Find and Reclaim your Lost Super

By Grace Ormsby

September 02 2019
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There is $17.5 billion in unclaimed and lost super across Australia that needs to be reunited with its owners, according to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

Spread across more than 6 million accounts, the ATO said it held nearly 5.4 million of these accounts with a collective value of almost $4 billion as of July 2019.

It expects to be able to reunite $473 million in super to 485,000 members soon, but there is still a lot unaccounted for.

If you think you have lost super or unclaimed super, check out Nest Egg's new interactive map which shows the locations of lost super and unclaimed super money Australia-wide, and consider the following:

What is ‘lost’ super?

According to the ATO, a super fund can report an individual as a lost super member when they haven’t been able to contact that person.

If a super fund has not received any contributions or rollover amounts for an account in a five-year period, this is also the case.

Lost super members are also registered as such if an individual’s account was transferred from another fund as a lost super member account, and no new address has been found.

What is ‘unclaimed’ super?

The ATO has noted that there are a number of ways people might own “unclaimed” super without realising it.

People who should check whether they might be the owner of unclaimed super are the following:
- Members with “lost” super accounts with balances less than $6,000
- Members who have “lost” super accounts that have been inactive for more than five years with insufficient records to identify the account’s ownership
- Super fund members over the age of 65
- Deceased super fund members
- Non-member spouses
- Former temporary residents who never claimed their super money

Search for your super

Unclaimed and lost super is still yours. Therefore, it’s usually quite simple to claim.

According to the ATO, you can find and manage your super using Online Services through syncing of your myGov account to ATO Online Services.

MyGov’s services will enable you to see details of all your super accounts, including any you may have forgotten about.

It will also enable you to find lost super that is still being held by a super fund.

Any super fund money that is held by the ATO under its new powers can also be found through the myGov portal.

Consolidate your super

If you do find yourself the owner of lost super or unclaimed super, it is best practice to combine multiple super accounts and transfer your account balances into one streamlined account.

This can also be done through myGov’s service portal.

Before consolidating, the ATO reminds people to check with their fund for possible exit fees, or whether they would lose any valuable insurance as a result of the change.

Review your super fund

Your super fund is meant to help you secure your retirement, so it is important to ensure you are with a fund that is appropriate for your lifestyle and goals.

Nest Egg has compiled a handy guide that breaks down the many types of super funds, eligibility requirements, things to compare when shopping for a fund and what to do if you wish to change your super fund.

About the author

Grace Ormsby

Grace is a journalist on Momentum Media's nestegg. She enjoys being able to provide easy to digest information and practical tips for Australians with regard to their wealth, as well as having a platform on which to engage leading experts and commentators and leverage their insight.

About the author

Grace Ormsby

Grace is a journalist on Momentum Media's nestegg. She enjoys being able to provide easy to digest information and practical tips for Australians with regard to their wealth, as well as having a platform on which to engage leading experts and commentators and leverage their insight.

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