Members, their families, and business owners can all enhance their financial health with HSAs. The following are among their many advantages:

• Tax Benefits-
  • Pre-tax contributions and/or tax-deductible contributions.
  • Dividends accrue tax-free.
  • HSA funds for qualified medical expenses are not taxed.
• Growth- Unused resources roll over every year and continue to build tax-free.
• Portability- Regardless of coverage type, your HSA dollars are yours, no matter if you change jobs, switch insurance policies, or retire.
• Premium savings- In most cases, HSA-eligible insurance policies have lower prices.

Why choose Health Savings Accounts at America First?

• No fees.
• No minimum-balance requirements.
• Custom products to fit your unique needs- HSA Share Savings, HSA Money Market Savings, HSA Money Market Checking, and HSA Certificate Account options.
• Accessibility- You can utilize funds via Visa debit cards, free Online Banking, checks, and cash withdrawals.
• 24/7 account management- With free Online Banking, you can take control of your HSA, using features such as free Online Bill Pay, cashed check viewing, Online Statements, accessing IRS tax forms, and generating current and previous year account summaries.
• Service- We'll deliver your account with exceptional member service, something you've come to expect from America First.

There Are Four Requirements to Have an HSA:

• Must have a qualified high deductible health plan.
• Have no other major medical insurance coverage.
• Not be enrolled in Medicare.
• You can't be able to be claimed as anyone's dependent.

HSA External Resources and Links

At America First, we can help you set up a Health Savings Account, and we'll continue to assist you in managing it. Below, we have reference information from the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Treasury that will help you better understand your Health Savings Account and how it works.

Additionally, we have links to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services for both men and women that offer information about taking control of your health and lifestyle.

IRS Links

• HSA Information - IRS #969
• Eligible Expenses - IRS #502

Health Information Links

• Women's Health Checklist
• Men's Health Checklist

Beneficiary- Individual receiving HSA funds following the account owner's death. There are primary and contingent beneficiaries.

Catch-up Contribution- Those with ages 55 and over are allowed an additional, $1,000 catch-up contribution.

Co-insurance- Amount an individual must pay when a deductible is reached. For example, 80/20 means that once the deductible is met, the insurance company pays 80% of claims, while the employee is responsible for 20%.

Contingent beneficiary- An individual receiving HSA funds if the account owner and the primary beneficiary die.

Deductible- Amount paid before any co-insurance takes effect.

Excess contribution- One that exceeds the HSA owner's maximum for the year. If not removed in a timely manner, the account owner owes a 6% excise tax.

HDHP- (high-deductible health plan) - To contribute to an HSA, the owner must be covered by a qualified HDHP. Certain deductible and out-of-pocket expense limits apply.

Mistaken distributions- HSA funds accidentally used for a non-qualified medical expense. The IRS allows mistaken distribution correction to avoid taxes or penalties.

Non-qualified distribution- HSA distribution used for a non-qualified medical expense. These are subject to taxation and 20% penalties. Refer to IRS Publications 502 and 969 for a list.

Primary beneficiary- He or she receives HSA funds when the account owner dies.

Prior-year-contribution- These are designated for the prior tax year up until the tax-filing deadline, usually April 15. To take advantage of such a contribution, HSA eligibility is required during that prior tax year.

Qualified distribution- HSA funds used for a qualified medical expense. Refer to IRS Publications 502 and 969 for a list.

Qualified HSA funding distribution- Funds from a Traditional or Roth IRA distributed into an HSA. This is a reportable movement, but it is not taxable as long as it's processed correctly.

Rollover- Funds movement from one HSA custodian, to the account owner, and then to another custodian. This is reportable but not taxable, as long as certain requirements are met. There is a 60-day time limit and only one rollover is allowed per 12-month period.

Transfer- Funds going directly from one HSA custodian to another. Since the account owner does not have constructive receipt of funds, this is not reportable and not taxable. There is no limit to the number of transfers.

The easiest way to make sure your plan is HSA-qualified is talk to your insurance provider or talk to your employer.

The IRS has set annual limits on the amount you can contribute into your HSA. This limit is determined by whether you have an individual or family policy. Health Savings Accounts are subject to a cost-of-living adjustment and these limits will generally increase each year. The IRS also allows a "catch-up" contribution of $1,000 each year for individuals 55 and over.

If nothing is done about this excess contribution then there will be an excise tax of 6 percent assessed by the IRS. You are able to avoid this penalty as long as you distribute the excess before the tax filing deadline including any extensions. Any of our many America First branches can help you fill out the appropriate paperwork to get this taken care of so you avoid this tax.

The IRS has provided a detailed list of the expenditures that they deem as eligible and ineligible. This list is Publication 502 and can be located at www.IRS.gov.

No. Generally, insurance premiums are not considered qualified medical expenses. There are some exceptions though:

• COBRA premiums
• Qualified long-term care insurance
• Medicare Premiums

Your America First Health Savings Account comes with a variety of methods to withdraw your funds.

• Write a check that pulls directly from your HSA
• Swipe your HSA Visa debit card
• Utilize our online bill pay service and pay the bill from the comfort of your own home
• We also have over 100 local branches that you are able to physically withdraw the funds from.

To fix this problem, just bring that same amount into any local branch and tell us it was a Mistaken Distribution. We can then put the funds back into your HSA and correct the problem.

Health Savings Account owners will learn to become good bookkeepers as you will need to save all receipts and proof of withdrawals. In case you are ever audited by the IRS, you will need this information to prove that your withdrawals were for qualified medical expenses.

*TIP* E-Statements are available each month at www.americafirst.com. If you had a medical expense for a particular month, simply print out that month's e-statement, staple the receipt to that month's statement and then file it away.

At this point, you will no longer be able to contribute into your HSA. You have a few options that you must choose from:

• You can take the money out of the HSA for non-qualified expenses and pay the penalty and taxes on those funds
• You can still use the HSA funds to pay for any eligible medical expenses tax free.
• When you reach the age of 65, the IRS allows you take any amount out of the HSA for any reason without any penalty. The amount distributed will be taxed as regular income but there will be no penalty.

If you currently have an HSA at another financial institution, you can transfer or rollover your HSA to America First Credit Union. First, complete the America First Credit Union HSA application. Remember, you must first be a member of America First to open an HSA with us. Your HSA must be opened at America First before you can transfer or rollover funds.

Transfer: Submit an HSA Transfer Request at America First Credit Union and we will initiate the transaction with the current custodian. This type of transfer is a custodian to custodian transfer and the IRS has not put a limit on the number of these transfers.

Rollover: Withdraw the funds from your current financial institution and deposit them into your new America First Health Savings Account. Remember you are only given 60 days to move the funds from one institution to the other. Rollovers are only allowed once every twelve months.

The HSA is your account therefore you get to decide what you would like to do with it. You are no longer able to make contributions into your HSA since you are not covered by an HDHP but you do still have options.

• Still use the funds in the HSA to pay for qualified medical expenses such as co-pays, vision expenses, dental expenses, etc.
• Keep the money in the HSA and accrue interest tax-free until you reach the age of 65 and then withdraw the balance with no penalty

Each month America First sends out paper statements to you so you can track your account balance and activity. Statements are also available online each month if you prefer to review your information electronically. We will also mail you out a copy of the 1099-SA and 5498-SA tax documents which report the withdrawals and contributions into your HSA.