Methods, systems, and devices are described for reconfiguring a user equipment (UE) to operate in a reconfigured TDD UL-DL configuration. An initial uplink-downlink (UL-DL) configuration for TDD communication may be provided for communication between an e Node B and a UE. One or more subframes within each frame transmitted using the initial UL-DL configuration may be identified as flexible subframes. The identification of flexible subframes may permit the identification of timing for HARQ transmissions that does not change when a reconfiguration takes place. A different UL-DL configuration may be transmitted to the UE, in which at least one flexible subframe is to be changed from an uplink subframe to a downlink subframe. The different UL-DL configuration may be transmitted by, for example, a pseudo-uplink grant to the UE, which indicates that the UE is to reconfigure one or more flexible subframes from uplink to downlink transmission.