How to Find Lost Super: ATO Search, Old Accounts and Next Steps

You can find lost super for free through the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) service linked to myGov. Search the accounts reported under your identity, check whether money is held by a super fund or the ATO and investigate any missing accounts from previous jobs. Finding an account does not require you to transfer or withdraw its balance.

How can you find lost super using myGov or the ATO app?

Use ATO online services through myGov to view reported super accounts, including lost accounts and ATO-held amounts. The ATO app provides another way to access the same type of information.

1. Sign in at myGov using the official government website and select your linked Australian Taxation Office service.
2. If the ATO service is not linked, follow the myGov identity and linking instructions.
3. Select Super, then Fund details to inspect your reported active and lost accounts.
4. Record the fund names and available account details. Look separately for money listed as held by the ATO.
5. Alternatively, sign in to the ATO app and follow its Super and Fund details screens.
6. Contact a fund or the ATO if an expected account is missing rather than assuming the money has disappeared.

Account information depends on information reported by funds and held by the ATO. A newly corrected account may not be immediately visible. According to ASIC MoneySmart, Find lost super (29 September 2026), the ATO identifies whether a matched balance is held by the fund or the ATO.

What is lost super and where might your money be held?

Lost super generally refers to an account a super fund reports as belonging to a lost member. Reasons include lost contact with the member or certain inactive account conditions. Some unclaimed super is subsequently transferred to the ATO under separate statutory rules.

Money can therefore be held by the original super fund or by the ATO. An account from an earlier job may still be active even if you no longer contribute to it. Check the account's recorded status and holder before choosing a recovery method. An inactive account, a lost member account and ATO-held unclaimed money are not interchangeable classifications.

What is the difference between fund-held and ATO-held super?

A fund-held lost account remains with its super fund. ATO-held super has been transferred to the ATO under applicable unclaimed-super provisions. The holder determines who to contact and which claim or transfer process applies.

The comparison below separates who holds the money, where to start and what happens next. Both types remain subject to the applicable super access rules.

How else can you search for lost super?

The ATO provides phone and paper search options for people who cannot use the myGov website. Use the current government instructions for the service you choose.

1. Call the ATO's automated lost-super search service on 13 28 65 if you know your tax file number (TFN).
2. Contact an ATO officer on 13 10 20 for assistance, particularly if the automated search does not suit your circumstances.
3. Download the current ATO Searching for lost super paper form and follow the postal instructions printed on it.
4. If you need help with a computer, phone or printing, ask a Services Australia service centre about available assistance. The ATO Indigenous helpline is 13 10 30 for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Keep identity documents and your TFN within official channels. Source: ASIC MoneySmart, Find lost super (29 September 2026); ATO, Searching for lost and unclaimed super (19 June 2026).

Can you find lost super without your TFN?

YES, you can request ATO assistance when you do not know your TFN, although additional identity checks and a different search process may apply. Call an ATO officer rather than assuming the automated TFN-based line is available. Old income tax notices, employer records and fund correspondence may help you locate your TFN. Source: ASIC MoneySmart, Find lost super (29 September 2026).

How do you trace super from an old job?

Trace super from an old job by identifying the fund that received employer contributions, then matching those records with your ATO search. Do not assume a super amount printed on a payslip reached the fund.

1. List your previous employers and approximate dates of employment.
2. Check old payslips, annual fund statements, emails and onboarding forms for a fund name or membership number.
3. Ask the former employer's payroll team which fund received super for the relevant period.
4. Contact that fund through its official website and complete its identity-verification process.
5. Compare the fund's contribution record against your payslips and ATO details.

For example, if you held three short-term jobs but find only two super accounts, ask the third employer which fund it used. If the fund has no matching contributions, investigate potential unpaid super separately. Use super Contributions Calculator Australia to estimate contributions from qualifying earnings, then compare the estimate with deposits actually received.

Why is your old super not showing up?

An old account may be missing from a search because the recorded name or contact details differ, the fund has merged, the balance moved to the ATO or reporting has not been matched yet. A missing listing is not evidence that an account never existed.

Check statements for a historical fund name and member number. Ask the original fund or successor trustee whether the account was transferred. Reconcile employment dates and personal details before lodging an unpaid-super enquiry. If your ID does not match the fund's record, ask the trustee which alternative identity evidence it accepts. ASIC MoneySmart notes that some funds accept government letters, membership documents or a statement from an approved trusted community member. Requirements differ by fund. Source: ASIC MoneySmart, Find lost super (29 September 2026).

Finding super after changing your name

A change of name can prevent old fund records from matching your current details. Contact the fund through its official channel and provide the previous and current names, approximate membership dates and approved identity-change evidence.

Ask the fund to confirm both the membership record and any transfer to another fund or the ATO. If standard photographic ID is unavailable or the account details do not match, ask about the fund's alternative proof-of-identity process. Do not upload identity documents to a search website you have not verified.

What if your employer never paid super?

A missing employer payment is a potential unpaid super guarantee issue, not necessarily lost super. Compare the payslip, fund transaction history and applicable payment deadline. Ask payroll for the receiving fund and transaction evidence.

If an eligible payment remains unpaid, use the ATO's unpaid-super enquiry process. Since 1 July 2026, Payday Super generally requires contributions to reach the fund within seven business days after payday, subject to exceptions. See how employers pay super for the timing rules. Source: ATO, Payment deadlines for Payday Super (2026).

What should you do once you find your super?

Confirm who holds each balance, check the account features and decide whether to keep separate accounts or consolidate them. Locating money is not the same as receiving cash or authorising a rollover.

Check these items before transferring:

• Insurance: death, total and permanent disability (TPD) or income protection cover can cease when a fund account closes.
• Fees: compare administration and investment costs, including insurance premiums.
• Investment options: check risk, asset mix and fees rather than comparing returns from unlike products.
• Special benefits: defined-benefit schemes and employer arrangements can have restricted transfer rights.
• Contribution destination: make sure your employer has the fund details for future payments.

For transfer instructions, read how to consolidate super funds. Use super Projection Calculator Australia to assess how a recovered balance affects an illustrative future super balance. Source: ASIC MoneySmart, Consolidating super funds (22 July 2026) and Defined benefit super explained (14 August 2026).

How do you reunite ATO-held money with a fund?

Start with the ATO-held balance shown in your ATO account, then review the available claim or transfer actions. If the amount is eligible to be transferred to an active fund, check the receiving account's details and follow the ATO process.

Transfer eligibility and account circumstances differ. The ATO explains the options for claiming or transferring money it holds after establishing ownership. Being matched to an ATO-held balance does not itself satisfy a condition of release for cash withdrawal. For a separate estimate of ongoing employer contributions, use Superannuation Calculator Australia.

Can you trust a lost super search service?

Use the official ATO search or your existing super fund as the first option. Finding lost super through ATO online services is free, so paying a private provider merely to run the search is unnecessary.

Check that you are signing in to a genuine government or fund website. Never disclose a myGov password, authentication code or identity document to an unsolicited caller or a link received unexpectedly. Contact the organisation using a verified number if a message claims to have found super on your behalf.

How can an authorised person find deceased super?

An executor or other authorised person can start with the deceased member's statements, former employer details and known super funds, then contact each trustee about its death-benefit identification and claim process.

The trustee will require evidence of authority and identity. The person entitled to receive a super death benefit is determined under applicable super rules and fund arrangements, not merely by possession of account details. Source: ASIC MoneySmart, Claiming a super death benefit (30 July 2026).

Is it free to find lost super through myGov?

YES, searching through the official myGov-linked ATO service is free. It can display reported super accounts and ATO-held amounts. A private search service is not required.

Can you find lost super without knowing the fund name?

YES, ATO online services can display super funds matched to your details without you remembering their names. If an expected account does not appear, use former employers, payslips and fund statements to trace it.

Can you find lost super if you changed your surname?

YES, a surname change does not prevent recovery of an account. A fund may require proof linking your former and current names before it updates records or confirms the balance.

Can the ATO hold unclaimed super for you?

YES, the ATO holds certain unclaimed super amounts transferred under statutory rules. An account merely classified as lost may still be held and invested by the original super fund.

Can you withdraw lost super as cash straight away?

NO, finding lost super does not automatically permit a cash withdrawal. Super is generally preserved until a legal condition of release is met, subject to limited exceptions. See when you can access super for those rules.

Could combining super accounts cancel insurance?

YES, transferring an entire balance and closing a super account can end its attached insurance. Check the existing cover, premiums, exclusions and replacement arrangements before consolidating.

Can you search for lost super without a TFN?

YES, you can speak to an ATO officer on 13 10 20 if you do not know your TFN. The automated service on 13 28 65 is intended for callers who know their TFN. Source: ASIC MoneySmart, Find lost super (29 September 2026).

Sources and verification

• Australian Taxation Office, Superannuation: Searching for lost superannuation (publication date not independently verified).
• Australian Taxation Office, Payment deadlines for Payday Super (2026; date not independently confirmed in this audit).
• ASIC MoneySmart, Find lost super (29 September 2026).
• ASIC MoneySmart, Consolidating super funds (22 July 2026).
• ASIC MoneySmart, Claiming a super death benefit (30 July 2026).
• ASIC MoneySmart, Defined benefit super explained (14 August 2026).

This article explains general Australian super tracing processes. Check the current ATO instructions before submitting a form or relying on a phone-service pathway.