Unclaimed property office returning $400,000 to eligible taxpayers

The Delaware Office of Unclaimed Property will return almost $400,000 in unclaimed property directly to approximately 2,800 Delaware taxpayers this month through the annual Money Match program.

Based on a data match with their most recent personal income tax returns, eligible taxpayers will receive a check in the mail for their unclaimed property, without having to file a claim.

”Every dollar matters for Delaware families, and the Money Match program is a great example of how state government can work smarter and more efficiently for the people we serve,” said Gov. Matt Meyer. “By using technology to return unclaimed property automatically, we’re putting money back in the hands of thousands of Delawareans quickly, securely and with no red tape."

This is the sixth round of Delaware’s Money Match program, which now occurs each September. Since its inception in 2021, the Money Match program has returned more than $5.6 million to almost 40,000 Delaware taxpayers.

“Money Match is an example of how your state government is already collaborating to use data matching technology to operate more efficiently. The result is that we can return money automatically to thousands of Delaware taxpayers,” said Brenda R. Mayrack, state escheator and director of the Delaware Office of Unclaimed Property. “All Money Match recipients have to do is cash the check.”

Money Match is one of several ongoing initiatives of the Delaware Office of Unclaimed Property to increase the return of property to owners.

Every year, on Feb. 1, Delaware participates in National Unclaimed Property Day, a multi-state awareness campaign of the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators to encourage people to search for their unclaimed property.

Along with 49 other states, Delaware participates in MissingMoney.com, a free multistate unclaimed property search website sponsored by NAUPA. MissingMoney.com allows individuals to conduct one search across almost all states simultaneously to find their lost property.

Unclaimed property can include money left in old bank accounts, uncashed paychecks, unused balances on gift certificates, unreturned utility deposits, uncollected insurance payments, and forgotten stocks and dividends. Businesses are required to report and remit these amounts to all states after a certain number of years without owner activity or if contact is lost between the holder of the property and the property owner. Annually, Delaware returns on average between $150 million and $200 million in unclaimed property to owners in Delaware and around the world.

While Money Match automatically reunites many Delaware taxpayers with their unclaimed property, not all types of property are included. Delawareans are still encouraged to search for unclaimed property held by the state at unclaimedproperty.delaware.gov, or to search across 49 states at one time by going to missingmoney.com.