FSA deadline: when your money disappears
Your spend-by date, what carries over, what you forfeit — and the second, later deadline that is only for paperwork.
Figures verified · next scheduled change (the IRS revenue procedure with the 2027 FSA limits)
The figures behind this tool
| What it is | Value | Applies | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health FSA salary-reduction limit for plan years beginning on or after 2026-01-01. | $3,400 | 2026-01-01 – 2026-12-31 | Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (issued 2025-10-09) · verified 2026-09-06 |
| Maximum health FSA carryover into the following plan year for plan years beginning in 2026 — 20 % of the salary-reduction limit. | $680 | 2026-01-01 – 2026-12-31 | Rev. Proc. 2025-32 · verified 2026-09-06 |
| The maximum grace period a cafeteria plan may offer; a December 31 plan year gives March 15. | 2½ months — the 15th day of the 3rd month after the plan year ends | long-standing | IRS Notice 2005-42 / Prop. Treas. Reg. §1.125-1(e) · verified 2026-09-06 |
| Dependent-care FSA exclusion limit from 2026 — permanent and not inflation-indexed. | $7,500 ($3,750 if married filing separately) | 2026-01-01 | P.L. 119-21 §70404, amending IRC §129(a)(2)(A) (govinfo) · verified 2026-09-07 |
| The run-out period is a plan-document deadline for submitting claims; the IRS sets no maximum. | Set by your plan — often 60–90 days after the plan year ends | long-standing | IRS Publication 969 — health FSAs (the IRS sets no run-out maximum) · verified 2026-09-06 |
The 2027 health FSA figures: Not yet announced — expected October–November 2026. Projections are circulating; none of them is an IRS figure, so none of them is on this site. What is published, and what is not.
What this does not do
- It does not read your plan document. Your employer chooses the carryover limit, whether there is a grace period, and the run-out date — this tool computes what follows from those answers.
- It does not move a deadline that falls on a weekend or a holiday. No IRS rule does that for a cafeteria plan.
- It does not tell you whether a particular expense qualifies, and it does not file a claim for you.
- It does not know about mid-year separation. Leaving a job usually ends the ability to incur new expenses on the date coverage ends, which is earlier than everything shown here.
04In this section
Three plan shapes, three different answers
Up to $680 of what is left on the last day of a plan year beginning in 2026 moves into the next plan year. Anything above that is forfeited. Your employer may set a lower limit, or none.
You keep spending last year’s money on new expenses for up to 2½ months — the 15th day of the 3rd month after the plan year ends. Nothing carries into the next year; whatever is left when the grace period ends is forfeited.
Strict use it or lose it: the last day of the plan year is the last day the money exists. This is still the most common shape, and it is why the calculator asks before it answers.
A run-out period is none of these three. It extends the deadline for submitting receipts for expenses you already incurred — never the deadline for incurring them. Almost every plan has one; the IRS requires none. How to find yours.
Questions
What happens to the money left in my FSA at the end of the plan year?
It depends on which of three shapes your plan has. With a carryover, up to $680 moves into the next plan year for a plan year beginning in 2026 and the rest is forfeited. With a grace period you get more time to incur expenses — up to the 15th day of the third month after the plan year ends — and nothing carries. With neither, everything unspent on the last day of the plan year is forfeited. A plan may offer a carryover or a grace period, never both.
Is the run-out period the same as a grace period?
No, and the difference costs people money. A grace period extends the time you can incur new expenses. A run-out period extends only the time you can submit claims for expenses you already incurred. The IRS sets no run-out rule at all — your plan document does — so this calculator leaves that field empty rather than assuming the 90 days the internet repeats.
How much can I put into a health FSA in 2026?
$3,400 in salary reductions for a plan year beginning in 2026, set by Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (issued 2025-10-09). Employer contributions generally sit outside that limit. A dependent-care FSA is a separate account with a separate limit of $7,500 ($3,750 if married filing separately).
Can a dependent-care FSA carry money over?
No. The carryover option is available to health FSAs only (IRS Notice 2013-71 §III). A dependent-care FSA may offer a grace period, and many do, but money never moves into the next plan year.
My spend-by date falls on a weekend — do I get the next business day?
No IRS rule moves a cafeteria-plan deadline to the next business day, the way the weekend-and-holiday rule moves federal tax deadlines. Card authorisations and administrator cut-offs differ, so a weekend deadline is worth confirming with your administrator rather than testing.
Sources
- Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (issued 2025-10-09) · accessed 2026-09-06
- IRS Notice 2013-71 · accessed 2026-09-06
- IRS Notice 2005-42 / Prop. Treas. Reg. §1.125-1(e) · accessed 2026-09-06
- P.L. 119-21 §70404, amending IRC §129(a)(2)(A) (govinfo) · accessed 2026-09-07
- IRS Publication 969 — health FSAs (the IRS sets no run-out maximum) · accessed 2026-09-06
Also this year
The 2026 numbersevery threshold on one page→Money calendarwhen each deadline lands→HSA contribution limita general-purpose FSA blocks HSA eligibility→Information, not advice. Your plan document governs — confirm with your Summary Plan Description, HR or your FSA administrator.