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Quick Answer
If you are on a calendar-year FSA, December 31, 2026 is the last day to incur expenses — unless your employer offers a grace period (then you have until about March 15, 2027) or a carryover (up to $680 survives into 2027, per IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32). A third, separate deadline — the run-out period, often March 31, 2027 — is only for submitting claims, not spending. Your employer picks carryover or a grace period, never both, and may offer neither.
Almost every guide to the FSA deadline gets one thing wrong: it treats "the deadline" as a single date. There are actually three, they do completely different things, and mixing them up is how people lose money while believing they have months left.
This guide gives you the three dates, shows you how to find which ones apply to your plan, and tells you exactly what to do if your balance is still sitting there.
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What Are the Three FSA Deadlines?
Write these down in this order. They are not interchangeable.
| Deadline | What it governs | Typical date (calendar-year plan) |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Last day to incur | The last day you can receive a service or buy an item and charge it to this year's money | December 31, 2026 |
| 2. Grace period end (only some plans) | Extends deadline #1 by up to 2.5 months | March 15, 2027 |
| 3. Run-out period end | The last day to submit paperwork for expenses already incurred. Does not let you spend anything new. | March 31, 2027 (varies; 90 days is common) |
The expensive mistake is reading deadline #3 as if it were deadline #1. Someone who sees "March 31" on their benefits portal and assumes they can shop until then will find their card declined in January — the run-out period was never a shopping window.
What Does "Incurred" Actually Mean?
This is the single most misunderstood word in FSA rules, and it decides whether a late-December purchase counts.
An expense is incurred on the date you receive the care or take possession of the item — not the date you are billed, and not the date you pay.
| Situation | Date that counts |
|---|---|
| Dental crown fitted December 28, billed January 15 | December 28 — counts for 2026 |
| Prepaid in December for orthodontia starting in February | February — does not count for 2026 |
| Ordered online December 30, delivered January 4 | January 4 — does not count for 2026 |
| Eye exam December 15, glasses picked up January 8 | Exam counts for 2026; the glasses do not |
Two practical consequences. First, a service you receive in December counts even if the bill arrives later — so book the appointment now and worry about the invoice in January. Second, shipping time is part of your deadline. An order placed December 30 that arrives in January is a next-year expense, which is why late-December online shopping is the most common way people think they spent their balance and did not.
How Do I Find My Own FSA Deadline?
Your employer chose one of three structures. Work through this in order:
- Find your plan year end date. Most plans run January 1 to December 31, but plenty of employers run a plan year that ends June 30, September 30, or on their fiscal year end. Do not assume December 31 — check.
- Determine whether you have a carryover or a grace period. IRS rules let an employer offer one or the other, never both, and neither is required. This is the single most important thing to find out.
- Find your run-out period length. Usually 60 or 90 days after the plan year (or grace period) ends.
The fastest way to get all three: open your Summary Plan Description, the document ERISA requires your employer to give you, and search it for "carryover," "grace period," and "run-out." If you cannot find it, one email to HR settles it: "Does our health FSA have a carryover or a grace period, what is our plan year end date, and how long is the run-out period for submitting claims?"
How Much FSA Money Can I Carry Over Into 2027?
If your employer offers a carryover, up to $680 of unused money from a 2026 plan year survives into 2027, under IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32.
Watch the direction on this number, because most guides state it backwards. The carryover limit travels with the plan year the money came from:
- $660 was the most a 2025 plan year could send into 2026.
- $680 is the most a 2026 plan year can send into 2027.
Anything above the cap is forfeited. If you finish 2026 with $1,500 left and your plan has the maximum carryover, $680 moves forward and $820 is gone. Carryover money does not count against your 2027 election, so it genuinely adds to what you can spend next year.
Is the FSA carryover automatic?
Not always — and this is where people lose the full $680. Plenty of guides state flatly that carryover is automatic. That is true of many plans, and false of many others.
Some administrators auto-enroll you at a $0 election and move the balance forward with no action from you. Others condition the carryover on making a new election for the following plan year, commonly a $100 minimum. Under those plans, skipping open enrollment forfeits a balance you were entitled to keep.
Federal employees are in the second group — see the FSAFEDS section below. If you are in a private plan and you are not certain which group you are in, assume you need to re-enroll and confirm with HR before your open enrollment window shuts. A $100 election is a cheap insurance policy on $680.
What Happens to My Money If I Miss the Deadline?
Unspent funds are forfeited to your employer — not to you, not to the government. Employers may use the money to offset plan administration costs or subsidize other benefits. There is no appeal and no exception. The Employee Benefit Research Institute has estimated that American workers forfeit billions in FSA funds annually, with a typical individual forfeiture in the low hundreds of dollars.
One genuine exception is worth knowing: if you leave your job, you can generally still claim expenses incurred before your coverage ended, and electing COBRA for your health FSA can extend your ability to spend down a balance. Ask your administrator before you assume a departure means automatic forfeiture.
Is the Dependent Care FSA Deadline Different?
Yes, and this trips up anyone running both accounts. The carryover provision does not apply to dependent care FSAs at all. A DCFSA can have a grace period, but it can never carry money into the next plan year.
So if you have both a health FSA with a carryover and a dependent care FSA, your health balance may be partly protected while every unspent dollar of dependent care money is on a hard deadline. Check the DCFSA balance first — it is the one with no safety net.
What Are the FSAFEDS Deadlines for Federal Employees?
FSAFEDS runs on its own calendar, and the health and dependent care accounts work differently from each other. For the 2026 benefit period:
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| December 14, 2026 | Open Season closes — the last day to make a 2027 election |
| December 31, 2026 | Last day to incur Health Care FSA expenses |
| March 15, 2027 | Last day to incur Dependent Care FSA expenses (grace period) |
| April 30, 2027 | Last day to submit claims for the 2026 benefit period |
Three things federal employees get wrong:
- The health care account has a carryover, not a grace period. HCFSA expenses must be incurred by December 31. The March 15 date applies to dependent care only.
- The carryover requires a new election. Carrying up to $680 of 2026 health care money into 2027 requires electing at least the minimum for 2027 during Open Season and remaining employed at a participating agency through the end of 2026. FSAFEDS enrollment does not renew automatically — skipping Open Season ends your participation and your carryover.
- The dependent care account has no carryover. It has the grace period instead.
Dates and minimums can change between benefit periods, so confirm yours on fsafeds.gov or by calling 1-877-FSAFEDS before you rely on them.
What Should I Do If My Deadline Is Close?
Work from the biggest lever down. Appointments beat shopping, because a service received before your deadline counts regardless of when you are billed.
If you have more than two weeks
- Book the dental work. Cleanings, fillings, a night guard, a crown you have been postponing. Dental is the highest-dollar category most people can still get scheduled.
- Book an eye exam and order eyewear. Prescription glasses, prescription sunglasses, and a year's supply of contacts are all eligible, and a backup pair is a legitimate purchase.
- Start physical therapy, chiropractic, or acupuncture if you have a reason to. Sessions incurred before the deadline count.
- Refill every prescription you can and ask your pharmacy for a year-end summary so nothing goes unclaimed.
If you have a few days
- Buy in person, not online. At this point shipping time is your enemy — possession has to transfer before the deadline. A pharmacy run beats a next-day order.
- Stock the medicine cabinet with things you were going to buy anyway. All over-the-counter medicines became eligible without a prescription under the CARES Act of 2020, so pain relievers, allergy medicine, cold medicine and first aid supplies all qualify.
- Check that nothing is already unclaimed. Pull your insurance EOBs for the year. Copays you paid out of pocket months ago are claimable and people routinely forget them — this is found money that needs no shopping at all.
What to avoid
Do not buy things you will not use simply to zero out the balance — forfeiting $200 is better than wasting $600. And do not assume a product is eligible because a retailer tags it that way; a retailer's badge is not your administrator's decision. If you are unsure, run the item through our free FSA eligibility checker first, which tells you whether an item is covered outright, not at all, or only with a letter of medical necessity.
What Can I Still Buy Before the Deadline?
These are the categories that clear eligibility without a prescription and that most households use anyway:
- Sunscreen — any SPF 15 or higher broad-spectrum sunscreen is eligible.
- Pain and fever relief — ibuprofen, acetaminophen, aspirin.
- Allergy and cold medicine — antihistamines, decongestants, nasal sprays.
- First aid supplies — bandages, antibiotic ointment, a stocked first aid kit.
- Thermometers and a blood pressure monitor — durable, genuinely useful, clearly eligible.
- Contact lens solution and eye drops.
- Menstrual products — pads, tampons, cups and period underwear, all eligible since the CARES Act of 2020.
- Heating pads and a TENS unit for back or muscle pain, neither of which needs a prescription.
For a fuller walkthrough organized by how much you have left, see our guide to smart things to buy with your FSA before it expires.
I Am Electing for 2027 Right Now — How Much Should I Choose?
Open enrollment season overlaps with deadline season, so you are often making next year's decision while scrambling to spend this year's money.
One caveat on the numbers: the IRS had not published the 2027 health FSA contribution limit as of early November 2026. Health FSA limits are set in the IRS's autumn inflation revenue procedure, and until that lands, any "2027 limit" you see quoted is a projection calculated from inflation data, not a rule. The confirmed 2026 limit is $3,400. The 2027 HSA figures are final — $4,500 for self-only and $9,000 for family coverage, under Revenue Procedure 2026-24 — which is a different account and a different revenue procedure.
Practically, this does not change your decision much. Elect based on expenses you can actually predict: recurring prescriptions, planned dental and vision work, known copays, and a realistic allowance for over-the-counter purchases. Most people who forfeit money over-elected in the first place. For a structured walkthrough, see how much you should contribute to your FSA.
How Do I Stop This Happening Again?
Forfeiture is almost never a shopping problem. It is a tracking problem — people lose money because nobody told them a deadline was coming while there was still time to act on it.
SpendRebel tracks your balance against your plan's real deadlines — your actual plan year end, your carryover or grace period, and your run-out date — and sends escalating reminders as each one approaches. Setup takes about two minutes and it is free. Start now, while you still have options.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the FSA deadline for 2026?
For a calendar-year plan, December 31, 2026 is the last day to incur expenses. If your employer offers a grace period, you have until roughly March 15, 2027 to incur new expenses. If your employer offers a carryover instead, up to $680 moves into 2027 and the rest is forfeited after December 31. Plans with non-calendar plan years have different dates entirely.
Can I use my FSA after the plan year ends?
Only if your employer offers a grace period, which extends the deadline for incurring new expenses by up to 2.5 months. A run-out period is different — it only lets you submit claims for expenses you already incurred during the plan year, not make new purchases.
What is the difference between a grace period and a run-out period?
A grace period extends the time to spend. A run-out period extends the time to file paperwork. A plan can have a run-out period without a grace period, which is the most common source of confusion: your claims window stays open after your spending window has already closed.
Does FSA money expire exactly at midnight on December 31?
The expense must be incurred on or before the last day of the plan year, so a service received or an item purchased on December 31 qualifies. Anything received on January 1 does not, regardless of when it was ordered or paid for.
Can I get an extension on my FSA deadline?
No. Individual extensions do not exist — the only flexibility is whatever carryover or grace period your employer already built into the plan. Congress authorized temporary pandemic-era relief that allowed far more generous carryovers, but that relief has expired.
What happens to my FSA if I quit or get laid off?
Your coverage generally ends with your employment, and expenses incurred after that date are not eligible — but you can still submit claims for expenses incurred while you were covered, subject to your plan's run-out period. Electing COBRA for the health FSA can extend your ability to spend the balance. Ask your administrator before assuming the money is lost.
Do I lose my carryover if I do not re-enroll?
It depends on your plan, and getting this wrong is expensive. Some plans move the balance forward automatically by enrolling you at a $0 election. Others require an active election for the new plan year, often a $100 minimum, and forfeit the carryover if you skip enrollment. FSAFEDS requires a new election. Confirm your plan's rule before your enrollment window closes.