Starting December 2024, Gusto will be teaming up with a new partner, Elevate, to improve pre-tax benefit accounts (Health Savings Accounts, Health FSAs, Dependent Care FSAs, and Commuter benefits).
If balances or funds from existing accounts need to be transferred, Gusto has already or will contact impacted employers and employees directly with important dates, information, and guidance.
With this partnership, employees can expect to get:
To ensure your team can continue to use their pre-tax benefit accounts with our new partner, Elevate, make sure your bank account is set up to fund your team’s expenses.
Authorize Gusto debits for pre-tax benefit accounts
The process of funding these accounts will remain the same. Here’s what you can expect:
With these changes, you’ll also be able to generate daily reports to reconcile these debits through the Reports section of your Gusto admin account.
For more information about how this transition might impact your team, see the “What employees need to know” section. If you have questions specifically about your account’s migration, please respond directly to the email. If you cannot find it, email [email protected] with “Migration Support” in the subject line along with your company’s name.
Q: I terminated my company’s pre-tax benefit accounts, why do I need to migrate to Elevate?
A: Gusto will still need to transfer your team’s accounts to our new partner, Elevate, if your policy’s expiration date or runout period date will end after Feb 28, 2025. Commuter benefits, health FSA, or dependent care FSA all have a post-policy 90 day runout period. This runout period does not apply if you no longer use Gusto for payroll or are transferring these accounts to another provider before Feb 28, 2025.
Q: I only received a migration notice for one of my companies, what about the others?
A: Gusto will be migrating all customers in waves. It’s likely that other related companies will be migrated at a later date. If you are a full-access admin of a company that you believe needs to be migrated and have not received an email by Feb 1, 2025, please contact [email protected] with the phrase “Migration Support” in the subject line to get support from Gusto's dedicated team.
Q: My team’s pre-tax benefit accounts haven’t started yet, what do I need to do?
A: Even if your team’s pre-tax benefit accounts haven’t gone into effect, if you received an email you are still impacted by the migration. Please make sure you take the steps listed in the email and if impacted your team will be notified as well.
Q: My pre-tax benefit accounts are about to renew, will this impact my renewal?
A: No. Your accounts may be migrated during the renewal process, but it won’t impact the timing of your renewal. This migration will be handled separately. If you have questions about how this migration may impact your renewal please respond directly to the email. If you cannot find it, email [email protected] with “Migration Support” in the subject line along with your company’s name.
How this change impacts you depends on which type of pre-tax benefit account(s) you are enrolled in through Gusto. You can find specific dates, information, and guidance in emails sent from [email protected]. If you have questions specifically about your account, please respond directly to the email. If you cannot find it, email [email protected] with “Migration Support” in the subject line along with your company’s name.
You’ll temporarily have limited access to these accounts for 2-3 weeks, while Gusto transfers your balance to your new accounts. During this time, you can pay for eligible expenses out of pocket, save receipts, and request reimbursement later, but swiping your card won’t work.
This pause period should not overlap with any important spending dates such as your plan’s expiration date, runout period end date, and/or grace period end date.
Gusto will mail you a new Gusto Benefits Card to your home address on file. If you have any eligible dependents that need cards, you can order new cards for them once you gain access to the new Benefits Card Hub.
Gusto will notify you when the pause period is over and provide you with guidance on how to access your accounts through the new Benefits Card Hub. You’ll also be able to access the Benefits Card Hub by viewing any of your pre-tax benefit accounts and selecting “Open Benefits Card Hub”. No new username or password is required.
Your existing HSA funds will stay in your account with Avidia Bank, but they’ll directly manage it starting on Feb 28, 2025. This money is yours to keep and will remain with you indefinitely. Gusto will open a new HSA for you with UMB Bank and deposit your contributions there. Gusto will also send a new Benefits Visa® Debit Card to your home address on file.
You can choose to close your HSA with Avidia Bank and move your funds into your new HSA with UMB Bank. If you submit the form by Apr 30, 2025, Gusto will deposit $25 into your new HSA, to cover Avidia’s closure fee (fee required to close the account). To do so, use follow these instructions:
Q: I’m no longer with my company, why is my pre-tax benefit account migrating?
A: Pre-tax benefit accounts like Health FSAs, Dependent Care FSAs, and Commuter benefits have a 90 day account termination runout period. This means that for 90 days after the account is terminated you can submit claims for eligible services rendered during your active coverage period. If your account’s runout period expiration date falls after your prior company’s migration date, then your account will migrate so that you can continue to submit claims. If the runout period expiration date falls within the pause period and you had a claim you needed to submit, please please respond directly to the email. If you cannot find it, email [email protected] with “Migration Support” in the subject line along with your company’s name.
Q: I’m not enrolled in a pre-tax benefit account, why did I receive this notice?
A: Emails were sent to employees who are either actively enrolled in a Gusto pre-tax benefit, have an upcoming enrollment into a Gusto pre-tax benefit, or have an expired Gusto pre-tax benefit that is in the 90 day runout period. If you received a migration email and don’t believe you fall into any of the above categories, please respond directly to the email. If you cannot find it, email [email protected] with “Migration Support” in the subject line along with your company’s name.
Q: Will my health FSA rollover still apply?
A: Yes, if your company offers a Health FSA with a rollover and you renew your Health FSA, your rollover will still apply.
Q: What happens to my health FSA or dependent care FSA runout period or grace period?
A: Gusto will be migrating any health FSA or dependent care FSA whose runout period or grace period ends after Feb 28, 2025. During the pause period you won’t be able to submit claims for reimbursement, but will be able to do so in the new Benefits Card Hub once the migration is complete. The pause period should not fall during the end of your plan’s expiration date, grace period, or runout period,
Q: My HSA is still processing, do I need to transfer my money?
A: If your HSA was still processing with Avidia bank and no deductions were applied, you won’t need to fill out the HSA transfer form. Gusto will open a new HSA with UMB and close the in process HSA with Avidia bank. Once the migration is complete, you can access to the Benefits Card Hub to check on the status of your HSA.
Q: Do I have to transfer my HSA funds to UMB?
A: No. If you would like to keep two active HSAs, one with Avidia bank and one with UMB through Gusto you can do so. Please note that a retail account managed by Avidia bank will be subject to their account management fees.
Q: I don’t want to open an HSA with UMB, what do I do?
A: If you wish to continue to participate in your company’s HSA offering, you will need to open an HSA with UMB. If you would rather close your HSA completely, please respond directly to the email. If you cannot find it, email [email protected] with “Migration Support” in the subject line along with your company’s name.
Q: My pre-tax benefit account hasn’t started yet, what do I need do?
A: If your pre-tax benefit account hasn’t started yet, you are likely not impacted much by the migration. However, if you do receive a MasterCard Gusto benefits card, you will want to dispose of it and Gusto will mail you a new Visa Gusto benefits card to your home address. The MasterCard Gusto benefits card will not work as it is associated with our old system.
Q: My balance didn’t transfer accurately, what do I do?
A: If you believe that your account balance was transferred incorrectly, please respond directly to the email. If you cannot find it, email [email protected] with “Migration Support” in the subject line along with your company’s name.