77 FSA-Eligible Expenses to Buy Before Your Money Expires
Key takeaways:
If you don’t use your flexible spending account (FSA) dollars before the deadline, you will lose them.
You can use your FSA dollars to pay for everyday items like acne treatments and eye drops. You can also use your money to pay for mental health, dental, vision, and emergency care expenses.
Find out if your employer offers extra time to use FSA funds. Some employers may offer a grace period or carryover option.
Table of contents
You’ve probably used your flexible spending account (FSA) to pay for qualified medical expenses like prescription eyeglasses and dental expenses. But if you find yourself with FSA money remaining in your account toward the end of the year, you’ll want to find other things to spend it on soon. An FSA is known for its “use it or lose” feature, which means you’ll forfeit any leftover money in your account after the deadline.
Below, we’ll share 77 ways to use your FSA funds for yourself, your spouse, or a qualified dependent. Since it’s an employer-sponsored health benefit, you’ll want to use the funds to pay for IRS-approved medical expenses or you’ll miss the full tax benefits of having this type of account.
Dental
As a general rule, you can use your FSA to pay for care to prevent or treat dental disease from an orthodontist, dentist, or other qualified dental professional. Here are 18 dental expenses that may qualify as FSA eligible:
Crowns
Dental bonding
Dental bridges
Dental implants
Dental sealants
Dental veneers
Fillings
Gum cleaning
Inlays
Occlusal guards to prevent teeth grinding
Onlays
Teeth cleaning
Tooth removal
X-rays
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Vision
If your insurance doesn’t cover all your vision care needs, you can use your FSA funds to pay for items that are considered medically necessary. Below are 12 vision-related items and services you can consider adding to your shopping list before your funds expire:
Contact lens solution
Eyeglass cords
Eyeglass protection solutions
Eyeglass repair kits
Eye surgery
Lens cloths
Reading glasses
Mental health
Surveys show that approximately 1 in 5 adults was living with a mental illness in 2022. If your insurance doesn’t cover your mental health expenses, you may be able to use FSA funds to cover the following 10 expenses:
Behavioral health modification
Inpatient treatments
Lodging if you travel to receive mental healthcare
Mental health counseling
Psychotherapy
Transportation to mental health appointments
Teletherapy
Treatment for substance use disorder
Family planning
If you want to manage your reproductive health, you may have to pay for some family-planning expenses out of pocket. Below are 11 expenses that you may be able to pay for with FSA funds:
Erectile dysfunction medications, like tadalafil (Cialis) and sildenafil (Viagra)
In vitro fertilization (IVF)
Ovulation monitors
Emergency
Health emergencies can happen at any time, and they can be costly. An ambulance ride, for example, can cost over $1,500 without health insurance. If an emergency situation arises, you may be able to use your FSA funds to pay for the 10 expenses below:
Airlift to a hospital
Emergency medical services (EMS) devices
Flight to a hospital
Medical record fees
Urgent care services
Do you have a flexible spending account (FSA)? Learn how FSAs work to avoid losing any unused funds.
Can you buy lip balm with an FSA? Yes, if your lip balm meets these requirements.
Do you need sunscreen? Your sunscreen may be FSA eligible if it meets these requirements.
Everyday items
If you have extra money leftover in your FSA at the end of the year, you can stock up on everyday healthcare products. Here are 16 to consider:
Bandages
Thermometers
Menstrual cups
Menstrual cup cleansers
Nasal sprays
Period underwear
Tampons
Tums
Wheelchair
What items are not FSA eligible?
Not all health-related expenses are eligible for reimbursement with a FSA. It’s important to review your account’s list of eligible and ineligible expenses to understand what qualifies. For example, cosmetic dental procedures, such as teeth whitening, are typically not eligible because they’re not considered medically necessary. Similarly, items like toothbrushes don’t generally qualify because they are viewed as personal care items rather than medical expenses.
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Here are some other expenses that are usually not FSA eligible:
Deodorant
Diapers
Insurance premiums
Shampoo
Soap
Swimming lessons
Toothpaste
In some cases, an expense may become FSA eligible if it’s used to treat a specific medical condition and is prescribed by a healthcare professional. For instance, weight-loss programs, nutritional counseling, and massage therapy may qualify with a note from your prescriber. But always check with your FSA provider to confirm eligibility for specific items.
When does money in your FSA expire?
Generally, the money in your FSA expires at the end of the plan year. However, your employer may give you extra time to use the funds in your account by offering a grace period or carryover option.
For example, if your FSA plan year ends on December 31 and your employer offers a grace period, you might have until mid-March (2.5 months) to spend the remaining funds in your account. But the timeline could be shorter depending on your plan’s policy.
If your employer gives you a carryover option instead, you can use some or all of your remaining funds at any point during the next play year. But you should ask your employer about the maximum carryover limit, so you can plan accordingly. For 2024, you can carry over up to $640 into 2025 if your employer allows it.
How do you know if an item is FSA eligible?
In Publication 502, titled “Medical and Dental Expenses,In Publication 502, titled “Medical and Dental Expenses,” the IRS outlines the requirements for qualified medical expenses. In general, services and supplies related to the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of a disease are considered qualified medical expenses. But it isn’t always easy to identify if specific expenses are eligible.
For example, you can use your FSA to pay for health insurance copayments and deductibles, but insurance premiums don’t qualify for reimbursement. Before you make a purchase, it’s important to confirm if your expense is eligible so you can take advantage of your FSA benefits. If you spend your FSA dollars on ineligible expenses, your reimbursement claim will be denied.
Below are a few steps you can take to get a better idea of what expenses are FSA eligible:
Read your FSA plan documents. When you enroll in an FSA through work, your FSA administrator or employer should provide you with a document that contains the plan’s guidelines. This document should let you know what expenses are eligible for reimbursement through your FSA. Generally, distributions from a health FSA can only be used to reimburse qualified medical expenses incurred during your coverage period.
Visit FSA-approved retailers. Some stores make it easy for you to identify FSA-eligible items by tagging them with a specific label. If you go to these retailers’ websites, you may be able to search for a list of eligible items.
Call your FSA administrator. Some expenses may require a letter of medical necessity (LOMN) before they’re considered eligible. Iron supplements, for example, may be eligible for reimbursement if your healthcare professional writes a note stating why the supplements are medically necessary. If you don’t know what expenses require an LOMN, contact your FSA administrator.
Review reimbursement rules. One of the general rules of FSAs is that, if your health insurance plan or another source reimburses you for an expense, it is not FSA eligible.
It’s important to keep your receipts, so that you can get reimbursed for your items, if needed. Depending on your employer’s policy, you may have to submit receipts by December 31. Some employers may extend the timeline to March 15 of the following year, but you’ll have to check with your FSA administrator to determine your specific deadline.
Frequently asked questions
No, you generally cannot be enrolled in an FSA and a health savings account (HSA) at the same time. However, there’s an exception to this rule: A limited-purpose FSA, which covers only dental and vision expenses, can be paired with an HSA. You can only contribute to an HSA if you are enrolled in a high-deductible health plan (HDHP). Though, since HSA funds never expire, you can always use the money in your account to pay for qualified medical expenses, even if you’re no longer enrolled in an HDHP.
An HSA is a tax-advantaged account you can use to pay for qualified medical expenses, like deductibles, copays, and coinsurance. You can also use HSA funds for certain health insurance premiums, including Medicare premiums, once you’re eligible. As mentioned, HSA funds never expire, so you can save them for future healthcare costs, including hearing aids, dentures, and other eligible expenses during retirement.
The bottom line
You can use your flexible spending account (FSA) to pay for qualified dental, vision, and medical expenses. Read your account documents or contact your FSA administrator to confirm what items and services are eligible. If your employer doesn’t offer a grace period or carryover option, you’ll have to use your FSA funds before the end of the plan year.
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References
International Revenue Service. (2024). About Publication 502, medical and dental expenses.
Internal Revenue Service. (2024). Publication 502 (2023), medical and dental expenses.
National Institute of Mental Health. (2024). Mental illness.
This article is solely for informational purposes. This article is not professional advice concerning insurance, financial, accounting, tax, or legal matters. All content herein is provided “as is” without any representations or warranties, express or implied. Always consult an appropriate professional when you have specific questions about any insurance, financial, or legal matter.
