What Changed in Wells Fargo’s 2027 Benefits, and What Should You Do About It?

By Todd Calamita, CFP®, Founder, Calamita Wealth Management

Wells Fargo benefits for 2027 bring semi-monthly pay for most salaried employees and higher HSA limits. Highly compensated employees get a bigger day care FSA. The short-term disability survivor benefit ends for disabilities starting in 2027. HSA and FSA elections don’t carry over. Based on Wells Fargo’s 2027 enrollment materials, enrollment closes November 13, 2026, and your choices take effect January 1, 2027.

Key Takeaways

• Most salaried employees move to 24 paychecks in January, so each check and each deduction gets bigger.
• HSA and FSA elections start over each year, and wellness dollars count toward your HSA limit.
• Above $100,000 of eligible compensation, Wells Fargo adds no HSA money except health and wellness dollars.
• Switching from the Copay Plan to the HSA Plan means losing your HRA balance, the credit Wells Fargo keeps for your medical bills.
• For disabilities starting on or after January 1, 2027, short-term disability no longer pays a survivor benefit.

In my experience, a lot of people get through open enrollment in about 10 minutes. They log into Workday, confirm last year’s choices, and move on.

For a lot of elections, that’s fine. Your dental plan probably doesn’t need a fresh look every November.

But 2027 has a few changes where rolling forward costs real money, or leaves a gap you won’t notice until you need the coverage.

Take Mike and Molly (hypothetical). Mike is 57, a salaried Wells Fargo manager earning $185,000, and Molly is 53. They’re on the Copay Plan with HRA, and Mike has been thinking about switching to the HSA Plan to save for health costs in retirement. I’ll use their situation to show how several of these changes play out.

What are the biggest changes to Wells Fargo benefits for 2027?

For a lot of salaried employees, the first change they’ll notice is the paycheck schedule. Here’s what’s new for 2027:

• Semi-monthly pay: most U.S. salaried employees move to 24 paychecks starting in January 2027.
• Account limits: the HSA rises to $4,500 individual or $9,000 family, and the IRS health care FSA limit rises to $3,500.
• Day care FSA: up to $7,500, or $5,000 for highly compensated employees, up from $3,000 for that group.
• Short-term disability: the survivor benefit ends for disability dates on or after January 1, 2027.
• Minnesota: the Local Copay Plan with HRA ends there, and employees who make no election move to the Copay Plan with HRA.
• Surgery: UnitedHealthcare members call Lantern before scheduling surgery under the new Center of Excellence program. Some surgeries, such as bariatric, require a Center of Excellence provider.
• GLP-1 drugs: Wegovy and Zepbound carry a $125 copay for a 30-day supply, after the deductible on the HSA Plan.

What carries over and what doesn’t

Most elections roll forward if you do nothing, including medical (except the Minnesota Local Copay Plan), dental, vision, and optional term life. HSA and FSA elections don’t. You set a new amount every year, or you don’t contribute.

How does semi-monthly pay change your paycheck in 2027?

Starting in January 2027, your salary arrives in 24 checks instead of 26. Each check is larger, and so is every per-paycheck deduction.

The change covers most U.S. salaried employees. Hourly employees stay on biweekly pay. It doesn’t apply to Wealth & Investment Management (WIM) Financial Advisors or WIM Area and Branch Managers.

Here’s Mike’s version. His $185,000 salary over 26 checks is about $7,115 gross per check. Over 24 checks, it’s about $7,708.

His HSA works the same way. An $8,800 election is about $338 a check on biweekly pay and about $367 on semi-monthly pay.

A percentage election, like a 401(k) set at 6%, takes the same percentage of a larger check. An annual election like the HSA gets divided by 24 instead of 26.

No more 3-paycheck months

Biweekly pay usually produces 2 months a year with 3 paychecks. A lot of families count on those months for property taxes or a summer trip.

Under semi-monthly pay, every month has exactly 2 checks. If a third check was paying for something, give that expense its own monthly line in the budget now.

Should you pick the HSA Plan or the Copay Plan with HRA?

The HSA Plan costs more out of pocket when you need care, and it lets you save pre-tax for future medical costs. The Copay Plan with HRA costs less when you use care, with no investment account attached.

Here’s how they compare for an individual, in network:

On the HSA Plan, covering a spouse raises the in-network deductible to $5,200 and the out-of-pocket maximum to $8,800. Covering a spouse and children raises them to $6,200 and $10,400. The Copay Plan has office-visit copays, such as $20 for primary care in Tier 1. The HSA Plan has none: you pay 20% after the deductible.

Wells Fargo’s HSA contribution depends on your pay

Wells Fargo adds money to your HSA based on eligible compensation:

• Under $48,000: $500 for you or you plus children, $1,000 with a spouse.
• $48,000 to $100,000: $250 or $500.
• Over $100,000: nothing.

At $185,000, Mike gets no automatic Wells Fargo HSA money. Any wellness dollars he and Molly earn still go in.

Switching to the HSA Plan forfeits your HRA

Moving from the Copay Plan or the Local Copay Plan to the HSA Plan forfeits your HRA balance. So does moving to Kaiser HMO or dropping medical coverage. The HRA is a credit Wells Fargo keeps on its books for your medical bills. No cash sits in an account with your name on it.

Say Mike has $1,500 in his HRA. Switching gives that up. He may still switch. However, his first year on the HSA Plan could cost up to $1,500 more than the table above shows.

Going the other way is gentler. Leave the HSA Plan and your HSA balance stays yours. Contributions stop, and you get an HRA.

Who each plan tends to fit

In my experience, the HSA Plan fits people who expect modest medical bills and can cover the deductible from savings: $3,250 for one person, or $5,200 for you and a spouse. They get to invest the difference for retirement.

The Copay Plan tends to fit families who expect regular care, like ongoing prescriptions or a planned surgery. Predictable copays beat a large deductible in those years.

The trade-off runs both ways. The HSA Plan can cost more in a bad year, and the Copay Plan gives up years of tax-free growth. Premiums differ too, based on your compensation category, and Workday shows yours.

How much can you contribute to an HSA or FSA through Wells Fargo in 2027?

For 2027, the HSA limit is $4,500 individual or $9,000 family, plus $1,000 at 55 or older. The IRS health care FSA limit is $3,500, and the day care FSA allows $7,500, or $5,000 for highly compensated employees.

The HSA limit includes money you didn’t put in

The IRS limit counts every dollar going in: yours, Wells Fargo’s, and health and wellness dollars. Wellness dollars run up to $800 for you and $400 for a covered spouse or partner.

That’s why the number you enter in Workday may need to be lower than the limit. If Mike switches to the HSA Plan and covers Molly, his ceiling is $10,000: the $9,000 family limit plus a $1,000 catch-up for being 55 or older. If he and Molly both finish their wellness activities, $1,200 goes into the HSA. That leaves $8,800 for his own election.

If they skip some activities, he isn’t stuck. Wells Fargo lets you change your HSA contribution during the year.

Your health care FSA options

Wells Fargo offers 2 health care FSAs, each up to the IRS limit of $3,500 for 2027. The Full-Purpose FSA covers medical, dental, and vision costs. The Limited Dental/Vision FSA covers only dental and vision, and it’s the one that pairs with the HSA Plan.

That pairing lets an HSA Plan member set aside pre-tax money for glasses or braces while leaving the HSA invested.

The day care FSA

The day care FSA allows up to $7,500, or $5,000 if you’re a highly compensated employee, meaning you earned more than $160,000 in 2026. It covers care for children under 13, and for dependents you claim who are elderly or disabled.

Why high earners treat the HSA as a retirement account

An HSA gets 3 tax breaks. Contributions go in pre-tax, growth isn’t taxed, and withdrawals for qualified medical costs aren’t taxed.

After 65, you can withdraw for any reason without the 20% penalty. Non-medical withdrawals are taxed as income, the way IRA withdrawals are. If you can pay today’s medical bills from cash, an HSA is a strong place for money set aside for health costs in retirement. It fits into broader retirement income planning.

What changes for short-term disability and life insurance?

For disabilities beginning on or after January 1, 2027, Wells Fargo’s short-term disability plans no longer pay a survivor benefit. Basic life insurance is unchanged, and at a $50,000 cap it’s thin for most families.

The STD survivor benefit is gone

Short-term disability pays 65% to 100% of covered pay for up to 25 weeks, depending on years of service. For disability dates before January 1, 2027, the STD Plan and the STD Top-Up Plan included a survivor benefit. For disability dates on or after that day, neither plan does. Basic and optional term life still pay, as long as they were in place before the leave began.

If you have a health condition that could lead to a leave, check your life insurance now, while you can still apply. Expect MetLife’s underwriting to look at that condition.

Basic life covers 1x pay, up to $50,000

Wells Fargo’s basic term life is free and automatic: 1x covered pay, with a $10,000 minimum and a $50,000 maximum. For Mike, that’s $50,000, about 3 months of salary.

Optional term life through MetLife runs from 1x to 10x covered pay, up to $3,000,000. Spouse coverage comes in $25,000 increments, up to $250,000.

Enrolling or increasing coverage requires a Statement of Health and MetLife underwriting. You elect the coverage by November 13, and Wells Fargo’s guide asks you to complete the Statement of Health by the end of November.

Group life vs. private coverage

Group coverage is easy to buy. The trade-off shows up at retirement. At retirement, you have about 31 days to keep your Wells Fargo group life without a medical exam. You can port it, priced on your age and tobacco use, or convert it to a whole life policy, which generally costs more.

Private term coverage bought while you’re healthy locks in a price that doesn’t depend on staying at Wells Fargo. In my experience, group coverage you already have matters most for someone whose health has changed, since it can be ported or converted at retirement without a medical exam. A lot of Wells Fargo professionals end up with some of each.

Which benefits deadlines still matter after enrollment closes?

4 dates still matter after November 13: 2 this year and 2 in spring 2027.

• November 15, 2026: finish 2026 health and wellness activities in Optum Engage, worth up to $800 for you and $400 for a covered spouse or partner.
• December 15, 2026: enroll in Quit For Life through Optum if you pay the $600 tobacco surcharge ($25 a paycheck for salaried employees). Enrolling by this date earns a credit equal to the surcharge.
• March 15, 2027: last day to use unused 2026 health care or day care FSA money, if you were enrolled on December 31, 2026.
• April 30, 2027: last day to submit those 2026 FSA claims. Anything left after that is forfeited.

After enrollment, changes to medical and FSA elections need a qualifying life event, such as marriage or the birth of a child. HSA contributions are the exception. You can change them during the year.

How do your benefits fit into the rest of your Wells Fargo plan?

Benefits elections sit next to your 401(k), RSRs, and bonus. The right choice for one often depends on the others.

HSA dollars vs. extra 401(k) dollars

Wells Fargo matches 401(k) contributions dollar for dollar up to 6% of certified compensation, paid once a year. You generally need a year of service and must be employed on December 15 to receive it. Contribute enough to earn the full match first.

After that, for someone on the HSA Plan, an extra dollar in the HSA often beats an extra dollar in the 401(k). HSA money goes in pre-tax and comes out tax-free for qualified medical costs. A traditional 401(k) gives you the deduction but taxes withdrawals, and a Roth 401(k) does the reverse. At Mike’s pay, Wells Fargo adds no automatic HSA money. Apart from wellness dollars, his HSA dollars come from his own paycheck, so the HSA and the 401(k) compete for his next dollar. It’s a question worth working through as part of your tax planning.

Disability coverage vs. income replacement

Basic long-term disability replaces 50% of covered pay after 26 weeks of disability. Optional LTD adds 15%, for 65% total.

That means living on about two-thirds of covered pay, before taxes. If your household spends well above that, measure the gap now. It may call for an individual disability policy.

RSRs and company stock

A lot of Wells Fargo households hold company stock in several places: RSRs (Restricted Share Rights, Wells Fargo’s name for restricted stock units), the 401(k), and the stock purchase plan. Benefits enrollment doesn’t change that, but it’s a natural time to look at the whole picture alongside your investment management.

Wells Fargo 2027 Benefits FAQs

1. When is Wells Fargo open enrollment for 2027?

Enrollment for the 2027 plan year opened October 26, 2026, and closes Friday, November 13, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. Central. You enroll in Workday, and elections take effect January 1, 2027.

2. Does my Wells Fargo HSA election carry over to 2027?

No. HSA and FSA elections must be made every year, while most other elections roll forward. Before you set your HSA amount, subtract any Wells Fargo contribution and the wellness dollars you expect to earn.

3. Does Wells Fargo contribute to my HSA if I earn over $100,000?

No. Wells Fargo’s contribution depends on eligible compensation: $250 or $500 from $48,000 to $100,000, and $500 or $1,000 below $48,000, with the higher amount when you cover a spouse. Above $100,000, the only Wells Fargo money going into your HSA is health and wellness dollars.

4. When does Wells Fargo switch to semi-monthly pay?

Most U.S. salaried employees move to semi-monthly pay in January 2027, with 24 paychecks a year. Hourly employees stay biweekly. The change doesn’t apply to WIM Financial Advisors or WIM Area and Branch Managers.

5. What happens to my HRA balance if I switch to the HSA Plan?

You forfeit it. The same happens if you move to Kaiser HMO or drop medical coverage. Your HRA balance carries forward only while you stay in an HRA-eligible plan.

6. Can I change my Wells Fargo benefits after open enrollment ends?

Generally, only with a qualifying life event, such as marriage or the birth of a child. HSA contributions are the exception and can change during the year. If you elected new or higher optional life coverage this year, complete the Statement of Health by the end of November.