Public Service Announcement: TSP.gov downtime
Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2022 1:38 pm
I just received the below email from TSP. It concerns a move to a new service provider at the end of May. It appears that one side effect of the transition will be the inability to conduct IFTs on your accounts.
____________________________________________________________
Dear Participant:
In order to add exciting new features to your TSP experience, we’re transitioning administrative services to a new service provider later this year. You need to know how this transition might affect you, especially if you were planning to request a transaction soon. Be sure to visit our website to see key transition dates when we’ll need to temporarily suspend certain transactions and services. Planned downtime like this is typical of major, complex processes, and you may remember a similar situation when we added flexible withdrawal options in 2019.
We expect to complete the transition the first week of June. You’ll still have access to the same low-cost TSP funds, account management tools, and participant services you enjoy now. You’ll also be able to use new features that give you more choices, more layers of security, and more efficient ways to manage your retirement income with us.
You can find a list of transition dates on our website, which vary by transaction or service. Some key transactions will be temporarily unavailable beginning Monday, May 16. These include submitting a request for a loan, withdrawal, or distribution from your TSP account. All transactions and services, including My Account and the ThriftLine, will be temporarily unavailable after Thursday, May 26, and until the first week of June, when the transition period ends.
Rest assured that during this transition period, your money will remain invested in the TSP funds you’ve chosen. There will be a short period—beginning at noon eastern time on Thursday, May 26, and ending the first week of June—when we’ll need to suspend changes to TSP investments. This means that your TSP investments will still be subject to market gains and losses during this brief period, and you won’t be able to make changes until after the transition to the new service provider.
When the transition period ends the first week of June, you’ll have several options for accessing and managing your TSP account. Your main source for account details and transaction requests continues to be My Account—with a new look and feel, new tools, and more ways to connect with us through live chat and virtual assistance. You’ll also be able to download an official TSP Mobile App with the option to use your device biometrics, such as fingerprint or facial recognition, to secure and access your account. When our mobile app becomes available, we’ll post links on our website so you can be confident about downloading the one that’s from the TSP.
When you access your account for the first time after the transition, you’ll need to set up new login credentials. Step-by-step prompts will make it simple for you to verify your identity, update your contact information, and set up your account security. Every TSP participant will need to go through this setup process whether or not you’ve set up online access previously. Setting up this access is critical to ensuring that you receive TSP communications about your account and account transactions.
__________________________________________________________
I advise everybody to plan accordingly. I'm sure that this will affect more than one seasonal strategy.
____________________________________________________________
Dear Participant:
In order to add exciting new features to your TSP experience, we’re transitioning administrative services to a new service provider later this year. You need to know how this transition might affect you, especially if you were planning to request a transaction soon. Be sure to visit our website to see key transition dates when we’ll need to temporarily suspend certain transactions and services. Planned downtime like this is typical of major, complex processes, and you may remember a similar situation when we added flexible withdrawal options in 2019.
We expect to complete the transition the first week of June. You’ll still have access to the same low-cost TSP funds, account management tools, and participant services you enjoy now. You’ll also be able to use new features that give you more choices, more layers of security, and more efficient ways to manage your retirement income with us.
You can find a list of transition dates on our website, which vary by transaction or service. Some key transactions will be temporarily unavailable beginning Monday, May 16. These include submitting a request for a loan, withdrawal, or distribution from your TSP account. All transactions and services, including My Account and the ThriftLine, will be temporarily unavailable after Thursday, May 26, and until the first week of June, when the transition period ends.
Rest assured that during this transition period, your money will remain invested in the TSP funds you’ve chosen. There will be a short period—beginning at noon eastern time on Thursday, May 26, and ending the first week of June—when we’ll need to suspend changes to TSP investments. This means that your TSP investments will still be subject to market gains and losses during this brief period, and you won’t be able to make changes until after the transition to the new service provider.
When the transition period ends the first week of June, you’ll have several options for accessing and managing your TSP account. Your main source for account details and transaction requests continues to be My Account—with a new look and feel, new tools, and more ways to connect with us through live chat and virtual assistance. You’ll also be able to download an official TSP Mobile App with the option to use your device biometrics, such as fingerprint or facial recognition, to secure and access your account. When our mobile app becomes available, we’ll post links on our website so you can be confident about downloading the one that’s from the TSP.
When you access your account for the first time after the transition, you’ll need to set up new login credentials. Step-by-step prompts will make it simple for you to verify your identity, update your contact information, and set up your account security. Every TSP participant will need to go through this setup process whether or not you’ve set up online access previously. Setting up this access is critical to ensuring that you receive TSP communications about your account and account transactions.
__________________________________________________________
I advise everybody to plan accordingly. I'm sure that this will affect more than one seasonal strategy.