IRS Announces HSA Limits for 2021
On May 20, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Revenue Procedure 2020-32 announcing the annual inflation-adjusted limits for health savings accounts (HSAs) for calendar year 2021. An HSA is a tax-exempt savings account that employees can use to pay for qualified health expenses.
To be eligible for an HSA, an employee:
- Must be covered by a qualified high deductible health plan (HDHP);
- Must not have any disqualifying health coverage (called “impermissible non-HDHP coverage”);
- Must not be enrolled in Medicare; and
- May not be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s tax return.
The limits vary based on whether an individual has self-only or family coverage under an HDHP. The limits are as follows:
- 2021 HSA contribution limit:
- Single: $3,600 (an increase of $50 from 2020)
- Family: $7,200 (an increase of $100 from 2020)
- Catch-up contributions for those age 55 and older remains at $1,000
- 2021 HDHP minimum deductible*
- Single: $1,400 (no change from 2020)
- Family: $2,800 (no change from 2020)
- 2021 HDHP maximum out-of-pocket limit:
- Single: $7,000 (an increase of $100 from 2020)
- Family: $14,000** (an increase of $200 from 2020)
* The deductible does not apply to preventive care services nor to services related to testing for COVID-19. An HDHP also may choose to waive the deductible for coverage of COVID-19 treatment, and/or telehealth and other remote care services.
** If the HDHP is a nongrandfathered plan, a per-person limit of $8,550 also will apply due to the Affordable Care Act’s cost-sharing provision for essential health benefits.
