Flexible Spending Accounts

The CSU Dependent Care Reimbursement Account (DCRA), a voluntary benefit for eligible employees, offers you the ability to pay for eligible out-of-pocket dependent care expenses with pretax dollars. If you enroll in the plan, the contributions you make to your account are deducted from your pay before federal, state and FICA taxes are calculated. Your taxable income is reduced and, consequently, your taxable income reflected on your annual W-2 statement is reduced.

Expenses eligible to be reimbursed from the CSU Dependent Care Reimbursement Account are expenses for certain dependent care if the care is required in order for the employee (spouse) to work. Eligible dependents for whom the DCRA reimbursements can be claimed are:

• A child under age thirteen (13), for whom an employee or spouse can claim dependent status on their income tax return,
• A spouse who is physically or mentally unable to care for him/herself, or
• A financially dependent member* of an employee's household, who regularly spends at least eight hours each day in the employee's home.

*Including an employee's domestic partner if the domestic partner is a dependent.

More information on eligible expenses can be found on the ASI Flex website.

Contribution limits are set by the IRS and can vary annually.

DCRA Brochure