If you want to save yourself a little time and aggravation, now’s the time to start reminding employees about their FSA balances.

Workers have until Dec. 31 to use their balances (March 15, if your company opted to extend the deadline). But if you start reminding them now of how much they have left, you can help them as well as yourself.

You have two options:

1. A general “use up your FSA account money by X date” memo, or
2. Personalized memos to each individual with an account, with the exact amount they have left.

The second tactic takes extra time, but it’s worth your while. Here’s why: It’s a rare worker who tracks how much they have left in their account — but as the end of the plan year gets closer, people want to know, so they don’t lose any of it.

By sending out individual notices, you can avoid having to answer most of those requests when you’re in the middle of closing year-end.

Other helpful info to include: a list of reimbursable products and info on how to file a claim for reimbursement.

Tags: A/P, Benefits, Best practices, Communication, FSA, Payroll, Year-end planning