Located within the Kentucky State Treasury is a vault containing a Kentucky treasure, part of which may be owned by you!
That treasure is Kentucky's unclaimed property fund. Unclaimed property includes personal property or financial assets—such as abandoned savings and checking accounts, non-cashed checks, and travelers' checks—turned over to the state after a period of time, usually 3 years.
In most cases, the owner of such property has forgotten that the particular property or account exists. Sometimes, an owner has died and the heirs don't know about the property.
Rare coins. Fine jewelry. And, yes, some cash. Those are just some of the items the Kentucky State Treasury, through the Unclaimed Property Division, is trying to return to their rightful owners.
Treasurer Miller is committed to returning unclaimed property to the residents of Kentucky. To that end, the Kentucky State Treasury publishes announcements in the state's newspapers and provides a search tool on this website that can be used to search the department's database free of charge. You can also call the Kentucky State Treasury toll-free at 1-800-465-4722 to determine if you or a loved one is among the thousands of Kentuckians who are owed unclaimed property.
History of the Unclaimed Property Fund
Since the start of Kentucky's Unclaimed Property program in 1942, more than $100 million in cash and other assets has been collected. The Commonwealth currently holds more than $150 million worth of unclaimed property for over 200,000 individuals.
In 1994, the General Assembly transferred responsibility for the unclaimed property fund to the Kentucky State Treasury. Since then, about $28 million has been returned to rightful owners.
National Database
Recently, Treasurer Miller and Kentucky's Unclaimed Property Fund joined MissingMoney.com, a national database of unclaimed property. Currently, several states including Kentucky participate in the national database. Using the link on the Unclaimed Property Main Page, you can search the national database to determine if you or a loved one have unclaimed property in any of the member states.
Holocaust Restitution
As a result of his success in returning unclaimed property to the residents of Kentucky, Treasurer Miller was asked in 2001 to apply his experience and resources to an international effort. In April of that year, the treasurer was appointed to the Executive Monitoring Committee of state and local financial officers, a committee which monitors the return of assets seized during the Holocaust to their rightful owners. The 10-member committee, which was formed in December 1997, is charged with ensuring the progress of efforts to return property of Holocaust survivors that has been held by Swiss, French, Austrian, Polish and German banks and German industry, among others, for over fifty years. For more information on Holocaust restitution,
Have you won money?If your name or that of a loved one appears, please contact the Kentucky State Treasury at 1-800-465-4722 or continue visiting our website to learn how you may prove proper ownership and file the required forms to claim your unclaimed property.
