How does it work?
What is lost or unclaimed super?
Are you an Australian citizen who has ever changed jobs, moved houses, or changed your name? You might be missing some superannuation. Every year, thousands of super payments go unclaimed and are frozen in special accounts until retrieved. Your super is your money. What you do with it today could significantly impact how and when you retire.
What is Lost Super? Lost super refers to superannuation funds that your super fund couldn’t connect to you or that have become inactive. These lost funds can be located in specialised tax databases and reclaimed into your account. Since super is part of the pension system, reclaiming these funds is tax-free. We can help you check for any lost super accounts for free and with no obligation. It’s always better to check and make sure rather than risk losing your money – don’t you agree?
Why might I have lost my super?
You might have lost your super if you are an Australian citizen aged 35 or older. Most Australians discover their lost superannuation only when they reach retirement and successfully reclaim it. The most important thing to remember is that super accounts have no expiration date.
You must have done at least one of the following at some point in your life: changed jobs, moved house, changed your name (for example, after marriage), or renewed your documents. These are all risk factors, and 95% of Australians lose their super due to these reasons.
Currently, $17.8 billion is considered unclaimed on super accounts across Australia. ATO figures show that men have more lost super accounts than women (55% vs. 39%). Additionally, most Australians (66%) only find out they have lost super accounts 15–20 years after contributions were made. Lastly, 95% of those surveyed were unaware or had never even considered the possibility of having such accounts.
What can you do to reclaim lost super?
The process of finding lost super is completely free – no additional fees are charged to initiate a super search. We can locate any super you have in Australia and consolidate it. For this, we use the ATO SuperMatch process. This means you don’t need to register with any special company to find your super for free.
Follow these five simple steps to find out if you have a lost super account:
Step 1. Go to the website australianretirementtrust.com.au
Step 2. Click the blue button "Join Now"
Step 3. Complete a simple registration and provide your details (It takes 3 minutes.)
Step 4. After submitting the form, wait up to 30 minutes while we search for your accounts in the secure database
Step 5. If a lost account is found, you can immediately withdraw the funds to your bank card or request a cheque.
Don’t lose the money you’re entitled to. It's easy to run a lost super search, and it only takes a few minutes online. Let’s find your missing super!
Want to learn more? Read our expert articles on how you can manage your super.