File your 2025 Health and DepCare FSA claims by April 15
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The Dependent Care (DepCare) and Health Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) both let you save on your taxes by taking pretax money from your paycheck each month to cover certain expenses. They have different rules and deadlines, though, and two big ones are coming up: March 15 is the last day of your DepCare FSA grace period, and April 15, 2026, is the deadline to file claims for your eligible 2025 DepCare, Health and Limited Purpose FSA.
Understanding FSA rules and deadlines
DepCare FSA
The DepCare FSA allows you to pay for eligible expenses for the care of your child (up to age 13) or eligible adult dependent while you work.
The Dependent Care FSA is a use-it-or-lose-it plan, with a grace period for using the funds in your account. This means you’ll lose any money you haven’t spent on eligible expenses by the end of the grace period and claimed by the deadline. The grace period for 2025 participants ends on March 15, 2026.
You don’t have to be enrolled in the DepCare FSA in 2026 to use your funds during your grace period, but you must be employed by UC. If you leave UC before March 15, 2026, you will only be able to claim expenses you incurred up to your termination date (last day of the month for monthly-paid employees and last day of the pay period for bi-weekly paid employees).
Claims for 2025 expenses, and for expenses incurred during the grace period, must be filed by April 15, 2026.
Health FSA
The Health FSA allows you to pay for eligible medical expenses for you and for your eligible family members.
Instead of a grace period, the Health FSA will automatically carry over up to $660 of your unused 2025 funds for you to use this year, even if you are no longer enrolled in the Health FSA. Any funds over $660 will be forfeited. If you did not re-enroll in the Health FSA for 2026, balances less than $25 as of December 31, 2025, were forfeited.
Claims for 2025 expenses must be filed by April 15, 2026.
Limited Purpose FSA
You may have a Limited Purpose FSA if you moved to UC Health Savings Plan in 2025 and had a balance in your 2024 Health FSA. There is no grace period or carryover provision for Limited Purpose FSA balances. Any unused balance will be forfeited.
Claims for 2025 expenses must be filed by April 15, 2026.
Learn more
Log in to your WEX Health account to get immediate access to your FSA activity, account balance and reimbursement information. Visit the Dependent Care (DepCare) and Health Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) pages on UCnet for more information about the plans.