When you enroll, your flex dollars and payroll deductions will be automatically assigned to pay for your coverage. Depending on the options you’ve selected, you may have remaining flex dollars to spend that you can deposit in one of or split between your Health Spending Account (HSA) or Personal Spending Account (PSA).
The Wellness Personal Spending account is the employee fitness and healthy living benefit. All employees received $450 per year to spend on their personal fitness, nutrition and wellness related expenses.
Click on the sections below for more information.
Employees have access to three spending accounts. Each one works a little differently.
| Eligible expense |
- Extended health care or dental expenses not covered by our core plan
- Anything claimable as a medical expense by the CRA
|
- Optional Life and Critical Illness insurance premiums
- Paid Long-term Disability premiums
- Fitness / nutrition
- Education
- Electronic devices
|
- Fitness / exercise
- Nutrition
- Wellness
|
| Expense eligibility? |
Contact Sun Life |
Full Listing visible in the Flex Guide or Claim form |
Full Listing visible in the Flex Guide or Claim form |
| How to claim |
On-line / App / Paper form |
Paper form only |
Paper form only |
| Taxable |
Non-taxable |
Reimbursement is taxable |
Reimbursement is taxable |
| Expiration |
Expires after 2 years (use it or lose it) |
Expires after 2 years (use it or lose it) |
Expires after 1 years (use it or lose it) |
| Dependents covered |
Yourself and eligible dependents and any person you may claim as a dependent under the Income Tax Act |
Yourself and eligible dependents |
Yourself only or family expenses where you are covered |
The HSA can be used to reimburse yourself – tax free (except in Quebec) – for dental and extended health care expenses that are not covered or fully covered by Schlumberger Flex or your provincial health program. It’s a tax-effective way to spend your unused flex dollars.
You also can submit claims for any dependents who are eligible for coverage under Schlumberger Flex, plus claims for additional relatives who live with you and are financially dependent on you. An example might be an elderly parent or sibling.
The flex dollars you allocate to your HSA will be deposited in a lump sum on January 1 of each year. You may submit claims for eligible dental and health care expenses for yourself and any eligible dependents. All reimbursements will be tax-free (except in Quebec). In exchange for the tax-free status of your reimbursement, the Canada Revenue Agency imposes several rules on this account:
- Once flex dollars are deposited into the account, they may not be withdrawn except to reimburse eligible health and dental expenses.
- You have two years to use each year’s flex dollar contribution, or you forfeit the unused balance at the end of the second year.
- You must claim expenses in the year they occur. Your deadline to file claims is 90 days after December 31 each year.
- If your employment ends, you have 60 days to submit eligible claims that are incurred up to your last day at work. You will forfeit any remaining balance.
You can use your HSA to pay for:
- 30% of basic dental services if you have dental coverage under Option 1;
- 10% of prescription drugs if you have extended health care coverage under Option 2;
- The dispensing fee deductible you pay under all three options for extended health care;
- Any portion of the cost of prescription eyeglasses, contact lenses or prescription sunglasses not covered under the plan;
- Dental expenses for dentures and orthodontia that are not fully covered by the plan;
- Any item listed as tax deductible under the Income Tax Act and related regulations; and
- Adaptive devices for hearing- or sight-impaired individuals (e.g., for a computer or telephone).
Feeling and being well often involves more than taking care of your basic health and medical needs. Sometimes it means making a lifestyle change, and sometimes you need a little help. That’s what SLB’s Personal Spending Account offers – access to programs that will help you improve your physical and financial wellness. When you allocate your excess flex dollars to this account, they can be put towards a range of expenses.
How your PSA Works
Setting up and using your Personal Spending Account is easy. Each year, during annual enrollment, you can allocate some or all of your leftover flex dollars after you have selected your other health and dental coverage, including your Health Care Spending Account. The amount you put in your Personal Spending Account will be deposited at the beginning of January, and at that time you can start to use your flex dollars right away. You can use your Personal Spending Account for your dependents’ expenses too. Like your HSA, you have two years to use any allocation you make to your Personal Spending Account.
This Is a Taxable Benefit
Your claims reimbursed through the Personal Spending Account are considered a taxable benefit. The amount of taxable benefit associated with your expense reimbursements will be reported on your T4 slip. You pay tax only on your reimbursed expenses – not on your allocation to the account.
Fitness services
- fitness club or gym memberships
- registration fees for in-person and virtual fitness classes
- sports team memberships and registration fees
- annual memberships or daily passes to athletic facilities and clubs (such as golf)
- personal trainers, fitness consultants, lifestyle consultants and exercise physiologists
- registration fees for fitness-related events
- recreational activity fees (such as boating fees, camping fees and trail passes)
- fees for athletic facilities and equipment rental costs
- fitness-related apps, software and programs
- hunting and fishing licenses
Fitness equipment
- purchase or rental of exercise equipment
- Specialized sports equipment (such as skates, bikes, rackets and clubs)
- fishing gear and supplies, camping gear, tents and sleeping bags
- fitness tracking tools (including watches) and heart-rate monitors
Health products and services
- weight management programs (excluding food)
- nutrition programs and counselling
- cholesterol and hypertension screening
- services provided by iridologists, herbalists, Chinese medical practitioners and acupressurists
- other alternative wellness services (such as Reiki, Rolfing and light therapy)
- stress management programs
- health, fitness or lifestyle assessments (such as allergy and genetic testing)
- vitamins, supplements, herbal products, blenders and juicers
- sleeping aids (such as orthopaedic mattresses and pillows)
Indigenous Health
- traditional Indigenous Healers and Elders
- traditional medicines (such as sweetgrass, sage, cedar, tobacco plant)
- fees and supplies for Indigenous ceremonies (such as sweat lodges, healing circles, smudge kits)
Education and personal development
- tuition fees for university, college or continuing education
- fees for language training and tutoring
- hobby or general interest classes and supplies
- personal computers, accessories and software
- online courses offered through a recognized educational institution
- lessons, courses, seminars and conferences
- smartphones and tablets
Professional services
- estate planning, financial investment counselling and tax return preparation
- legal expenses (such as wills, divorces, and house purchases or sales)
Insurance premiums
- Life and Critical Illness insurance premiums
- Long Term Disability Premiums
- pet insurance premiums
The Wellness Personal Spending Account was created to support employee fitness and health living. Beginning January 1, 2023, you will automatically receive $450 flex dollars in your Wellness Personal Spending Account with Sun Life. This benefit is chosen for you and additional flex dollars cannot be allocated to this account.
How Your Wellness Personal Spending Account Works
Each new plan year $450 will be deposited at the beginning of January, and at that time you can start to use your Wellness Personal Spending Account dollars. You can use your Wellness Personal Spending Account for personal or family expenditures where you are covered. For example, personal ski equipment or a family ski pass are considered eligible expenses but a child’s ski equipment would not be eligible for reimbursement. You will have one plan year to use your Wellness Personal Spending account dollars. These dollars do not carry over and will expire at the end of the plan year they are deposited.
This Is a Taxable Benefit
Your claims reimbursed through the Wellness Personal Spending Account are considered a taxable benefit. The amount of taxable benefit associated with your expense reimbursements will be reported on your T4 slip. You pay tax only on your reimbursed expenses – not on your allocation to the account.
To Check Your Balance
To view your current WPSA balance on Sun Life, scroll down to the Benefits section on the main landing page, select the PSA >> 152260 benefit plan and then select coverage information.
Fitness services
- fitness club or gym memberships
- registration fees for virtual fitness classes
- registration fees for fitness-related programs, lessons or courses (such as aerobics, yoga, dance and martial arts)
- sports team memberships and registration fees
- annual memberships or daily passes to athletic facilities (such as access to golf courses, racquet clubs and ski hills)
- personal trainers, fitness consultants, lifestyle consultants and exercise physiologists
- registration fees for fitness-related events (such as walks, runs and races)
- recreational activity fees (such as boating fees, camping fees and trail passes)
- fees for athletic facilities and equipment rental costs
- fitness-related apps, software and programs
- hunting and fishing licenses
Fitness equipment
- purchase or rental of exercise equipment
- specialized sports equipment (such as skates, bikes, rackets and clubs)
- fitness tracking tools (including watches) and heart-rate monitors
- fitness consoles and accessories, DVDs and downloadable work-out videos
Health products and services
- weight management programs (excluding food)
- nutrition programs and counselling
- cholesterol and hypertension screening
- smoking cessation programs and products
- services provided by iridologists, herbalists, Chinese medical practitioners and acupressurists
- other alternative wellness services (such as Reiki, Rolfing and light therapy)
- stress management programs
- health, fitness or lifestyle assessments (such as fees for allergy and genetic testing)
- vitamins, supplements, herbal products, blenders and juicers
- life coach services or fees for spiritual or wellness retreats (excludes the cost of travel and accommodations)
- health-related apps, software and programs
Indigenous Health
- traditional Indigenous Healers and Elders
- traditional medicines (such as sweetgrass, sage, cedar, tobacco plant)
- fees and supplies for Indigenous ceremonies (such as sweat lodges, healing circles, smudge kits)
Health Spending Account claims can be submitted on
mysunlife.ca, through the my Sun Life app or manually using a printed claim form.
Personal Spending Account and Wellness Personal Spending Account claim forms along with receipts can be submitted to Sun Life via mail or email to
myclaims@sunlife.com. You can send PDF, JPEG/JPG, and PNG file types (they cannot accept links). All files related to one claim should be in one email.
These are the deadlines to submit claims:
- Submit claims within 90 days of the end of the year in which the expense occurred.
- If your employment ends or you are transferred outside of Canada: Submit claims within 90 days of your last day at work or last day on Canada payroll.