Retiree Technology Checklist Prepare your UK resources for retirement!
UK Account / linkblue
Inactive accounts are often the biggest targets for cybersecurity threats. For that reason, the following changes will impact UK retiree accounts.
- For retirees that are actively using their account, they will retain their linkblue account.
- Starting July 1, 2025, any retiree account that is inactive for one year (365 days), will be deactivated.
Additionally, UK Google Workspace accounts (e.g., Gmail, Google Drive, Google Photos) will no longer be offered for UK retirees.
- Starting July 1, 2025, UK Google Workspace accounts will be deactivated after 45 days of entering retiree status. All current retiree Google accounts will also be deactivated on July 1.
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Office products (e.g., Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook) will no longer be accessible via the desktop applications.
What you need to know:
- Instead of opening Microsoft Office products from your desktop, you’ll visit m365.uky.edu to access these products.
- You may see a notification about your subscription changing or expiring. This is simply due to the change in your license.
UK Email
Active retiree accounts will continue to have access to their UK email via Outlook for the web.
Things to know:
- When entering retirement status, Outlook storage capacity will be 50GB.
- UK ITS will not support mail forwarding (e.g., forwarding your UK email to a personal account).
- Effective July 1, 2025, UK Google email accounts will be deactivated after 45 days of entering retiree status. All current retiree Google accounts will also be deactivated on July 1.
Managing Files & Storage
Retirees maintain access to UK cloud storage with Microsoft. As you transition into retirement, it is important to make sure you are storing your files appropriately.
Best practices with files:
- Need to share files with your team or department? Store them in Microsoft Teams or SharePoint. You maintain access to the university’s pooled storage.
- Keeping personal work files in OneDrive? Your storage capacity is 100GB as a retiree.
Accessing Important Documents
The myDocs portal (mydocs.uky.edu) will be your go to place to get important tax and administrative documents (e.g., W-2, pay stubs).
Things to note:
- In order to use the myDocs portal, make sure you have a personal (or non-UK) email attached to your UK account.
- Accessing these documents through the myUK portal will not be available after entering retirement.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does UK ITS determine if a retiree account is inactive? How can I keep my account active?
UK ITS determines which retiree accounts are inactive by pulling a report from our back-end systems.
If a retiree account completes any of the below actions, it will keep the account active and not be deactivated:
- Logging in to any UK resources using linkblue and password
- Opening, editing, moving files in University cloud storage (e.g., OneDrive, SharePoint, Teams) or emails directly in UK email inbox (e.g., Outlook)
Note: Opening UK email from a personal email account will not keep an account active.
What if I start a post-retirement appointment or STEPS position?
If you get re-hired at the University in an active employee role (like STEPS or part-time post-retirement), the changes on this page won't apply to you.
When you are no longer actively employed at the University and go into retirement, these changes will apply to your account. For questions about your employment status, please contact an HR representative from your college or department.
Your account will change every time you switch between active and inactive employment status. It's best to prepare your account and resources as outlined on this page to avoid any disruption of the resources available to you as a retiree.
How do I know if I am considered a retiree?
This page impacts those who have gone through the retirement process via UK Human Resources. For more information on retirement status with UK and if you are eligible, visit UK Human Resources Retirement webpages.
It is important to note that if you separate from the University of Kentucky and you do not hold a retiree or faculty emeriti status, you will be deprovisioned as a separated employee. More information on employee deprovisioning process can be found at Former Staff and Faculty Account Deprovisioning.
What if I have an Emeriti Faculty desigation?
Faculty Emeriti will retain access to Microsoft Office for the web products at m365.uky.edu. This allows continued access to products like Outlook, Word, Excel and more via a web browser to meet most academic and business needs.
If you are actively conducting research, business, or academic support for the benefit of the University and you require Microsoft 365 desktop apps, you may request it via the Emeritus Faculty Software Request form. Note that your respective college, department, or unit will be charged for the upgraded Microsoft license.
For more information on the request form, see How do I request software for Emeritus Faculty?
For any questions regarding Faculty Emeriti status, reach out to the Office of Faculty Advancement at Facultyadv@uky.edu.
If an account is deactivated, can it be recovered?
UK ITS cannot recover any files or messages from accounts that have been deactivated for more than 45 days.
Will these changes apply to me if I am in phased retirement?
No, these changes will not apply to an employee in a phased retirement plan. Only when an employee reaches full retirement status will these changes take effect.
Why am I seeing a notification about my Microsoft account/subscription no longer being active?
When your Microsoft license changes go into effect, you may see an error message on your desktop apps. See Why am I seeing a message when opening a M365 standalone app? for more information.
Additionally, you may see a notification stating "Your school license will be deactivated soon" or "Your school account is no longer active".
These notifications are Microsoft's default notifications to alert you that your account will transition or has transitioned to an A1 license and will be impacted by the the changes detailed on this page. Please visit m365.uky.edu to have continued access Microsoft 365 products for the web.
Why do I get an error when accessing my personal Outlook account via the desktop app?
In some cases, you may see a subscription notice on our Outlook desktop app when accessing a personal Outlook email if your UK email is still associated with it. Please remove your UK email account from your Outlook desktop app and restart the app to resolve the subscription notice.
How will I know if my account is being deactivated?
UK ITS will send multiple email notifications to retiree accounts that are subject to deactivation.
What if I don't want my UK account after retirement?
If you no longer want your UK account as a retiree, you can simply let the account expire after 365 days or reach out to UK ITS by calling 859-218-HELP (4357). Note that you will need to validate your identity to create this request.
How can I get support with any of these changes?
For hands on support, please reach out to the IT contact in your college or department.
To contact UK Information technology services, see the options available in Where can I get tech help?
How can I stay connected to UK if my account is deactivated?
- Add your personal email account or phone number to Account Manager (ukam.uky.edu). This is helpful if you ever need to get documentation from UK in the future. Review How to Set Up an External Email Address for instructions.
- Update your record with the UK Alumni Association.
- Access your official University documents (e.g., 1098-T's, unofficial transcripts) by visiting the myDocs self-service document portal at mydocs.uky.edu. Full instructions on how to access this site at How to Use The myDocs Document Portal in the Tech Help Center.