Strapped for cash? How to uncover unclaimed money that may belong to you

Strapped for cashduring the COVID-19 pandemic due to the economic slowdown? You might have unclaimed money from your past that could help pay the bills perhaps from a dormantbank account or a lost cheque.

Or maybe a rich relative died without a will and unbeknownst to you you're entitled to their money. A $1.9 million inheritance is currently sitting idle in B.C., waiting for the next of kin to claim.

To find out if you're a millionaire or if you have any other unclaimed funds, here are some free, simple ways to launch your treasure hunt.

Uncashed CRA cheques

The Canada Revenue Agency is sitting on about $1 billion fromcheques for tax refunds andbenefitsthat taxpayers never cashed.

In some cases, the recipient may have lost the cheque or neglected to tell the CRA that they had moved, so it was mailed to the wrong address.

In February, the CRA added a new online feature to help unite taxpayers with their uncashed cheques which never expire.

After logging onto your CRA account online, click on the "uncashed cheques" link.That will prompt a list of any CRA chequesin your name that have remained uncashed for at least six months.

To claim your money, fill out a form provided online and send it to the agency.

The CRA reports that between Feb. 10 when it launched the new feature and the end of May, Canadians redeemed more than 260,000 uncashed chequestotalling$63.7 million.

Dave Hurley of Vancouver clicked on the "uncashed cheques" link in April and was surprised to discover he had a $88.50 cheque for a 2007 GST/HST credit.

He said he made a claim and the CRA deposited the money into his account about amonth later.

"An extra 88 bucks was good it was great to have," said Hurley, who used the money to splurge on a high-end bottle of Scotch whisky.

"I felt I deserved it."

Central bankhas $888 million in unclaimed funds

The Bank of Canada can also help you locate forgotten cash. When federally regulated bankshave unclaimed customer funds such as bank deposits, GICs and money orders they wind up at the Bank of Canadaafter a 10-year period.

The bank calls the forgottenmoney"unclaimed balances," and you can search its online database to find out if any of it belongs to you. To stake a claim, you mustfill out a claim form provided online and mail it to the bank with proof of ownership.

The Bank of Canada said it paid out $8.5 million last year to Canadians who submitted claims.

And it has plenty more to dole out. The bank reports it was sitting on $888 million in unclaimed balances at the close of 2019. Its single-largest holding totalsmore than $800,000.

Rightful owners have ampletime to claim their cash. The bank will hold unclaimed balances of less than $1,000 for 30 years and amounts of $1,000 or more for 100 years.

Forgotten EIcheques

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), which oversees federal social programs,may also have cash for you. The government department reports that as of Sept. 30, 2019, it was sitting on$133 million from more than 300,000 cheques issued to Canadians that for some reason were never cashed.

The majority of thecheques belong to people who have at some point collected Canada Pension Plan, Employment Insurance or Old Age Security payments.

ESDC doesn't have an online search tool, but youcancall Service Canadaif you believe you have a forgotten cheque. If it turns out you do and you're able tovalidate your identity, the department will reissue the cheque.

Unclaimed property programs

If you have ever lived inB.C., AlbertaorQuebec, you can dig for forgotten money by searching online databases provided by unclaimed property programs in each of the three provinces.

The programs collect funds fromprovincially regulated companies, organizations and financial institutions. Depending on the province, collected funds could include wages, insurance and pension fund payments, as well as accounts fromcredit unions.

All three programscollect unclaimed inheritancesleft by people who died and no rightful heir can be found.

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B.C., Alberta and Quebec's unclaimed property programs each have slightly different rulesbut share the samegoal: to unite people with their long-lost money.

"You can't believe what people forget [about] and for what dollars," said Alena Levitz, executive director of the BCUnclaimed Property Society (BCUPS).

The BCUPS reports it returned $2,744,595 in unclaimed cash last year to verified owners. It currentlyhas more than $164 million in its coffers waiting to be claimed.

The total includes that $1.9 million left by someone who died in B.C. without a will.

"Somebody was a good saver all their life and just didn't have [close] family and unfortunately, probably didn't think to do a will," Levitzsaid. She couldn't divulge more details about the case for privacy reasons.

BCUPSimposes no time limit to make a claim and has cash still waiting for its rightful owners dating back to the 1800s.

Levitz encourages other provinces to establishanunclaimed property program. Currently, residents of provinces without one must makeinquiries to individual businesses and organizationsto seek out forgotten cash.

"Itshould be easy for folks to find money that belongs to them," she said.

New Brunswickhas an unclaimed property programin the works.