diff --git a/user_sync/connector/connector_umapi.py b/user_sync/connector/connector_umapi.py
index fb52d457..d2d6bfc3 100644
--- a/user_sync/connector/connector_umapi.py
+++ b/user_sync/connector/connector_umapi.py
@@ -183,6 +183,7 @@ def get_groups(self):
         return list(self.iter_groups())
 
     def iter_groups(self):
+        self.connection.start_sync()
         try:
             for g in umapi_client.GroupsQuery(self.connection):
                 yield g