Virginia Unclaimed Funds

Virginia is currently holding over $2.5 billion in unclaimed funds!

Unclaimed funds are all tangible or intangible personal property that has remained unspoken for by its owner for an extended period of time.

This includes, but is not limited to:

• • savings and checking accounts
  • wages or commissions
  • dividends
  • customer deposits
  • refund checks
  • insurance proceeds
  • safety deposit boxes

Funds becomes unclaimed when the holder has not had contact with the owner of the property for a specified period of time, called the dormancy period.   After the passage of the dormancy period, if there has been no activity generated by the owner, the property is then presumed abandoned.

Most property types have a five-year dormancy period;  but the time frame can vary from one to fifteen years depending on the holder and the property types.

You can go to https://www.vamoneysearch.org  to search for Virginia unclaimed funds.  There is no fee to collect your funds.  Click  “Claim Your Property” button on the front page.

Once you get on the site, you can create a user name and password to establish your account.  This will allow you to search for unclaimed property belonging to you and your family, living or deceased, and any companies or businesses you have the authority to claim property for.

If your search reveals potential matches, you will be given a set of options including saving your progress online and instructions on how to complete a claim form. These include instructions on completing the paperwork, supplying the necessary documentation, and sending the relevant information to the Division of Unclaimed Property.

It’s important to remember that all of the results you see may not belong to you. The Virginia Department of the Treasury does a thorough review of your documents prior to approving the claim to ensure that only the rightful owner receives the property in question.

There is no time limit to file a claim.   The Virginia Department of the Treasury holds all funds in perpetuity.   Tangible items are auctioned off on a regular basis and the proceeds from the auction are held for the property’s owner indefinitely.   The Virginia Department of the Treasury does not store dangerous, flammable, explicit/obscene or illegal items of any nature for any length of time. Paperwork and other documents are stored for a period of 20 years before being destroyed.

After you file a claim, The Virginia Department of the Treasury Unclaimed Property Program will assign your claim to a Claims Analyst who will begin the review and approval process. Your supporting documentation will then be verified and if your claim is approved, you will be issued a check for your funds or be instructed on how to take delivery of any tangible items.

You can check the status of a pending claim by logging into your account at any time.

You should allow approximately 60 days for processing of your claim. The time frame may vary given the specific details of the claim, any necessary additional information that is required by the Claims Representative and the nature of the property.  Securities requiring transfer and claims on estates can take longer than 60 days.

You can contact the Division of Unclaimed Property at:

1-800-468-1088
Monday – Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST
or send a fax to 804-692-0576.

For Claim Processing:

Commonwealth of Virginia
Department of the Treasury
Division of Unclaimed Property
PO Box 2485
Richmond, VA 23218-2485

Did you know that there is a little known business where you can actually get paid to find unclaimed money for other people?

Unclaimed money finders search for people that have money being held for them and help them claim it. In return they charge a fee for their service, which is a percentage of the amount that they have recovered. It’s a very easy business that not too many people know about.

If you would like to learn more about it, please click here.