This change only impacts select Forma members. All members impacted will be notified directly via email about account changes. If you have not been notified, then this change does not impact your account.
Below is a detailed description of the end-to-end experience an HSA member can expect during Forma’s banking migration. Please note many steps do not involve actions on behalf of the HSA member – we are providing this information for full context and reference.
If you have an active HSA account:
- You will first receive an email on October 21, 2024 announcing the bank migration changes. In the email, we’ll preview any changes to your benefit accounts, ask you to verify your address by EOD November 6, 2024, and share how we will facilitate the migration. There will be clear guidance on the deadline for taking action and what to expect.
- On November 14, you will receive an email with a link to agree to Forma’s new banking partner Thread Bank. You can see an overview of the steps you'll need to take in this article.
- On November 15, you will receive an account closure notification that says, in 30 days, your old HSA account with Blue Ridge Bank will be closed on November 25, whether you agree to the new banking partner or not.
- The deadline to take action is EOD December 15. Before then, you will receive weekly reminder emails if you haven’t agreed to Forma’s new partnership. There is also a guided in-app experience to help with this process.
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Up until December 15, all HSA functionalities remain the same as before. HSA members and their dependents can swipe their existing pre-tax card and get reimbursed.
- So long as you, as an HSA member, agree to Thread Bank, you will stay invested in the funds you're already invested in.
- Throughout the migration process, you will see a central hub to track your status in the Forma platform directly.
- Starting on December 12 through January 15, 2025, HSA members will be unable to buy or sell investments. Existing investments will not be impacted. After January 15, the experience to buy and sell investments will continue exactly the same as before.
- You and your dependents with an existing active pre-tax card will get a replacement card. New pre-tax cards will arrive approximately 3-4 weeks after you sign the agreement. You should only activate the cards on or after December 19 when Forma has transferred funds to Thread Bank.
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On December 16, all HSA bank accounts with Blue Ridge Bank will be closed, and fund transfers to Thread Bank will begin.
- Beginning December 12 to December 18, HSA members will be unable to reimburse themselves via the “Reimburse myself” feature.
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There will be a short 3-day blackout period between December 16 and December 18 where you:
- Will have limited HSA access to individual contributions, withdrawing excess contributions, and initiating individual transfers.
- Will not be able to use your Forma pre-tax card since funds will be in transit from Blue Ridge Bank to Thread Bank.
- Will experience a delay with your non-HSA claims reimbursement as funds transfer, though you will still be able to submit new non-HSA claims during this 3-day window.
- In addition, if you agree to Forma’s new banking partner close to December 15, you will have a 3-4 week pre-tax card downtime until your new pre-tax card arrives. You will still be able to continue with claims reimbursement during this period.
- On December 19, the migration will be complete. You will receive a confirmation email.
- Starting on December 19, you can review your new HSA bank account within the Forma platform. You can check that the full balance has been transferred. You can activate the new debit card and start using it. If you plan to make an individual contribution, you will use your updated routing number.
If you have an active HSA and do not sign the agreement by the December 15 EOD deadline, here is what will happen:
- Your existing HSA bank account will be closed on December 16.
- You will receive a check for your remaining balance.
- If you have an HSA brokerage account, you'll need to log on to Forma to liquidate the remaining equities and provide an external account for Forma to deposit funds to.
- To avoid any tax penalties, you should deposit this fund into a new HSA within 60 days of receiving the funds.
- You can still access Forma for HSA tax documents.
Finally, if you join after November 6 and have elected an HSA, you will automatically be onboarded to Thread Bank and will not go through the migration process.