How to claim unclaimed deposits? RBI answers some commonly asked questions

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recently released a set of frequently asked questions to help depositors in claiming unclaimed deposits through the UDGAM portal (Unclaimed Deposits Gateway To Access Information). Udgam is a portal developed by RBI. These are some of the frequently answered questions:

Are all banks part of the UDGAM portal?

No. As on March 4, 2024, there are 30 banks, which are part of UDGAM portal, and they cover around 90% of unclaimed deposits (in value terms) in Depositor Education and Awareness (DEA) Fund of RBI.

Can we settle unclaimed deposits through this portal or from the RBI?

No, the portal facilitates only the search of unclaimed deposits/ accounts across multiple banks at one place and provides information on the claim process of each bank. The unclaimed deposits can be claimed only from the respective bank.

What are the inputs required to search unclaimed deposits of individuals?

In order to search unclaimed deposits, a user has to provide inputs such as name of account holder, name of bank, and one of these details: PAN, driving licence, voter ID, passport number and date of birth. 

What is an unclaimed deposit reference number?

UDRN is a unique number generated through Core Banking Solution (CBS) by banks and assigned to each unclaimed account/ deposit transferred to DEA fund of RBI.   

This number is used so that the account holder or the bank branch where the account is maintained, cannot be identified by any third party.

Which are the deposits/ accounts covered in the UDGAM portal?

All unclaimed deposits/ accounts that are part of  DEA fund of  RBI can be searched in the UDGAM portal.

Which are the amounts credited to the DEA Fund?

The amounts credited to the DEA Fund are the credit balances in any deposit account maintained with banks, which have not been operated upon for 10 years or more by the depositor, or any amount remaining unclaimed for 10 years or more.

These include these accounts: savings bank account, fixed deposit (FD), recurring deposit (RD), current deposit, other deposit, cash credit, others.

When are the amounts credited to the DEA fund?

The banks are required to transfer the credit balance in the accounts to the DEA Fund on the last working day  of the month subsequent to the month of completing 10 years of its continuous inoperative status.

Is interest accrued on such amounts also transferred to the DEA fund?

Yes, the banks are required to transfer the entire amount, including the accrued interest as on the date of transfer to the DEA Fund.