Do You Have Unclaimed Bank Deposits? Here's How to Recover the Money
Rounaq Neroy
Oct 21, 2023 / Reading Time: Approx. 7 mins
Listen to Do You Have Unclaimed Bank Deposits? Here's How to Recover the Money
00:00
00:00
In the interest of our long-term financial well-being, many of us consciously engage in saving and investing hard-earned money. Among the various avenues available, bank deposits are a popular choice. Term Deposits comprise 58.5% of total deposits in India, according to data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as of March 31, 2023.
But are you also aware that Rs 32,125 crore worth of Unclaimed Deposits are lying with Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) according to the RBI data as of March 31, 2023? Yes, you read that right. Over time, it is possible that we may have lost track of some of the deposits made or misplaced the deposit receipt.
Table: Unclaimed Deposits with SCBs
| Year |
Amount (Rs. crore) |
| FY23 |
32,125 |
| FY22 |
29,150 |
| FY21 |
26,500 |
| FY20 |
24,250 |
| FY19 |
22,000 |
Data as of March 31, 2023
(Source: rbi.org.in)
The RBI classifies Unclaimed Deposits as balances in savings / current accounts which are not operated for 10 years, or term deposits not claimed within 10 years from the date of maturity.
What Happens to the Unclaimed Deposits?
These Unclaimed Deposits are transferred to the 'Depositor Education and Awareness" (DEA) Fund' maintained by the RBI.
As a depositor, you are entitled to claim these Unclaimed Deposits from the respective bank along with interest.
As per the RBI circular dated May 11, 2021, the rate of interest applicable here is 3% p.a. (simple interest). All the banks are required to calculate the interest payable on interest-bearing deposits transferred to RBI at the rate of 4.0% p.a. up to June 30, 2018, 3.5% from July 1, 2018, up to May 10, 2021, and at 3.0% with effect from May 11, 2021, till the time of payment to the depositor/claimant.
So, net-net, what it means is you, the depositor, would lose out on the higher interest, particularly on the term deposit.
In cases where the account belongs to a deceased depositor, the nominee(s) or legal heir(s) can make a claim producing the necessary documents, and the bank will be liable to pay interest as above.
How to Claim the Amount in Unclaimed Deposits?
To help depositors or the nominee(s) or legal heir(s), banks host a list of unclaimed depositors on their website.
Recently, the RBI also launched a centralised web portal, UDGAM (Unclaimed Deposits Gateway to Access inforMation), making it easier for depositors or the nominee(s) or legal heir(s) of the deceased depositor to search for Unclaimed Deposits across multiple banks at one place. Watch this video:
On the UGAM website, at present, one can search for Unclaimed Deposits of up to 30 banks. The list of banks available on the UDGAM portal are:
-
State Bank of India
-
Central Bank of India
-
Bank of India
-
Indian Bank
-
Indian Overseas Bank
-
Union Bank of India
-
Canara Bank
-
Bank of Baroda
-
Punjab National Bank
-
Punjab and Sind Bank
-
Bank of Maharashtra
-
South Indian Bank Ltd.
-
Karnataka Bank Ltd.
-
Tamilnad Mercantile Bank Ltd.
-
UCO Bank
-
Federal Bank
-
The Karur Vysya Bank Ltd.
-
Jammu and Kashmir Bank Ltd.
-
Dhanlaxmi Bank Ltd.
-
Saraswat Co-operative Bank
-
IndusInd Bank Ltd.
-
HDFC Bank Ltd.
-
ICICI Bank Ltd.
-
Axis Bank Ltd.
-
Kotak Mahindra Bank
-
IDBI Bank Ltd.
-
HSBC Ltd.
-
Standard Chartered Bank
-
Citibank N.A.
-
DBS Bank India Ltd.
This covers up to 90% of the Unclaimed Deposits in value terms.
All you have to do is follow these steps:
Step #1: Visit and login to https://udgam.rbi.org.in/unclaimed-deposits/#/login
Step #2: Enter your mobile number, password, captcha code, and the OTP received.
Step #3: On the following page, enter the name of the account holder (which is a mandatory field) and select the bank from the list.
Step #4: Enter PAN, Voter ID, Driving License, Passport (any one), and Date of Birth
Step #5: Click on the search button, and it will display the Unclaimed Deposits (if any).
In the endeavour to trace and settle, the RBI has also launched the '100 Days, 100 Pays' campaign to return money to the rightful claimants.
You can reach out to your respective bank (where the deposit/s are held) with your KYC documents, such as PAN, Aadhaar, Voter ID, etc. and/or succession certificate (in case you are the nominee or legal heir of the deceased depositor), plus the deposit account number and/or term deposit receipt.
Upon verification, the bank will process your claim on the Unclaimed Deposit/s and release the amount into your account.
How to Prevent the Situation of Unclaimed Deposits?
To prevent the situation of Unclaimed Deposits, maintain records and keep a close track.
Also, if your contact details have changed, make sure that you update them with the bank (or any issuer of securities, for that matter) and comply with the KYC norms.
When your term deposit matures, make it a point to claim the money and/or renew the term deposit so that you do lose out on a higher rate of interest.
To pass on assets to your loved ones, preferably hold a joint deposit account (in either or survivor mode) with your spouse, children or trusted family members.
In a majority of cases, the Unclaimed Deposits arise on account of the death of the depositors -- and many a time, the family members/legal heirs are unaware of the investments made or where the related investment proofs/documents are kept.
Therefore, ideally, share the details of your investments with your family members and add nominee(s) in the proportion you desire. While the nominee(s) do not necessarily become the absolute owner, it ensures that the bank transfers the deposit amount to the designated nominee.
Open and transparent communication with family members about your bank accounts, deposits, and all other investments is imperative! In this age of digitisation, also write down the online passwords to access your bank accounts, deposits, and other investments and store them in a secure place. All this reduces the hassle for the nominees and legal heirs when they claim the money.
To sum-up...
Be very thoughtful in your approach and control your personal finances - be it bank accounts, deposits, or any other investments, for that matter. This shall save you and your loved ones from hassles later and lead an organised financial life.
Happy Investing!
We are on Telegram! Join thousands of like-minded investors and our editors right now.
-New.png)
ROUNAQ NEROY heads the content activity at PersonalFN and is the Chief Editor of PersonalFN’s newsletter, The Daily Wealth Letter.
As the co-editor of premium services, viz. Investment Ideas Note, the Multi-Asset Corner Report, and the Retire Rich Report; Rounaq brings forth potentially the best investment ideas and opportunities to help investors plan for a happy and blissful financial future.
He has also authored and been the voice of PersonalFN’s e-learning course -- which aims at helping investors become their own financial planners. Besides, he actively contributes to a variety of issues of Money Simplified, PersonalFN’s e-guides in the endeavour and passion to educate investors.
He is a post-graduate in commerce (M. Com), with an MBA in Finance, and a gold medallist in Certificate Programme in Capital Market (from BSE Training Institute in association with JBIMS). Rounaq holds over 18+ years of experience in the financial services industry.
Disclaimer: Investment in securities market are subject to market risks, read all the related documents carefully before investing.
This article is for information purposes only and is not meant to influence your investment decisions. It should not be treated as a mutual fund recommendation or advice to make an investment decision in the above-mentioned schemes.