Maine · Unclaimed property · Updated Oct 2026
Office of the Maine State Treasurer, Unclaimed Property Program holds money that businesses could not return to its owners. Here is how to search, what proof you need and how long it takes.
Search Maine's official list of unclaimed property by name.
Search in MaineSearch your name, your business, and family and friends at maineunclaimedproperty.gov. Narrow results by a city you have lived in.
Click CLAIM on your items, pick your relationship to the owner (for example Self, Heir or Personal Representative), and enter your current mailing address.
Submit to get a claim number. Some claims need nothing more. If yours needs a signed form or proof, the email you get will list it.
If you prefer paper, print the Mail-In Claim Form instead. If the property is worth more than $1,500, a notary must witness your signature.
Mail the form and documents to Office of the State Treasurer, Attn: Unclaimed Property, 39 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0039, or upload them online.
Some online claims can be finished without more paperwork; the state emails you a claim form only if it needs a signed form or more proof. We found no automatic-payment program.
The surviving spouse or personal representative files an Estate Affidavit with the claim. Checks are normally made out to the estate of the deceased owner, not to you. If the estate was never probated, the check can be made out to you for claims up to $40,000 if you send Maine's Affidavit of a Small Estate and legal proof of your relationship to the person who died.
A finder agreement is void if it was signed between the date the property became abandoned and 24 months after it was turned over to the state (this does not apply to hiring a lawyer to file a claim for identified property). For agreements signed 24 to 36 months after that date, the fee cannot be more than 15%. After 36 months, the law sets no percentage cap, but an unconscionable fee can still be cut. Any agreement must be in writing, describe the property and services, be signed by you, and show the value before and after the fee. You or the state can sue to cut an unconscionable fee. The state says heirfinders must be private investigators licensed in Maine, with some exceptions.
Law: 33 M.R.S. § 2201
Watch out: Claiming is free; if someone contacts you and wants a fee to help you claim, the state says to contact its office instead, because it does this at no charge.
Search every other state where you lived or worked. Some money, like old savings bonds and IRS refunds, is held by federal agencies.
Money that businesses could not return to you and had to hand over to a state, such as old bank accounts and insurance policies. USA.gov says state governments hold most unclaimed money.
Official siteOld paper or electronic U.S. savings bonds that were never cashed, including bonds that have matured and stopped earning interest (EE and I bonds earn interest for up to 30 years), plus lost, stolen or destroyed bonds.
Official siteTax refunds owed to people who never filed a federal tax return for a year, often because they earned little and were not required to file. The IRS says taxpayers usually have three years to file and claim a refund; after that the money becomes the property of the U.S. Treasury.
Official siteSearch the official database run by the Office of the Maine State Treasurer, Unclaimed Property Program. Searching is free. Search every name you have used and every address where you lived in Maine.
No. The state does not charge a fee to claim. A finder agreement is void if it was signed between the date the property became abandoned and 24 months after it was turned over to the state (this does not apply to hiring a lawyer to file a claim for identified property). For agreements signed 24 to 36 months after that date, the fee cannot be more than 15%. After 36 months, the law sets no percentage cap, but an unconscionable fee can still be cut. Any agreement must be in writing, describe the property and services, be signed by you, and show the value before and after the fee. You or the state can sue to cut an unconscionable fee. The state says heirfinders must be private investigators licensed in Maine, with some exceptions.
The surviving spouse or personal representative files an Estate Affidavit with the claim. Checks are normally made out to the estate of the deceased owner, not to you. If the estate was never probated, the check can be made out to you for claims up to $40,000 if you send Maine's Affidavit of a Small Estate and legal proof of your relationship to the person who died.
Claims are processed in the order received. Most are done within a few weeks. Estate and stock claims can take longer.
Last checked: Oct 2026.