FSA carryover
FSA carryover 2026 to 2027: how much can you roll over?
A health FSA is use-it-or-lose-it unless your plan offers a carryover. For 2026 plan years the IRS maximum that can roll into 2027 is $680, and your employer is free to allow less — or nothing at all.
Last reviewed October 2026. General information for out-of-network therapists, not legal or billing advice. Payer rules change — confirm with the payer before you bill.
Try the free check first. It runs entirely in your browser, takes about three minutes, and never uploads client data.
Run a free checkThe carryover figures, and where they come from
The carryover maximum is not a separate rule: it is a fraction of the health FSA salary-reduction limit, and the IRS publishes both together each autumn. For plan years beginning in 2026 the limit is $3,400 and the maximum carryover is $680. For plan years beginning in 2025 the pair was $3,300 and $660.
Those are ceilings, not entitlements. A plan document can set a lower carryover. Some plans offer no carryover at all and use a grace period instead, because the rules do not allow both.
| Plan year begins | Health FSA limit | Maximum carryover |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $3,300 | $660 |
| 2026 | $3,400 | $680 |
| 2027 | Not yet published by the IRS | not yet published |
Why 2027 has no number yet
As of Oct 23, 2026, the IRS has published the 2027 limits for health savings accounts but not for health FSAs. A page that prints a 2027 FSA figure today is guessing, so this one says "not yet published" and will be updated from the same config the checker reads.
This matters when you plan a January election: the 2027 carryover maximum is what your unused 2027 balance could become in 2028, and it cannot be known yet. Use the 2026 figure as an order of magnitude, not as a promise.
A carryover is calculated after the run-out period ends
The carryover is not simply "whatever is left on December 31". A plan usually gives you a run-out period after the plan year ends, during which you can still submit claims for services you already received. Every claim paid during that window reduces the balance, so the amount that actually carries over is only known once the run-out closes.
The IRS sets no default length for the run-out period; it is often roughly 60–90 days after the plan-year end in practice — common practice, not an IRS rule, so check your SPD. That is also why a plan can tell you "the carryover is at most $680" without being able to tell you your exact number in January.
Carryover or grace period, never both
A plan may offer a carryover, a grace period of up to 2½ months after the plan year ends, or neither. It may not offer both, and it does not have to offer either. That single rule explains most of the confusion around FSA deadlines: two colleagues at different employers can have completely different last days to spend.
A grace period extends the date by which you can incur expenses. A carryover extends what happens to the money. They solve the same problem — an unused balance — in different ways, which is why the IRS does not let a plan stack them.
Worked example: a 2026 plan year ending December 31
Suppose your plan year begins January 1, 2026 and ends December 31, 2026, you elected the $3,400 maximum, and you have $1,000 left on December 1.
If your plan has a 2½-month grace period, you can incur expenses through March 15, 2027 and use the 2026 balance for them; nothing carries into 2027. If your plan has a carryover, expenses must be incurred by December 31, 2026, and after the run-out period up to $680 rolls into 2027 while the rest is forfeited. If your plan has neither, December 31, 2026 is the last day for everything.
What to check before you rely on a carryover
Three things are worth confirming in writing, because they decide whether your balance survives:
- Does the plan document (SPD) offer a carryover this year, and is the cap lower than the IRS maximum?
- When does the run-out period end, and is a claim still outstanding that would reduce the balance?
- Does the carryover apply to a limited-purpose FSA as well — and can a general FSA balance carry into an LPFSA when you enrol in an HSA-compatible plan?
Check your own dates
The FSA deadline checker on this site runs the same arithmetic as this page: plan-year end, rule, cap and run-out date in, dates and amounts out, entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is uploaded, and nothing is stored.
It also shows the amount that would carry over and the amount at risk, so a $1,000 balance with a $680 cap is visibly $320 of forfeiture risk rather than an abstract rule.
General information only: your plan document and your FSA administrator decide. Confirm with the payer and your administrator before you plan around a carryover.
What the free check catches
- CPT vs. session length (90832 = 16–37 min, 90834 = 38–52, 90837 = 53+, nothing under 16)
- Telehealth POS 02 / 10 vs. POS 11, and modifier 95 pairing
- Diagnosis pointers A–D that don’t resolve to a code on the client
- NPI format and check digit, TIN, member ID, units, signatures
- DOS age against the 60 / 90 day timely-filing warnings
Sources
This is general information, not tax, legal or benefits advice. Your employer's plan document (SPD) and your FSA administrator's rules govern — they may set shorter deadlines, a lower carryover or no carryover. Eligible expenses are determined by your administrator. IRS figures as of Oct 23, 2026; 2027 health FSA limits have not been published yet. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.