Unable to contribute the amount elected under the Health FSA due to pay structure.

[Guest Joe Vasko]

If a participant, who receives pay in the form of commissions only, is unable to contribute the amount elected, how do you handle this situtation? My guess is that you reimburse him only for the amount he has contributed.

Thanks, Joe

[GBurns]

Why would you be reimbursing anything?

According to my reading of your post, The employee elected to reduce monthly earnings by $300 for family medical coverage and $50 for FSA, but, as per your example only earned $0 in commissions or total earnings and therefore does not have enough to allow the salary reductions.

What then do you mean by "you reimburse him only for the amount he has contributed."? What expense or loss would you be reimbursing? What "amount he has contributed" are you referring to?

[WDIK]

According to my reading of your post, The employee elected to reduce monthly earnings by $300 for family medical coverage and $50 for FSA

???

What then do you mean by "you reimburse him only for the amount he has contributed."? What expense or loss would you be reimbursing? What "amount he has contributed" are you referring to?

Although it's always dangerous to assume anything, it seems to me that the logical assumption from the post is that prior amounts were withheld from pay which are available for reimbursement.

[GBurns]

Agreed, but why would the employee be getting reimbursed simply because of not having enough earnings to cover salary reduction election? Is this a reimburseable expense?

Re: ???? How would you have illustrated the post?

[oriecat]

In my opinion, FSAs generally call for an *annual* election and as long as the full amount is paid during the plan year, there is no reason to restrict which funds are available to the employee, unless the plan doc specifies that all contributions have to be made in equal payments. I would say that his full annual amount should be available to him and his missing payments should be made up the next time he receives a commission payment.

[WDIK]

Agreed, but why would the employee be getting reimbursed simply because of not having enough earnings to cover salary reduction election?

I read the post as asking if you only reiumbursed (legitimate) claims submitted up to the amount actually contributed, not as asking for a reimbursement because of no salary. That may have been a stretch from the information given, but it made more sense to me.

Re: ???? How would you have illustrated the post?

Sorry, on first read, I didn't recognize your numbers as an example, but as a reference to the first post. That was what confused me.

[Guest Carolynn]

I agree with Oriecat. We are a TPA and that is the way our ER's handle their commision based EE's.

Carolynn