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FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Select one of the options below to get answers to some of the most commonly asked questions, learn more about some of your super nifty plan features, and more. We’re always happy to help you in person, so never hesitate to contact us if you prefer to work with a human (not a bot).

No. The Benefits Card activates the first time you use it.

Benefits Cards are automatically sent to you when we enter your enrollment (you get a welcome email from us when this happens). They arrive in plain, unmarked white envelopes because they have a cash value (this is required by law for your security). You should expect to get your Benefits Card within 5 – 10 days from the time you get your welcome email.

TIP: You can see your Benefits Card issue date on your online account so that you can get an idea of when to expect it in your mailbox if you are familiar with your local USPS delivery windows.

 

If you do not get your Benefits Card within 5 – 10 business days after you receive your welcome email from Igoe, you can report your card Lost/Stolen using the How-To Guide in our Resource Center if you need help with the process. Of course, you can also contact us for help.

You can report your card Lost/Stolen by calling our 24/7 IVR or by using your portal or mobile account. We have a nifty How-To Guide available in our Resources Center if you need help with the process. Of course, you can also contact us for help as well.

All “debit cards” are required by law to have a PIN. However, you DO NOT NEED A PIN to use your card. Just run the card as a credit card if asked. The PIN for your Benefits Card is pre-assigned and can be found in the in the Benefits (or Debit) card section of your online of mobile account by clicking on “View PIN”.

No. Keep your Benefits Card as it will be reloaded with the election you make for the next plan year, as long as the plans are carded, and will remain valid until its expiration date. We’ll automatically issue you a new card 30 days before the Benefits Card is set to expire provided you are still actively enrolled in the program.

Nope. Your Benefits Card transaction will pull funding from the appropriate plan based the type of merchant you use your card at, provided that the plan is carded.

When we must ask for documentation to demonstrate that IRS guidelines are being followed, we’ll contact you and request that you submit documentation. Remember, you need to always have documentation on hand in the event of a personal IRS audit. The documentation requested must include the following five items:

* The name of the provider * The name of the patient or recipient of the product * A description of the services provided or the product purchased * The date the service was provided, or the product was purchased * The cost of the service or product.

Your insurance carriers’ explanation of benefits (EOB) is an excellent document to provide. Please do not provide credit card receipts.

 

The simple answer is that the IRS requires it. Because you don’t have to pay taxes on the money in these accounts, the IRS expects that you will keep receipts to verify the expense is eligible. As an administrator, we are required to periodically ask plan participants to send those documents in. There are criteria we must use to determine when to do that. We don’t like extra work anymore than you do, but it’s the law, so it’s important that we work together when this happens.

If your employer’s plan does not offer a grace period or carryover, the Benefits Card will use the date of the transaction to determine what plan year to pull funds from beginning on midnight CST. You may submit manual claims for expenses incurred during the prior plan through the end of the Runout. If you charged your Benefits Card in error for a prior year expense, you may use this claim correction form.

There are 3 main reasons this can happen: (1) You have low funds in your account. The card is a stored value card and will decline if it is charged for an amount higher than what you have in your account. (2) The merchant is not registered as an eligible merchant for your program (even if they provide eligible services) or (3) There is a technical issue between the card reader and MasterCard. Simply present another form of payment, seek reimbursement and contact us so we can research the reason for the denial and offer you guidance for future purchases.

The simple answer is because the IRS says so. They aren’t taxing money that runs through these plans, but they do monitor that the plans are used correctly.

If you have a transaction that has been flagged for additional review in order to appease IRS requirements, separate notification & instructions are emailed to the account listed in your Profile section of your online or mobile account. On your personal dashboard, you’ll also see an action alert that will let you know if you have a transaction that requires attention.

Please provide documentation that includes ALL of the following required criteria so we can clear your transaction:

*The date of the service (this is the date the product was purchase if you are using your card to purchase qualified goods – not necessarily the date your card was charged)
*The amount of the services (this may or may not match the card charge)
*The provider’s name
*A description of the expense (credit card receipts are not acceptable)
*The name of the person for whom the service was provided

Upload your documentation through your online or mobile account.

 

• Via the Igoe Participant Portal. For instructions, visit the Resources Center and download the How-To Guide

• Via Igoe Mobile. For instructions, visit the Resources Center and download the How-To Guide

• Manually by using a claim form located in our Forms Library

 

Claims are reviewed daily and are generally added to your account as an approved, partially approved or denied claim within 1 – 3 business days, the release of payment depends on your employer’s payment schedule. Most employers have authorized Igoe to release payment on a daily payment cycle.

If you believe your claim was denied in error, you may file an appeal using the Claim Appeal Form located in the Forms library. In most cases, appeals will need to be reviewed by a special appeals committee established and operated by the employer Plan Sponsor. Please allow 7-10 business days for initial review results. Keep in mind that the IRS established the rules for claims eligibility. As a result, there is little your employer may be able to do to reverse a denial decision.

If you believe that your claim was paid out of an incorrect plan year, you can request that funds be replaced into the plan year that the claim was paid from and that the claim be deducted from the correct plan year as long as there are enough funds in both plan years to support the transfer and you are within the claim submission window for both plan years. Visit our Forms Library for the claims correction form to initiate your request.

Except for the HSA, which is a portable account (meaning it goes with you wherever you go), any money you electively put into a spending account and do not use within your eligibility and/or spending period is forfeited to the plan. This is an IRS rule and is required under tax law to preserve the tax-free nature of the benefit. Forfeited funds remain with the employer who sponsors the program. As a reminder, when signing up for these programs, you agreed to forfeit salary to earn a benefit so that you are not taxed on that income. Further, you are not taxed when using those funds (except for LSA programs). At the end of the day unused funds are essentially a forfeited salary that was never earned and never spent on the benefit you exchanged that salary for.

There is no exhaustive list of eligible expenses. The IRS has not published on and only released a definition of what items meet the basic requirements for eligibility. We’ve linked to the best eligibility list available to the industry, which is maintained and updated daily by Health-E Commerce. Health-E commerce works directly with several organizations and retailers to offer this state-of-the-art resource. You can find this link on our Spending Account Page and in our Resources Center.

NOTE: Expense eligibility is generally more restrictive for HRA plans and can vary based on plan design. Additionally, LSA programs are employer specific. An eligibility list that provides examples of items based on the types of LSA programs offered by Igoe will be added to our Resources Center soon.

If you have a “Balance Due” on your account, that means you used your Benefits Card for something the IRS has indicated is not eligible for tax-free treatment, was incurred outside of your eligibility period, or we haven’t gotten the documentation the IRS is requiring that we ask for to verify the purchase. To walk you through the repayment process, use the How-To Guide available in our Resource Center.

The simple answer is because the IRS says so. They aren’t taxing money that runs through these plans, but they do monitor that the plans are used correctly.

If you have a transaction that has been flagged for additional review to appease IRS requirements, separate notification & instructions are emailed to the account listed in your Profile section of your online or mobile account. On your personal dashboard, you’ll also see an action alert that will let you know if you have a transaction that requires attention.

Please provide documentation that includes ALL the following required criteria so we can clear up your transaction:

*The date of the service (this is the date the product was purchase if you are using your card to purchase qualified goods – not necessarily the date your card was charged)*The amount of the services (this may or may not match the card charge)
*The provider’s name
*A description of the expense (credit card receipts are not acceptable)
*The name of the person for whom the service was provided

Upload your documentation through your online or mobile account.

Direct deposit is generally available to all plan participants. However, some employers may not offer this option. To find out if you can add this reimbursement method to your account, access your Igoe Participant Portal or Mobile account, open your profile and click on “My Reimbursement”. Alternatively, on your dashboard, you will see a “Get Reimbursed Faster?” message, if you are not signed up for this benefit and are eligible to. For instructions on setting up direct deposit, visit our How-To Guide section in our Resource Center.

Because there are so many “bad actors” out there who consistently try to fraudulently access bank accounts, we have added layers of security to your Igoe-powered benefits. While this may seem like a pain when trying to connect your bank account to your spending account, it is well worth it in the long run. When setting up direct deposit, you will be asked to validate that your bank account is actually yours by verifying some microtransactions within 48 hours of entering your account in our system. For information about this process, visit our Resource Center and download our How-To Guide.

Commuter Plans: Contribution amounts can be changed monthly depending on your commuting needs. Please contact your Benefits Administrator or Human Resources Department for specific information related to changing your election amount. Please be aware that most changes are prospective and need to be made prior to the month in which you wish to change your contribution levels.

COBRA: COBRA coverage cannot be changed once elected with the exception of dropping coverage OR if you are enrolled in COBRA during an open enrollment period.

Direct Premium Billing: If you are being offered the opportunity to continue in an employer sponsored program but required to pay premiums directly (outside of COBRA), election change rules are set by the employer sponsoring that program. Please contact your Benefits Administrator or Human Resources Department for specific information related to changing your election outside of open enrollment.

DCA Plans: DCA plans allow election changes that correlate to your changing day care needs. If you no longer have day care expenses, you can stop contributing to the plan. If you are adding dependent card expenses, you may join the plan. If you have an increase or decrease in your dependent care costs, you may make a change correlating to your contributions. To make changes to your DCA contribution amounts, please contact your Benefits Administrator or Human Resources Department.

HRA Plans: HRA plans are fully funded by your employer and are uniquely designed to work in conjunction with their overall benefit offering. Each HRA plan is designed differently. As a result, any requested changes should be researched directly with your Benefit Administrator or Human Resources Department.

HSA Plans: Contributions made to your HSA can be changed at any time if the changes are within the IRS limits for your coverage level. To make changes to your HSA contribution amount, please contact your Benefits Administrator or Human Resources Department for more personalized assistance.

LSA Plans: HRA plans are fully funded by your employer and are uniquely designed to work in conjunction with their overall benefit offering. Each LSA plan is designed differently. As a result, any requested changes should be researched directly with your Benefit Administrator or Human Resources Department.

Open Enrollment is managed by your employer and will generally take place between 15-60 days prior to the beginning of your new benefit plan year. Igoe recommends that all inquiries related to your open enrollment be directed to your Benefits Administrator or Human Resources Department.

No. The FSA is an independent tax program that you can enroll in as long as you are not enrolled in a High Deductible Health Plan and actively contributing to an HSA.

Yes. The only thing you need to watch out for is that you don’t submit for reimbursement for the same expense from each FSA in error. This is consider double dipping.

All enrollments are handled by your employer’s Benefits Team. Igoe Administrative Services will be unable to establish enrollment and recommend contacting your benefits Administrator or Human Resources Department for more personalized assistance.

If you are not contributing to the benefit while on a leave, your plan is temporarily suspended until you have returned. This also means that any Benefits Card/s tied to your account are temporarily inactivated. Upon your return, your employer may allow you to make up missed contributions allowing you to be reimbursed for expenses incurred during the suspended period. Please consult with your Benefits Administrator or Human Resources Department to explore your options prior, during or immediately upon your return from a Leave of Absence.

The 2.5 month Grace Period is an additional period (2.5 months) after the plan year has ended where you can incur new claims but use your prior year funds to pay for them. We have a guide available to walk you through this feature in our Resource Center.

The 2.5 month Grace Period is an elective plan design feature that is not part of all employer plans. Please reference your Summary Plan Description that was supplied to you by your Human Resources Department or view your spending timelines on your personal profile to see if this feature applies to you.

The 2.5 month Grace Period is not available for Commuter or LSA plans.

The plan pays manual claims from your previous year’s balance until the funds are gone or the Grace Period ends. The Benefits Card uses the date of the transaction to determine the service date. It does not know if you are saving your prior year funds to reimburse yourself for a service you haven’t claimed yet, so it will pull funds from your new year election if you have one.

The Carryover is an elective plan design feature that protects a certain amount of funds each year from being forfeited. These protected funds move into your account balance for the next plan year so that you can spend those dollars in addition to any new election you may make. The limit that can be carried over is set annually by the IRS based on cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) that are generally released in late October. Employers generally adopt this limit but can set a different limit if they chose. They just can’t go over this limit.

We have a nifty little video about the Grace Period in our Resources Center Video library. It’s so much easier to watch a little video than to read about the Grace Period. We also have a guide available if you prefer to read more.

The Carryover is an elective plan design feature that is not part of all employer plans. Please reference your Summary Plan Description that was supplied to you by your Human Resources Department or view your spending timelines on your personal profile to see if this feature applies to you.

Carryover is not available for Dependent Care Assistance, Commuter or LSA plans.

At the beginning of everyone plan year, we separate out your “carryover” eligible funds as they have a dual purpose. You can still use them for prior year purposes while you are in a claim run out submission period OR you can use them for new plan year expenses. Once that prior year claim submission period ends, your final carryover balance is calculated, and any eligible funds are officially placed into your then-current plan year for ongoing use.

While this can be confusing when both plans are open for operation, trust us, we know what we are doing – which is making sure you get to maximize fund use.

If you have more money left in your prior plan year than is eligible to be carried over, those are titled as “expiring funds”. We do that so that you have eyes on what money you’ll want to send in a claim for before the claim submission period for that plan year ends.

If you believe that your claim was paid out of an incorrect plan year, you can request that funds be replaced into the plan year that the claim was paid from and that the claim be deducted from the correct plan year as long as there are enough funds in both plan years to support the transfer and you are within the claim submission window for both plan years. Visit our Forms Library for the claims correction form to initiate your request.

Visit our Resource Center and check out our Video library. We have a handful of short (and we mean short) but very helpful videos that unpack HSAs, why you should have one if you are enrolled in an HDHP, how they differ from an FSA and more.

Within your portal or mobile account, you can access the HSA Transfer form that must be completed and submitted to WealthCare Saver to arrange the bank-to-bank transfer. You may also be eligible for an easy transfer depending on who your HSA is with. Check out the easy transfer option available in the participant portal to find out!

We hate to see you go, but we get it.

You will need to contact your new Trustee provider to arrange the transfer and facilitate the closure of your account. We recommend allowing the Trustee provider to arrange the transfer to prevent any tax penalties. Should you have monies vested within your Investment Account, you must liquidate the balance prior to arranging your transfer.

Establishing your investment account can only be arranged while the stock market is open (9:30 am – 4:00 pm ET.). You may arrange automated transfers from your HSA to your investment account through your portal or mobile account. You must maintain a minimum of $1,000.00 within your HSA to begin investing.

The LSA benefit varies by employer. The taxable benefit may be used for personal expenses, however, not for medical services covered by an FSA, HSA, or applicable HRA plan.

We’re working on a new eligibility list that will outline examples of eligible expenses based on the categories of LSAs that we offer. Be on the lookout for this new feature in our Resource Center. Until then, we have several overviews posted on the Spending Accounts page that can hopefully get you on the right track.

If your Benefits Card isn’t working for your LSA, it could be because: you have insufficient funds in your benefit account, you’re trying to use it at a merchant that isn’t accepted, or there might be an issue with the merchant’s system processing the transaction. We recommend paying out of pocket and submitting the receipt for reimbursement. We get it, you’d rather use your Benefits Card but given the specificity of what these plans are meant to cover, the Benefits Card will only work in more limited scenarios.

Clearly, you’ve probably heard of COBRA—officially known as the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act. But what exactly does it mean for you and your business?

In a nutshell, COBRA is a federal law that allows employees to continue their health insurance coverage after they leave your company, whether it’s because of a job loss, a reduction in work hours, or other qualifying events like divorce or a dependent aging out of your health plan. Pretty helpful, right?

Now, here’s the kicker: as an employer, you’ve got some responsibilities to make sure you’re in compliance with COBRA. These include:

  1. What Employers Have to Offer COBRA: COBRA applies to employers with 20 or more employees, so if you’re in that group, you’re on the hook. You need to offer continued health coverage to those who qualify, whether they’re full-time, part-time, or dependents.
  2. Notification is Key: You’re required to notify employees about their COBRA rights when they’re hired, and again when they experience a qualifying event (like termination or reduction in hours). If you don’t send out the proper notices, you could face fines or penalties.
  3. Duration of Coverage: Eligible employees can generally stay on COBRA for up to 18 months, though certain situations can extend that. The key here is that they can’t stay on your plan forever, so you must inform them when the coverage period is nearing its end.
  4. Premium Payments: Employees who opt for COBRA coverage have to pay the full premium themselves (including the portion that the employer usually pays). However, you’re responsible for collecting those payments on time. Make sure to have a system in place for that.
  5. Plan Continuation: COBRA coverage must be the same as what you offer active employees. No changes in coverage or benefits—just like they’re still working for you but paying for the privilege.

In short, COBRA can seem like a lot of admin work, but it’s really about keeping employees covered and compliant with the law. If you’re running a business with 20 or more employees, it’s important to get familiar with the details and keep in communication with us so we can support you through it all.

 

To learn how COBRA applies to employees, visit our COBRA member page. We cover a lot of information about Qualifying Events, timelines and payment rules. You can also download our nifty COBRA Lifecyle Flyer. This resource will help give you a snapshot of your responsibilities and how a member cycles through the COBRA process.

For you as an employer, your main goals are to notify us when you have a qualifying event, reconcile your carrier bills, and assist us with open enrollment each year so we have accurate carrier, plan and rate details in our systems and can guide your COBRA members through their annual enrollment opportunity.

Alright, so you’ve just hired someone—exciting, right? But, hold up! There’s one more thing you need to do. It’s that little thing called the COBRA notice. You might be thinking, “Wait, why do I need to send that to someone who just started?” Great question!

Here’s the deal: even though a new hire is just getting started with your company’s health benefits, COBRA requires you to inform them about their rights under the law, just in case something unexpected happens later on. Think of it as giving them a heads-up for the future.

Here’s why it matters:

  1. It’s the Law: First and foremost, you have to do it. Under COBRA, employers are required to provide a notice to new hires within a reasonable time—usually within the first 90 days of employment. It’s part of the law to make sure employees understand their health insurance options if they ever need to continue coverage after leaving your company.
  2. Prepares Them for the “What If”: No one plans on leaving a job, but life happens. If an employee were to lose coverage—whether it’s due to a job change, reduced hours, or something else—they’ll need to know they can keep their health insurance. The COBRA notice is a friendly reminder that they have the option to keep that coverage if they need it.
  3. Avoiding Penalties: If you don’t send this notice when required, you could end up facing penalties or fines. So, while it might seem like just another formality, it’s actually an important step in staying compliant with the law and avoiding unnecessary headaches later on.
  4. Clear Communication: Sending the notice shows that you’re transparent and on top of things, which helps build trust with your employees. It lets them know that you’re not just giving them health insurance—you’re also giving them a clear understanding of what happens if their job situation changes.

In short, sending that COBRA notice to a new hire is more than just a box to check. It’s about making sure you’re compliant, prepared, and clear about their options down the road.

This service is included in your service package, so don’t forget to take advantage of it.

Once we get the heads-up about a Qualifying Event, Igoe jumps into action and sends the COBRA notice to the qualified beneficiaries. Inside, we’ve got all the info they need to elect COBRA and pay for it, plus the exact timelines they need to follow to make their decisions and take action—no guesswork here!

Then, once they’ve made their choice and sent in their payment, we handle the rest. First, we send the premium to you, the employer, every month (after we take care of our admin fees, of course). Then, we give your insurance carrier a friendly nudge to let them know the individual’s back in and needs to be reinstated. Easy peasy!

Just remember to reconcile that carrier bill! Even though we notify the carrier about reinstatements and terminations, we have no control over their responsiveness. It is really important to make sure you have someone regularly looking at those bills and checking them against our reports to ensure your carrier is billing you correctly and to quickly identify any connection issues due to changes in carrier eligibility requirements or contacts.

A cafeteria plan (under IRS Code Section 125) is like a benefits buffet! It’s a plan where employees get to pick and choose from a variety of benefits that work best for them, and the best part is they get to pay for many of those benefits with pre-tax dollars—which means more money in their pocket!

Here’s how it works:

  1. The Benefits Menu: Employers offer a selection of benefits—think health insurance, dental, vision, flexible spending accounts (FSAs), dependent care assistance, life insurance, and more. Employees get to “order” exactly what they need, just like picking lunch in a cafeteria line!
  2. Pre-Tax = More Money: When employees sign up for these benefits, the money comes out of their paycheck before taxes. This means they’re paying less in taxes and keeping more of their hard-earned cash. It’s like a sneaky little tax break!
  3. Employer Savings, Too: Employers also win because they don’t have to pay payroll taxes on the employee contributions, so it’s a savings all around!
  4. Use It or Lose It: Some benefits, like flexible spending accounts (FSAs), come with a “use-it or lose-it” rule. So, employees need to use up their funds before the year is over—no leftovers here!

In short, a cafeteria plan lets employees customize their benefits, save on taxes, and have a little more control over their choices. It’s a win-win for everyone!

Alright, let’s talk about why offering a Section 125 plan (that’s the fancy name for a cafeteria plan) and benefits like a Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is not just a great idea for employees—it’s a win for employers too!

  1. Tax Savings for Everyone: First and foremost, when you offer a Section 125 plan, everyone gets a tax break! Employees pay for benefits like health insurance, FSAs, and other perks with pre-tax dollars. That means less money is taken out of their paycheck for taxes. And guess what? Employers save too because those pre-tax contributions aren’t subject to payroll taxes, like Social Security or Medicare. So it’s like a tax-saving party all around!
  2. Attract & Retain Top Talent: Offering a Section 125 plan with cool benefits like an FSA shows employees that you care about their well-being. FSAs, for example, help employees save for things like medical expenses or dependent care, which is super attractive to people who want to feel like their employer is giving them tools to succeed—both at work and in life. The best part? Happy employees are stickier employees! They’ll be more likely to stick around when they know their employer is helping them save money and take care of their needs.
  3. Flexibility Makes You Look Good: Employees love options. With a cafeteria plan, they can choose benefits that work for them, whether it’s health insurance, dependent care, or an FSA to help with medical costs. It’s like offering them a menu of perks that they can actually use! And when you give employees the flexibility to customize their benefits, they feel like they’re getting a better deal—and that’s something they’ll appreciate.
  4. It’s Simple & Straightforward: Setting up a Section 125 plan isn’t as complicated as it sounds. It’s a great way to give employees valuable benefits while keeping things simple for your business. Once it’s set up, you get to enjoy the tax savings, and your employees get to enjoy the extra take-home pay. It’s like setting up a system where everyone wins!

In short, offering a Section 125 plan with benefits like an FSA is a smart move for employers. It saves you and your employees money, helps you attract and keep top talent, and shows that you’re looking out for their financial health. What’s not to love?

As an employer offering Section 125 plans (like cafeteria plans like FSAs) or Dependent Care Assistance (DCA) plans, there’s one important thing you can’t skip: testing your plans each year to make sure they follow the IRS nondiscrimination rules. But why is this necessary? Let’s dive in!

  1. The IRS Wants Fairness: The whole point of these plans is to give employees tax breaks, but the IRS wants to make sure the benefits are spread out fairly. They don’t want employers offering super sweet deals only to their top executives or highly-paid employees, leaving the lower-paid workers in the dust. So, these nondiscrimination tests ensure the plan benefits don’t favor higher-income employees over everyone else.
  2. Stay in the IRS’s Good Books: If you don’t run these tests each year, you could face some serious consequences. For example, you might lose the tax advantages of the plan, or worse, employees who are supposed to get tax breaks might not get them at all! The IRS can hit you with penalties or force you to pay taxes on the benefits, which could add up quickly.
  3. It’s Not Complicated (Really!): The good news is that while the nondiscrimination rules might sound tricky, they’re actually pretty straightforward. Employers just need to make sure that benefits are being offered equally across different income levels and employee classes. Typically, there are a few key tests to run, like the Eligibility Test, the Contribution Test, and the Benefit Test. These checks are designed to make sure everyone is treated fairly when it comes to who can participate and what benefits they get.
  4. A Little Work, Big Rewards: Sure, it may feel like one more thing to check off your to-do list each year, but running these tests keeps your plan in compliance and ensures you can keep offering tax advantages to your employees. Plus, it helps keep everyone happy—employees love tax savings, and your business stays in the IRS’s good graces.

In short, testing your Section 125 and DCA plans each year under the nondiscrimination rules is all about fairness, keeping tax benefits intact, and staying compliant. It’s a small step that helps you avoid big headaches down the road.

Uh-oh, your plan didn’t pass the nondiscrimination test! Here’s the lowdown on what that means and what you can do about it:

  1. The Tax Breaks Might Disappear: The big bummer if your plan fails is that employees might lose the tax benefits they were getting. That means the money they’ve been contributing to the plan (like for health insurance or dependent care) might get taxed, which could lead to a bigger tax bill for them come tax time. Yikes! So, you definitely want to catch this before it turns into a tax headache for your team.
  2. Highly Paid Employees Could Be Affected: Remember how the IRS wants fairness? Well, if your plan is seen as favoring higher-paid employees (or even the big bosses), the plan could lose its special tax status for those folks. So, if you’re offering an awesome deal for your executive team but not for your lower-paid employees, the IRS could require you to undo those sweet deals for the higher-ups. Nobody wants to be the one who has to tell the CEO, “Oops, your tax break just went away!”
  3. Refunds & Adjustments: If your plan fails, you may have to give refunds to certain employees or adjust contributions to make sure it all evens out. For example, you might need to fix contributions for higher-income employees and redistribute the benefits in a more equitable way. It’s kind of like fixing a pizza that has too many toppings on one slice and not enough on the others—just make sure everyone gets a fair piece!
  4. Plan Fixes and Corrective Actions: The good news is that failing the test isn’t a permanent disaster. You have a chance to fix it—and quickly. You might need to adjust how much certain employees are contributing or even redesign the plan to make sure it’s fair for everyone. Once the issue is corrected, your plan can get back on track, and the tax benefits can be restored.
  5. Penalties & Costs: If you ignore the issue and don’t take corrective action, the IRS might slap you with some penalties. This could mean paying taxes on benefits you thought were exempt or even facing other financial consequences. So, while the test may seem like a hassle, it’s much easier to deal with it upfront than face penalties down the road!

Every year, we help you gear up for the big event: annual benefit renewal season! At the risk of being a little annoying, we send out a series of friendly reminders to keep you on track and make sure you’re fully prepared. These reminders will give you all the important due dates and provide you with handy tools to guide you through the process, step by step.

But wait, there’s more! Along with these helpful nudges, you’ll be connected to a dedicated team of specialists—the true pros when it comes to navigating the renewal season. These experts will work closely with your Client Relations team to make sure everything runs smoothly, from updating the system to getting you the collateral you need to educate your team.

Basically, we’ve got everything covered to help you sail through renewal season with ease—and maybe even enjoy it a little! So, sit back, relax, and let us help you make this renewal your best one yet.

We get it. Registration is a super secure process…perhaps a bit too secure to be user-friendly. Trust us when we say it is important that we take these steps as we listen to our partners at MasterCard and within the banking industry talk about the tenacity of bad actors within the wealth and health sectors. For help registering, visit our Resource Center and download our How-To Guides. For this one, you may also want to plan to call one of our agents during our operating hours. If you go this route, please be sure that the call is placed by the primary accountholder and not an authorized dependent.

If your OTP is going to a work email, chances are it is being blocked by your employer’s firewall. While this may be annoying, it’s a good thing. This means they are working hard at protecting you too! Please report this to your Benefits Administrator or your Human Resources Department so that they can let their Igoe representative know, and we can work on fixing the root cause. In the meantime, please contact us during our operating hours so we can work with you to find an alternative means to securely register your account.

An error could occur for various of reasons. The most common is that your account was locked because you picked a super cool username that someone else really liked, wanted to use as their own (or thought they did) and attempted to login with but failed the login after 3 attempts because, wouldn’t you know it, it wasn’t their username after all. This resulted in your account being locked for security reasons (sigh). Sometimes, your account can misbehave if you are accessing it outside of the US or during a weekly maintenance window, too – but that’s less common. The point is, this can happen to the best of us and often has nothing to do with you or with us. Contact us if it does so we can help you get it resolved.

An error could occur for various reasons. The most common is that the zip code provided with your enrollment contains 9 digits instead of 5 which sometimes freaks our system out. We’ve accounted for this in our programming, but sometimes the data simply doesn’t sync. Another common reason is that you may already have an account with us under a different employer that is still active. If you experience this issue, contact us during operating hours so we can help you out.

Sadly, that means your favorite username was taken by someone else. If you attempt to use your favorite username but the email address doesn’t look right or you can’t get in after 2 attempts, please stop trying. Our system locks accounts after 3 attempts. If you try again, you may lock another person out of their account and cause access issues for them. Do another savvy saver a favor and contact us before that third attempt so we can help you with your login.

The Transaction is being held until cleared for settlement by the merchant. Authorization may take 3-5 business days to settle. No action is needed from you currently.

The Transaction has not been established as meeting the criteria to receive the tax savings the plan offers and needs to be resolved. Unless determined to be an eligible expense, arrangements should be made to repay the plan. In some cases, the Benefits Card may be temporarily suspended until repayment is arranged.

The Transaction has not been established as meeting the criteria to receive the tax savings the plan offers and has been partially resolved with one or more manual claims. Arrangements should be made to either repay the remaining portion back to the plan or the amount must be offset by another claim. Unless determined to be an eligible expense, arrangements should be made to repay the plan. In some cases, the benefits card may be temporarily suspended until repayment is arranged.

The Transaction has not been established as meeting the criteria to receive the tax savings the plan offers and needs to be resolved. Please provide documentation including the date of the service, the amount, the provider, a description of the expense and the name of the person for whom the service was provided to us as soon as possible.

The Transaction has been flagged for additional review by Igoe in compliance with IRS Adjudication. The purpose of this review is to ensure that the transaction meets the criteria to receive the tax savings the plan offers. Separate notifications were emailed to you to the email account listed in your Account Settings on this site. Please provide documentation including the date of the service, the amount, the provider, a description of the expense and the name of the person for whom the service was provided as soon as possible.

A previously ineligible transaction was determined to be eligible, or your employer notified Igoe that arrangements were made to repay the amount back to the plan. No additional action is needed.

The Transaction was determined to be ineligible to receive the tax savings the plan offers and was offset by one or more manual claims. No additional action is needed.

A Benefits Card transaction has two parts. When you swipe your card at the time of your purchase, the merchant verifies your account for the amount being purchased and the approved purchase amount is subtracted from your account; this is called a pre-authorization. The Force Post is the second and final part of the transaction. This occurs when the merchant requests the dollar amount of the purchase and receives the money. Typically, the time span between the pre-auth and the Force Post is one or two business days.