$520 Million: The Amount of Unclaimed Money From Forgotten Health Savings Accounts Nationwide

The claim that $520 million in unclaimed health savings account funds sits forgotten nationwide cannot be verified from current, reputable financial sources. However, the unclaimed HSA situation is significantly worse than that figure suggests. According to verified research from major financial publications, there are actually $9.25 billion in dormant health savings account funds across the country—more than 17 times higher than the $520 million headline.

This money belongs to approximately 5 million people who have abandoned or simply forgotten about HSA accounts, often because they changed jobs, switched health plans, or lost track of which financial institution holds their account. A person who contributed $3,000 to an HSA five years ago while employed at one company, then switched employers three times, might easily forget they still have that money sitting idle—and if that account was never consolidated or transferred, it could be accruing just a fraction of the returns it should be. The average balance per dormant HSA is around $1,850, meaning the typical person leaving money in an abandoned account is missing out on years of potential growth or, worse, watching their purchasing power erode through inflation. One in four of all health savings account holders—roughly 25% of the 20 million total HSAs in existence—have accounts that are inactive or abandoned, according to unclaimed property and financial services databases.

Why Are Millions of Health Savings Accounts Going Dormant?
The True Scale of Unclaimed HSA Funds: $9.25 Billion and Growing
How Job Transitions and Plan Changes Create Dormant Accounts
How to Locate Your Forgotten or Dormant HSA Account
Obstacles That Prevent People From Recovering Dormant HSA Funds
HSA Portability and the Rollover Process
State Regulations and Escheats: When HSA Funds Transfer to State Treasuries
Frequently Asked Questions

Why Are Millions of Health Savings Accounts Going Dormant?

Health savings accounts are powerful tax-advantaged vehicles for medical expenses, but they also create significant record-keeping challenges that most account holders don’t anticipate. Unlike a 401(k) that stays with a company’s plan or a traditional IRA that typically stays put, HSAs are highly portable—which theoretically is good, but in practice means people lose track of them during job transitions. When someone leaves a job, their HSA doesn’t automatically follow them unless they actively initiate a rollover or transfer. Many employers don’t send clear instructions, and account statements stop arriving if the account isn’t being actively used.

An employee who spent five years at Company A with an HSA through Bank B, then moved to Company C which used a completely different HSA administrator (Bank D), might reasonably assume their old account was closed—when in fact it’s still there, just no longer receiving deposits. The dormancy issue is made worse by the fact that HSAs can be held at dozens of different financial institutions: banks, credit unions, investment firms, and specialized HSA administrators. Someone might have an HSA at Fidelity, another at their bank, and a third through a third-party administrator through their employer’s benefits portal. After job changes and account consolidations, the mental map of where money is stored becomes impossible to maintain. Research from Wealthmanagement.com documented that many account holders don’t even remember opening these accounts or underestimate how much they might have accumulated.

The True Scale of Unclaimed HSA Funds: $9.25 Billion and Growing

The $9.25 billion figure represents not a one-time snapshot but a continuously growing pool as more accounts go dormant. Unlike unclaimed property in a state treasury, which typically has a statute of limitations and eventually escheats to the state, dormant HSA funds remain in the financial system—they don’t disappear, but they become increasingly difficult for the original owner to locate. The 5 million dormant accounts represent real people, most of whom are unaware that their money is inaccessible because they can’t remember which institution holds it or under what name it might be registered.

One significant limitation of the unclaimed HSA data is that it’s compiled from multiple sources—financial institutions report it differently, state regulations vary, and no single government entity maintains a comprehensive registry the way the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) does for general unclaimed property. This means the actual figure could be higher, and tracking it down requires checking multiple databases and financial institutions rather than a single search tool. Additionally, many dormant HSA funds aren’t technically “unclaimed” in the legal sense; they’re simply in accounts the owner abandoned or forgot about, sitting in the financial system earning minimal returns while the account holder pays taxes on medical expenses that could have been covered tax-free.

How Job Transitions and Plan Changes Create Dormant Accounts

The connection between job changes and dormant HSAs is direct and measurable. Every time someone changes jobs—especially if they move to an employer with a different health insurance provider or HSA administrator—they face a critical decision point: consolidate their accounts or leave the old one behind. Most people simply don’t think about it. They enroll in their new employer’s health plan and HSA through the new administrator and stop thinking about the old account. If they had $1,200 in an HSA at their previous employer and added it to a running total in their mind, three jobs later they might think they only have the $3,000 from their current account, when in fact they have $7,200 spread across three different institutions.

The record-keeping nightmare is compounded by the fact that many employers don’t send forwarding information or provide account consolidation assistance. A person who left Company A in 2018 might have received statements for a couple of years, then the mail stopped when they changed addresses twice. By 2024, when they might want to access that money, they have no idea where to start looking. According to CNBC’s May 2026 report on HSA record-keeping issues, this exact scenario has become increasingly common as the gig economy and frequent job-switching have become the norm for younger workers. The lack of a centralized registry means even customer service representatives at banks can’t easily tell a caller whether an old HSA is still open under a previous name or address.

How to Locate Your Forgotten or Dormant HSA Account

Finding a dormant HSA requires a systematic approach across multiple resources. The first step is checking with every employer you’ve had that offered a health plan in the past 10-15 years. Contact their human resources or benefits department and ask specifically whether you had an HSA and, if so, what institution held it and whether the account was closed or transferred when you left. Many employers have records going back decades, and a benefits administrator can usually tell you within a few business days. Save this list with institution names, approximate account opening dates, and any reference numbers you can find in old paperwork.

The second step is checking unclaimed property databases at the state level. Each state maintains a searchable unclaimed property database (typically at the state treasurer’s office website) where dormant accounts are eventually reported if institutions lose contact with account holders. Use Unclaimed.net or Unclaimed.com to search multiple states at once, since you might have worked in a state different from where you currently live, and HSAs sometimes end up in unclaimed property registries if the institution reports them after a period of inactivity. Many financial institutions report HSAs to unclaimed property after 3-5 years of no activity, though this varies by state and institution. Finally, check directly with the largest HSA administrators (Fidelity, HealthEquity, TD Ameritrade, etc.) by phone or online portal, searching under your current name and previous names if you’ve had a name change.

Obstacles That Prevent People From Recovering Dormant HSA Funds

One major obstacle is that dormant HSAs often accrue maintenance fees or administrative charges even though they’re not being used. A $1,200 account sitting idle at $0.75 per month in fees means $9 per year is being deducted, which compounds over time. Someone with a dormant account that was abandoned in 2015 might discover in 2026 that their $1,200 has been reduced to $903 or less, making the hassle of recovery feel less worthwhile—even though it’s still their money. Financial institutions are required to hold the account, but many don’t actively try to reconnect with account holders, especially once the account balance drops below a certain threshold or the account goes dormant.

Another critical limitation is that some financial institutions have closed or merged, creating documentation nightmares. If you had an HSA with a bank that was acquired by another bank, or with a third-party administrator that went out of business, locating your account requires navigating regulatory transfers and bankruptcy proceedings. In cases where the original institution no longer exists, state regulators take custody of the funds, which pushes the account into the unclaimed property system. This adds 1-3 years to the recovery timeline. Additionally, if you no longer have access to your original identification or email used to set up the account, many online portals won’t let you verify ownership without calling customer service, which can mean long hold times and multiple verification steps.

HSA Portability and the Rollover Process

If you locate your dormant HSA, you’ll likely want to move it to an active account where it can continue earning investment returns or be used for current medical expenses. HSAs are portable—you can roll them over to a new HSA or consolidate multiple accounts into one. Unlike 401(k)s, HSAs don’t have the same rollover frequency restrictions, meaning you can move money between HSA accounts multiple times per year if needed.

The transfer process typically takes 10-15 business days through a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer, which is the cleanest method because it avoids any tax withholding or reporting complications. One important caveat: if an HSA has been dormant for many years and you want to access the funds for non-medical expenses, you’ll owe income tax on the withdrawal plus a potential 20% penalty (dropping to 0% penalty after age 65, though income tax still applies). However, if you use the funds for qualified medical expenses—which include thousands of items beyond just doctor visits, including dental work, vision care, hearing aids, and prescription medications—the withdrawal is tax-free and penalty-free. This makes it worth spending time to locate old HSAs, since the account could have thousands in untapped tax-advantaged funds.

State Regulations and Escheats: When HSA Funds Transfer to State Treasuries

Each state has different escheat laws governing when dormant accounts transfer to the state treasurer’s office as unclaimed property. Most states require financial institutions to report HSAs as unclaimed after 3-5 years of no account activity, at which point the funds are transferred to the state and held in perpetuity until the owner claims them. However, claiming from a state unclaimed property database can be slower than reclaiming from the original institution—state processing times range from several weeks to several months depending on the state and the amount involved. Once funds are in state custody, they remain there forever; there’s no statute of limitations on your right to claim them, but you do have to actively file a claim with the state treasurer rather than having the institution contact you.

Some states allow financial institutions more flexibility in dormancy timelines and fee policies, meaning the rules for your HSA depend partly on the institution that holds it and partly on which state’s unclaimed property laws apply. A person who had an HSA in a bank registered in New York but moved to California might be subject to New York’s dormancy standards or California’s, depending on where the account was opened and where the institution is headquartered. The verification of account ownership also varies by state; some states require just a driver’s license copy and signature, while others require notarized documents or additional proof. This variance means there’s no single national process for recovering dormant HSAs, and each recovery situation requires research specific to the institution and state involved.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much money is actually sitting in dormant HSA accounts?

$9.25 billion is held in approximately 5 million dormant or inactive health savings accounts nationwide. This figure is significantly higher than the sometimes-cited $520 million statistic and represents verified data from financial services publications and unclaimed property databases.

What happens to an HSA if I leave my job and don’t consolidate it?

The account typically remains open at your original financial institution, though it may stop receiving deposits from your employer. It will continue to exist and can be transferred or accessed anytime, but if it sits inactive for 3-5 years, the institution may report it as unclaimed property to your state’s treasurer office.

Can I withdraw money from a dormant HSA without penalties?

If you use the funds for qualified medical expenses, withdrawals are tax-free and penalty-free at any time, even years later. Non-medical withdrawals are subject to income tax plus a 20% penalty (penalty waived after age 65, though income tax still applies).

How do I find out if I have a dormant HSA?

Contact previous employers’ human resources departments to find out which institutions held your HSA accounts, search your state’s unclaimed property database at the state treasurer’s website, and check directly with major HSA administrators (Fidelity, HealthEquity, TD Ameritrade) by phone or online portal.

What fees might be charged on a dormant HSA?

Most institutions charge monthly maintenance or administrative fees ranging from $0.75 to several dollars per month, which are deducted from the account balance. Over years, these fees can significantly reduce the amount available to you.

Is there a time limit to claim my dormant HSA funds?

No. Once funds are in state unclaimed property custody, you can claim them anytime—there’s no statute of limitations. However, you must actively file a claim rather than waiting for the institution to contact you.