How to Check For Unclaimed Money in South Africa?
An unclaimed advantage is any gain that was due to you from a retirement fund in phrases of the fund’s regulations that you or your beneficiary are no longer claimed within 24 months from the date the benefit became legally due and payable to you.
Unclaimed advantages encompass benefits such as:
Withdrawal benefit – due to a termination of employment, retrenchment, or resignation.
Death advantage – the beneficiary was recognized but did not declare their benefit.
Surplus benefit – these advantages emerge as payable due to a distribution of surplus in the fund to lively and former participants.
Retirement advantage – these advantages are a result of retirement from the fund.
For greater than a decade, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) and retirement fund administrators have been attempting to address this trouble by using raising consciousness and introducing a search engine the place you can take a look at if there are any unclaimed benefits due to you.
Reasons For Unclaimed Benefits
Takalani Lukhaimane, the manager of retirement funds: behavior supervision at the FSCA, told a recent media briefing that the reasons for unclaimed benefits included:
Migrant workers;
Inaccurate member data;
Outdated or lacking contact details; and
Poor administration or record-keeping through administrators.
Who qualifies?
You can also qualify if you were employed, contributed to a retirement fund, and did no longer claim or receive your benefit when you resigned or left the employer.
You might also declare if you had been listed as a beneficiary of a former member who has not claimed or obtained their money.
There are several ways to find out if you have an unclaimed benefit due:
Visit the FSCA website at fsca.co.za. It has a built-in search engine you can use to check if you are owed any benefits.
Contact or visit the websites of the larger life assurer companies to check if there are any benefits due to you.
Check the Liberty website www.liberty.co.za or call 011 558 2999.
Check the Old Mutual website www.oldmutual.co.za or call 0860 455 455 or 0860 33 77 77.
Check the Sanlam website www.sanlam.co.za or call 021 947 2263.
Check the Fedgroup website www.fedgroup.co.za.
How to claim your benefits
Once you’ve proven that you have unclaimed money, you will be required to supply a done declare shape from the applicable monetary offerings company.
You will need to provide your tax information, proof of your identity (SA ID/passport replica or a legitimate driver’s license), and any other assistance documentation stated on the claim form.
During the tracing process, you will have to reply to protection verification questions to ensure that you are a bona fide beneficiary.
This information will then be checked in opposition to the company’s inside records.
If all is correct, an affirmation will be dispatched to you as properly as in addition to data on the claims process.
