HSA tax center

An HSA provides triple tax savings — contributions are not taxed, account growth through interest and investment earnings are not taxed, and withdrawals for qualified medical expenses are income tax-free. It’s a win-win to save on health costs today, tomorrow and even through retirement.

Plus, you could save up to 30% when you use your HSA for qualified expenses since you're using pretax HSA dollars.*

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You can use your pretaxed HSA dollars to cover thousands of expenses like doctor visits, cold medicine, first aid kits, sunscreen, prescription refills and more. The 30% savings compares using pre-tax income in your HSA to using after-tax income out of pocket for purchases. Browse qualified medical expenses you can buy with your HSA.

You can save even more shopping at Optum Now. Use code OPTHSA5 with your HSA to receive a 5% discount.

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The HSA contribution deadline is the same date as the tax filing deadline for that plan year, typically April 15. Certain states or areas of the country may have additional time due to local holidays or natural disaster extensions. Please seek additional information from the IRS or your tax advisor.

Click here for more information on the annual contribution limits.

You can get copies of your most recent tax forms by signing in to your account online and viewing the "Statements and Tax Docs" section.

You should also be sure to turn off any automatic investments in your current HSA to avoid reinvesting of your funds in your account.

The money you contribute to your HSA is tax-deductible up to the annual contribution limit. For example, if you are in the 28% tax bracket and deposit $3,000 into your HSA, you could save $840 in federal income taxes. Money you take out of your HSA to pay for qualified medical expenses is tax-free. Interest you may earn on your HSA grows income tax-free.

There are 3 tax forms associated with health savings accounts (HSAs): IRS Form 1099-SA, 5498-SA and IRS Form 8889.

Please use the information in your 1099-SA form, available online, to fill out IRS tax form 8889. Form 8889 is the only one you need to submit with your taxes. You can find IRS tax form 8889 in the "Statements & Docs" section after signing in to your account.

• IRS form 1099-SA shows the amount of money you spent from your HSA during the tax year.
• IRS form 5498-SA shows the amount of money deposited into your HSA for the tax year.
• IRS form 8889 is the form you fill out and submit with your tax return.

IRS Form 1099-SA is typically available at the end of January. It will be posted to your account and mailed, if elected. IRS Form 8889 can be downloaded from IRS.gov at any time.

IRS Form 5498-SA is typically available around the end of January. If you contribute in the new year for the previous tax year, you will also get another 5498-SA form in May.

If the contributions on your W-2 don’t match your Form 5498-SA, you likely made after-tax contributions or contributions between January 1 and tax day for the previous tax year.

In addition to the forms noted above, keep track of your spending in case you have to prove you used funds for qualified medical expenses. It’s up to you to keep track of your expenses and report any funds you use for nonqualified medical expenses.

It’s up to you to maintain records to verify that funds were used for qualified medical expenses. Funds used for nonqualified expenses will be taxed as income and subject to a 20% penalty. If you mistakenly use your HSA for a nonqualified expense, you can return the funds to your HSA to avoid the penalty. Sign in to your account and download the Withdrawal Correction Form. Optum Bank must receive it by the tax filing deadline. 

If you are 65 or older or enrolled in Medicare, you can use your HSA for nonmedical expenses without incurring a tax penalty. Those distributions will be treated like retirement income and will be subject to normal income tax.

You are responsible for monitoring the amount deposited into your HSA each calendar year. Keep in mind that if your employer contributes funds, those also count toward the maximum. If you exceed the maximum contribution limit, there is a penalty imposed by the IRS.

If you do make excess contributions, you can prevent being penalized by completing an Excess Contribution and Deposit Correction Request Form to have excess funds returned to you.

Sign in to your account online and click on the Help & Tools menu dropdown and select Forms & Documents. Scroll down to HSA Forms to download the Excess Contribution and Deposit Correction Request Form to request an excess contribution refund or a correction to a contribution.

Each state can decide to follow the federal tax guidelines for HSAs or establish its own. State law is subject to change, for up to date information please consult a tax advisor regarding your state’s rules or visit your state’s Department of Revenue office for more information.

Eligible HSA contributions and earnings may be taxed by these states:

Eligible HSA contributions are taxed by these states:

Consult your financial advisor or state department of revenue for more information.

States without state income taxes — eligible HSA contributions are not taxed:

HSA earnings (but not eligible contributions) may be taxed by these states:

Consult your financial advisor or state department of revenue for more information.