Fraud warning published in FSAFEDS program; changes, new registrations suspended

Below is an alert from the Office of the Inspector General at OPM regarding the FSAFEDS Flexible Spending Account program following cases of fraud believed to have affected several hundred federal employees.

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is aware of cases of fraud under the Federal Flexible Spending Account Program (FSAFEDS) when some federal employees had unauthorized enrollments in Health Care Flexible Spending Accounts (HCFSA) and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts (DCFSA), which resulted in unauthorized deductions from employees’ pay.

Federal employees have had experiences with FSAFEDS filings and unauthorized deductions. OPM OIG encourages federal employees to review their pay and leave records and continuously monitor for possible fraudulent activity.

OPM and FSAFEDS are temporarily pausing enrollment in the FSAFEDS program.

FSAFEDS members may continue to submit refund requests while their enrollment is paused.

Report suspicious activity or unauthorized deductions on flexible spending accounts to FSAFEDS at 877-FSAFEDS (877-372-3337) or to OPM OIG via the OPM OIG Hotline (1-877-499-7295).

Currently, the FSAFEDS program and OPM have no evidence that systems related to the FSAFEDS program have been compromised in any way. However, out of an abundance of caution, OPM has ordered the FSAFEDS platform’s registration functionality to be temporarily disabled. This includes Qualifying Life Events (QLEs). FSAFEDS will allow retroactive adjustments to elections due to a QLE (e.g., the birth of a child) once the registration functionality resumes. OPM is taking this step to prevent further fraud.

FSAFEDS members may continue to submit refund requests while their enrollment is paused.

If you believe you are a victim of an unauthorized enrollment in a flexible spending account

If you believe you have been a victim of an unauthorized Flexible Spending Account enrollment, we encourage you to immediately report any unauthorized Flexible Spending Account withdrawals or other suspicious activity on your FSAFEDS account to FSAFEDS at 877-FSAFEDS (877-372-3337); 866-353-8058 (TTY); or +1 650 577-5294 (International).

Possible fraud may also be reported to the OPM OIG by contacting the OPM OIG Hotline or calling the OPM OIG Hotline (1-877-499-7295).

OPM OIG, OPM and FSAFEDS are working together to manage this situation. Your vigilance is critical to enable us to address this issue quickly and effectively. OPM and FSAFEDS will continue to communicate relevant updates in the coming days and weeks.

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