UFAA Unclaimed Assets Search: Find Out If Money Is Owed to You
One search, your National ID, and a few minutes — that is genuinely all it takes to find out whether the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority (UFAA) is holding money in your name. For a lot of Kenyans, the result is a surprise: a forgotten dividend, an old account balance, or a benefit a relative never mentioned.
1 Search the Official UFAA Unclaimed Assets Database🔒 You'll be redirected to UFAA, the official government portal. The official service is free.
This guide shows you exactly how to run the UFAA unclaimed assets search, what information you need, and — just as importantly — how to read the result with confidence so you know what to do next. Every step here is official and free.
What the UFAA search actually checks
The UFAA keeps a central register of unclaimed financial assets that banks, insurers, SACCOs, fund managers, and company registrars are required by law to surrender once an asset has been dormant for a set period, usually between two and five years.
When you run a search, you are checking your details against that national register. It brings together many kinds of dormant money in one place, including forgotten savings, uncollected share dividends, unpaid insurance proceeds, and benefits from wound-up schemes — so a single search covers a lot of ground.
The point of the register is reunion, not retention. The UFAA holds this money in trust specifically so that owners and their heirs can find it and claim it back.
How to run the UFAA unclaimed assets search
There are three official ways to search. They rely on the same records, so choose whichever is most convenient.
By National ID or name, online
Open the official UFAA search tool and enter your National ID number, or your full name exactly as it appears on your ID. This is the most complete way to search, since it queries the central database directly and returns any assets recorded against your details.
By SMS
If you would rather use a basic phone or skip the browser, send the word Search#IDNumber, using your own ID number, to 20453. You will get a reply telling you whether there is a possible match. It is a fast way to get a first yes-or-no before going further.
In person at a Huduma Centre
You can also search with help at a Huduma Centre, where UFAA services are available nationwide. This is useful if you would like someone to guide you through it, or you are checking for an elderly or deceased relative.
Whichever route you use, remember the search is free. Nobody legitimate charges you simply to check.
What information you need to search
For yourself, you need very little: your National ID number, or your full name as written on your ID. That is enough to run the check.
If you are searching for someone else — often a parent or spouse who has died — use their ID details instead. Finding a match under their name is the first sign that it may be worth gathering the documents needed for a full claim later.
How to read your search result
A search result is a signal, not the final word, so it helps to know what each outcome means.
A match means an asset is recorded against your details. That is encouraging, but it does not mean the money is automatically yours yet — the next stage is proving you are the rightful owner and submitting a formal claim.
A no-match does not always mean there is nothing. Records are updated as institutions surrender new dormant assets, so something may appear on a later search. And small differences in how your name is recorded can hide a match on the first try.
If in doubt, search more than once and in more than one way — by ID and by name — before drawing a conclusion.
Why your name might not appear yet
If your search comes back empty, there are a few ordinary explanations worth ruling out.
The asset may still be within its dormancy period, meaning it has not yet been surrendered to the UFAA. Your name may be recorded slightly differently on the old account than on your current ID. Or the money may simply sit somewhere else — in the National Social Security Fund, an active pension scheme, or the government pensions system — rather than in the UFAA register.
Checking those other sources alongside the UFAA search gives you the fullest picture of what you are owed.
Can businesses and organisations search too?
Yes. The UFAA platform is designed for both individuals and organisations. Companies, institutions, and other bodies can check whether assets are recorded in their name, which matters for firms that may have surrendered — or be owed — dormant funds. The search principle is the same: match your registered details against the national database.
Staying safe: the search is free and official
Because this topic involves money, it attracts imitators. Protect yourself with two simple habits. First, treat any demand for an upfront “search fee” or “release fee” as a warning sign — the genuine UFAA process does not work that way. Second, always begin from the official government source rather than a lookalike page, and be careful about who you share your ID details with.
A little caution keeps both your money and your personal information safe.
1 Learn How to Claim What's Owed to YouYou'll stay on this site — turn your search match into money with the full claim guide.
FAQ – Common questions about the UFAA search in Kenya
Run the UFAA search using your National ID or full name, online or by SMS to 20453. A match means an asset is recorded in your name.
Yes. Searching and claiming through official channels cost nothing.
Yes. Search using their ID details. If a match appears, next of kin or an estate administrator can claim with the right documents.
The asset may not have been surrendered yet, your name may be recorded differently, or the money may sit in another system such as NSSF or a government pension.
No. Assets held by the UFAA remain claimable by the rightful owner or their heirs, no matter how long ago they became dormant.
You move on to the claim process: gathering documents, completing the official form, and submitting it so the asset can be verified and paid to you.
Where to go from here
Now that you know how to search the UFAA register and interpret what it shows, the natural next step is turning a match into money. If your name appeared — or you are confident something is owed — follow the full step-by-step claim process, which walks you through the documents, forms, and submission in the right order.
A search tells you the money is there. The claim is what brings it home. Take that next step, and make sure nothing owed to you or your family is left sitting in the register.