How To Find Old 401k Accounts And What To Do Next?

If you have changed your job, you might leave behind your 401(k) account, which your former employer offered you. However, there are still hopes for recovery, as the money still belongs to you. In this article, you will learn how to find old 401k accounts, if you have forgotten about the account, or if you have lost your 401(k) account from your old job.

Hence, you might naturally ask, “How to find my 401k account?” – In this 401k finder article, you will need to follow some of the essential steps after which you can find your 401(k) account. We will discuss some of the best ways through which you can find your 401(k) account. We shall also discuss what you shall do once you have found your 401(k) account.

How To Find Old 401k Accounts?

According to a major fintech company Capitalize, “As of May 2023, we estimate that there are 29.2 million left-behind or forgotten 401(k) accounts holding approximately $1.65 trillion in assets, up from 24.3 million and $1.35 trillion in May 2021. This represents 25% of all 401(k) plan assets, up from 20% in May 2021.” Since May 2021, the number of forgotten 401(k) accounts increased by 20%.

This data is due to the fact that many people switched their jobs. However, this can create negative consequences for the individual saver, as the individual can miss out on a lot of money, which can be several hundred thousand dollars of retirement money.

If you do not have any idea where to search for your old 401(k) account, you should look for it at three different places:

1. Look for the place where you left your 401(k) account, that is with your former employer.

2. Check whether your 401(k) plan administrator set up a new plan for you after you have left.

3. Search for your 401(k) account with your state’s unclaimed property division.

Read More: How To Withdraw From 401k?

How Do I Find My 401k From An Old Job?

If you have left your 401(k) money behind, your employers will probably try to track you down and inform you of your account. However, if your former employer did not track you, and it has been a while since you have heard from your former employer.

Here, you will need to contact your former employer’s human resource department. You can also find your 401(k) statement and contact the person who administered your 401(k) plan or the financial institution where your account is located.

According to the information by Nerdwallet, “If there was more than $5,000 in your retirement account when you left, there’s a good chance that your money is still in your workplace account. While you could leave the funds there, another alternative is a 401(k) rollover to move that money into another retirement account.”

As per the provisions of the IRS, an individual can acquire the distributions at the age of 73. However, if the person is born in 1960 or later, then he will have until age 75 to acquire the 401(k) funds under the new Secure 2.0 Act.

How To Find Your 401(k) Account With Social Security Number?

Oftentimes, some government agencies get the responsibility to hold old 401(k) plans, which plan participants have probably lost. You can search with these agencies if your old 401(k) plan administrator could not give you information about your 401(k) funds. In such cases, you will need to search some of the below-given databases:

1. National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits.

2. The Abandoned Plan Database of The US Department of Labor (The database information is given by the Employee Benefits Security Administration).

3. U.S. Pension Guaranty Corp. database of unclaimed pensions.

You can also search for your 401(k) funds on the unclaimed property database. The money might still be under the employer’s plan, or maybe the company has created an IRA account in your name to hold the funds for you. You can also use the site of the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators to find your lost 401(k) funds.

How To Find Old 401k Accounts For Free?

One of the first things that you do to search for your 401(k) account is to contact your former employer (mainly the HR department). Once you provide your full name, company credentials, employment dates, social security number, and related details, HR will give you details about your 401(k) records.

According to CNBC.com, “If you’ve tried contacting your 401(k) plan administrator or former employer to no success, you may be able to find old retirement account funds on the National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits. Upon entering your Social Security number, the secure website (which is updated weekly) allows you to conduct a free database search to see if there’s any unpaid retirement money in your name.”

You can also use the FreeERISA platform. Here, you can check whether your former employer has moved your 401(k) account’s money into a default participant IRA account. You can do so once you have registered yourself on the platform. You can fully use the platform for free.

You may like to read: What Happens To Your 401k When You Leave A Job?

What To Do Once You Have Found Your 401(k) Account?

Here are the things to do once you have located your lost 401(k) account money:

• Roll over the money from your old 401(k) account to your new 401(k) account with your current employer.
• You can also roll over the 401(k) account money into IRA. This is a better way, as the money is attached to you and not your employer. Furthermore, the IRA also offers you many investment options with your 401(k) plans.

Final Thoughts

Hope this article was helpful enough for you on how to find old 401k accounts. The first thing you need to do here is ask your former employer or plan administrator with whom you have created the 401(k) account. If you do not find it there, you can check on government databases and the IRA database.

Do you find this article helpful? Feel free to share some more information regarding the same in the comments section below.

Read Also:

• Form 941 – How To File Quarterly Tax Returns?
• Form 944, Employer’s Annual Federal Tax Return
• 1099 Form – Let’s Learn What Is It? What’s Its Usage?