Found money: how to track down your lost super
Somewhere in the super system there is around $19 billion that nobody has claimed — and a slice of it may belong to you. It's one of the easiest wins in personal finance: a few minutes online can reunite you with money you earned years ago and simply lost track of. As retirement comes into view, it's well worth a look. Here's the plain-language guide to finding — and reclaiming — your lost super.
What "lost" and "unclaimed" super actually mean
Your super can drift out of reach in two main ways. It becomes lost when your fund can no longer contact you — usually because you changed address, changed your name, or stopped making contributions and the fund's letters started bouncing. It becomes unclaimed when a fund transfers a small or inactive account to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) for safekeeping, because it hasn't been able to reunite the money with you.
In both cases the money isn't gone — it's just waiting. The catch is that a forgotten balance can quietly leak value over the years through fees and, in some cases, insurance premiums, while you're not watching. Finding it puts you back in control.
How much is out there?
The numbers are bigger than most people imagine. According to the ATO and the Federal Government, there is close to $19 billion in lost and unclaimed super held across roughly 7.3 million accounts. That works out at an average of about $2,950 per account — and plenty hold a great deal more.
It's a very common situation, especially for anyone who has worked several jobs, taken time out of the workforce, or moved house over the years. Each new job could have opened a new super account, and it's easy for an old one to slip from view. Reuniting people with this money is now a real focus: since the start of the financial year the ATO has reconnected hundreds of thousands of Australians with hundreds of millions of dollars in forgotten super.
How to find yours — in about ten minutes
The quickest way is through myGov. Once your myGov account is linked to the ATO, you can see every super account in your name in one place — including any lost or ATO-held amounts. The ATO calls this a Super Health Check, and it walks you through a handful of simple steps:
- Check your super is being paid. Confirm your employer's contributions are actually landing in your account.
- Check your details are up to date. A current address, name and tax file number stop your super becoming "lost" in the first place.
- Check for lost and unclaimed super. See any amounts your funds or the ATO are holding for you.
- Check whether you have multiple accounts. Paying fees on several accounts quietly erodes your balance.
- Consider bringing it together into the fund that's right for you.
If you'd rather not use myGov, you can phone the ATO's automated super search line on 13 28 65, or ask your existing super fund — most will happily run a search on your behalf.
Before you press "consolidate"
Bringing several accounts into one is often a smart move — fewer fees, less paperwork, and a single balance you can actually keep an eye on. But it pays to pause and check a few things first, because closing an old account isn't always cost-free:
- Insurance. Many super accounts include life, total and permanent disability, or income protection cover. Closing the account cancels the cover — and it may be hard or expensive to replace, especially if your health has changed. Check what you'd be giving up before you move.
- Fees and exit costs. Most funds no longer charge exit fees, but it's worth confirming, and comparing the ongoing fees and performance of the accounts you're keeping versus closing.
- Your employer's contributions. If you're still working, tell your employer which fund to pay into so future super doesn't keep flowing to an account you've just closed.
- Tax and timing. For most people consolidating is straightforward, but larger balances and certain account types can have tax or contribution-cap implications worth checking.
Why it's worth doing now
Every dollar you reunite with your super is a dollar working for your retirement instead of sitting idle. Found early enough, even a modest forgotten balance can grow meaningfully by the time you stop work — and consolidating into one well-chosen fund means you stop paying duplicate fees for good. It's a small task with a genuinely useful payoff.
At Compass, helping people get their super organised — found, tidied up and pointed in the right direction — is part of what we do every day. If you've had a few jobs over the years and you're not quite sure where all your super is, that's a very good place to start a conversation.
General information only — not personal financial advice. It doesn't consider your objectives, situation or needs. Consider whether it's right for you and seek advice before acting.
Jason Bell and Compass Retirement and Aged Care are Authorised Representatives of Millennium3 Financial Services Pty Ltd (AFSL 244252).
Source: Australian Taxation Office, "$19 billion in lost and unclaimed super", and Australian Government, The Treasury, media release, 2026. https://www.ato.gov.au/media-centre/19-billion-dollars-in-lost-and-unclaimed-super-is-some-of-it-yours · https://moneysmart.gov.au/how-super-works/find-lost-super
