Who is PSN?
Who is the Portability Services Network (PSN)?
To most people, the Portability Services Network (PSN) is not a household name. But chances are that you’ve heard of Alight Solutions, Empower, Fidelity Investments, Principal, TIAA or The Vanguard Group. From October 2022 to June 2023, these companies, along with Retirement Clearinghouse (RCH), launched the PSN, serving retirement plans with 71 million workers across more than 143,000 employer-sponsored retirement plans.
While these organizations are the initial, founding members it’s expected that more retirement plan administrators & recordkeepers will join PSN. For a list of all PSN members, click here.
What Does the PSN Do?
The sole purpose of PSN is to act as a retirement industry-led “utility” to support auto portability, a technology developed by Retirement Clearinghouse that automatically transfers small-balance (<$5,000, increasing to $7,000 effective 12/31/23) retirement savings left behind at a former employer, into a current employer’s plan.
Auto portability, via the PSN network, seeks to automatically locate, match and transfer small balances left behind in previous employer plans, and transfer them to current employer plans, savings plan participants time & money.
Received a Letter from PSN?
If you have a 401(k) (or other defined contribution) savings account that you left in a previous employer’s plan, then you could receive communication from PSN, informing you about how we may help move your retirement savings forward to your current employer’s retirement plan.
This communication can include:
- A PSN consent letter, asking for your consent to to move your funds to your new employer’s plan. It also provides you a means to opt-out of the process altogether, if you choose.
- A PSN transfer notice, informing you that the funds movement of your former employer’s account has occurred
If you choose not to opt-out of the auto portability process, relax. You can do nothing and still have your funds move to your new employer’s plan automatically.
