Montana Unclaimed Property: How to Search and Claim (Free)
Held by the state
Average claim
Cost to claim
Montana is holding about $148 million in unclaimed property as of July 2026. You can search your name and claim it for free at MyCash.mt.gov, the official Montana Department of Revenue, Unclaimed Property site. A simple claim in your own name takes about 10 minutes and costs nothing.
How to search Montana’s unclaimed property for free
The only site you need is MyCash.mt.gov, run by the Montana Department of Revenue, Unclaimed Property. Searching is free, and so is filing your claim. You never pay the state to get your own money, and you never need to hand over money to see what is waiting for you.
Search your last name first, then try maiden names, nicknames, and any business you owned. Montana lists property under old mailing addresses, so search broadly and check every result that could be you before you file.
The Montana Department of Revenue, Unclaimed Property
Montana’s unclaimed property is held by the Montana Department of Revenue, Unclaimed Property. When a bank, employer, or insurer loses touch with you for the state’s dormancy period, it must turn your money over to this office, which then holds it for you to claim.
Montana's unclaimed property is held by the Department of Revenue, and the official search is MyCash.mt.gov. The state holds about $148 million that belongs to Montanans — uncashed checks, forgotten accounts, insurance proceeds, and mineral royalties. Thanks to HB 88, passed in 2025, the Department can now automatically match some property to its owner using tax records and mail a check for up to $1,000 with no claim required. For everything else, search MyCash.mt.gov and file yourself for free.
What’s specific to Montana
- The official search is MyCash.mt.gov, run by the Department of Revenue.
- Montana holds about $148 million in unclaimed property belonging to state residents.
- Under HB 88 (2025), the state can auto-return matched property up to $1,000 by check — no claim needed. Do not file for those; search for anything else.
- Montana's energy economy means oil, gas, and coal mineral-royalty payments show up often in the database.
How to claim in Montana
You can do this yourself in about 10 minutes, free. Here is exactly how, step by step.
Search MyCash.mt.gov
Go to MyCash.mt.gov, the Department of Revenue's official site, and search your last name. Try maiden names and any Montana business you owned. Searching is free.
Add each match to your claim
Open every result that could be you and add it. Montana lists property under old addresses, so check each place you have lived.
Verify your identity
Provide your address and Social Security number so the Department can match you to the property. You never pay to claim.
Submit your documents
Upload a government ID and any proof the site requests. Estate and business claims may need extra paperwork.
Get paid
The Department reviews the claim and pays by check. If your property qualified for the HB 88 auto-match, a check may arrive with no claim at all.
Claiming for a deceased relative in Montana
You can claim property that belonged to a relative who died, but Montana will ask for more than a simple claim needs. Expect to provide a certified death certificate and proof that you are entitled to the estate — a will, letters testamentary, or a small-estate affidavit, depending on the amount.
Here’s the honest part: heir claims take longer than claims in your own name, sometimes several months, because the state verifies the chain of inheritance. If several heirs exist, each may need to sign. Our guide on claiming unclaimed money from deceased relatives walks through exactly which documents Montana accepts.
Dormancy periods in Montana
“Dormancy” is how long an account can sit untouched before the holder must report it to the state. It varies by property type:
| Property type | Dormancy period |
|---|---|
| Uncashed paychecks / wages | 1 year |
| Utility deposits | 1 year |
| Bank accounts (checking/savings) | 3 years |
| Insurance proceeds | 3 years |
| Stocks / securities | 3 years |
| Money orders | 7 years |
Montana finder-fee cap
You do not need a finder. A finder is a company that offers to recover your money for a cut. Their letters are not a scam, but they are unnecessary — the same claim is free if you file it yourself.
Montana does not set a flat percentage cap on finder fees. Instead, under Mont. Code Ann. §70-9-825 (and Mont. Admin. R. 42.38.310), a finder agreement is void for the first 24 months after property reaches the state, finders must hold a Montana private investigator license, and any fee above 15% of what is recovered is treated as unconscionable. Either way, the same claim is free if you file it yourself.
Montana unclaimed property: common questions
Yes. MyCash.mt.gov is the official unclaimed property site of the Montana Department of Revenue. Searching and claiming are free. If a site or letter asks you to pay a fee just to see your money, it is not the state.
Simple cash claims are usually paid within a few weeks to a couple of months after the Department confirms your identity. Claims for securities or a deceased owner take longer.
Yes. 'Found money' is unclaimed property — old paychecks, deposits, and royalties the Department of Revenue is holding for you. You can search and claim it yourself for free at MyCash.mt.gov, with no finder and no fee.
Montana voids finder agreements for the first 24 months, requires finders to be licensed private investigators, and treats any fee above 15% as unconscionable (Mont. Code Ann. §70-9-825). You never need a finder — the same claim is free at MyCash.mt.gov.
Yes, as an heir. You will provide a death certificate and proof you are entitled to the estate. See our guide on claiming for a deceased relative.
Unclaimed property in nearby states
See all state guides, or read how to find unclaimed money in your name for free across every state and federal source.