Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

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Fortune
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Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by Fortune »

hi all
Currently I have employer sponsored HSA account with Bank of America.
I am looking to transfer existing fund balances to Fidelity HSA.
As my employer continues contributions and BoA needs a minimum amount in HSA, I want to transfer the remaining amounts.
I want to transfer funds once in a quarter in future.
Any suggestions to avoid BoA fees.

Thanks
nolesrule
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by nolesrule »

Is there a specific reason? We have my wife's employer-sponsored HSA at BoA and while the investment choices are limited, the lineup has some good options that work within our portfolio, so we haven't bothered moving anything.
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Fortune
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by Fortune »

nolesrule wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 8:04 am Is there a specific reason? We have my wife's employer-sponsored HSA at BoA and while the investment choices are limited, the lineup has some good options that work within our portfolio, so we haven't bothered moving anything.
Better options @ Fidelity
UNCHEEL
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by UNCHEEL »

I have my HSA at Fidelity and it works fine with a broad set of investment options. There is a fee at Fidelity for having a HSA account, unless your company has its plan there, or you have at minimum level of investment across your Fidelity accounts. As I recall, the minimum investment is $250k and the quarterly fee (if you don't meet the minimum) is $12.50.

As a side note, as you probably know, there's no limit on when you use your HSA funds - AND - no limit on when you claim the expenses for withdrawal. If you're in a position to cover medical expenses out of pocket in the short run, your HSA can continue to growth triple tax free. Just keep you records in the meantime.
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anon_investor
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by anon_investor »

UNCHEEL wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 5:29 pm I have my HSA at Fidelity and it works fine with a broad set of investment options. There is a fee at Fidelity for having a HSA account, unless your company has its plan there, or you have at minimum level of investment across your Fidelity accounts. As I recall, the minimum investment is $250k and the quarterly fee (if you don't meet the minimum) is $12.50.

As a side note, as you probably know, there's no limit on when you use your HSA funds - AND - no limit on when you claim the expenses for withdrawal. If you're in a position to cover medical expenses out of pocket in the short run, your HSA can continue to growth triple tax free. Just keep you records in the meantime.
A Fidelity HSA has 0 fees:
https://www.fidelity.com/go/hsa/faqs
nolesrule
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by nolesrule »

Fortune wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 4:57 pm
nolesrule wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 8:04 am Is there a specific reason? We have my wife's employer-sponsored HSA at BoA and while the investment choices are limited, the lineup has some good options that work within our portfolio, so we haven't bothered moving anything.
Better options @ Fidelity
Sure. And that's valid. But the options in the BoA HSA lineup while not absolutely perfect are more than sufficient for a general Boglehead portfolio. It's possible there are fees that are paid by my wife's employer but not by OP's and are pro-rated by balance? I'm curious which is why I'm asking.
MrJedi
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by MrJedi »

My employer sponsored BoA HSA has all the popular Vanguard mutual funds available. VTSAX, VTIAX, VTWAX, VBTLX, target date funds, etc. I've always wondered if this varied across other employers who use BoA HSA.

I don't love the BoA interface and trades/exchanges seem to take extra days to execute, but I can live with that rather than the hassle of constantly rolling it out. I have a small $500 cash minimum for investment (recently lowered from $1000), which is annoying but small enough for me to ignore.
m0derton
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by m0derton »

My employer also uses Bank of America HSA, but I chose to transfer it to Fidelity last year. It took approximately 2 weeks or so for the transfer to complete each time. I now contribute solely to the Fidelity account so that the funds are immediately available to invest. I pay a little more in FICA taxes each year, but every little bit helps since I'm still below the 2nd SS bend point.
MrJedi wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 8:43 pm My employer sponsored BoA HSA has all the popular Vanguard mutual funds available. VTSAX, VTIAX, VTWAX, VBTLX, target date funds, etc. I've always wondered if this varied across other employers who use BoA HSA.
For what it's worth, my BoA HSA only had VTWAX and none of the others.
criticalmass
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by criticalmass »

UNCHEEL wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 5:29 pm I have my HSA at Fidelity and it works fine with a broad set of investment options. There is a fee at Fidelity for having a HSA account, unless your company has its plan there, or you have at minimum level of investment across your Fidelity accounts. As I recall, the minimum investment is $250k and the quarterly fee (if you don't meet the minimum) is $12.50.
Where did you find an HSA fee at Fidelity? I only have a small amount in an HSA there (to prepare for a transfer that I haven't done to date for unrelated reasons), but Fidelity has never charged a fee in the many years I've held the account.
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Fortune
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by Fortune »

m0derton wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 8:51 pm My employer also uses Bank of America HSA, but I chose to transfer it to Fidelity last year. It took approximately 2 weeks or so for the transfer to complete each time. I now contribute solely to the Fidelity account so that the funds are immediately available to invest. I pay a little more in FICA taxes each year, but every little bit helps since I'm still below the 2nd SS bend point.
MrJedi wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 8:43 pm My employer sponsored BoA HSA has all the popular Vanguard mutual funds available. VTSAX, VTIAX, VTWAX, VBTLX, target date funds, etc. I've always wondered if this varied across other employers who use BoA HSA.
For what it's worth, my BoA HSA only had VTWAX and none of the others.
How did/do you transfer from BoA to Fidelity lumpsum and per pay check.
Are there any charges.

thanks
nolesrule
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by nolesrule »

It's become apparent from the comments that the BoA HSA fund lineups can be different.

Ours has Vanguard LifeStrategy, TDFs, Total World and TIPS. iShares for S&P500, Russell 2000, MSCI Total International, and Total Bond.
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Fortune
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by Fortune »

nolesrule wrote: Thu Jan 20, 2022 7:12 am It's become apparent from the comments that the BoA HSA fund lineups can be different.
Ours has Vanguard LifeStrategy, TDFs, Total World and TIPS. iShares for S&P500, Russell 2000, MSCI Total International, and Total Bond.
Yes, the funds offered are selected in consultation with employer.
m0derton
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by m0derton »

Fortune wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 10:04 pm How did/do you transfer from BoA to Fidelity lumpsum and per pay check.
Are there any charges.

thanks
I linked a bank to Fidelity and manually move money there when I want to contribute now, the same as you would with an IRA contribution. I made this year's contribution in a lump sum, rather than through 26 pay periods throughout the year. If your company is not set up for Fidelity to be your HSA provider through payroll, then you can't avoid FICA taxes from being taken out if you manually contribute to another HSA provider. If you're above the SS threshold for the year, then it's approx $53 this year due to the 1.45% Medicare contribution or approx $83 if the 0.9% surcharge applies to you. If you're below the SS threshold for the year, then it's approx $280 this year for the full 7.65%. You can think of these as "fees" for the simplicity of choosing to use Fidelity, or you can continue to contribute to the BoA HSA through payroll and periodically transfer to Fidelity.

I initiated the transfer through Fidelity's portal. It asked me a few questions such as the institution, account number, and amount to transfer. BoA HSA would not transfer my holdings in kind, so they sold and transferred cash. As a result, I was out of the market for 2 weeks for each of those transfers. I don't recall there being any fees, but Fidelity may reimburse them if you contact their customer service and meet certain requirements.
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Fortune
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by Fortune »

[/quote]
I linked a bank to Fidelity and manually move money there when I want to contribute now, the same as you would with an IRA contribution. I made this year's contribution in a lump sum, rather than through 26 pay periods throughout the year. If your company is not set up for Fidelity to be your HSA provider through payroll, then you can't avoid FICA taxes from being taken out if you manually contribute to another HSA provider. If you're above the SS threshold for the year, then it's approx $53 this year due to the 1.45% Medicare contribution or approx $83 if the 0.9% surcharge applies to you. If you're below the SS threshold for the year, then it's approx $280 this year for the full 7.65%. You can think of these as "fees" for the simplicity of choosing to use Fidelity, or you can continue to contribute to the BoA HSA through payroll and periodically transfer to Fidelity.

I initiated the transfer through Fidelity's portal. It asked me a few questions such as the institution, account number, and amount to transfer. BoA HSA would not transfer my holdings in kind, so they sold and transferred cash. As a result, I was out of the market for 2 weeks for each of those transfers. I don't recall there being any fees, but Fidelity may reimburse them if you contact their customer service and meet certain requirements.
[/quote]
Appreciate the inputs you have provided. As my employer will continue BoA HSA, I will attempt transfer from Fidelity portal. Thanks
UNCHEEL
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by UNCHEEL »

criticalmass wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 9:24 pm
UNCHEEL wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 5:29 pm I have my HSA at Fidelity and it works fine with a broad set of investment options. There is a fee at Fidelity for having a HSA account, unless your company has its plan there, or you have at minimum level of investment across your Fidelity accounts. As I recall, the minimum investment is $250k and the quarterly fee (if you don't meet the minimum) is $12.50.
Where did you find an HSA fee at Fidelity? I only have a small amount in an HSA there (to prepare for a transfer that I haven't done to date for unrelated reasons), but Fidelity has never charged a fee in the many years I've held the account.
If Fidelity manages HSA's for your company, the fees are probably waived. The $250k exclusion is for balances in any (all?) accounts at Fidelity.
criticalmass
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by criticalmass »

UNCHEEL wrote: Tue Feb 01, 2022 7:30 pm If Fidelity manages HSA's for your company, the fees are probably waived. The $250k exclusion is for balances in any (all?) accounts at Fidelity.
Not sure what you are talking about. Fidelity does not charge fees for HSA. That's why so many of us opened HSA at Fidelity. This has nothing to do with employer sponsored accounts---everyone can open their own individual HSA at Fidelity and enjoy no fees.
UNCHEEL
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Re: Transfer current employer Bank of America HSA to Fidelity

Post by UNCHEEL »

From Fidelity's website:

"If you have a Fidelity HSA® through your employer, your account may be charged an administrative fee of up to $12 per quarter ($48 annually), unless it’s paid by your employer. That administrative fee may be waived for households established before a certain date and meeting certain asset minimums at Fidelity."
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