Enroll in Benefits

This guide outlines the benefits enrollment process from the employee perspective, detailing steps from initial notifications to final submissions. Employees receive email reminders before enrollment opens and must ensure personal and dependent information is accurate. The enrollment experience begins with a review of personal details, followed by dependent information and benefit selections, including medical, dental, vision, and supplemental plans. Employees can edit their elections until submitted for HR approval. After submission, a summary of elected benefits is provided, requiring an e-signature for legal acknowledgment. Once approved, employees receive confirmation and can review their enrolled benefits through the Benefits tab. This comprehensive guide facilitates a structured enrollment experience.

Jul 2, 2026
Knowledge

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Enroll in Benefits

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This guide provides an overview of the benefits enrollment process from the employee's perspective.

Table of Contents

Overview of the enrollment experience
Email notifications
Start enrollment
Benefits enrollment experience
Enrollment summary
- User agreements and signatures
Submit your benefit elections
Benefits tab
- Review your pending benefit elections
- Edit your pending benefit elections
Approved benefit elections

Employees participating in enrollment can update information about their dependents on the Benefits tab before enrollment or add/edit a dependent during the enrollment experience. A dependent will need to have all required fields (First Name, Last Name, Birth Date, Gender, and Relationship) completed in BambooHR in order to show up in the enrollment experience.

Have you experienced a qualifying life event and need to update your benefits? Click here to learn more about submitting a benefit change request directly from within BambooHR.

Overview of the enrollment experience

Email notifications

You will receive two notifications before accessing the enrollment experience: a reminder email three days before the enrollment start date and another email on the start date. Ensure that your personal and dependent information is up to date ahead of enrollment. You can begin electing benefits by clicking Start Enrollment in BambooHR from the email notification.

Alternatively, you can start enrollment from your homepage or Benefits tab in your BambooHR employee profile.

You will receive a reminder email three days before the enrollment window closes if you have not submitted your benefit elections.

After an enrollment window closes, and you have not selected your benefits, the Start Enrollment in BambooHR button in the email notification will redirect you to a new page letting you know the enrollment window has closed. If you have any questions or concerns, reach out to HR at your company.

Start enrollment

Once an enrollment window is active, a link for open enrollment will appear in two locations:

The My Stuff widget on your homepage
Your Benefits tab (if granted access)

From either location, click Start Enrollment to begin the enrollment experience.

Only employees who are eligible for at least one benefit plan and added to an active enrollment window will be able to access Start Enrollment on Home to begin electing benefits.

Benefits enrollment experience

Before you begin electing benefits, the system checks your employee profile for required personal details.

If any required information is missing and you can edit those fields without approval, you will see a Missing Personal Information step at the beginning of the enrollment experience.

In this step, you will need to complete the following fields before continuing:

First Name
Last Name
Birth Date
SSN
Gender
Marital Status

If your access to these fields requires approval or is set to view only (for example, Edit – Approval Required, View Only, or No Access), this step does not appear. In that case, you will start on the Dependent Information step instead, so you can continue enrollment without updating those fields here.

Once all required information is entered, click Next Step to continue.

If you company has removed any of the above fields from your profile, you will not be asked to complete them.

Keep in mind that changes made to dependent information during enrollment will override any pending information update requests you have submitted for dependent information.

If your employee profile already contains all required data, you will start at the Dependent Information step. This step will populate all dependents who have the Name and Relationship fields completed on your employee profile. Review your dependents' information to make sure it is accurate. If you do not have any dependents associated with your employee profile, you will see a blank state with a note saying you can add a dependent if needed.

Add a new dependent: If you want to add a new dependent, click +Add Dependent. Then, add the dependent's information in any applicable fields in addition to the required fields. Once added, the dependent will also appear on your employee profile.
Edit a dependent: If there are any errors or new informational changes, click on the pencil icon at the right of the dependent's row to make edits.
Delete a dependent: If you need to delete a dependent record, click on the trash icon. If the icon is grayed-out and shows an informational tooltip, you will not be able to delete the dependent because they are either currently enrolled or scheduled to enroll in a benefit plan.
- If you do not want to enroll a dependent in a benefit plan, you will have the option to deselect the dependent when electing benefits in the following steps.
Missing dependent information: If you have a dependent without required fields completed, the system will show an error message. Click on the edit icon for that dependent to resolve the error. Required fields are First Name, Last Name, Birth Date, Gender, and Relationship.

After reviewing your dependents' information, click Next Step to continue enrollment.

If a benefit plan requires information about you or your dependents, you will need to answer a few questions before electing benefits.

As you review your benefit plan options, a blue banner shows your current coverage (if applicable). If you are enrolled in more than one plan under a benefit type, the banner displays how many you have. Select See Details to view a snapshot of your coverage, such as plan name, coverage level, and contribution amounts. You can use that information as a reference when selecting new benefit elections.

Each available benefit type (e.g., medical, dental, vision) shows the plans you are eligible for. Every benefit plan is displayed on its own card, and you can open the details by selecting Show More. Selecting Hide Details brings you back to the previous view. If you want to review everything at once, choose Expand All Plan Details in the top right corner, or choose Collapse All Plan Details to condense the view again. When there are more benefit plans to view under a benefit type, you can click Previous or More Plans to scroll left and right to view the additional plans. Plan details can include the following information:

Plan name
Plan summary
*Plan description
*Cost and frequency: This shows how much you would contribute and how often. Variable rate plans do not include a preview of costs, but you can refer to the benefit pricing materials provided by HR at your company.
*Links: Click on a hyperlink to learn more about the benefit plan.
*File attachments: When you expand a plan card, any attached documents will be available for download.

*Plan description, costs/frequency, links, and file attachments only appear if your HR administrator has added them when setting up the plan.

The system autosaves your progress as you go, and the timestamp in the bottom-right corner shows your most recent save. If you leave the enrollment experience, you will get a message on your homepage confirming everything is saved. When you are ready, select Continue Enrollment from your homepage or Benefits tab (if granted access) to pick up where you left off.

If you want to include coverage for your dependents, check the box next to the dependent's name to include them. The system will filter all benefit plans under the benefit type to show the plans you and your dependents are eligible for. Costs will adjust accordingly based on which coverage level you indicate.

Click Select This Planonce you determine which benefit plan you want to enroll in. The plan card will appear highlighted, and if applicable, it will also show the chosen coverage level. Navigate to the next benefit type by clicking Next Step.

If you wish to review or edit your selections, use Back or Next Step as you navigate through the enrollment experience.
- If you have chosen a plan and want to edit your selection, hover your cursor over the selected plan and click Cancel. Then, select the other benefit plan you want to enroll in.
If you want to waive coverage under a specific benefit type, click Waive Coverage.

Specific benefit types (e.g., Medical) allow you to enroll in only one benefit plan under the benefit type. In this situation, enrolling in a benefit plan will automatically waive all other benefit plans under that benefit type.

A message will appear under a specific plan type if there were any changes made to a plan by an HR admin. Before submitting your benefit elections, be sure to review the changes and ensure you have the correct selections.

Medical, dental, and vision plans

Retirement, Flex Savings Account (FSA), and Health Savings Account (HSA) plans

When choosing a benefit plan under those benefit types, you will need to add your desired contribution amount as a percentage or dollar amount.

Some HSA or FSA plans are dependent on which medical plan you choose.

If you choose a medical plan that is compatible with an HSA or FSA plan, you will be able to select a compatible HSA or FSA plan in another step.
If you choose a medical plan that is not compatible with an HSA or FSA plan, this step will be blank, and you can click Next Stepto continue with enrollment.

Note:If you choose to cancel or waive your HSA- or FSA-compatible medical plan selection, you will see specific messaging that informs you what will happen to your original HSA or FSA election (if the HSA or FSA plan requires enrollment in specific medical plans).

Supplemental health plans

For supplemental health plans, you will need to go plan by plan to enroll in the benefit plan or waive coverage. Only standard rate plans will display costs. You will also need to indicate which dependents need coverage within the coverage dropdown menu. You may notice not all dependents appear in the dropdown menu. This is because your HR administrator determines which dependents are eligible for these plan types, and only those who are eligible will appear.

Disability and life coverage

Some disability and life coverage plans are company-sponsored and will automatically enroll you in these plans as they are at no cost to you! Who does not love free benefits? Depending on how your HR administrator has set up the plan, you may be able to opt out if you wish.

Life coverage

If enrolling in a voluntary life plan, you can use the slider to determine specific coverage amounts for yourself and any eligible dependents you wish to cover. Depending on how your HR admin has set up the plan, you may not have a slider option and instead see text fields where you can enter specific coverage amounts.

If the plan includes guaranteed issue (GI) amounts or coverage increase rules, some coverage elections may require Evidence of Insurability (EOI). If you elect coverage that requires EOI, that portion of your coverage is marked as pending until approved by the insurance carrier.

Click Enroll in Plan and then confirm to save your requested coverage amounts. If you do not wish to enroll in the plan, select Waive Plan. After you submit your elections, you will need to complete a health questionnaire for any coverage that requires EOI, including coverage for yourself and an eligible spouse or domestic partner. The carrier uses this information to review and confirm the additional coverage.

Adding beneficiaries

You may have the option to add beneficiaries if you enroll in a life insurance plan that is set up to collect beneficiary information. Beneficiaries can be dependent or non-dependents. If enrolling in multiple life insurance plans, you can designate the same beneficiaries for all plans or specify a different set of beneficiaries for each plan.

Add Primary Beneficiary: This dropdown menu is auto-populated with all dependents added to your employee profile, and non-dependent beneficiaries added during this step will also show in the menu.
Add Secondary Beneficiary: Once you add at least one primary beneficiary, this secondary beneficiary option will become available.

Both options allow you to create a new beneficiary to add, if needed (see below).

The first field—Type—is where you will need to determine if the beneficiary is an entity (company, charity, trust, etc.) or an individual (person or relative). After selecting one of the two options, proceed to fill out all information regarding the beneficiary and then click Save.

After adding a beneficiary or multiple beneficiaries, you will need to allocate 100% of the benefit.

Enter a number in the Allotment column for a beneficiary. Once the total allocation adds up to 100%, the allocation calculator will turn green to confirm that 100% of the benefit is fully assigned.
To view or edit beneficiary information, simply hover your cursor over the beneficiary's row and click on the eye icon. If the beneficiary is a dependent, you will be redirected to the first step of the enrollment information to make any necessary edits. This helps maintain data accuracy. To remove a beneficiary, click on the trash can icon. You can re-add them from the dropdown menu as long as their information is saved to your Benefits tab.

Once an admin approves your benefit elections, beneficiary information will appear in the Beneficiary table on your Benefits tab. Clicking Edit Beneficiaries will bring up an edit page for you to make any necessary updates.

Disability coverage

A disability plan card has two different views, depending on how your HR administrator has set up the plan.

You may be able to view your calculated per-paycheck rate within the plan card when electing disability coverage.
- Short term disability plans will show the percentage of weekly wages.
- Long term disability plans will show the percentage of monthly wages.

If calculated per-paycheck rates do not appear, please refer to the benefit pricing materials your HR administrator has provided.

Reimbursement and Other plans

The Reimbursement and Other plan types have a simple setup. You can choose to either enroll in a benefit plan or waive the plan.

Enrollment summary

After selecting your benefits, you will need to review your enrollment summary before submitting it for approval.

Dependents	The Dependents section will appear if you have included your dependents. If you need to edit a dependent's information, hover over the dependent and click on the pencil icon.
Plans	The Plans section includes all benefit plans—plans you have elected to enroll in and plans you have chosen to waive. Each elected plan will show the coverage level, cost per paycheck, and when the plan will take effect. Some plans will require your HR administrator to enter in the amount after you submit your benefit elections. In this case, "HR Review" will appear in the You Pay field. If any portion of your elected coverage requires Evidence of Insurability (EOI), the EOI Pending tag will appear. This tag indicates that additional approval from the insurance carrier is required before that coverage becomes effective. If you select coverage above the guaranteed issue (GI) amount, the additional coverage requires EOI and remains pending carrier review. You can hover over highlighted coverage amounts to view how much of your selected coverage is pending EOI. This helps you understand which portion of your total coverage is approved and which portion is still awaiting carrier review.
Estimated Total Cost	This section shows your total estimated per-paycheck cost based on the benefit plans you selected. It includes only employee-paid benefit deductions—not employer-paid amounts or any other payroll deductions outside of Benefits Administration. If any portion of your elected coverage requires Evidence of Insurability (EOI), this section indicates that approval is required before the additional coverage becomes effective.
Confirmation	At the bottom of the enrollment summary, there are two checkboxes—one for acknowledging the accuracy of your benefit elections and the other for signing your elections. All benefit elections will require your e-signature, and once you click on the checkbox to sign your elections, the system will recognize your e-signature as legally binding. You have also the option to review more details about e-signatures in Section 16 ("eSignature Service") of our Terms of Service. Keep in mind that your HR team may use your e-signature on forms that your benefit providers request in completing your enrollment.

If you completed the Missing Personal Information step, your updates are saved to your employee profile once you submit your benefit elections. If there is an issue with your personal information, you may see a message asking you to return to that step and review it before submitting.

User agreements and signatures

If your HR administrator added legal information to a plan you have elected to enroll in, there will be an additional step—User Agreements and Signatures—which is where you can view the legal information and agree to the terms.

If you need to make changes during enrollment, simply click on the Back button until you get to the benefit type you wish to update your plan selection for.

Submit your benefit elections

Ensure all benefit elections are accurate and then click Save & Submit. You will receive a email notification that confirms your submission, and your HR administrator will review your benefit elections.

If your HR admin has edited your selected benefit elections, you will receive an email notification letting you know about your updated benefits. Click Review Updated Benefits to view more information.

Benefits tab

Your Benefits tab is your go-to place for viewing everything related to your benefits. Depending on how your HR administrator has set things up, you may be able to review, edit, and track your benefit elections right from this tab.

Review your pending benefit elections

After you submit your benefit elections, you will notice them listed as pending on your Benefits tab. Click View Pending Elections to open a read-only summary of what you submitted for admin approval.

*If an admin has approved your elections, this button will be grayed-out and no longer accessible.

Also included in the summary is a message letting you know that you will receive an email notification when your elections are approved. If anything needs to be corrected, you can click Edit Elections in the top right corner. The next section walks you through how to make those changes.

Edit your pending benefit elections

While the enrollment window is still open, you can make changes to your submitted benefit elections as needed—until your administrator makes changes to or approves your elections.

You can edit your elections from either location in your employee profile:

Your Benefits tab
The read-only summary page (accessed through View Pending Elections).

Click Edit Elections to reopen the enrollment experience. From there, you can review and update your choices, including dependent details if applicable, and view your estimated total per-paycheck cost.

*If an admin has approved your elections, this button will be grayed-out and no longer accessible.

Your changes will not be saved until you resubmit your elections and sign electronically to confirm them. If you make changes, Once you resubmit, your HR administrator will review your updated elections, and you will receive an automated email notification when your elections are approved. Your Benefits Overview table will also be updated to show the plans you are enrolled in (see below).

Editing benefit elections is available in the BambooHR web app, not mobile app.

Approved benefit elections

Once your HR administrator approves your benefit elections, you will get another email notification notifying you of the approval. You can review information about the benefit plans you are enrolled in.

From your Benefits tab, select the Enrolled filter next to "Showing" and then click on any enrolled benefit plan to review the following details, if applicable:

Plan summary
Enrollment status
Plan description
Deductions
Coverage amounts
Who’s covered
Effective dates
Any attached links or files
Plan details

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