Government Cash Grab – your bank account may be at risk
Households face losing up to $109 million from their family savings as the Federal government moves to seize cash from inactive bank accounts.
After legislation was rushed through parliament, the government will from May 31 be able to transfer all money from accounts that have not been used for three years into their own revenues.
This will mean that accounts that have not had any deposits or withdrawals in the past three years will be transferred to the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC).
The law is forecast to raise $109 million this year, as inactive accounts for three years or more are raided by Treasury.
The money can be reclaimed from ASIC but the process can take months.
Experts warn this will have a negative impact on people that may have put money away in a special account for their children’s education or decided to put an inheritance in a separate account for a rainy day.
The previous legislation allowed for bank accounts to remain inactive for up to 7 years before the money was transferred to ASIC.
Thousands of bank account holders may need to make transactions (of as little as $1) to avoid having their accounts transferred to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to help plug the federal government’s budget deficit.