Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)
Your Health Care and Dependent Care FSAs are administered by Fidelity. You can see your account balance, submit claims and more, directly on NetBenefits.
Unilever offers three Flexible Spending Account options: a Health Care FSA for certain eligible healthcare expenses, a Dependent Care FSA for eligible dependent care expenses and a Limited Purpose Flexible Spending Account for employees also enrolled in an HSA. Deductions for these plans are made on a pre-tax basis, and withdrawals are tax-free when used for qualified expenses. You have until March 31, 2025 to submit claims for 2025 expenses.
Health Care FSA
The FSA helps you pay for expenses not covered by your plan, such as co-pays, prescription drugs, deductibles, coinsurance, LASIK eye surgery, eyeglasses and orthodontia. You cannot be enrolled in the HSA and participate in the Health Care FSA. For 2025, you can set aside from $120 to $3,200 per year from your paycheck to pay for healthcare expenses.
Unused balances of up to $640 may roll over to use in the first quarter of the next year. Carryover funds do not count toward the maximum amount you can elect to contribute for the year. You can contribute the plan maximum and then add the carryover funds to your available balance. Any carryover funds become available in May of the following year. For your funds to roll over into the following year, you must enroll in the FSA the following year. For example, if you have $250 in unused funds in your 2024 Health Care FSA as of March 31, 2025, the $250 will be added to your 2025 plan year Health Care FSA in May 2025.
Dependent Care FSA
A Dependent Care FSA is an account for costs related to qualified childcare services for dependents under age 13, and qualified care services for your spouse or relative who lives in your home and is physically or mentally incapable of self-care. You can set aside from $120 to $5,000 per year on a pre-tax basis to pay for certain eligible dependent care expenses, such as daycare centers, summer day camps, qualified nanny service and elder care. Please note: A Dependent Care FSA is NOT a Health Care FSA for your dependents.
Dependent Care FSA IRS testing
Under federal law, Dependent Care FSAs cannot discriminate in favor of highly compensated employees, as defined by the Internal Revenue Service. Federally required testing for discrimination is done each plan year and is generally based on the previous year’s W-2 earnings (including before-tax deductions under IRC Sections 125 and 401(k)). If the Plan fails the Dependent Care FSA Discrimination Test, it is deemed to discriminate in favor of highly compensated employees. In this case, the Plan Administrator will decrease the annual election for highly compensated employees to bring the Dependent Care FSAs into compliance. You will be notified if you are affected.
FSA debit card
For convenient access to your Health Care or Limited Purpose FSA funds, you will receive a new debit card from Fidelity shortly after completing your enrollment (if you do not already have one). If you do not use the debit card, you will be automatically enrolled in the Health Care FSA Auto-Submission Program. This means that you do not need to submit a claim for reimbursement for in-network medical benefits. The debit card cannot be used for Dependent Care FSA expenses. Any eligible dependent care expenses should be submitted with an FSA claim form along with itemized receipts. Learn more >
Limited Purpose FSA
The IRS lets you open an HSA or FSA, but not both. The voluntary Limited Purpose FSA (LPFSA) is a complementary account to your HSA. Similar to your HSA, you may select an annual 2025 LPFSA contribution, deducted from your paycheck each pay period, in equal installments throughout the year, until you reach the amount you have specified. During the year, you can use your LPFSA to pay for vision and dental expenses for you and your family before you meet your insurance deductible. You may carry over up to $640 to the following year.
By contributing to both the LPFSA and the HSA, you are able to enjoy the tax benefits for each account. And remember, there is no requirement to use your HSA in 2025—you can invest a portion of your HSA savings while using your LPFSA. The LPFSA is not eligible for employer contributions.
How the savings accounts compare
| Health Care FSA | Limited Purpose FSA | Dependent Care FSA |
|---|---|---|
| Can contribute between $120 and $3,200 annually, up to $640 carryover to use in the first quarter next year | Can contribute between $120 and $3,200 annually, up to $640 carryover to use in the first quarter next year | Can contribute between $120 and $5,000 annually ($2,500 if you’re married and filing separately) |
| Medical plan enrollment not required, but CDHP participants are not eligible | Must be enrolled in CDHP | Medical plan enrollment not required |
| Cannot be paired with an HSA | Can be paired with an HSA | Can be paired with an HSA |
| Eligible expenses include medical, prescription drug, dental and vision expenses | Eligible expenses include dental and vision expenses only | Eligible expenses include dependent care expenses (e.g., summer camp/day care for children under age 13 and elder care) |
Enrollment
To enroll, first, elect to participate during Annual Enrollment (or if you experience a qualifying life event). If you do not actively elect an FSA, your contribution for 2025 will be $0. Then you must enter a contribution amount. If you elect an FSA but do not specify a contribution amount, you will default to the minimum of $120.
Use it or lose it!
Take a few moments at the beginning of the year to learn the correct process for tracking expenses and receipts. Fidelity helps make this easy with a debit card and an auto-submission program.