In 2019, the sum of money NOT being claimed by Malaysians was reportedly over RM10 billion, which is quite a sizeable amount! According to the news article, the Accountant-General’s Department (AGD) wanted to help Malaysians check the status of their unclaimed monies, leading to the development of an online system for this purpose.
Previously, to check whether you have any unclaimed monies (eg. from tax relief), you’ll need to queue up without knowing if you even have any unclaimed money! However, earlier in 2020, the AGD’s eGUMIS portal went live and it was a significant improvement for people wanting to check whether they had any unclaimed monies.
Despite this breakthrough, if you wanted to claim the money, you were still required to pay a visit to the AGD’s office to submit a physical form (Borang Permohonan Bayaran Balik WTD “UMA-7”).
I remembered I had a small sum of money unclaimed, but due to the trouble and since the amount was not significant, I procrastinated and left the money unclaimed, on purpose. Towards the end of 2020, I read an article on The Star that stated the government could consider using unclaimed monies as a “source of revenue” – this triggered me to check my unclaimed money again.
I was asked to create an account again as my account had expired after six months of inactivity. As I registered for another account, I realised that the user interface had changed and the more I explored, the more I realised that eGUMIS now allowed us to submit forms online.
My step-by step experience of claiming my unclaimed monies is outlined below, and be sure to read till the end as I will also explain how to overcome a certain bug (as of 28 November 2020) in the system:
Step 1: Register For a New Account
First, head over to this link to register for a new account. Then click on ‘Registration’ in the top right corner as per the screenshot below to get started.
Note: You may first need to change the default language to English, or you may proceed in Bahasa Melayu.
You may then fill in the form to register your new account.
Your account will be deactivated after six months of inactivity, so if you have previously registered and have not logged in for the past six months, you’ll need to register for a new account.
Step 2: Update your Profile
Next, update your profile. Make sure to fill up all the boxes that is marked as compulsory (*).
Step 3: Check for Unclaimed Monies
Click on “Search for Unclaimed Moneys” and enter your Identification Number into the provided space. If you have any unclaimed money, it will show up in the search result.
I also helped my parents check their unclaimed money through my account. However, I’m not sure if I can actually process the claims using my account, so to be on the safe side, I registered new accounts for them to help them claim their money.
Do note that you can only check a maximum of two IDs per day.
Step 4: Application Form
If you have any unclaimed money, here is what you need to do to claim it:
Don’t click anything other than the following two steps. As the system doesn’t save your search results, if you use up your quota of two searches per day, you have to wait for the next day to proceed to the next step.
Select the “check all” box, as I assume everyone wants to claim all their unclaimed monies.
Select the “Proceed to Application” box.
Step 4.5: (Workaround) Bug in the System
In my experience, for some reason, there is a bug in the English version of eGUMIS which prevented me from proceeding to the next step. I’ll save your time without boring you with the details; here’s the work around:
Visit this link and under “Semakan” click “Log Masuk”. This is the Bahasa Malaysia version of eGUMIS.
Step 5: Enter Payee Information
This screenshot was taken in the English version. In the Bahasa Malaysia version, “Tambah Penerima” is also located in the same position.
Once you click on “Tambah Penerima” (Payee), a pop-up will appear and you’ll need to fill in your particulars and bank account number accordingly.
After you’ve saved the Payee details, check the two boxes below and click on the “Hantar” button.
Step 6: Almost there
Once you’ve completed your application, you should receive an email by the AGD. To complete the claim, you are required to submit:
- A copy of your ID (IC / passport / company certificate)
- Bank statement (from the same bank that you entered in the Payee column).
Submit the above document to [email protected] with the application number as the email subject.
(Please be reminded that each email cannot exceed 15MB.)
Final Thoughts
Even though there’s no time limit as to when you can claim your money, it’s better to claim it as soon as possible. This is because the Registrar of Unclaimed Money doesn’t pay any interest on the money claimed while your money can be invested elsewhere to generate a return.
One common reason why money remains unclaimed is because the legal beneficiaries don’t know about the money after the owner passes away. This is especially true if the owner dies unexpectedly. Therefore, it’s good to have a simple will (at the very least) to avoid this scenario.
Don’t stop at checking your own account; if you have elderly parents or family members, do help them to check as well.
However, please be reminded that the Ministry of Finance or the Registrar of Unclaimed Money doesn’t appoint any individual/firm/company as agents for the refund of unclaimed monies. Be extra careful if anyone claims that they can help you claim the money.
This article was originally published at planNERD.
About the Author
Marshall Wong is a licensed financial planner and can be contacted through his website or [email protected].
