Getting your plan off to the right start

Welcome. We’re here to help.

Offering health accounts to your employees is a great benefit. Helping them make the most of their benefits is just as important.
That’s where we can help. These resources help you prepare for open enrollment and transferring your employees’ HSAs.

Open enrollment

Optum Financial offers a suite of educational resources to help increase health account enrollment and employee engagement.

These are designed to integrate with a benefit fair that your company can run for your employees or with a third-party vendor.

Browse the site or skim through our Frequently Used Resources Guide to see what meets your needs.

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Setting up your plan?

New clients often schedule open enrollment at the same time they set up their plan at Optum Financial.

To help ensure a seamless experience when setting up your plan, see our HSA Employer Administration Guide.

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Transfer HSAs

After you set up your plan and employee contributions begin, you can transfer your employees’ existing HSA balances to Optum Financial in one of two ways:

With this method, employees take charge of transferring their existing HSA funds to Optum Financial.
We guide them with easy steps to follow here. Simply forward the link to your employees to let them know they can consolidate their accounts in one easy-to-manage HSA with Optum Financial.
Note: if your employees have multiple HSAs from prior plans or employers, they can use the same steps above to transfer those. Having all HSA funds in one place can make it easier for them to manage their money.

Transfer tip

To help transfers go smoothly, make sure you communicate clearly with employees. Here is a sample communication that you may edit and send.

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A bulk transfer is typically used for employers who have 200 or more HSAs to transfer, depending on whether the resigning provider can support it.
With this method, employers take charge of transferring employees’ HSAs to Optum Financial.
All employee HSAs are transferred electronically as a group from your prior HSA provider to Optum Financial.
You need to obtain employee consent for the transfer, as these accounts are registered in their name.
Timing can vary depending on the schedule discussed with your current HSA provider.
If you are interested in a bulk transfer, please contact your current HSA provider to see if you qualify.

Transfer FAQs

Frequently asked questions

Contact your prior HSA provider and ask if they would support a bulk transfer for a group of your size. If they do, reach out to your Optum Financial support representative to help facilitate the process, or email us: HSAGroup@OptumBank.com.

Note: Please contact your prior HSA provider before starting the bulk transfer process and communicating your transfer plans to employees.

It’s generally easier for you and for them, though there are some considerations. Your employees will have a more cohesive benefits experience with all of their accounts in one place, and you are better equipped to support your employees’ HSA questions and needs. Consolidating HSAs can also potentially enable employees to meet the minimum investment threshold if they choose to start investing their HSA funds.

Employees should also keep in mind that if they don’t transfer their prior HSA, their existing provider may charge them a monthly maintenance fee to keep their account open if their balance is over $0.

Employees must have an active account at Optum Financial to accept money from an HSA transfer. If your employees are completing an individual transfer form, please make sure they review the information and tips on our individual transfers resource page. Most importantly, they need to fill out the form completely, including a handwritten signature, and send it to their prior HSA provider (not Optum Financial) for processing.

Your employees’ investments will not transfer in-kind to Optum Financial due to varying investment lineups. They will need to liquidate their investments to cash before transferring their HSA to Optum Financial. Employees should also be sure to turn off any automatic investments in their current HSA to avoid re-investment of funds in their account. Contact your prior HSA provider with questions.

Please have your employees check with their current HSA provider as fees to transfer may apply. Optum Financial does not charge a fee to set up an HSA or transfer HSA funds to us. Please keep in mind that the prior provider may also charge a monthly maintenance fee to keep the account open if the employee chooses not to transfer their HSA.

Getting your plan off to the right start

Welcome. We’re here to help.

Open enrollment

Setting up your plan?

Transfer HSAs

Individual transfer

Transfer tip

Bulk transfer

Transfer FAQs

Frequently asked questions

When should HSA transfers take place relative to setting up my plan with Optum Financial?

If my organization wants to do a bulk transfer, what do I do next?

How long does it take to do a bulk transfer?

Should I encourage my employees to transfer their current HSA balances to Optum Financial?

How long does it take for my employees to do an individual transfer?

What are some tips to ensure individual transfers go smoothly?

What about employees who have HSA investments? Do they transfer too?

Are there any fees for my employees to transfer or close their accounts?

Will my employee receive two tax forms if the HSA transfer happens mid-year?