When you enroll in benefits, typically, you must stay enrolled for the entire plan year. This means that you cannot make changes to your benefits mid-year. However, there are certain qualifying life events (also known as qualifying status changes), defined by the IRS, that may allow you to make changes to your benefits outside of an Open Enrollment period.
Examples of a qualifying life event include:
- Marriage
- Divorce
- Having a baby or adopting a child
- Death of a dependent
- Loss of coverage elsewhere
- Gain of coverage elsewhere
- A dependent becoming ineligible for coverage
- Moving from a non-benefit eligible position to a benefit-eligible position
- Transferring between full-time and part-time status
You must complete your enrollment within 31 days of a qualifying life event. Once your elections have been finalized, they cannot be changed unless you experience another qualifying life event. If you do not make your elections within 31 days of the qualifying life event, you will not be permitted to make any changes until the next open enrollment period.