Working families often need help with child and elder-care expenses. A dependent care flexible spending account allows you to use pretax dollars to pay for your dependent-care expenses. HealthEquity administers the dependent care accounts. Please note that elections will still be made through Benefit Express with all other benefit elections. Some examples of the expenses covered by the dependent care spending account include:
- Child daycare
- Senior daycare
- Before-and-after school programs
- Sick childcare services while you're at work
Since it is a flexible spending account, you save taxes on the funds you set aside. However, like all FSAs, you must use the funds or you will lose them, so it's important to estimate your covered expenses carefully. You can contribute up to $5,000 in the dependent care spending account, however there are some additional restrictions dependent upon your marital status and tax filing. For more information see the chart below.