Use FSA Funds to Reach Sephora Rouge Status Cheaper

If I had one piece of advice for my younger self, it would be to look into employer benefits more thoroughly. My favorite one so far? FSA. And not because I am a particularly hospital- or doctor-positive person. It’s because I can use my FSA to reimburse myself for purchases made at Sephora.

But the catch is each purchase must be FSA-eligible.

Once you understand how FSA eligibility works, you can easily stack up your purchases made at Sephora (in store) or at Sephora.com to hit Rouge status—with pre-tax dollars. So depending on your specific tax bracket, you could be saving like 40% just by using pre-tax dollars.

Before we get into things, please note that I am not a tax/finance professional or an FSA professional. This is all based on my experience, and I am sharing what worked for me.

Jump to a compiled list of FSA-eligible items at Sephora.

FSA-eligible items at sephora

What is an FSA?

An FSA is your Flexible Spending Account. Through your employer, you set aside a certain amount which gets deducted from your paycheck pre-tax. That means it lowers your total “taxable” income for the year. In other words, this money does not get taxed but you can use it on a variety of medical goods and services.

For reference, my employer uses HealthEquity / WageWorks as the provider. So any of my purchases that need to be reimbursed will be submitted to HealthEquity / WageWorks for them to send me a check with the corresponding dollar amount that I spent (at Sephora).

How much should I put into my FSA?

This is a very individual decision, so your mileage may vary. The way I budget it is as follows:

  1. $1000 to go to Sephora purchases, as this is the minimum spend to hit Sephora Rouge

  2. $1000 for any unexpected medical expenses that come up (therapy, chiropractor, acupuncture, physical therapy, ER visits, urgent care visits, prescriptions, etc). Or if I want to buy any other sunscreen or fun items from other websites that are FSA eligible.

I normally set aside $2000 total for these purchases. $1000 will surely be spent at Sephora. But if the second $1000 doesn’t get fully used up, it isn’t the end of the world because this year, $660 of it can be rolled over to the next year. But if you have more than $660 left over in your account, it will be lost. So instead of losing your FSA funds, use it towards your Sephora purchases!

How do I use an FSA with a High-Deductible Health Plan?

I fully understand the struggle of a High-Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) because I use that too. Since HDHP typically have HSA access, the FSA that you get is a limited-purpose FSA (LPFSA). That means you won’t get to reimburse everything until you hit your deductible. So all your Sephora purchase will not be eligible for reimbursement until you spend enough to meet your deductible, at which point you submit a form to your benefits administrator requesting they convert your LPFSA to a standard FSA. Only then will you be able to use your FSA for Sephora reimbursements.

How do I use FSA at Sephora?

Because Sephora has not integrated FSA cards into their checkout flow (like how pharmacies or other FSA-dedicated websites have), you have to use your standard credit card (or gift card!) to make the purchase at Sephora.

  1. Log in to your Sephora account because you absolutely need to get the points for the order

  2. Add your FSA-eligible items to cart

  3. At checkout, use your personal credit card

  4. Save your receipts from the purchase

  5. Submit receipts for reimbursement at your benefits administrator (HealthEquity / WageWorks for me)

  6. Sometimes, I get friction from the benefits people and I have to send a screenshot of the product page at Sephora and highlight where it says SPF, sunscreen, broad-spectrum sunscreen, etc. that makes it FSA-eligible

  7. Wait for your reimbursement check in the mail (or direct deposit)

  8. Feel the gratification of being one step closer to Sephora Rouge with pre-tax dollars!

What are FSA-eligible items at Sephora?

I know, I know. This is a skincare blog after all. Let’s get into the Sephora of it all.

The good thing about shopping at Sephora is that they have a dedicated landing page that tells you what products are FSA-eligible. The not-so-good thing about Sephora is that you cannot directly use your FSA card at checkout. And the entire checkout process is a mess, if I am being honest. But that should be reserved for a different post…

Sunscreen / SPF

The number one FSA-eligible item would have to be sunscreen. And yes, you have your standard face and body lotions. That’s a given, so I won’t list them out here. But I do have a blog if you’d like to take a gander (Shiseido sun stick, Summer Fridays ShadeDrops).

But take it one step further and look into your color cosmetics:

As long as they are broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF above 15, you can reimburse them with FSA pre-tax dollars.

And pro-tip: Supergoop and Ciele are both brands that you can trust to have a solid SPF to be FSA-eligible. But some of the Supergoop products are a miss for me (like the Resetting Mist, Mineral Matte Screen, and the Stick).

Acne products

Fun fact: Acne therapy can be done with over-the-counter products (sold at Sephora!). That means certain purchases can make it into your FSA-eligible categories too.

Look out for ingredients like salicylic acid (not BHA, not willowbark extract. It has to be salicylic acid), benzoyl peroxide, or sulfur. The FDA regulates these ingredients for the treatment of acne, so they’re a medical product eligible for FSA reimbursement.

And no, it isn’t just your cleansers, serums, and moisturizers. You can also look into:

Rip to the Necessaire Acne Body Wash though, since that was a super easy one to buy in bulk too!

Hand sanitizer

The amount of people who are shocked whenever I pull out a Touchland hand sanitizer is insane. And I agree: a $10 (or even $12!) hand sanitizer is absolutely insane. But it feels a little better when you know it is FSA-eligible. Plus, I really cannot get over how cute the shape of the packaging is (I am such a sucker).

They’re categorized as a cold & virus protection, but you have to make sure it explicitly says 60-70% alcohol. Side note: that disqualifies the Aesop Rinse-Free Hand Wash because it does not say it is a sanitizer and it does not provide the percentage of alcohol. And that makes sense because they probably have to go through extra certification for that to be designated on their products.

Pro-tip: wait until the Sephora sales to buy the multi-pack Touchland hand sanitizers, so that you can stack your 20% discount with the already-discounted multi-pack price (10% off). That, combined with the pre-tax dollars, is truly chef’s kiss.

So if you want a cheat sheet...

Suggested list of Sephora FSA-eligible products

  1. Summer Fridays ShadeDrops

  2. InnBeauty Project Mineral Sun Glow Tinted SPF

  3. Kosas Dream Beam

  4. Caudalie Vinosun SPF

  5. Touchland hand sanitizers

  6. Inkey List pimple patches

  7. Peace Out pimple patches

  8. Ouai Anti-Dandruff Shampoo

  9. First Aid Beauty Body Acne Clearing Mist

  10. Blush: Ciele flush & protect SPF 45 or Nudestix Nudescreen SPF 30

  11. Contour or bronzer: Ciele sculpt & protect SPF 30

  12. Complexion: Saie Slip Tint SPF 35 or Tower28 SunnyDays SPF 30 or Ilia Super Serum SPF 40

  13. Lip: Tatcha Kissu Lip Tint SPF 25 or Jack Black Lip Balm SPF 25 (untinted)

  14. Setting powder: Supergoop (Re)setting Powder SPF 35

Note: Eczema products are technically also FSA-eligible, but I have not tried to get them reimbursed. I’m honestly not sure the path forward here, so your mileage may vary. But there are products from First Aid Beauty, Alpyn, and SkinFix that fit the bill and would be eligible (some even have the National Eczema Association seal of approval).

Next year’s FSA

The next time you’re selecting your corporate benefits, don’t overlook your FSA! It can be the cheapest way for you to hit Sephora Rouge, so that you can get a 20% discount for all the Sephora sales. And you can get access to other Rouge perks (like gifts, special digital events, and more).

Your FSA is one of the most powerful ways to get the most out of your money through pre-tax amounts. And because it is flexible with how you can get reimbursed, you can use gift cards or your own personal credit card to stack the points as well!

So hitting the $1000 minimum yearly spend at Sephora isn’t nearly as daunting now!









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