If you leave the organization during the year and plan to take advantage of COBRA benefits upon termination, you must make an active benefit election during Annual Enrollment. In other words, make sure to participate in this year's annual enrollment or you won't be eligible for COBRA benefits after you leave.
You also can enroll your eligible dependents, which include:
- Your legal spouse
- Your domestic partner (same or opposite gender), if these requirements are met:
- Both persons are at least 18 years of age
- Both persons must share a common primary residence
- Neither person should be related by blood such that it would prevent them from being married in the state in which they reside
- Neither person is married to someone else or is a member of another domestic partnership with someone else that has not been terminated, dissolved, or adjusted a nullity
- Both persons must be legally capable of consenting to a domestic partnership. Both persons have lived together at least one year (or the person is registered as your domestic partner in a state where registration is available)
- Your children, stepchildren, adopted children, children for whom you have legal guardianship, and your domestic partner’s children up to age 26. A dependent child’s eligibility will end at the end of the month in which the child turns 26
- Your children age 26 or older who are permanently and totally disabled and who were disabled prior to age 26
Federal tax law doesn't allow changes to your benefit elections during the year unless you have a qualified life event change.