The Surency Flex Benefits Card is a special-purpose Visa® Card that gives you an easy, automatic way to pay for eligible health care/benefit expenses without having to pay out-of-pocket for these expenses. The Card lets you electronically access the pre-tax amounts set aside in your Surency Flex accounts (except Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Arrangement (QSEHRA) accounts).

It works like a Visa® Card, with the value of your account(s) contribution stored on it. When you have eligible expenses at a provider/merchant that accepts Visa Cards and uses an inventory control system, you can use your Card. The amount of eligible purchases will be deducted — automatically — from your account, and the pre-tax dollars will be electronically transferred to the provider/merchant for your immediate payment.

No. The Surency Flex Benefits Card is a special-purpose Visa® Card that can only be used for eligible health care/benefits expenses. It cannot be used, for instance, at gas stations or restaurants. There are no monthly bills and no interest.

You will receive two Cards free of charge. If you would like additional Cards for other family members, please complete an Additional Benefits Card Request Form. You can also order a replacement Card online by logging in to your Member Account.

As long as you remain enrolled in your current Surency Flex accounts, the Benefits Card will be loaded with your new annual election amount at the start of each plan year or incrementally with each pay period, based on the type of account(s) you have. So don't throw away your Benefits Card at the end of the year! New Cards will be automatically reissued every three years.

You should call Surency's Customer Service Department to report a lost or stolen Card as soon as you realize it’s missing so Surency can turn off your current Card(s) and issue replacement Card(s). You can also report a lost/stolen card through the Surency Flex mobile app or online by logging into your Member Account.

Surency Flex offers four ways to access your plan details:

1. The easiest option is to use the Surency Flex mobile app. The mobile app is available for download from the Apple App Store or Google Play. On the mobile app you can view your current account balance, file claims, purchase FSA-approved items and securely contact Surency Flex.
2. Log in to your online Member Account to view your account details, file claims and more.
3. Contact Surency Flex Customer Service at 866-818-8805.
4. You can also sign up to receive electronic updates on your plan via email and/or text alerts. Log in to your Member Account, visit the “Statements & Notifications" tab to select your notification preference.

The Surency Flex Benefits Card is delivered activated. No additional steps need to be taken to utilize your Card.

For Health Care FSAs, the dollar value on the Card will be the annual amount you elected to contribute to your account during your annual benefits enrollment. It's from that total dollar amount that eligible expenses will be deducted as you use the Card or submit claims.

Dependent Care FSA and HSAs are funded incrementally at each pay period, so it is especially important to be aware of account balances in order to avoid Card declines at the point of service.

For HRAs, the dollar value will depend on employer contribution amount and frequency.

The Surency Flex Benefits Card can be used to pay for eligible goods and services at providers/merchants that accept Visa® cards. IRS regulations allow you to use your Card in participating pharmacies, discount stores, department stores, and supermarkets that can identify eligible items at checkout. You can find out which stores are participating by clicking here.

You can also use your Cards at health care providers, such as hospitals, doctors, and dentists.

Yes. The Card will not be accepted at locations that do not offer eligible goods and services, such as hardware stores, restaurants, bookstores, gas stations and home improvement stores.

There may be some pharmacies, department stores, or supermarkets that cannot identify eligible items at checkout, in which case you may need to pay for the item up front and submit a claim for reimbursement using your Member Account or the Surency Flex mobile app.

You should select “Credit”. You do not need a PIN, and you cannot get cash back with the Surency Flex Benefits Card. However, if participants wish, they can set up a PIN number by calling 888-898-9795. If you have a PIN number, select “Debit” and enter your PIN when checking out.

1. Bring prescriptions, vision products, over-the-counter drugs and other purchases to the register at checkout to let the clerk ring them up. Have the cashier ring up all of your items together.
2. Present the Surency Flex Benefits Card and swipe it for payment.
3. If the Card swipe transaction is approved (e.g., there are sufficient funds in the account and at least some of the products are eligible), the amount of the eligible purchases is deducted from the account balance and no receipt follow up is required. The clerk will then ask for another form of payment for the non-eligible items.
4. If the Card swipe transaction is declined, the clerk will ask for another form of payment for the total amount of the purchase.
5. The receipt will identify the eligible items and may also show a subtotal of the eligible purchases. Keep your receipts in the event that further validation is needed.

NOTE: When utilizing at a vision, dental, or medical provider, the service diagnosis and procedure code is not passed to Surency. As such, these services may require additional validation.

Usually the service provider can recreate an account history and provide a replacement receipt. In the event that a receipt cannot be located, recreated, or if the expense is ineligible for reimbursement, you will be required to reimburse Surency Flex for the purchase. For reimbursements, you can send a check or money order to Surency for the amount or you may initiate an Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) through your Member Account. Once received, the amount will be credited back to your Surency Flex account.

Yes. As long as you have money in your account for the balance due, the services were incurred during the current plan year, and the provider accepts Visa® Cards, you can simply write the Card number on your statement and send it back to the provider.

When incurring an expense that is greater than the amount remaining in your account, you may be able to split the cost at the register (check with the merchant). For example, you may tell the clerk to use the Surency Flex Benefits Card for the exact amount left in the account, and then pay the remaining balance separately. Alternatively, you may pay by another means and submit the eligible transaction online, with appropriate documentation.

The most common reasons why a Card may be declined at the point of sale are:

1. You have insufficient funds in your account to cover the expense.
2. You are attempting to purchase non-eligible expenses. (Remove non-eligible expenses and ask the merchant to retry the Card.)
3. The merchant is encountering problems (e.g. coding or swipe box issues).
4. The merchant does not have an inventory control system in place or does not have the correct merchant code.
5. You are purchasing an over-the-counter medication that requires a prescription, and one was not presented to the merchant or the merchant does not have the appropriate prescription matching system.

If Surency and the issuing bank are notified within 2 business days, you will not be responsible for any charges. If the notification is after 2 days, you may be responsible for the first $50 or more. You should call Surency's Customer Service department to report a Card lost or stolen as soon as they realize it is missing. Surency can then turn off the current Card(s) and issue replacement Card(s).

Check the Surency Flex Mobile App or log in to your Member Account to view your grace period details. The IRS does allow for a grace period in the current year to use up funds carried over from the prior year, but not all Surency Flex groups choose to offer the grace period.

During a grace period, the participant's Card will utilize funds from the previous plan balance before utilizing funds from the new plan year. If you have an HSA, funds will roll over to the next year.

You will be notified by Surency Flex if there is a need to submit additional documentation. All receipts should be saved per the IRS regulations.

If receipts are not submitted as requested to verify a charge made the Surency Flex Benefits Card, then the Card may be suspended until receipts are received. You may be required to repay the amount charged. Submitting a receipt or repaying the amount in question will allow the Card to become active again.

You should keep all receipts. IRS regulations require Benefits Card transactions to be substantiated with a third-party receipt. Credit card receipts do not satisfy this requirement. The IRS requires the following information for validation that a transaction is eligible:

• Name of the service provider or place of purchase
• Provider Tax ID and Signature (for Dependent Care FSAs only)
• Date(s) the service was incurred
• Name of the individual for whom the service or expense was provided
• Detailed description of the service or expense provided (referred to as type of service)
• Drug name and Rx number, if applicable
• Amount or cost of the service or expense
• Over-the-counter medicines or drugs, if applicable 
• A receipt showing type of item purchased (aspirin, cough medicine, bandages, etc.)

NOTE: Failure to provide required documentation will result in a hold being placed on your Benefits Card causing it to be declined at the point of sale.

When you are in a foreign country, you will not be able to use your Surency Flex Benefits Card. However, you can still file a claim for reimbursement if it is for an eligible medical expense. Always remember to keep your documentation and receipts (in US dollars).

Most Over-the-Counter (OTC) medications (not including insulin) require a doctor’s prescription in order to be considered a qualified medical expense for purchase with FSA, HRA or HSA funds. Surency also requires a doctor's prescription to substantiate OTC purchases, even if paid for with a Surency Flex Benefits Card. For the participant's claim to be substantiated, they must submit the prescription (or a copy of the prescription or other documentation showing a prescription has been issued) for the OTC medicine or drug and any other information from an independent third party (such as a receipt). For example, a pharmacy-issued receipt that identifies the name of the purchaser (or the name of the person for whom the prescription applies), the date, the amount of the purchase and an Rx number satisfies the OTC substantiation requirements. A receipt without an Rx number that is accompanied by a copy of the related prescription also satisfies OTC substantiation requirements.

Visa® Card has category codes to identify the type of business done by merchants accepting their Cards. One of these category codes is for Medical Service Providers which includes pharmacies, hospitals, doctors' offices and other health care facilities. If you use your Surency Flex Benefits Card at a medical service provider, you will be required to submit documentation for substantiation.

Exception: Surency will auto-approve transactions that match your plan’s co-payment amounts (up to multiples of five), reoccurring expenses from previously approved transactions.

Any documentation submitted to Surency for reimbursement of qualified medical expenses is required by the IRS to include a third-party receipt that shows the following:

• Date service was received or purchase was made
• Description of service or item purchased
• Dollar amount paid (after insurance, if applicable)

Any documentation submitted to Surency for reimbursement of dependent care expenses is required by the IRS to include a third-party receipt that shows that following:

• Dates of service (must have already occurred)
• Dollar amount paid
• Name of day care provider 

NOTE: If a receipt is unavailable, a signature from the provider is sufficient. 

The following forms of documentation are always UNACCEPTABLE for substantiation:

• Provider statements that only indicate the amount paid, balance forward or previous balance
• Credit Card receipts that only reflect a payment
• Bills for prepaid dependent care/medical expenses where services have not yet occurred