Can I pay last year's medical bills with this year's HSA?

Asked by: Larue Crona  |  Last update: December 30, 2023
Score: 4.7/5 (28 votes)

Can I use my tax-free HSA savings to pay for — or reimburse myself for — IRS-qualified medical expenses from a previous year? Yes, as long as the IRS-qualified medical expenses were incurred after your HSA was established, you can pay them or reimburse yourself with HSA funds at any time.

Can I pay previous year medical bill with HSA?

In fact, you can reimburse yourself out of your HSA years later for medical expenses you forgot to reimburse yourself for — there isn't a time limit, but you can't reimburse expenses incurred before you had the account.

How far back can I reimburse myself from HSA?

There's no deadline for HSA reimbursements

There are lots of reasons to love your HSA, and here's one more — you can reimburse yourself for expenses years after they occurred.

Can you backdate HSA contributions?

Forgetting that HSA contributions can be made until the tax deadline of the following year. One of the great things about HSAs is that contributions can be made retroactively for the previous tax year before the federal tax deadline.

Can I use FSA money to pay off old medical bills?

4. Can I use my Health Care FSA to reimburse outstanding medical expenses from the prior year? No, expenses must be incurred during the current plan year. The only exception to this rule is orthodontics.

Should I Pay for Medical Expenses Now or Later With My HSA?

19 related questions found

What do you do with leftover FSA money?

Where does the money go? Unused FSA money returns to your employer. The funds can be used towards offsetting administrative costs incurred during the plan year, employers can also reduce annual premiums in the next FSA year, or funds must be equally distributed to employees who enroll in an FSA for the next year.

What happens to unused healthcare FSA funds?

For employees, the main downside to an FSA is the use-it-or-lose-it rule. If the employee fails to incur enough qualified expenses to drain his or her FSA each year, any leftover balance generally reverts back to the employer.

What is the 6 month rule for HSA contributions?

This is because when you enroll in Medicare Part A, you receive up to six months of retroactive coverage, not going back farther than your initial month of eligibility. If you do not stop HSA contributions at least six months before Medicare enrollment, you may incur a tax penalty.

What is the last month rule for HSA?

Last-month rule.

Under the last-month rule, if you are an eligible individual on the first day of the last month of your tax year (December 1 for most taxpayers), you are considered an eligible individual for the entire year.

Can I contribute to HSA after December 31?

The statutory deadline for contributing to your HSA is through the un-extended deadline for filing your income tax return. Normally, that's the April 15 after the close of the tax year. However, for the 2021 income tax, you may file Form 1040 or 1040-SR by April 18, 2022.

What is the HSA reimbursement loophole?

Again, you don't have to reimburse yourself for those medical expenses in the same year, or the same plan year that you incur those medical expenses. If you incur that medical expense, you can just write it down. And then you can reimburse yourself from the HSA at a later date.

What happens to leftover HSA money?

No. HSA money is yours to keep. Unlike a flexible spending account (FSA), unused money in your HSA isn't forfeited at the end of the year; it continues to grow, tax-deferred.

How do I prove HSA expenses?

Hold on to any insurance carrier's Explanation of Benefits (EOB) statement that documents your expenses for services covered under your HSA-eligible health plan. Keep receipts for all other items purchased with your HSA, for example, vision and dental services.

Will HSA cover massage?

Massage Therapy is eligible for reimbursement with a Letter of Medical Necessity (LMN) with flexible spending accounts (FSA), health savings accounts (HSA) and health reimbursement arrangements (HRA).

Do I have to submit receipts for HSA?

Always save your receipts and supporting documentation for your records. While Benefit Resource will not ask you to provide a receipt for an HSA expense, you are responsible for maintaining documentation of account use in the event that you are ever audited by the IRS.

Can I front load my HSA?

You can still front-load an HSA, however, you'd have to pull back funds or face taxes and penalties if you were not eligible every month of the year. Any excess contributions and earnings must be reported as taxable income and excess contributions are subject to a 6% penalty for every year they remain in the HSA.

What is the 13 month rule for HSA?

Use the 13-month rule to make up for lost time

You can contribute the full amount to your HSA if you meet the following conditions: Enroll in an HSA-eligible HDHP before December 1st of the given year. Maintain that HDHP coverage through December 31st of the following year, for a total of 13 months.

What is the December 1 rule for HSA?

If you are eligible to contribute to an HSA on the first day of the last month of your tax year (e.g., December 1, 2022), you are considered eligible for the entire year (e.g., through December 31, 2023). This last-month rule is true only if you stay enrolled in an HSA-qualifying HDHP during that time.

What is the HSA last year rule?

"Under the Last Month Rule, if an individual is eligible on the first day of the last month of the tax year (December 1 for most taxpayers), he or she is considered an eligible individual for the entire year. HSA accountholders may utilize the Last Month Rule to make a full HSA contribution for that year.

Is the 6 month look back period for HSA?

1. While you can continue to spend from your HSA, you cannot set up or contribute to an HSA in any month that you are enrolled in Medicare. age, Social Security will give you six months of “back pay” in retirement benefits. This means that your enrollment in Part A will also be backdated by six months.

How much should I have in my HSA before retirement?

According to the Fidelity Retiree Health Care Cost Estimate, an average retired couple age 65 in 2022 may need approximately $315,000 saved (after tax) to cover health care expenses in retirement.

How long can money sit in HSA?

The money in an HSA never expires. Unlike flexible spending accounts (FSAs), all remaining HSA funds roll over each year.

Do I have to pay back my FSA if I quit?

Employers are not allowed to ask for money back that you spent from your FSA if you quit or retire. This is due to the Uniform Coverage rule which ensures that your Flexible Spending Account funds are available to you in full as soon as your plan year starts. Any FSA amount you don't use is returned to your employer.

Do you lose FSA money if you quit?

What happens to an FSA if you leave a job? Any unused money in your flexible spending account (FSA) goes back to your employer after you quit or lose a job unless you are able to continue your FSA via COBRA continuation.

Can you use 2023 FSA for 2022 expenses?

Your 2023 FSAs can only be used to reimburse eligible expenses for care provided from the effective date of your enrollment through March 15, 2024. Different rules apply to Health Care and Dependent Care eligible expenses if your participa- tion in the plan ends before December 31, 2024.