Lost and unclaimed super

Lost super

Don't waste your super by losing it!

It's easy to lose track of your super if you change address or if you have a number of funds from different jobs.

If you don't know where all of your superannuation is, you should contact the places you have worked and ask them for the name of the fund(s) they paid your superannuation into and ask those fund(s) to send you an account statement so you can see how much money you've got with them.

If any of these superannuation funds couldn't contact you in the past (maybe you changed your address), or there were no deposits in your account for more than two years, they may have reported your account to the Australian Tax Office as lost super.

Finding out if you've got any lost super is really easy using the ATO's SuperSeeker. You can:

• use the online SuperSeeker at the ATO website; or
• call the SuperSeeker self-help phone on 13 28 65

You will need your name, date of birth and tax file number.

You can also call Maritime Super Member Services on 1800 757 607 and ask us to perform the search for you. You will need to complete Maritime Super’s Missing Super Authorisation form before we will perform this search on your behalf.

Just remember, the easiest way to avoid losing your superannuation is by telling your superannuation fund if you change address.

Another way of keeping track of your super is by keeping all your superannuation money together.

Unclaimed super

If you have reached age 65 and no moneys have been received to your Maritime Super account for at least two years and it has been over five years since you have been in contact with Maritime Super (even though we have made reasonable efforts to contact you), we will classify your benefit as unclaimed super monies. By law we are required to transfer unclaimed super monies to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). If this happens to you, you can apply for payment directly from the ATO (phone 13 10 20).

Any super treated as unclaimed monies before 1 July 2007 was payable to the Office of State Revenue (i.e. the NSW Office of State Revenue for the Stevedoring Employees Retirement Fund (SERF) and the State Revenue Office (Victoria) for the Seafarers Retirement Fund). If you think your super was treated as unclaimed monies in 2007 or earlier, you will need to contact the relevant office.

Certain benefits of temporary residents who have permanently departed Australia and death benefits which cannot be paid, may also be treated as unclaimed monies and paid to the ATO.