Find and claim lost money – Revenue NSW

Introduction

Revenue NSW holds unclaimed money from accounts held in NSW. ‘Unclaimed money’ includes:

• more than $100 in an account that has been inactive for at least 6 years
• any amount of trust money under the Property Stock and Business Agents Act 2002 that has been held for more than 2 years
• any amount of money held in a trust account of a legal firm
• money held in a deceased person’s name
• certain kinds of superannuation – businesses and public sector superannuation funds send information to Revenue NSW about money owed to people they can’t find. 

You can search for, and claim, your lost money online through the Revenue NSW website.

Eligibility

You must be able to prove you are the rightful owner of the unclaimed money held by Revenue NSW.

What you need

• your personal and contact details
• your Australian bank account details
• copies of proof of identity documents as detailed on the form
• change of name document (if applicable)
• evidence of your connection to the last known address held by Revenue NSW
• a letter from the entity that sent the unclaimed money to Revenue NSW, confirming you as the rightful owner (if you are unable to provide a connection to the address on record).

Note: You’ll need to lodge additional supporting documentation if your claim relates to money held in the name of a:

• company 
• deceased person
• trust
• super fund
• charity.  

How to search

1. Select the ‘Search online’ button.
2. Enter your/the owner’s name and the required security check code.
3. Select ‘Submit’.
4. If your search is successful, any unclaimed money will be displayed.
5. Select the checkbox for the unclaimed money item/s and then select ‘Submit a claim’.
6. Complete the online claim form.
7. Select 'Submit'.
8. You’ll receive an email confirming the lodgement of your claim.
9. Complete the declaration and attach the required documentation proving you are the rightful owner.
10. Send the email to the reply address (unclaimedmoney@revenue.nsw.gov.au) within 28 days of lodging your claim.  

If you don’t want to lodge your claim online, you can download, complete and post an Unclaimed money claim form – PDF to:

Revenue NSW – Unclaimed Money
GPO Box 4042
Sydney NSW 2001

More information

Revenue NSW holds the following types of unclaimed money only from accounts maintained in NSW:

• share dividends
• principal and interest
• trust account funds
• expenses
• refunds and overpayments
• deposits and premiums
• unpresented cheques
• proceeds of sale
• royalties
• commissions
• creditors
• debentures
• bonds
• convertible notes
• superannuation lodged with Revenue NSW between 1 July 1997 and 30 June 2007
• NSW public sector superannuation.

Revenue NSW does not hold the following types of unclaimed money if:

• funds are being held for the owner in other active accounts
• the owner wants to keep the money in the existing account
• ownership of the money is in dispute 
• it belongs to a deregistered company
• the owner can recover the money under law.

Please note:

• debiting of fees, taxes, duties or charges, or the crediting of interest or dividends into an inactive account, doesn't make that account an active account
• there is no time limit within which a rightful owner must make a claim.