This disclosure describes methods, systems, and devices for handover of a user equipment (UE) from a source node of a radio access network (RAN) to a target node of the RAN. In one example, a method involves receiving, by the UE and from the source node, a RACH-498 handover message comprising: (i) an uplink grant for establishing a connection with the target node, and (ii) an identifier of a reference signal associated with a beam of the target node. The method also involves performing, by the UE, a handover based on the RACH-less handover message.