Benefits

UWRP/VIP vendor change overview

Page last updated: October 10, 2025

Changes take effect January 1, 2026

The University of Washington is making important updates to the UW Retirement Plan (UWRP) and the Voluntary Investment Program (VIP) to simplify retirement savings, reduce fees, and improve your participant experience.

The plan changes were approved by the UW Board of Regents in May 2025 and align with evolving federal regulations under the SECURE Act 2.0. They are based on a comprehensive review of plan administration, vendor performance, costs, and feedback from UW program participants. The UW Provost is responsible for approving the vendor selected as master recordkeeper for the plans.

What’s changing

One vendor: TIAA
All UWRP and VIP accounts will be moved to TIAA, replacing the current dual-vendor setup (TIAA and Fidelity). This change means:

  • One login for all your UW retirement accounts
  • Centralized customer support
  • Consistent participant experience

Lower Fees
Fees for most participants will drop significantly.

  • Participants currently using both TIAA and Fidelity: from over $100/year to ~$23/year
  • Fidelity-only participants: from $45/year to ~$23/year

New loan and withdrawal options
Starting in 2026:

  • UWRP participants will be able to take out loans for the first time
  • Expanded options for withdrawals (e.g., for in-service, hardship, birth/adoption, domestic abuse, or federally declared disasters)

Mandatory 10% UWRP contribution at age 50
If you’re a UWRP participant and currently contributing 7.5% at age 50 or older, your contribution and your UW match will increase to 10% beginning with the paycheck you receive on January 9, 2026. (You’ll receive direct notice if this applies to you.)

No more optional period for new participants
The two-year optional period for UWRP contributions and UW matching is being eliminated. Eligible employees will now begin receiving contributions immediately upon plan enrollment. Those currently in the optional period will see UWRP contributions begin on the January 9, 2026 paycheck.

VIP Enrollment and Contribution Rate Changes
VIP enrollment and contribution management will move into Workday allowing for a more streamlined user experience.

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Why it’s changing

These updates are designed to:

  • Simplify plan administration
  • Reduce participant costs
  • Strengthen security and oversight
  • Improve service and access to retirement resources
  • Align with federal legislation and industry best practices

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About TIAA

TIAA, which stands for Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association, is a financial services organization that provides retirement products and services for people working in the academic, research, medical, and cultural fields. With no public shareholders—and a charter that requires it to operate without profit—TIAA is uniquely able to return profits to participants* and reinvest in its business for future sharing. The UW and TIAA have partnered for 86 years—this move will serve to deepen that relationship.

With over 100 years of experience in the industry, TIAA has established itself as a trusted provider of retirement solutions, dedicated to helping you to and through retirement. TIAA’s fully licensed financial consultants are here to offer you individualized advice to help you reach your personal retirement goals. So whether you’re looking for guaranteed income through annuities, investment options with mutual funds, or prefer to manage your own investments through a brokerage account, TIAA has options to help you plan for a secure financial future.

* TIAA may share profits with Traditional Retirement annuity owners through declared additional amounts of interest and through increases in annuity income throughout retirement. Additional amounts are on TIAA Traditional annuity contracts available within an employer-sponsored plan. Additional amounts may be increased the longer accumulation occurs before annuitization. These additional amounts are discretionary, and are not guaranteed.

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What you need to do

We’ll guide you every step of the way:

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Timeline

  • June 2025: Initial communications begin
  • August – September 2025: Presentations at department townhalls and all hands
  • October – December 2025: Education and support sessions (details coming soon!)
  • January 2026: Existing funds and accounts are moved to TIAA; new plan provisions take effect.

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FAQs

TIAA was chosen by the UW for its commitment to lifetime income and a secure retirement for all, its strong reputation in higher education and its ability to provide plan education, excellent customer service, personalized financial advice and modern digital tools. This change will also reduce the amount you pay as a plan participant, meaning more money goes into your savings.

By offering only TIAA as an investment provider on the plans, the UW will be able to offer:

  • Consistent participant service across all groups.
  • Technology platform enhancements driven by TIAA’s partnership with Accenture.
  • Stronger compliance support to keep pace with changing federal laws.
  • Simplified plan administration and oversight.

Your investments will stay the same. The UW sets the investment menu, and those same funds will continue to be available after TIAA becomes the recordkeeper. You can view the current UW investment offerings on Fidelity’s site. TIAA’s role is to provide account access and track participant information. When your investments transfer from Fidelity to TIAA, they will remain continuously invested, with no out-of-market period.

Brokerage investments will transfer in much the same way as other investments, with no out-of-market time. There are some current options that may be unavailable on TIAA’s brokerage platform. If you are invested in brokerage, you will receive separate communication later this fall with additional details and options available to you.

Other changes that will be effective in January 2026 include:

  • Offering loans on UWRP for the first time.
  • Expanding withdrawal options in both UWRP and VIP.
  • Eliminating the optional two-year waiting period for new participants.
  • Making 10% UWRP contributions at age 50 mandatory.

All participants with a balance in the UW Retirement Plan (UWRP) and/or Voluntary Investment Program (VIP) were issued new TIAA accounts the week of October 20, 2025, even if you already had an account(s) at TIAA. If you have balances in both plans, you were issued one account per plan. TIAA sent you a Welcome Kit with additional information.

Welcome Kits contain information about each new TIAA account created. If you were issued two accounts, you were sent two separate kits. You can find the following information in each kit:

  • Confirmation that you have been issued a new TIAA account
  • Account number
  • Asset allocations on file from Fidelity.
    • The investments you are currently investing in.
    • These are the investments your balances will transfer into when they come to TIAA (no change)
  • Beneficiary designations on file from Fidelity, now on your new TIAA account.
  • Instructions on how to access your TIAA account online
  • TIAA resources and information on events to learn more

Welcome Kits are issued as accounts are created, and most should be received by the first week of November. You can expect to receive your kit from TIAA directly to your home address on file.

Your current beneficiary designation(s) at Fidelity will be applied to your new account(s). If you have accounts at both Fidelity and TIAA, your Fidelity beneficiary designation(s) will be applied to your new TIAA account(s). If you only have TIAA accounts, your current beneficiary designation(s) with TIAA will be applied to your new account(s). Be sure to review your designations and make any necessary updates once your new account(s) has been issued.

Now that you have been issued your new TIAA account(s), you can:

  • Register at tiaa.org/create for online access to your new account(s). With this access, you will be able to:
    • Verify or update your beneficiaries
    • Update your future investment elections to begin in January 2026
    • Choose eDelivery for communications from TIAA
  • Download the TIAA mobile app from the App Store or Google Play for account access on the go.
  • If you prefer to speak with a consultant for help with your account, call TIAA at 800-842-2252.

TIAA’s digital experience makes it easy to view and manage your UW Retirement Plan (UWRP) and Voluntary Investment Program (VIP) accounts in one place. The platform features stronger cybersecurity, simpler navigation, and personalized tools for tracking your progress toward retirement goals. In 2025, TIAA is also moving to a passwordless sign-in process to make account access more secure and convenient.

Learn more in TIAA’s digital transformation overview (PDF).

You were issued a new TIAA brokerage account(s) during the week of October 20, 2025. Beginning January 9, 2026, your current Fidelity brokerage account balance(s) will be automatically transferred to your new TIAA brokerage account(s). The balances will be transferred in-kind to the same investments, if available, with no out-of-market time.

If you have a brokerage account, you must access your new TIAA brokerage account(s) at tiaa.org to make your brokerage investment selections for your contributions that will begin in January. If you make no brokerage investment choices, your contributions withing your brokerage account will be directed to the Federated Hermes Trust for U.S. Treasury Obligations Cash II Fund (TTIXX) beginning in January.

Please note: Any investment choices you select will become effective with the first paycheck in January and will not impact how your balances are transferred from Fidelity.

If you are invested in brokerage, a separate communication with additional details was mailed on October 10 from TIAA to your home mailing address on record with Fidelity.

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Participant updates

The following messages were shared with UWRP and/or VIP plan participants:

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Stay informed

Visit this page regularly for updates. Information about the transition period and opportunities to join in-person or online information sessions are coming soon.

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Questions?

Contact UWSupport@tiaa.org for investment advice or guidance on how to navigate this change. TIAA’s financial consultants are available to you for:

  • Education around UWRP and VIP options and provisions
  • Investment allocation review and recommendations
  • Enrollment, contribution, and online access support
  • Retirement income planning
  • Market and investment outlook
  • Debt management

All the financial consultants hold their FINRA Series 7 and 63 Licenses as well as WA Life and Health Insurance Licenses to enable them to discuss a wide range of financial topics beyond retirement planning.

Have questions about the decision or process to change vendors, email benefits@uw.edu.

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