How to find your lost super

Title: How to find your lost super
Short description: Finding $5 in your jean pocket is great. But imagine finding thousands in super contributions that you had lost track of. Here’s how you can check if you have any lost or unclaimed super.
Topics: mlc:Topics/news-and-updates
Time to read/watch: 4 min
Effective date: 2024-08-31 00:00
Feature Image: /content/dam/mlc/insights/images/Articles/2023/how-to-find-your-lost-super/youngengineer.jpg
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Finding lost super

There are over six million lost and Australian Taxation Office (ATO) super accounts with a total value of $16 billion – a share of this could be yours. Don’t miss out on super you’ve earned!

How does super become lost or unclaimed?

In the past, you may have lost track of your super when you changed jobs. Especially if your super contributions from your new job were paid into your new employer’s super fund and you didn’t transfer funds from your previous super account.

The good news is that this is less likely to be an issue these days. On 1 November 2021, new federal laws came in that make it harder to lose track of your super. The new stapling law means you’ll take your super account with you when you change jobs, rather than have a new account automatically opened for you. There is also an option where you can choose to join the super fund of your new employer and move your super savings to the new fund.

Super can also become lost or unclaimed if your previous super funds don’t have your latest address, email or phone number on file. If you have an MLC super account, you can update your contact details here.

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What's the difference between lost and unclaimed super?

Lost super means you had money with a super fund and they haven’t been able to contact you or your account is inactive, so they’ve had to send your super to the ATO.

Unclaimed super generally means you’re allowed to withdraw a super benefit but you haven’t done that, and your fund hasn’t been able to contact you.

How can you claim lost super?

It’s easy to lose track of your super when you move or change jobs. However, it’s easy to find it and takes less than 10 minutes. Here’s how.

If you’re an MLC member

If you’re not a member with us yet

Join now if you’re not an existing customer. When you log in for the first time, we’ll guide you through the steps to combine your accounts.

Or check with the ATO within myGov. This will allows you to see details of all your super accounts, including any you’ve lost or forgotten about and find any ATO-held super – this is held on your behalf when you super fund, your employer or the government can’t find an account to deposit your super into.

If you’ve recently opened a new super account, it may take up to six months to appear on MyGov. You can also find lost super using a paper form. See searching for lost super on the ATO website.

Why finding your super matters

There are many benefits to combining all your lost super and money with other super funds into one account.

Simpler fees: having your super in one account means only one set of fees.

Easier to manage: one place for contributions, paperwork and investing your super.

Avoid extra insurance costs: only one set of premiums if you have insurance with multiple funds.

You can combine your super with MLC here.

What to check before you combine your super accounts? Weigh up the benefits and features of each of your super funds and make sure you understand any benefits that you have will be lost before you roll over any monies.

If you wish to claim a tax deduction for any personal contributions you have made, you need to submit a valid Notice of Intent form to your super fund, and receive an acknowledgement from them, before you complete your tax return, start a superannuation pension or withdraw or rollover the money.

Don't forget your insurance. One or more of your funds may include insurance. Any insurance you have will be lost if you close your account. So, before you roll over any monies, make sure you have the appropriate levels of insurance cover. If you have a pre-existing medical condition, consider whether you’ll be eligible for the same level of cover if you lose your existing insurance. You should also compare the cost of equivalent insurance cover in any new and current funds.

How to prevent any lost super in the future

When you start a new job, tell your employer your super details so you know where your super is going. If you don’t let them know, they have to ask the ATO where your stapled super fund is.

Make sure you update your contact details with your super fund whenever you move house or change your phone number/email.

And if you combine all your super into one account, you only have one account to keep track of. You can combine your super with MLC here.

The Trustee of Plum Super, NULIS Nominees (Australia) Limited, is part of the Insignia Financial Group and is, therefore, governed by the Insignia Financial Group privacy policy.

* Based on KPMG Super Insights 2023 Report as at May 2023 KPMG Super Insights 2023 Report

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Important information and disclaimer

This article has been prepared by NULIS Nominees (Australia) Limited ABN 80 008 515 633 AFSL 236465 (NULIS) as trustee of the MLC Super Fund ABN 70 732 426 024. NULIS is part of the Insignia Financial group of companies comprising Insignia Financial Ltd ABN 49 100 103 722 and its related bodies corporate (‘Insignia Financial Group’). This information may constitute general advice. The information in this article is general in nature and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions based on this information. It is recommended that you consider the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Target Market Determination (TMD) before you make any decisions about your superannuation. You can obtain the latest copy of the PDS (or other disclosure documents) and TMD by calling us on 132 652 or by searching for the applicable product at mlc.com.au. You should not rely on this article to determine your personal tax obligations. Please consult a registered tax agent for this purpose. Opinions constitute our judgement at the time of issue. The case study examples (if any) provided in this article have been included for illustrative purposes only and should not be relied upon for decision making. Subject to terms implied by law and which cannot be excluded, neither NULIS nor any member of the Insignia Financial Group accept responsibility for any loss or liability incurred by you in respect of any error, omission or misrepresentation in the information in this communication.

The Financial Coaches provide financial advice under the Australian Financial Services licence (AFSL) of Actuate Alliance Services Pty Ltd ABN 40 083 233 925 AFSL 240 959 (Actuate). Actuate and NULIS are both companies within Insignia Financial Group which comprises Insignia Financial Ltd ABN 49 100 103 722 and its related bodies corporate (Insignia Financial Group). No other entity within Insignia Financial Group, including NULIS or any other entity within the Insignia Financial Group that is a trustee for a regulated superannuation fund, is liable for or responsible for any work, action or advice provided by Actuate.