On the trail of lost super accounts

It’s easy to lose track of a super fund or two, especially in the early phase of your working life when you might be doing parttime work or working multiple jobs for relatively short periods. It’s surprising how easy it is to forget about a super fund linked to a job you did for only a few months. It might only have a few hundred dollars in it but with a few years (or decades) of growth added those lost contributions could significantly improve your wellbeing in retirement.

According to the ATO, there were over 6.3 million lost super accounts as at June 30, 2017, with a total value of almost $18 billion. Out of that total, the super funds held $14.12 billion and the rest was held by the tax office.

If you think you might have lost super somewhere in the system, the easiest way to track it down is through myGov. Simply link your myGov account to ATO online services and all your super funds, including ones you’d forgotten you had, should appear.

As it generally makes financial sense to consolidate your super into as few funds as possible (to keep fees and charges to a minimum), you can also transfer or consolidate your funds through myGov. You can do the same thing by calling the ATO Super infoline on 13 10 20 or, alternatively, you can complete the form “Searching for lost super” (NAT 2476) and send it to: Australian Taxation Office, PO Box 3578, Albury NSW 2640.