Pre-Tax Expense Accounts
If you have a Pre-Tax Expense Account, remember that September 15, 2008 will be the final day on which you can incur eligible expenses for the 2007-2008 plan year, and you must submit claims for all expenses by September 30. More information about these deadlines is available here. For a list of eligible expenses, visit the Health Care and/or Dependent Care account pages. Instructions on filing a claim are available here.
The pre-tax expense accounts are designed to save you taxes when you pay
for certain eligible expenses that are not covered by other benefit plans.
You may make contributions to:
- Health Care Pre-Tax Expense Account for health care expenses (incurred
by you and your eligible tax dependents) that are not eligible to be
paid by insurance.
- Dependent Care Pre-Tax Expense Account for dependent care (daycare,
elder care) expenses that allow you to work, but NOT for dependent
health care expenses.
With the pre-tax expense accounts, you can be reimbursed for expenses
with money set aside from your earnings—money that is not subject to
federal income or Social Security taxes. This can mean a substantial tax
advantage for you.
Who is eligible?
Full-time and part-time faculty and staff and members of collective bargaining
units are eligible for the Pre-Tax Expense Accounts.
When are you eligible?
Full-time faculty and staff and members of collective bargaining units may begin
participating in the Health Care Pre-Tax Expense Account immediately. Part-time
faculty and staff may begin participating in the Health Care Pre-Tax Expense
Account after 2 years of continuous service. All eligible faculty and staff may
begin participating in the Dependent Care Pre-Tax Expense Account after 1 year
of continuous service and attaining age 21.
How do you get coverage?
During your new employee eligibility period or the annual Open Enrollment period, you may open a Pre-Tax Expense Account online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at Penn’s online benefits enrollment site. You may also be eligible to make specific changes to your account(s) at other times as the result of an employment status change or a qualifying life event change, such as a change in marital status or the arrival of a new child. If you have questions about Penn’s Pre-Tax Expense Accounts, or about how to make your benefits elections online, please contact the Penn Benefits Center at 1-888-PENN-BEN (1-888-736-6236).
Who pays?
You make pre-tax contributions to the Pre-Tax Expense Accounts.
Administration
If you have a pre-tax expense account, you can access your account details securely online through Penn’s online benefits enrollment site. Just login with your PennKey and password, continue until you reach the “Enrollment Options” page, and click the link titled “Access Your Pre-Tax Expense Accounts”.
ADP Benefit Services (ADP) administers the Pre-Tax Expense Accounts. ADP is also
responsible for processing claims, issuing checks to plan participants and
answering questions regarding the benefit.
If you have any questions about the benefit or your account call the Penn
Benefits Center at 1-888-PENNBEN (1-888-736-6236). To obtain reimbursement on a
claim, visit our forms
section to download the appropriate form and mail you claim to:
ADP FSA Services
P.O. Box 1853
Alpharetta, GA 30023-1853