Dependent Care FSA
My wife and I are married filing jointly. We have two children, age 5 and 8 who attended summer day camp in 2024. I work and my wife put her career on pause temporarily to take care of the children. We have a Dependent Care FSA through my employer which covers Summer Day Camp for dependent children as an eligible expense. When I reached the "Federal Tax Return Alerts" screen I am receiving the following message:
"Dependent Care Benefits Added to Income
You have $150 of dependent care benefits from your W-2s that will be added to your wage income.
If you need to enter child care expenses (or disabled care expenses for [ME] or [MY SPOUSE]), go back to the Child Care Expenses screen.
Since [MY SPOUSE] didn't have any earned income, the dependent care benefits on Form W-2 are taxable.
If you entered an incorrect amount in Box 10 of a W-2, go back to the Your Wages (Form W-2) section and make any necessary."
I went back and entered the summer camp expense on the Child Care Expenses screen but I am still receiving this message. What am I doing wrong? Is the implication that, since my wife is not currently salaried or disabled, we're not actually entitled to the use of a Dependent Care FSA?
Comments
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Hi Bmaltz,
It sounds like the alert is prompting a review of your entries.
I'd start by double checking Box 10, Dependent Care Benefits, on your W-2. If the $150 is correct, follow the prompt to go back through the child care section under Income > Common Deductions/Credits. Review your entries to make sure you fully answered all the questions about child care expense.
It may be as simple as a box wasn't checked, or a yes or no answer to a question needs to be updated.
If you continue to get this error message, please log into your account and contact Support for more assistance.
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