DAY CARE FLEXIBLE SPENDING ACCOUNT
When you participate in the Day Care Flexible Spending Account (DCFSA) administered by WageWorks, you contribute to an account that reimburses you for day care for your dependents while you work (not health care expenses for dependents). You pay no federal income or Social Security taxes on the earnings you deposit or on the reimbursements from your account for eligible expenses.
Eligible Expenses
You may claim day care expenses for a dependent who lives with you and relies on you for more than half of his or her financial support. Dependents include your children under age 13 whom you claim on your federal income tax return and disabled dependents of any age who live with you more than half the year. You may be reimbursed for day care only if it enables you to work, not for occasional baby sitters. If you are married, your spouse must also work, be looking for work, be a full-time student, or be disabled. Eligible care includes care in your home, someone else’s home, or a licensed day care center. You may be reimbursed for care provided by a relative who is neither your spouse, your child, nor your dependent.
How Much You Can Contribute
The table below shows the maximum DCFSA amount you can contribute based on your marital and tax filing status.
| If you are: | This is your family’s annual limit: |
| Single | $5,000 |
| Married, filing a joint tax return | Lesser of $5,000, your income, or your spouse’s income |
| Married, filing separate tax returns | Lesser of $2,500, your income, or your spouse’s income |
Free Child Care Subsidy
Texas Health makes a per period contribution of $23.08 to the Day Care Flexible Spending Account for employees who elect the coverage. Employees must enroll in the Day Care Flexible Spending Account to get the Texas Health contributions but do not have to put their own money in the account. Because of the employer contribution, the maximum contribution amount employees can make will depend on the remaining pay periods of the year. Learn more here.
How the DCFSA Works
- Carefully estimate your future dependent day care expenses.
- Decide the annual amount you want to contribute to the account — from $130 to $5,000 per year. Divide by the remaining pay periods in the year to get your per-pay-period contribution.
- Submit a claim to WageWorks when you have eligible expenses (see below for options).
- You will be reimbursed up to the balance in your account at the time you submit the claim.
- According to IRS rules, the account operates on a use-it-or-lose-it basis, meaning that you forfeit any unreimbursed amounts left in your account.
- The 2022 claim-filing deadline is March 31, 2023, for eligible expenses you have between January 1, 2022 and March 15, 2023.
- The 2023 claim-filing deadline is March 31, 2024 for eligible expenses you have between January 1, 2023 and March 15, 2024.
- Per IRS regulations, expenses for a domestic partner or his/her children are not eligible for reimbursement.
Ways to Submit Claims
Submit claims to WageWorks using any of the following methods:
- through the website (www.wageworks.com)
- through the mobile app (EZ Receipts)
- Fax or Mail (Paper Claim Form)
Helpful Information
- When completing registration on www.wageworks.com, you will be asked for your ID Code in the self-identification process. Please use the last four digits of your Social Security Number.
Contact Information
- Visit the Support Center at www.wageworks.com
- Call customer service
- 1-877-MyTHRLink (1-877-698-4754) prompt 6, press 6