To save taxes – the funds you allocate to this plan are exempt of federal income tax, social security and Medicare taxes, and in most states these amounts are also exempt from state income tax. The funds you elect to contribute are set aside from your paycheck on a pre-tax basis and deposited in an account in your name for this benefit. As you incur eligible expenses you are reimbursed from the plan, either by cash reimbursement or transit vouchers and passes where available.
The plan limits vary from year to year current limits are as follows:
- You may set aside up to $230.00 per month for qualified mass transit expenses
- You may set aside up to $230.00 per month for parking expenses.
- For mass transit – tickets, passes, fare cards and fares you pay for your work commute on a bus, train, subway, ferry or qualified vanpool. Expenses NOT covered include bridge tolls, toll road fees or mileage.
- For parking – expenses incurred to park near or at your place of work or at a mass transit facility. Expenses NOT covered include reimbursement to park at home if you work at home.
- Complete the appropriate enrollment form (there are different forms for different state locations) indicating the amount you want deducted from your paycheck for transit and/or parking expenses. This amount will be deducted from each pay period on a pre-tax basis and deposited in your benefit account.
- Return the completed form to EBS at Fax number 925-460-3929 or to your Benefit Coordinator, as requested.
- Your enrollment will continue each month until you advise EBS or your HR department, in writing, that you want to terminate this benefit.
- Enrollment forms can be e-mailed or faxed to you from your HR department or EBS. You may contact EBS Customer Service for more assistance if you have any questions regarding this benefit program.
Check with your Benefit Coordinator, or an EBS representative, for enrollment eligibility as a new hire or for a new enrollment during the year. You will also be able to make changes during the year without restriction.The timing of those changes will be at the discretion of your payroll department.Your benefit coordinator, HR department or EBS representative can give you a time frame when you need to make a change or if you choose to terminate your participation.Termination and changes are required to be in writing.
- For mass transit with voucher systems – in certain cities (as indicated on the enrollment form) you will receive vouchers in the amount you select on the form by the third week of the month following your payroll deduction from the previous month. You can then use the vouchers to purchase your transit tickets or passes for the month following the receipt of the vouchers. - For example: if your deductions begin in January, you will receive your vouchers by mid-February for you to purchase your tickets that would be used for your March commuter expenses, if you use a monthly pass. - Please note: the vouchers are like cash... except they will not give you change back. If you lose them they will NOT be replaced. Vouchers are good for one year from date of issue. Expiration dates are clearly printed on the voucher for your reference.
- For mass transit with passes – in some areas, EBS will send transit passes to you directly, in lieu of a voucher or reimbursement check for your mass transit expense. As with vouchers, you will elect the pass amount that you wish to receive on your election form. Passes are generally good for one year from date of issue but when you start using it, it must be used within that month.
- For parking and Mass transit in areas with no voucher system or passes – you will need to submit a claim to be reimbursed. Claim forms are available through the EBS website (www.ebsbenefits.com). You need to attach a copy of your receipt or bill to the claim form and send it directly to EBS at the address listed on the form. If you park at a location that does not provide receipts you can complete a parking affidavit and submit that with the claim form. Parking affidavits are available through the EBS website.
Account balances are available online through the EBS website. For those that use voucher systems, only the contributions or deposits made to your account will be available. For those that have cash reimbursements for transit (in areas without passes or vouchers) or parking expenses, the online account balance will also show disbursements from the plan. If you prefer to contact EBS for your account balance, contact EBS Customer Service through e-mail at custserv@ebsbenefits.com or call us from 8am to 5pm, Monday through Friday, Pacific Standard Time, at 800-229-7683.
At least once per month, depending on the schedule with your employer, EBS posts the deposits reported as payroll deductions to the employee accounts. Claims that are received for cash disbursement are entered into the system within 3 to 5 days of the date we receive the claim. Reimbursements made by voucher or passes are made automatically on a monthly basis provided there is an account balance available for the disbursement. Cash reimbursements for parking and for transit in areas without a voucher system, are made monthly provided that there is an account balance available and a claim on file for the disbursement.
Yes, the option to fax is available but we have found that claims do not always transmit properly and participants that believe their transmission is successful may find that EBS did not receive all or part of their fax, which caused a denial of the claim or some of the expenses, listed on the claim form. Additionally, the print quality for faxed claims may suffer for billing statements or receipts with light text. If the facsimile is not legible, claim processing may be delayed until EBS receives a better copy of the document. Make sure that your transmission was successful and that the copies you are transmitting are clear and will make good fax copies.
If a claim is sent to EBS by fax, it is not necessary to send the same claim by mail. This creates duplicate claims to process and could lengthen the processing time for all participants.
An employee can send in as many claims as they like, as often as they like, throughout the plan year, not to exceed the elected amount, or plan limits. There is a grace period or period of time for which a claim for an expense can be submitted after an employee has terminated from the plan or terminated employment. Your employer determines the grace periods. Please refer to the written plan enrollment communication materials provided to you or contact EBS Customer Service for more information.
There are a few reasons why this might happen:
- You may have exceeded the amount available to you. There are plan limits set by the IRS for this plan and there are elections made for monthly contributions. You may not exceed your monthly contribution or plan limit for this plan even though your expense may be greater than this amount.
- A portion of your claim may have been denied. If so, you will receive an explanation in the mail explaining why that portion of your claim was denied. If you don’t understand why your claim was denied, you may contact EBS Customer Service for assistance.
You may use the affidavit available on EBS’ website for this purpose.
Please be sure to keep a copy of any claim, receipt or affidavit you send to EBS for your records. EBS will not provide copies as the claims are stored in an offsite facility or scanned and destroyed.
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