{"id":"unclaimed-money-act-2021","name":"Unclaimed Money Act 2021","slug":"unclaimed-money-act-2021","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"sa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":110625,"registerId":"sa-unclaimed-money-act-2021-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Unclaimed Money Act 2021","content":"South Australia\nUnclaimed Money Act 2021\nAn Act to make provision for the publication of information about, and the repayment of, unclaimed money, to provide for the payment of unclaimed money into the Consolidated Account, to make related amendments to various Acts, to repeal the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891 and for other purposes.\n\nContents\n1\tShort title\n2\tCommencement\n3\tInterpretation\n4\tRegister of unclaimed money\n5\tUnclaimed money to be paid to Treasurer\n6\tOther money may be paid to Treasurer\n7\tTreasurer may pay money to lawful claimant\n8\tTreasurer's power to require information\n9\tExemptions\n10\tDelegation\n11\tContinuing offence\n12\tRegulations\nSchedule 1—Related amendments and repeal\nPart 1—Preliminary\n1\tAmendment provisions\nPart 2—Amendment of Correctional Services Act 1982\n2\tAmendment of section 31—Prisoner allowances and other money\nPart 3—Amendment of Criminal Law (Clamping, Impounding and Forfeiture of Vehicles) Act 2007\n3\tAmendment of section 20—Disposal of vehicles\nPart 4—Amendment of Emergency Services Funding Act 1998\n4\tAmendment of section 20—Sale of land for non-payment of levy\nPart 5—Amendment of Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery Act 2017\n5\tAmendment of section 42—Power to dispose of uncollected seized vehicles\nPart 6—Amendment of Ground Water (Qualco-Sunlands) Control Act 2000\n6\tAmendment of section 59—Sale of land for non-payment\nPart 7—Amendment of Irrigation Act 2009\n7\tAmendment of section 52—Sale of land for non-payment of charges\nPart 8—Amendment of Landscape South Australia Act 2019\n8\tAmendment of section 86—Sale of land for non-payment of a levy\n9\tAmendment of section 158—Effect of cancellation of water management authorisations\nPart 9—Amendment of Local Government Act 1999\n10\tAmendment of section 184—Sale of land for non-payment of rates\n11\tAmendment of Schedule 1B—Building upgrade agreements\nPart 10—Amendment of Native Vegetation Act 1991\n12\tAmendment of section 33I—Sale of land for non-payment\nPart 11—Amendment of Renmark Irrigation Trust Act 2009\n13\tAmendment of section 54—Sale of land for non-payment of charges\nPart 12—Amendment of South Australian Water Corporation Act 1994\n14\tAmendment of section 18D—Power to sell land\nPart 13—Repeal of Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\n15\tRepeal of Act\nLegislative history\n\nThe Parliament of South Australia enacts as follows:\n1—Short title\nThis Act may be cited as the Unclaimed Money Act 2021.\n2—Commencement\nThis Act comes into operation on a day to be fixed by proclamation.\n3—Interpretation\nIn this Act, unless the contrary intention appears—\ncorporation includes the liquidator, administrator or receiver of a corporation;\nowner of money means the person who is entitled to the money and includes the person's executors, administrators and assigns and the legal representative or agent of the person, executor, administrator or assign;\nprescribed amount means—\n\t(a)\t$50; or\n\t(b)\tif another amount is prescribed by regulation for the purposes of this definition—that amount;\nrepealed Act means the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891;\nunclaimed money means any sum of money (including, but not limited to, principal, interest, dividends, bonuses and profits) that—\n\t(a)\thas come into the possession of a corporation by virtue of a transaction with the owner of the money occurring in this State; and\n\t(b)\thas been held by the corporation for at least 5 years; and\n\t(c)\tin respect of which there has been no claim by the owner against the corporation.\n4—Register of unclaimed money\n\t(1)\tA corporation to which this section applies must—\n\t(a)\tmaintain a register of unclaimed money in a form determined by the Treasurer; and\n\t(b)\tmake the register available, free of charge—\n\t(i)\ton the corporation's website; or\n\t(ii)\ton a website approved by the Treasurer for the purposes of this subsection; and\n\t(c)\tby 31 January each year, enter into the register the particulars determined by the Treasurer relating to unclaimed money exceeding the prescribed amount held by the corporation as at 1 January in that year.\nMaximum penalty: $5 000.\n\t(2)\tThis section applies to a corporation that carries on business in this State other than—\n\t(a)\ta corporation established on a non-profit basis; or\n\t(b)\tan ADI; or\n\t(c)\ta superannuation provider within the meaning of the Superannuation (Unclaimed Money and Lost Members) Act 1999 of the Commonwealth; or\n\t(d)\ta corporation of a prescribed kind.\n5—Unclaimed money to be paid to Treasurer\n\t(1)\tUnclaimed money that has not been paid by a corporation to the owner of the money before the second anniversary of the day on which notice of the unclaimed money first appeared on a register of unclaimed money maintained by the corporation (whether under this Act or the repealed Act) must be paid by the corporation to the Treasurer within 4 months after that anniversary.\nMaximum penalty: $5 000.\n\t(2)\tMoney paid to the Treasurer under subsection (1) must be credited to the Consolidated Account.\n6—Other money may be paid to Treasurer\n\t(1)\tIf—\n\t(a)\ta person (not being a corporation to which section 4 applies) has been in possession of money, of an amount not less than the prescribed amount, for at least 1 year; and\n\t(b)\tthe owner of the money cannot be found,\nthe person may pay the money to the Treasurer.\n\t(2)\tA person making a payment to the Treasurer under subsection (1) must provide, in the manner and form approved by the Treasurer, such information as the Treasurer may require in relation to the payment.\n\t(3)\tMoney paid to the Treasurer under subsection (1) must be credited to the Consolidated Account.\n\t(4)\tIf the Treasurer receives money under this section, the person who paid the money is discharged from any further liability in respect of the money.\n7—Treasurer may pay money to lawful claimant\n\t(1)\tIf the Treasurer is satisfied, on application made in a manner and form approved by the Treasurer, that the applicant is the owner of money that has been paid to the Treasurer under this Act or the repealed Act, the Treasurer may pay the money to the applicant.\n\t(2)\tAn application under subsection (1) may not be made—\n\t(a)\tfor an amount that is less than the prescribed amount; or\n\t(b)\tmore than 25 years after—\n\t(i)\tin the case of an application relating to unclaimed money—the day on which notice of the money first appeared on a register of unclaimed money (whether under this Act or the repealed Act); or\n\t(ii)\tin any other case—the day on which the money was received by the Treasurer (under this Act or the repealed Act).\n\t(3)\tSubsection (2)(a) does not apply in relation to an application for transitional money made within 5 years of the commencement of this section.\n\t(4)\tSubsection (2)(b) does not apply in relation to an application for transitional money made within 5 years of the commencement of this section if, on that commencement, 25 years have passed since the day on which notice of the money first appeared on a register of unclaimed money or the money was received by the Treasurer.\n\t(5)\tNo interest is payable in respect of a payment made under subsection (1).\n\t(6)\tA payment under subsection (1) is to be made from the Consolidated Account, which is appropriated to the necessary extent.\n\t(7)\tIf a payment is made to a person under this section, the Crown has no further liability in respect of the money that constituted the payment.\n\t(8)\tSubsection (7) does not prevent another person claiming to be the owner of the money from taking action for recovery of the money from the person to whom the payment was made.\n\t(9)\tIn this section—\ntransitional money means—\n\t(a)\tunclaimed money that was, on the commencement of this section, listed on a register of unclaimed money maintained under the repealed Act; or\n\t(b)\tmoney that was paid to the Treasurer under section 7A of the repealed Act.\n8—Treasurer's power to require information\n\t(1)\tThe Treasurer may, at any time, examine accounts of a corporation relating to unclaimed money referred to in the corporation's register of unclaimed money.\n\t(2)\tFor the purposes of subsection (1), the Treasurer may, by written notice given to a person, require the person to—\n\t(a)\tgive the Treasurer, within a time and in a manner stated in the notice (which must be reasonable), information in the person's possession that the Treasurer reasonably requires; and\n\t(b)\tverify the information by statutory declaration.\nMaximum penalty: $5 000.\n\t(3)\tA notice to be given to a person under subsection (2) may—\n\t(a)\tbe given to the person personally; or\n\t(b)\tbe posted in an envelope addressed to the person's last known address; or\n\t(c)\tbe transmitted by email to the person's email address (in which case the notice will be taken to have been given or served at the time of transmission).\n9—Exemptions\nThe Treasurer may exempt a specified person, or class of persons, from the application of this Act or provisions of this Act, absolutely or subject to conditions.\n10—Delegation\n\t(1)\tThe Treasurer may delegate a power or function vested in or conferred on the Treasurer by or under this Act—\n\t(a)\tto a particular person or body; or\n\t(b)\tto the person for the time being holding or acting in a particular office or position.\n\t(2)\tA power or function delegated under this section may, if the instrument of delegation so provides, be further delegated.\n\t(3)\tA delegation—\n\t(a)\tmay be absolute or conditional; and\n\t(b)\tdoes not derogate from the power of the delegator to act in a matter; and\n\t(c)\tis revocable at will by the delegator.\n11—Continuing offence\n\t(1)\tA person convicted of an offence against a provision of this Act in respect of a continuing act or omission—\n\t(a)\tis liable, in addition to the penalty otherwise applicable to the offence, to a penalty for each day during which the act or omission continued of not more than one‑tenth of the maximum penalty prescribed for that offence; and\n\t(b)\tis, if the act or omission continues after the conviction, guilty of a further offence against the provision and liable, in addition to the penalty otherwise applicable to the further offence, to a penalty for each day during which the act or omission continued after the conviction of not more than one‑tenth of the maximum penalty prescribed for the offence.\n\t(2)\tIf an offence consists of an omission to do something that is required to be done, the omission will be taken to continue for as long as the thing required to be done remains undone after the end of the period for compliance with the requirement.\n12—Regulations\n\t(1)\tThe Governor may make such regulations as are contemplated by this Act, or as are necessary or expedient for the purposes of this Act.\n\t(2)\tThe regulations may—\n\t(a)\tbe of general or limited application; and\n\t(b)\tmake different provision according to the persons, things or circumstances to which they are expressed to apply.\nSchedule 1—Related amendments and repeal\nPart 1—Preliminary\n1—Amendment provisions\nIn this Schedule, a provision under a heading referring to the amendment of a specified Act amends the Act so specified.\nPart 2—Amendment of Correctional Services Act 1982\n2—Amendment of section 31—Prisoner allowances and other money\nSection 31(5a)(e)—delete \"as unclaimed money for the purposes of the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nunder section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021\nPart 3—Amendment of Criminal Law (Clamping, Impounding and Forfeiture of Vehicles) Act 2007\n3—Amendment of section 20—Disposal of vehicles\nSection 20(6)(b)(iii)—delete \"section 7A of the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nsection 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021\nPart 4—Amendment of Emergency Services Funding Act 1998\n4—Amendment of section 20—Sale of land for non-payment of levy\nSection 20(10)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\nPart 5—Amendment of Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery Act 2017\n5—Amendment of section 42—Power to dispose of uncollected seized vehicles\n\t(1)\tSection 42(5)(a)—delete \"section 7A of the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nsection 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021\n\t(2)\tSection 42(5)(b)—delete \"section 7A of the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nsection 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021\nPart 6—Amendment of Ground Water (Qualco-Sunlands) Control Act 2000\n6—Amendment of section 59—Sale of land for non-payment\nSection 59(10)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\nPart 7—Amendment of Irrigation Act 2009\n7—Amendment of section 52—Sale of land for non-payment of charges\nSection 52(10)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\nPart 8—Amendment of Landscape South Australia Act 2019\n8—Amendment of section 86—Sale of land for non-payment of a levy\nSection 86(10)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\n9—Amendment of section 158—Effect of cancellation of water management authorisations\nSection 158(7)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\nPart 9—Amendment of Local Government Act 1999\n10—Amendment of section 184—Sale of land for non-payment of rates\nSection 184(12)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\n11—Amendment of Schedule 1B—Building upgrade agreements\nSchedule 1B, clause 9(3)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\nPart 10—Amendment of Native Vegetation Act 1991\n12—Amendment of section 33I—Sale of land for non-payment\nSection 33I(10)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\nPart 11—Amendment of Renmark Irrigation Trust Act 2009\n13—Amendment of section 54—Sale of land for non-payment of charges\nSection 54(10)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\nPart 12—Amendment of South Australian Water Corporation Act 1994\n14—Amendment of section 18D—Power to sell land\nSection 18D(11)—delete \"as unclaimed money under the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\" and substitute:\nin accordance with section 6 of the Unclaimed Money Act 2021 as money the owner of which cannot be found\nPart 13—Repeal of Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891\n15—Repeal of Act\nThe Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891 is repealed.\nLegislative history\nNotes\n\t•\tFor further information relating to the Act and subordinate legislation made under the Act see the Index of South Australian Statutes or www.legislation.sa.gov.au.\nPrincipal Act\nYear\nNo\nTitle\nAssent\nCommencement\n2021\n45\nUnclaimed Money Act 2021 \n25.11.2021\n25.11.2023 (s 27(6) Legislation Interpretation Act 2021)\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Unable to assess whether the scope changed from the original intent — no legislative text was retrievable from the provided source. The page returned a navigation error rather than the Act's content."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative text was available for analysis — the source URL returned a 404 Page Not Found error","The complexity score of 1 reflects the absence of content, not an assessment of the Act itself","Website restructure on 24 March 2026 appears to have broken the provided hyperlink","Any genuine complexity assessment of the Act requires access to its actual provisions"],"plain_english_summary":"The Unclaimed Money Act 2021 (SA) requires businesses and institutions to transfer dormant or unclaimed funds to the state after a set period, safeguards those funds for rightful owners, and lets people later reclaim what’s theirs. It affects anyone with forgotten bank accounts, unpaid wages, insurance payouts, or similar unclaimed money in South Australia."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act does not change the core subject‑matter from the repealed Act: it continues to identify, publish, collect and return unclaimed money. Mechanically it modernises the regime by creating a Treasurer‑determined public register (s4), setting specified payment and claim timelines (s5–s7), giving investigatory and exemption powers to the Treasurer (s8–s9), and replacing references to the 1891 Act across multiple statutes (Schedule, Part 13). These are procedural and administrative changes rather than an expansion into new subject matter."},"complexity_factors":["Definition and thresholds: detailed definition of 'unclaimed money' with a 5‑year holding rule and a 'prescribed amount' defaulting to $50 but alterable by regulation (s3).","Register and publication duty: annual entry, format determined by the Treasurer, public posting requirements and a $5,000 maximum penalty for non‑compliance (s4).","Timing and payment obligations: fixed notice and payment deadlines for corporations to remit unclaimed money to the Treasurer and credit to the Consolidated Account (s5(1)–(2)).","Alternative payment route and discharge: persons (non‑covered corporations) may pay money the owner of which cannot be found to the Treasurer after 1 year, with a discharge from further liability (s6(1)–(4)).","Claims procedure and limits: Treasurer may repay validated claimants subject to a minimum amount, a 25‑year limitation with transitional exceptions, and no interest payable on refunds (s7(1)–(7)).","Treasurer's investigatory powers: written notices requiring information and statutory declaration, examination of accounts, with a $5,000 penalty for non‑compliance (s8).","Discretionary relief and delegation: Treasurer may grant exemptions (s9) and delegate powers with broad, revocable delegation rules (s10).","Offence structure: continuing offence rule imposes additional daily penalties for ongoing breaches, increasing enforcement exposure (s11).","Regulatory flexibility: Governor/Regulations may alter application and set a different 'prescribed amount', creating rule variability (s3 definition; s12).","Cross‑statute amendments and repeal: the Act repeals the Unclaimed Moneys Act 1891 and amends many other Acts to point to the new provisions (Schedule Parts 2–13), increasing statutory interdependencies."],"plain_english_summary":"This Act replaces the old unclaimed-moneys regime by requiring businesses to keep and publish a register of unclaimed sums, to pay certain unclaimed amounts to the Treasurer, and by letting the Treasurer repay validated claimants from the Consolidated Account. It affects corporations and persons holding unclaimed money, creates penalty and compliance obligations, gives the Treasurer inspection and exemption powers, and updates many other Acts to refer to the new payment route."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose of modernising unclaimed money handling. While the Schedule makes consequential amendments to 12 other Acts, these are purely mechanical updates to replace references to the repealed 1891 Act with references to the new Act. The scope has not expanded beyond the core function of unclaimed money administration."},"complexity_factors":["Moderate cross-referencing: Updates 12 separate Acts in Schedule 1 with near-identical amendment formulas","Conditional logic in section 7: Nested exceptions for transitional money with multiple time limits (25-year standard limit, 5-year transitional window, and override for pre-existing 25-year-old claims)","Defined terms section contains 5 definitions including recursive/circular elements ('owner of money' includes representatives of representatives)","Dual pathways for unclaimed money: Section 4-5 (mandatory for corporations) vs Section 6 (voluntary for others) with different holding periods (5 years vs 1 year)","Multiple exemption categories in section 4(2): 4 specific exemptions plus open-ended 'prescribed kind' regulation power","Continuing offence provision (section 11) creates layered penalty structure with daily fines and post-conviction liability"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does:**\n\nThis Act creates a modern system for handling money that businesses and other organisations are holding but can't find the rightful owners for — things like forgotten bank deposits, uncollected wages, or unclaimed dividends.\n\n**Key changes:**\n\n* **For businesses:** Companies carrying on business in South Australia (with some exceptions like banks, superannuation funds and non-profits) must keep a public register of unclaimed money over $50. They have to publish this online and update it yearly. If the money remains unclaimed for 2 years after appearing on the register, the company must pay it to the State Treasurer.\n\n* **For individuals:** Anyone holding money they can't trace the owner of (after at least a year) can voluntarily pay it to the Treasurer.\n\n* **For claimants:** People can claim their money back from the Treasurer, but generally only if the amount is $50 or more, and only within 25 years of the money first being registered or received. Special transitional rules apply for old claims from the previous 1891 law.\n\n* **No interest:** The government doesn't pay interest when returning money.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n* **Businesses** — especially those holding customer funds (excluding banks, credit unions, and super funds which have their own federal rules)\n* **Consumers** — anyone who has lost track of money owed to them\n* **Government agencies** — various Acts dealing with land sales and prisoner allowances are updated to channel unclaimed proceeds through this new system\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis replaces a 130-year-old law (from 1891) with clearer, modern rules. It ensures unclaimed money doesn't sit indefinitely with private companies, instead moving to government custody where it's safer and easier for owners to find. The Schedule also updates **12 other South Australian laws** to ensure consistency — everything from council rates sales to prisoner allowances now funnels unclaimed money through this single system."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/unclaimed-money-act-2021","history":"/api/acts/unclaimed-money-act-2021/history","analysis":"/api/acts/unclaimed-money-act-2021/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/unclaimed-money-act-2021/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/unclaimed-money-act-2021/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/unclaimed-money-act-2021/documents"}}