Smart Card Sign-In FAQs and Troubleshooting

Only Microsoft Edge and Google Chrome browsers are supported and compatible for use with USA Performance.

Only permanent smart cards can be used to sign in with the smart card logon feature. Please note that you may not use temporary or derived access credential smart cards (DAC) to sign into USA Performance. Temporary cards do not contain the unique card holder identifiers necessary to sign in.

First, verify that your computer is actively reading your smart card. If you need assistance, please contact your agency IT representative.

Second, your card certificate selection and PIN are stored in your browser for a specific period. Sometimes this causes an issue if the wrong certificate was selected, or the wrong PIN was entered. This can be corrected by clearing the certificate memory. Please refer to the section below titled "How do I clear my stored certificate memory?"

Third, verify that you are selecting the Authentication certificate. Please see the section below titled "How do I know which certificate to select?" to learn about certificate types.

1. Insert your smart card into a card reader and then navigate to the sign-in page: https://usaperformance.opm.gov/Login.aspx
2. Click Sign in with smart card.
3. A modal will appear prompting you to select a certificate. Select the Authentication certification and click OK.
4. Another modal will appear prompting you to enter your PIN. Enter your PIN and then click OK.
5. The Verify Your Identity page appears. Enter the email address associated with your USA Performance account and click Submit.
6. The page will then ask you to verify your identity with the one-time password (OTP) sent to your email inbox.
7. Check your email inbox to retrieve the OTP provided by office@usaperformance.opm.gov. The OTP will expire after 20 minutes.
8. Enter your OTP into the OTP Code field and click Verify Code.
9. Once the correct OTP has been entered, you will receive confirmation your identify has been verified.
10. Click Return to Login.
11. The system will navigate you back to the sign-in page. Click Sign in with smart card to access USA Performance.

Please note that you may not use temporary smart or derived access credential cards (DAC) to sign into USA Performance. These types of cards do not contain the unique card holder identifiers necessary to sign in.

If you do not have a permanent smart card, please use Login.gov to sign into USA Performance.

If you receive a prompt to select a certificate, and there are no certificates listed, this indicates that your smart card certificates have not been installed on your computer. Please contact your agency’s help desk to install your card certificates onto your computer. Your agency’s help desk will have the permissions and ability to install your certificates.

Your card should have at least one certificate on it. Please see the section titled "How do I verify the certificates on my smart card?" to view your card.

If your Authentication certificate does not appear or no certificates are listed in the certificate selection prompt, this likely means that your certificates have not been installed on your computer. This can occur when you receive a new card or when your card has been updated.

Your agency’s computer support help desk will have the permissions and ability to install your certificates.

When you click Sign in with smart card, you should receive a prompt that requests you to select a certificate. If you do not see this prompt, your last certificate selection was stored in memory. You can follow the section "How do I clear my stored certificate memory?" to resolve.

This message indicates that your agency has not enabled smart card logon for accessing USA Performance. Please contact your agency performance management representative for assistance.

You may only use the Authentication certification to sign into USA Performance. This certificate may have the purpose listed as Smart Card Logon or Client Authentication. If your certificate is not listed in the certificate selection prompt with these values, you can find the type of certificate by looking at the properties of the card. The purpose type may be listed under the General tab or be shown in the Details tab under the Enhanced Key Usage field. You can find more information in the section titled "How do I know which certificate to select?"

Most Federal employees will have multiple certificates on their smart cards. These certificates are usually named according to their purpose: authentication, digital signature, encryption. The Authentication certificate’s purpose is for use in secure access to websites and secure systems. This certificate contains identifying information that uniquely identifies the card holder. The other certificates on a card are for other purposes and do not contain the same information.

Only the Authentication certificate will allow you to access USA Performance. Certificates other than the Authentication certificate will not allow you to access USA Performance and will display a message indicating that you selected the wrong certificate. To determine which certificate is the Authentication certificate, please follow the steps below when signing into USA Performance from Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge.

1. Click Sign in with smart card button.
2. The browser will prompt you to select from a list of certificates. Close and reopen the browser if you do not see the prompt.
3. If a list does not appear, please contact your agency’s technical support to load your certificates onto your computer.

4. Select your personal Smart Card Logon information or Authentication certificate with your name to sign in. If you cannot identify your certificates by the displayed name, please follow the steps below.

   Note: The certificate order in the list may change from one sign in to the next. Identify and select the correct certificate for each sign in based on the certificate name or the details of the certificate as explained below.

5. To determine the correct certificate, select one of the certificates, and then click Certificate Information to view certificate properties.
6. Click on the Details tab. Make sure the Show dropdown displays All.
7. Look for Enhanced Key Usage with a value of Client Authentication or Smart Card Logon. This is the certificate you need to access USA Performance. If you cannot find Enhanced Key Usage, you may have selected the incorrect certificate. The key usage with a value of Digital Signature is the Signature certificate for use in digitally signing documents. Certificates other than the Authentication certificate will not allow you to access USA Performance and will display a message indicating you selected the wrong certificate.
8. If the Authentication certificate was not found, click OK. Then repeat the previous steps.
9. Once you have identified the correct certificate, continue by selecting it to sign in.
   Note: Do not select the Signature certificate. This will generate a certificate error. If you receive a certificate error, this means the incorrect certificate was selected. Close your browser and repeat the sign in steps.
10. Enter your PIN when prompted. The browser stores this information for a certain time, and you may not be asked to enter your PIN.
11. Once the pin has been accepted, you will be able to access USA Performance with your smart card.

If you experience issues during the smart card sign in process, please email the USA Performance Help Desk.

1. Close and reopen your browser.
2. Try to access USA Performance.
3. If that doesn't work, follow these steps:
   1. Open the Start menu on your computer.
   2. Search for and open Internet Options.
   3. In the dialog box that appears, select the Content tab.
   4. Click Clear SSL State.
   5. Reopen browser and attempt to access USA Performance.

Most smart card issues are related to the card, your browser, or your computer. We can provide suggestions, but in most cases, USA Performance may be unable to correct the issue. Please contact your agency’s smart card help desk or computer support help desk. They can ensure that your smart card and the related hardware are working. Your agency’s credentialling site or card reset office can assist you with your certificates and PIN issues.

We recommend that your agency’s help desk checks the following:

• Your certificate(s) are not expired and not revoked.
• Your card is the correct version for your agency.
• Your certificate(s) are stored in your computer’s browser store/cache.
• Your certificate’s Certification Path is correct.
• The correct intermediate and root certificate(s) are installed and the version of these are correct.
• Certificates can be sent from the browser and there are no blocks.

You may need to create or use a Login.gov account while your agency works to resolve these issues.