and estimate their savings potential, FSA Store^® offers a free FSA calculator, and HSA Store^® offers calculators that illustrate HSA Tax Savings Calculator; Projected Future Value Calculator; an HSA Expense Dashboard, and a free ExpenseTracker™ App.

About Health-E Commerce
Health-E Commerce^® is the parent brand to FSA Store^® and HSA Store^®, online stores that serve the 70+ million consumers enrolled in pre-tax health and wellness accounts. The company also created Caring Mill^®, a popular private-label line of health products through which a portion of every purchase is donated to the Children's Health Fund. Since 2010, the Health-E Commerce^® brands have led the direct-to-consumer e-commerce market for exclusively pre-tax health and wellness benefits. Health-E Commerce^® plays an essential role in expanding product eligibility for important new categories within the list of eligible medical expenses.

SOURCE Health-E Commerce