Montana · Unclaimed property · Updated Oct 2026
Montana Department of Revenue, Unclaimed Property Unit 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 Montana's official list of unclaimed property by name.
Search in MontanaSearch your name on the Department of Revenue's TransAction Portal (TAP). Searching and claiming are free.
Select your properties and file the claim online in TAP. Save the 10-digit tracking number you get.
If the department emails or writes asking for more information, send it within 6 months, or your claim will be denied (you can reopen it later). Upload documents through TAP.
Check your claim status in TAP with your tracking number.
You will be paid by paper check. Any debts you owe to state, local, federal or tribal agencies may be taken out first.
Yes. Under the Montana Auto Pay Program (HB 88, 2025), the department matches unclaimed property to owners using tax records and mails a check of up to $1,000 with no claim needed. If you get an Auto Pay letter, do not file a claim for those funds.
Heirs file online in TAP by searching the deceased person's name; a court order is usually not needed. If the estate is still open, payment goes to the estate (send the death certificate, estate tax ID and personal representative papers); otherwise heirs complete an Affidavit of Successor and a Decedent Family History, which the department sends in the claim packet. An estate must be opened if the deceased person's property subject to administration totals $100,000 or more.
Any finder agreement signed between the time the property is presumed abandoned and 24 months after it is turned over to the state is void. After that, the agreement must be in writing, signed by you, describe the property and services, and state the property's value before and after the fee. Montana sets no fixed percentage cap, but a fee that is unconscionable can be reduced in court. The 24-month ban does not apply to a deal with a lawyer to file a claim for property you have already identified.
Law: Mont. Code Ann. § 70-9-825
Watch out: The department says you do not need to pay a third party to claim your property; you can claim it for free through TAP.
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 Montana Department of Revenue, Unclaimed Property Unit. Searching is free. Search every name you have used and every address where you lived in Montana.
No. The state does not charge a fee to claim. Any finder agreement signed between the time the property is presumed abandoned and 24 months after it is turned over to the state is void. After that, the agreement must be in writing, signed by you, describe the property and services, and state the property's value before and after the fee. Montana sets no fixed percentage cap, but a fee that is unconscionable can be reduced in court. The 24-month ban does not apply to a deal with a lawyer to file a claim for property you have already identified.
Heirs file online in TAP by searching the deceased person's name; a court order is usually not needed. If the estate is still open, payment goes to the estate (send the death certificate, estate tax ID and personal representative papers); otherwise heirs complete an Affidavit of Successor and a Decedent Family History, which the department sends in the claim packet. An estate must be opened if the deceased person's property subject to administration totals $100,000 or more.
Claims are handled in the order received. The department has 90 days to finish your claim once it has all your documents.
Last checked: Oct 2026.