Virginia returned more than $150 million in unclaimed property during fiscal 2026, setting a state record for money reunited with owners. The new high extends a sharp increase from fiscal 2025, when the Treasury paid more than $118 million and processed more than 93,000 claims.

Unclaimed property is not tax revenue or a state benefit. It includes money and assets that businesses could not deliver to their owners, such as dormant bank balances, uncashed checks, refunds, securities, unpaid wages, utility deposits and insurance proceeds. Holders transfer those assets to the state for safekeeping; the Virginia Department of the Treasury then works to identify and pay the rightful owner.

A major change is the VA Cash Now program. For eligible single-owner property worth up to $5,000, Treasury can match its unclaimed-property records with verified taxpayer and address information and mail a payment automatically. Recipients first receive a notice and generally do not need to file a claim; the state says the check should follow within 45 days.

Larger balances, jointly owned property, and claims involving businesses or heirs still require documentation through the state’s claim process. Residents can search the official database themselves, and Treasury says the search and claim service is free. The agency warns residents to be cautious about fee-based services that imply they are required to recover money.

The record also reflects operational changes beyond automatic checks. In the prior fiscal year, Treasury credited a modern unclaimed-property system with making assets easier to find and allowing more people to submit claims electronically. The department also added staff focused on nonprofits, churches, charities and government entities, according to WTKR, whose reporting helped prompt legislative scrutiny of the former process.

VA Cash Now began mailing payments in 2025. An early distribution sent roughly $2.5 million in one week, while more than 10,000 notices had gone out by June of that year, Axios Richmond reported. By September 2025, Treasury said the program had issued nearly $4 million in checks after sending more than 29,000 notices.

The fiscal 2026 total covers all unclaimed-property returns, not only automated payments. That distinction is important: the record measures the combined output of regular claims, electronic processing, outreach and Cash Now. Treasury’s program page directs residents to the official search site and provides contact information for claims that cannot be completed online.

For Virginians, the practical step is simple. Search the state database using current and former names and addresses, and use Treasury’s process directly. The $150 million record shows that the state is returning more property, but it does not mean every owner will be found automatically—particularly when a claim exceeds $5,000 or involves an estate, a business or multiple owners.