In brief
- Services Australia says Australians are owed around $274 million in unclaimed Medicare benefits.
- If you're owed, providing your bank details should allow you to receive the funds within days.
Hundreds of millions of dollars are waiting to be claimed by Australians who have not provided their current bank account details to Services Australia.
The agency says 974,000 Australians are owed a slice of $274.5 million in unpaid Medicare benefits.
It's urging people to check that their bank details are up to date in their Medicare online account.
The average amount owed per person is around $280.
Young Australians account for the largest share, with more than $65 million payable to 255,000 people aged between 18 and 24.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
A Services Australia spokesperson advises Australians to update their personal details with Medicare when they change bank or address.
How to check
To receive Medicare benefits, Services Australia needs your bank account details.
To check whether you're owed money, log in to your myGov account, or create one if you don't have one.
Ensure your account is linked to Medicare.
Then, check that your bank details are up to date. You'll need to provide your BSB, account number, and account name.
You can find detailed instructions on the Services Australia website.
Once you've provided the required information, if you're owed money, any unpaid Medicare benefits will usually be paid into your account within three days.
If you're not comfortable completing the process online, you can contact the Medicare line on 132 011 or visit a service centre to update your bank details.
Billions in unclaimed money across Australia
There are multiple pots of unclaimed taxpayer money across the country.
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) said in October there were seven million Australians who could be owed a share of a $19 billion pool of lost and unclaimed superannuation.
It said the average amount owed was $2,590.
You can find the ATO's guide to search for lost and unclaimed super here.
Other sources of unclaimed money include deceased estates, lost share dividends, wages, cheques, overpayments and more.
Each state has a database to search for unclaimed money.
You can find each database here:
For the latest from SBS News, download our app and subscribe to our newsletter.
