Enroll in or waive benefits

Depending on the type of enrollment window you're in, here's how much time benefits-eligible employees have to choose plans in Gusto. 

New hire enrollment

• You can start choosing plans as soon as your company admin finalizes your Gusto account.
• You have until 20 days after the coverage effective date to enroll.
  • Ex: Say you were hired on January 3rd and your company's new hire waiting period is "First of the month following hire." Your benefits would start on February 1st, and you have until February 20th to enroll. 

Open enrollment

• Open enrollment starts sometime close to your company's annual renewal date.
• You'll typically have about a week to choose your coverage.
•  If you need to change your enrollment selections, you can do so in your Gusto account through the last day of open enrollment.

Qualifying life event

• If you're not a new hire or in open enrollment, the insurance carriers only let you change coverage if you experience a qualifying life event (such as the birth of a child or getting married).
• You must submit your qualifying life event within 30 days of the event.

Step 1: Get started

1. Sign in to your Gusto employee account.
2. Go to the Benefits section. 
   • If you're an admin, make sure you’re in your employee profile. 
   • If you do not see this in your left menu, your company may not offer benefits through Gusto or you may not be eligible for benefits. Contact your employer for next steps.
3. In the tile at the top of your Benefits page, take a look at your selection deadline then click Enroll or Waive.
   • If you do not see this tile: Your new hire enrollment or open enrollment deadline may have passed. Check the "Enrollment deadlines" section above or ask your company admin to see whether you're eligible.
4. Click Get Started! 

Step 2: Verify your information

Verify your info for the insurance carrier’s records and enter your dependents’ information. If you’re waiving coverage, you’ll do so on the next page.

1. Verify your personal info. 
   • If anything is incorrect, reach out to your employer to make changes.
2. To review your dependents, scroll to "Your dependents."
   • All dependents should be listed here whether or not you're enrolling them—you’ll enroll or remove them from benefits on the next page.
   • If any dependents have aged out of eligibility for coverage, they're listed under a section called "Ineligible for coverage."
3. To add a dependent to the "Your dependents" list:
   • Find the "Add a new dependent" tile and click Add dependent.
   • Fill out their personal information and click Save.
   • To add more dependents, click Add dependent again.
4. To remove a dependent from your list of dependents:
   • Click Edit.
   • Click Remove. (If this does not work, proceed to the next page, where you can remove the dependent from coverage.)
5. Click Save & continue.

The next page lists each type of benefit that your company offers. When you click Enroll or Waive, you’ll be presented with the plan options and pricing for each benefit.

Step 3: Choose or waive medical coverage 

1. On the Medical tile, click Enroll or Waive.
2. If you do not want to enroll, scroll to “Waive Medical Coverage” and click Waive.
3. Select the dependents you’re enrolling in this plan. 
   • Check the box next to each dependent you’re enrolling. 
   • Click the box again to uncheck it and exclude that dependent from this plan. 
4. Review all the plans on this page. Take your time to consider which benefits and premiums will be the best fit for you for the next year. 
   • Want help figuring out which plan is best for you? Check out this video where we explain the differences between plan types and common insurance terms. There are also a few examples of different people and the plan that best fits their situation.
   • Cost: “Your cost” is the amount that’ll be deducted from each of your paychecks. Hover over the “i” icon to see the total monthly premium cost and what portion your company’s paying. 
   • Coverage: Click View full plan details to review each plan’s Summary of Benefits (SBC). This will help you understand how much you’d pay for common services you may need in the next year. If you need more info, check out our guide to your SBC or call the carrier’s member service department. 
5. Click Select on the plan you decide on.
6. Click Save & continue.

Step 4: Choose or waive the remaining lines of coverage

1. If your employer offers other types of benefits, click Enroll or Waive and repeat the above steps for each. 
   • Short-term disability, long-term disability, and life insurance: The insurance carrier automatically enrolls you in these plans because your company pays 100% of the premiums. Dependents are not eligible to enroll. 

Step 5: Review your selections and understand the cost summary 

1. Once you’ve enrolled in or waived each line of coverage, check that each line of coverage reflects your choices. 
   • Click View Enrollees for each benefit to see who’ll be enrolled in the plan. 
2. Review the cost summary.
   • “Total Cost of Benefits:” The total premiums per pay period for each line of coverage you selected and each dependent you enrolled (if any). 
   • “Employer’s Contribution:" The portion of the total cost that your company is paying for you each pay period. 
   • “Your total cost”: The amount that will be deducted from each of your paychecks. Hover over this number to see your company’s pay period schedule.
3. Click Save & continue.

Step 6:  Add waiver reasons and extra info   

1. Answer the questions on the “Add Extra Info” page.
   • If you're waiving coverage: The insurance carrier asks for the reason to make sure your company meets their participation rules. Check out the "Waive coverage" section of this article for more info. 
2. Click Save & continue.

Step 7: Review and confirm your selections 

1. Review each line of coverage. Make sure your plan choices and dependent enrollments are correct.
   • To change anything, scroll to the bottom of the page and click Back.
2. Scroll to “Forms you need to sign.”
3. Click Sign form beside each form.
4. To review a form, click on its name to open it in a new tab.
5. Draw your name in the signature field and check the box where it says, "I agree to electronically sign this form." 
6. Click Sign. 
7. Once you've signed each form, click Confirm Enrollment.

What comes next

• Submission to the carrier:
  • If Gusto's your broker, we'll prepare your paperwork and send your selections to the health insurance carrier.
  • If your company uses the broker integration, we'll let your broker know to submit your selections to the health insurance carrier. 
• Enrollment status: You can view the status of your enrollment from the sticky note in your Benefits section.
• Member ID and accessing care: Once the carrier processes your coverage, they'll mail you your member ID card. If you need to go to the doctor before your ID card arrives, check out this article.

Follow these steps if your company is currently in open enrollment with Gusto and you want to opt out of coverage. It's important to sign your waiver in Gusto because the insurance carriers keep track of why people opt out (also known as waiver reasons). Waiver reasons affect your company’s eligibility for coverage.

If your company is not in open enrollment, but you've experienced a qualifying life event, follow these steps to cancel coverage.

1. Sign in to your Gusto employee account.
   • If you're an admin, make sure you’re in your employee profile. 
2. Go to the Benefits section.
   • If you do not see this in your left menu, your company may not offer benefits through Gusto. Contact your employer for next steps. 
3. In the tile at the top of your Benefits page, take a look at your selection deadline then click Enroll or Waive.
4. The next page lists the benefits that your company offers and the date coverage would begin. Click Get Started! 
5. Verify that your personal info is up to date. If it's incorrect, reach out to your company admin to make changes before you continue. 
   • To see pricing for dependents before you waive: Click Add dependent and enter their personal info. You can still waive coverage in the next steps.
6. Click Save & Continue.
7. The next page lists each benefit that's available to you. Click Enroll or Waive for the first benefit you're waiving.
   • If your company offers life or disability coverage, all employees are automatically enrolled. This is because the company covers 100% of your premium for this benefit.  
8. Scroll to the bottom of the benefit's page and click Waive, then Save & continue.
9. Once you've waived each benefit, click Save & Continue.
10. Answer the questions on the “Add Extra Info” page.
    • The carrier needs the reason you're waiving to verify that your company meets their participation requirements.
    • If you have existing coverage outside of your employer’s options, you may be asked to provide the name of the insurance provider and your member or subscriber ID, which is found on your insurance card. Contact your insurance provider online or by phone if you're unable to find your ID information.
11. Click Save & Continue.
12. Review each line of coverage to make sure your selections are correct. 
    • To change any enrollments, scroll to the bottom of the page and click Back.
13. Scroll to “Forms you need to sign" and click Sign form beside each form.
    • To review the form, click its name to open it in a new tab.
14. Draw your name in the signature field and check the box where it says, "I agree to electronically sign this form." 
15. Click Sign. 
16. Once you've signed each form, click Confirm Enrollment.