HUMAN RESOURCES

Signing up for both pre-tax transit and commuter parking benefits is easy. Simply go to https://inspirafinancial.com/, create a user logon, and then follow the on-screen instructions.

The monthly cutoff will always be the fifth of the month at midnight. Enrollments or changes that are entered after the monthly cutoff will be delayed by a month.

No. Once enrolled, your deductions and transit program set up will remain in place until you either change or discontinue your participation.

If you have any questions about the Inspira portal or how to enroll on the portal, please contact Inspira at (800) 284-4885.

Several deduction codes will be used depending on whether the deduction is for the transit or parking program or whether the deduction is pre-tax or after-tax. The following descriptions will appear on your pay advice.

• Commuter Transit Before-Tax
• Commuter Transit After-Tax
• Commuter Parking Before-Tax
• Commuter Parking After-Tax

If you no longer wish to participate in the program, you must log into https://inspirafinancial.com/ before the monthly cutoff date (5th of each month) and shut off your deduction. If you do not shut off your deduction before the cutoff date you will receive your transit benefit for one more month. No refunds or adjustments will be provided.

Our vendor supports all transit programs where Northwestern University has employees including the Chicago, New York, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. metropolitan areas. Employees enroll by first selecting the transit region in which they reside which then makes all local transit programs available to them for that region.

In the Chicago area the program covers the popular CTA, Metra, and Pace transit systems as well as the Northwestern Shuttle. Also, employees who use the South Shore, the Chicago Water Taxi and other local transit systems will be able to take advantage of pre-tax deductions.

The monthly pre-tax limit beginning in 2024 for transit and for parking is $315. The limits are indexed for inflation and the IRS announces the new limits near the end of the year. New limits will be communicated to participants as they become available.

The full cost of your transit expense will be taken through payroll deductions. However, any amounts that exceed the monthly pre-tax limit will be taken as a separate after-tax deduction.

Monthly Metra passes may be sent by our vendor via U.S. Mail to your home address. All passes are placed in the mail no later than the 22nd of each month. You must make sure that your home address is correct in myHR. To check or change your home address, log into the myHR Self Service Portal at myhr.northwestern.edu.

Lost, stolen, or delayed passes will not be refunded.  You may use the Inspira commuter benefit to buy Metra passes using the Ventra card and Ventra app.

Monthly Northwestern Shuttle passes are sent by our vendor via U.S. Mail to your home address. All passes are placed in the mail no later than the 22nd of each month. You must make sure that your home address is correct in myHR. To check or change your home address, log into the myHR Self Service Portal at myhr.northwestern.edu.

Lost, stolen, or delayed passes will not be refunded.

Employees must first obtain a fare card from their transit agency before enrolling in the transit benefit program through Inspira. Your card number / account number is required when you enroll online.

If you don't receive your pass and you used the correct mailing address, you may be able to get a refund. You are allowed one refund in the calendar year for a pass you did not receive. Log in to your Inspira account (https://inspirafinancial.com/) and click on "Commuter Benefits" on the left hand side of the screen. Under "Help", follow the non-delivered pass refund instructions.