Receipts for HRA Reimnursement

[meleana]

After submitting and getting reimbursed for medical expenses from my company HRA (NOT HSA), do I need to keep the receipts?



I mean- I submit the photos or screenshots on line to the HRA, so they have them. But I haven't been keeping the on line screen shots of electronic bills because it is all getting very cumbersome. As it is I have to take photos of my paper bills and then upload them onto the HRA website. A PITA.


The screen shot receipts I throw in the recycle bin on my desktop so I no longer have them and I want to get rid of these paper ones as well.



I do keep the receipts I submit to our HSA since they are NOT required and I want to have them on hand in case the IRS should questions anything.


But I have not been saving the receipts after I submit to the HRA because I figured they have to see receipts in order to reimburse so the proof is on the company.


I cant find information about this anywhere,

 

[cathy63]

It's possible that if your tax return got audited, the IRS could ask you to prove that the receipts you use to show the HSA payment is not taxable had not previously been used to claim a reimbursement from the HRA. Since HRA reimbursements are for the current year, you would need the HRA records for any year that you were using receipts from with the HSA. I.e. if you were using 2019 receipts to claim an HSA reimbursement in 2023 and your 2023 return was audited, your 2019 HRA records would be sufficient to show those expenses hadn't been reimbursed by the HRA.

But, would the IRS actually ask for this proof? I don't know the answer to that, but I can say the odds are very low. You would have to be selected for an audit, and the auditor would have to know you have an HRA (which doesn't appear on your tax return), and they would have to realize there's a possibility of double-dipping and ask about it. Those all seem like pretty long shots to me and I wouldn't worry about it.