Frequently asked questions.

For now, it's business as usual at TD Ameritrade Institutional. Your relationship with your independent investment advisor will not change and you do not need to take any action. 

To ensure we have time to build the best experience possible, we expect account transition to be completed by the end of 2023 for your advised accounts.   

Until then, Schwab and TD Ameritrade Institutional will continue to operate as two separate broker-dealers.  

You and your advisor will be notified well in advance of any changes along the way. 

During your transition weekend, all your assets (cash and positions) and most of your settings, instructions, and preferences will move to Schwab automatically and securely.  

We will be transitioning TD Ameritrade accounts to Schwab over multiple weekends in 2023. We will attempt to transition all your accounts over the same weekend, but they may transition at different times.

Schwab automatically groups accounts with the same owner together. That means that, after the transition, you will be able to see accounts managed by your advisor and accounts you manage on your own all in one place and you will be able to access them with one login.

These FAQs are about your TD Ameritrade Institutional accounts. For more information about your TD Ameritrade accounts that you manage directly, go here.

You should continue doing what you do today with your Schwab accounts and your TD Ameritrade Institutional accounts. Your relationship with your advisor will remain the same.

About 28 days before your transition date, you will receive a notice with important information about your TD Ameritrade Institutional accounts that are transferring to Schwab.

After your account(s) transition to Schwab, your TD Ameritrade Institutional accounts will appear on the Accounts Summary page with your other Schwab account(s). You'll use your existing Schwab Login ID and password to access your Schwab accounts across Schwab platforms.

All of your account information will be available on Schwab Alliance, our customized website and mobile platform that you can use to work easily and securely with your independent investment advisor and Schwab.

You can manage your paperless preferences, deposit checks, approve transfers of funds and more with the confidence of knowing there are security protections that keep your information and assets safe.  

For more information, check out the Schwab Alliance tab on this site or read this helpful guide.

Yes. We will automatically transition your TD Ameritrade Institutional accounts to Schwab accounts, and you will receive a new eight-digit Schwab account number to replace each TD Ameritrade nine-digit account number.  

You'll see your new account number(s) after your account transitions, when you log in to Schwab Alliance.  

You'll also receive a package in the mail or email with important account information prior to your transition weekend. Please watch for it.

Please note that if you've provided your TD Ameritrade Institutional account number(s) to an employer, bank, or other third party for the purposes of moving money in and out of your account, you'll need to reestablish those instructions with your new Schwab account number(s) after your account transition is complete. 

If you have questions about the transition or your TD Ameritrade Institutional accounts, contact your independent investment advisor. 

No. Access to your TD Ameritrade Institutional account will no longer be available starting at 8:30 p.m. ET on the Friday before your transition weekend.

During this time, you will not be able to log in to TD Ameritrade or Schwab and will not be able to see your account.

Starting at 5 a.m. ET on the day your transition is complete, you can log in to Schwab to access your account.

There are some steps you can take before and after the transition to improve your experience at Schwab.  We encourage you to set up credentials on AdvisorClient^®, confirm your profile information is up to date, and set up your paperless preference in advance of the transition. If you ever need to make any updates to your profile or change your mind about your paperless preference, you will be able to make changes after the transition.   

We will automatically schedule your account to move to Schwab, but to access it afterwards, you must create a Schwab login.

We encourage to log into your TD Ameritrade account to confirm that your current contact information, mailing/physical address, and beneficiaries are accurate to help ensure we have the most up-to-date information on file.   

We will send a letter with details about how to set up your Schwab credentials and other important information about one month before your transition date. If you already have a Schwab account, you will skip this step and use your existing login.  

Yes, we will transition 10 years of history to Schwab. You will be able to access the following directly on Schwab Alliance: 

• 4 years of account history 
• 10 years of account statements 
• 7 years of tax documents¹ 
• 2 years of trade confirmations¹ 

Your advisor will also have access to this information.

Yes. Post-transition, unrealized gain/loss history will be integrated into Schwab, and you will have access to the existing cost-basis calculator. Your advisor also will have access to this information.

If you're familiar with GainsKeeper, you will still have access via Schwab Alliance where you will be able to access your realized gain/loss history.

If you have activity in your account, you will receive two sets of tax documents for tax year 2023, one set from TD Ameritrade and one set from Schwab. 

If you have a retirement account, you will receive a 1099R for distributions and you may receive a Form 5498, depending on when you contributed to your account. 

You will receive two statements following your transition—one will reflect your TD Ameritrade account (which will show a zero balance and no positions) and one that will reflect your new account with Schwab with all your positions and balances. 

You may continue to receive two statements over the next few months if there is any residual activity in your TD Ameritrade account, such as dividend or interest payments. 

Yes. We will transition 10 years of account history and seven years of tax documents to Schwab. You will be able to access this information on Schwab Alliance.¹

Your advisor will also have access to this information.

Yes. Your RMD history will be available to you on statements. You can access 10 years of TD Ameritrade statements on Schwab Alliance. 

Your advisor will also have access to this information.

Yes. Your preference for paperless delivery will remain.  

If you're not currently receiving electronic statements and would like to, you can update your preference prior to the transition on AdvisorClient. To improve your experience at Schwab, we encourage you to sign up for paperless delivery.

If you change your mind about your paperless preference, you will be able to make changes on Schwab Alliance after the transition.   

Your investments, cash balances, preferences, and account information will transition seamlessly to Schwab over your transition weekend. 

This includes: 

• Bank and wire connections used within the past three years 
• Authorizations you granted your advisor 
• Beneficiaries
• Trusted contacts 
• Dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP) instructions² 
• Margin, portfolio margin, and options futures 
• Realized gains and losses 
• Transaction history 
• Statements, confirmations, and tax forms 
• Watchlists 

There are some things you will need to reestablish or review after your account is ready at Schwab.

• Because you will have a new account number, you will need to update direct deposits or payments (such as paychecks, Social Security checks, or other payments sent directly to your TD Ameritrade account) that you set up directly on a third-party platform like your bank.
• A change like this provides a great opportunity to review and update account linking or access you have granted to third parties, such as your accountant or attorney. Please review your account(s) and make sure the right people have access to your account(s).
• You will no longer have access to the Charts section or Message Center so, if you're an active user of these features, please print them out for future reference.

You can work with your advisor to make these changes.  

Yes. If you've previously created customized name or account identifiers (also known as earmarks), you will need to reestablish them. 

If you have your own open orders or you're working with your advisor on an any good-til-canceled or good-til-date equity and options orders, they will need to be resubmitted.  

We have communicated with your advisor about the need to resubmit open orders. 

To ensure a smooth transition of dividend and interest payments, you or your advisor will need to use an accepted payment type and select a supported frequency of the first business day of the month by December 31, 2022.  

Schwab allows dividend and interest payments to be made by check, ACH, or online transfer on the last business day of the month.

We have notified advisors of this change. If you or your advisor don't select a supported payment type or frequency, your dividend and interest payment instructions will not move to Schwab at transition. 

It will depend on how you set up the direct deposit or automatic payment.

If you or your advisor initiated or set up a direct deposit or auto pay on TD Ameritrade's platform, we will transfer those instructions to the Schwab platform. This includes ACH transfers, wires, and third-party checks.  

If you provided your TD Ameritrade Institutional account number(s) to an employer, bank, or other third party for the purposes of moving money in or out of your account, you'll need to re-establish those instructions with your new Schwab account number(s) after your account transition is complete. 

Examples:  

• If you set up direct deposit instructions with Bank A to have your Social Security or payroll check deposited to your TD Ameritrade account, you will have to update your instructions with Bank A to include your new Schwab account number to ensure that your check is deposited into your new Schwab account.  
   
• If you set up automated payments on a third-party platform with instructions to bill the debit card associated with your TD Ameritrade account, you will need to update the instructions on the platform where you set up the payment with your new account number. 

Yes. Once your account transitions to Schwab, you will need to update direct deposits initiated at third-party financial institutions with your new Schwab account number. 

If you have a TD Ameritrade-issued debit card, you can continue to use it until the day before your account is scheduled to transition to Schwab.  

Once your account transitions to Schwab, you should begin to use the debit card issued to you by Schwab.

Yes. If you have actively used checks or debit cards within the past 24 months, you will receive replacements.  

Outstanding checks will continue to be processed for approximately 30 days after the transition date.

After the transition, we will temporarily post checks with your old TD Ameritrade account number. 

To make sure there are no disruptions, however, you should begin to use your new Schwab checks as soon as your account(s) transition.

If you already have AdvisorClient credentials, you will be given the option to retain them.

If you don't have AdvisorClient credentials, we encourage you to set them up now to make sure you can continue to access your account(s).

If you do not set up AdvisorClient credentials, you will need to set Schwab Alliance login to access your account. You will be able to do this approximately one month before your transition weekend when you receive your new account number.  

After you've created your Schwab Alliance login and password, you can log in to test your credentials. If you do this before the transition, you will be directed to a success page. After your accounts transition, you'll be automatically directed to a first login page with disclosures that apply to your Schwab account(s) and information about your paperless preferences. Then you will see a summary of your account(s).

This all-in-one view of your Schwab accounts is only for you and anyone that you have granted access to view your accounts. This is where you can customize your settings and take care of any important actions that may be waiting for you.

No. At Schwab, you can view all your accounts together in one place. Schwab automatically groups accounts with the same owner together, and they can be accessed under one Login ID.  

After the transition, you will be able to access accounts managed by your advisor and accounts you manage on your own or with other third parties with one login.

Remember that Schwab requires anyone named on the account to have their own unique credentials. Also, this is a great time to review and update access you've granted to third parties to make sure the right people have access to your account(s).

Yes. You can grant access to third parties to view your accounts through a setting in Schwab Alliance. 

If you previously set up third-party View Only access on AdvisorClient, these instructions will not automatically convert. Examples include access granted to your accountant or attorney. After transition, you can easily reestablish third-party access on Schwab Alliance. 

If you have accounts managed by your advisor and accounts you manage on your own or with other third parties, you will now be able to access them all with one login.

If you already have AdvisorClient credentials, you will be given the option to retain them.

If you don't already have AdvisorClient credentials, you can do that now.

If you choose not to do that, you will be able to set up your Schwab Alliance credentials about four weeks prior to the transition.  

We will publish a notification and a link on AdvisorClient once you can create your Schwab Alliance credentials at Schwab.

In addition, about a month prior to the transition, we will send a communication to you with important information, including details about how to establish your Schwab Alliance credentials.

At Schwab, anyone who is listed on the account by name must have their own Login ID and password for the account.  

This means anyone listed on the account should create their own unique credentials instead of using a shared Login ID and password.  

To make the transition easier and avoid any disruption in accessing your account(s), we suggest you set up unique credentials now. You can go to AdvisorClient.com to set up credentials.

Schwab Alliance and AdvisorClient are similar. Both were designed to provide a secure, straightforward way to get on-demand access to important account information and documents and manage your personal profile. 

One of the biggest benefits of Schwab Alliance is that you will have an all-in-one view of your Schwab accounts, so you won't have to toggle between accounts.

Another key benefit is that you will be able to quickly and securely approve transactions initiated by your advisor using eAuthorization, our easy-to-use tool that allows you to manage account open, move money, address change and other approvals directly from your desktop or mobile device.  

You also will be able to control who has "View Only" access to your account. 

Remember that each account holder will need their own Login and password so please be sure that any named person on your account(s) establishes Schwab Alliance credentials. 

For more information about Schwab Alliance, check out the Schwab Alliance tab on this site or read this helpful guide.

Yes. Every authorized owner of an account will need to set up credentials to access your Schwab account. 

If you have established credentials for AdvisorClient.com, there will be an option to set up credentials, starting four weeks prior to the transition.  

As you go through this workflow, if your Login ID meets Schwab standard and the ID has not been selected by another user, you will be given the option to select the same ID for your Schwab Alliance credentials. 

When your TD Ameritrade Institutional accounts transition to Schwab, you will log into Schwab Alliance to access your accounts.  

Schwab Alliance is our customized website and mobile platform that will make it easy for you to work with your advisor and Schwab.

If you use AdvisorClient, it will be a very similar experience. You will be able to view balances, positions, and distributions; manage contacts and paperless preferences; access statements and other important documents; deposit checks; and more, while knowing that there are security protections in place to keep your information and assets safe.

What's more, you will now have an all-in-one view of your Schwab accounts, control over who has View Only access, and be able to easily approve transactions initiated by your advisor using eAuthorization.  

Schwab Alliance is available as a mobile app. To download, visit the app store on your Android or Apple device and search for Schwab mobile. You will use the same Schwab Alliance credentials you use online.³

To help you get familiar with Schwab Alliance before your account transition, check out the Schwab Alliance tab on this site or read this helpful guide. 

Yes. If you have watchlists set up on AdvisorClient, they will transfer with your account to Schwab. 

Yes. To download, visit the app store on your Android™ or Apple^® device and search for Schwab Mobile. You will use the same Schwab Alliance credentials you use online. ³

Our security procedures are designed, tested, and implemented to ensure the safety of your account, personal information, and financial assets. This remains a priority at both firms, now and through your account transition.

We want you to have the highest level of confidence when you do business with Schwab. Learn more about our Security Guarantee.  

Schwab will cover losses in any of your Schwab accounts due to unauthorized activity. 

To ensure your protection under this guarantee, it is your responsibility to: 

• Safeguard your account access information.⁴  
  Please do not share your account access information, including but not limited to your login ID, password, PIN, and transaction codes, with anyone. If you share this information with anyone, we will consider their activities to have been authorized by you^.5 
   
• Report any unauthorized transactions to us as quickly as possible.⁶ If you suspect you are a victim of fraud, please contact us immediately at 888-3-SCHWAB.  

There may be other individuals to whom you grant authority in your account. Their activities in your account will also be considered authorized.⁵

We are committed to safeguarding your accounts and the privacy of your information, as stated in our Privacy Notice. To further ensure a more secure online experience, we recommend that you take these additional steps. 

Note: There is nothing in the Security Guarantee that is intended to limit any right conferred or claim or protections provided to customers under Regulation E, for applicable transactions. 

Any standing letters of authorization (SLOAs) that you have in place with your advisor to re-use the same instructions when taking specific actions on your behalf—like making online cash transfers or domestic wire transfers—will transfer to your Schwab account.

Schwab will automatically bundle your statements for matching account owners with identical tax IDs and have the same statement format. If you were previously enrolled in any other statement bundling to streamline your paper statements, you will need to re-enroll after the transition. 

A more secure way to receive and streamline your statements is to enroll in eDelivery. You may enroll in eDelivery prior to the transition on AdvisorClient. Log in and go to My Profile and select Communications Preferences. From there, you can make changes to your account(s).

Once you establish your credentials on AdvisorClient.com and enroll in electronic statements, your paperless preferences will transition to Schwab. 

Yes. You will be able to access 10 years of TD Ameritrade account statements by logging into Schwab and going to Accounts > Statements and selecting Statements under Document Type.  

Please note that in the month after your account has transitioned to Schwab, you will receive two statements:  

• One from TD Ameritrade showing a $0 balance because your positions and cash will have moved to Schwab  
• One from Schwab displaying the full account balance of your moved account  
• If there is any residual activity in your TD Ameritrade account, such as dividend or interest payments, you may continue to receive two statements for several months  

 These statements will be delivered based on your preferred method of delivery, either paper or electronically.

Tax withholding elections (TWE) are the amount of federal and state taxes that you request to be deducted from your distribution to meet your tax obligations.⁷ 

At transition, your TWE instructions will be converted to the minimum for Fed and State if your account has standing outgoing instructions or outgoing, future-dated requests on file. 

All other TWE instructions will be converted to zero for Fed and State. 

After the transition, you or your advisor (if you have granted them authority) can update your TWE preferences.

After your TD Ameritrade account transfers to Schwab, you'll be able to import your Schwab 1099 Composite data, in addition to your TD Ameritrade data, directly into Turbo Tax^®, TaxAct^®, or H&R Block^® tax preparation software.

If you'll be using tax preparation software, you'll need to give your software provider access to your Schwab account to directly import your 1099 data.

To import your tax information data up to the date of your account transition, use your Document ID from the TDA 1099 consolidated tax form and your nine-digit TD Ameritrade account number.

For your Schwab account tax data, use your Schwab account Login ID and password.