When a person dies, their family members and other beneficiaries might not know if they had any super or where that super may be held.
When we receive a query about super for a deceased individual from a relative of the member (or an executor) who does not have a court grant of probate or letters of administration, the information we can provide is limited due to our legal framework. In these instances, we send a Lost Super Enquiry email to the deceased individual’s fund which includes the contact details of the person or persons seeking that information.
It is important to note:
- This is not a formal notification of death as we do not verify or confirm the accuracy of the applicant’s statement regarding the member being deceased.
- We cannot confirm if the person(s) are valid beneficiaries.
- The legislation prevents us from telling the applicant if any relevant super accounts exist; the applicant will not know if we have sent a Lost Super Enquiry email to a fund.
- We recently updated the Lost Super Enquiry template to advise funds when an applicant has informed us that a member is deceased. The intention is to help funds decide what support they may be able to offer to family members and potential beneficiaries.
On receipt of a Lost Super Enquiry advice, we encourage super funds to consider if the contact information provided can be used to assist in reuniting beneficiaries with superannuation they may be entitled to claim.
Once a Lost Super Enquiry email has been sent, the ATO has no visibility of any action taken by the fund, including whether contact is made with the applicant or the outcome of any enquiries.
Our information for beneficiaries seeking information about super can be viewed here.
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