If you have a flexible spending account through work, there's a decent chance a few hundred dollars are sitting in it right now, quietly counting down.
Most plans require you to spend that money by December 31, and whatever you don't use, you generally forfeit.
But it's worth understanding how the game works before you lose money you already earned.
You elect an amount during open enrollment, and that money comes out of your paycheck pre-tax.
The trade-off for the tax break is a use-it-or-lose-it deadline.
Some employers offer a grace period into mid-March, and some offer a carryover of a limited amount into the next year.
You have to check your own plan documents, because nobody is going to call and remind you.
The spending deadline and the filing deadline are two different things, and this trips people up every year.
You might need to incur the expense by December 31 but file the claim later, sometimes as late as March or April.
Miss the paperwork deadline and your receipt becomes a souvenir.
What actually counts as an eligible expense is broader than most people assume.
Glasses, contacts, prescription sunglasses, dental work, therapy, bandages, acne treatments, menstrual products, sunscreen with the right SPF, and a long list of over-the-counter items became eligible a few years back.
Some plans also cover certain travel costs tied to medical care.
The practical move is boring but effective.
Then look at expenses you already know are coming: a dental cleaning, a new pair of glasses, a refill on prescriptions, contact lenses, a first-aid restock.
You're not inventing spending, you're just pulling it forward.
Amazon, Walmart, Walgreens, and CVS all have FSA-eligible storefronts where you can filter by your card.
Just confirm the item is actually eligible before you buy, because a rejected claim in January is a headache you don't want.
Also check whether your plan offers a dependent care FSA, which is a separate bucket with different rules and its own deadline.
That money covers daycare, after-school programs, and summer camp, and it's often forgotten.
One caution: don't let the deadline pressure you into buying things you don't need.
Stockpiling contact lenses you'll never wear or loading up on supplements you won't take isn't a win.
You'd just be trading one kind of waste for another.
Spend on things you'd genuinely buy anyway.
It's also fair to ask why this system exists at all.
The forfeiture rule was designed to keep these accounts from being used as tax shelters, but the practical effect is that employees, not employers, absorb the cost of forgetting.
The company gets a tax-advantaged benefit and keeps the leftovers.
The deadline is real, the money is real, and the clock doesn't care how busy your December is.
Set a reminder, check your balance, and spend what you can on things you actually need.
Final Thoughts
The tax savings only help you if the account doesn't quietly refill your employer's budget instead of your medicine cabinet.