The National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits is a good place to start. By entering your Social Security number, you can quickly see if there are any unclaimed 401(k) funds that belong to you.
How long can a company hold your 401(k) after you leave a job? If you have more than $7,000 in your 401(k), you can leave the plan at your former employer indefinitely. Employers are not allowed to force you out at that level.
Online resources such as missingmoney.com and unclaimed.org allow you to search for assets in any states in which you've lived or worked. And if you do find money from an old 401k that's owed to you, it's often as easy as filling out a simple online form to get it back.
The Bottom Line. If you leave your job, your 401(k) will stay where it is until you decide what you want to do with it. You have several choices including leaving it where it is, rolling it over to another retirement account, or cashing it out.
Failure to follow 401(k) transfer rules may result in extra penalties and taxes. For example, if you don't do a direct rollover and receive the funds from your previous employer's plan in the form of a check, a mandatory 20% withholding will apply.
The National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits has the specific mission of helping people find lost 401(k)s and other retirement plans. You can run a free 401(k) search to see if your account still exists or if the employer moved the money to an individual retirement account (IRA) in your name.
If left unattended for too long, old accounts can be converted to cash—and even transferred to the state as unclaimed property—forgoing their future growth potential.
Opening the Floodgates of Litigation: The United States Supreme Court Rules That Individuals May Sue Their Employers For Mishandling 401K Retirement Plans.
Three of the easiest ways to find an old 401(k) include: Contacting your former employer. Entering your social security number into a registry. Checking your state's unclaimed property database.
Can I lose my 401(k) after I quit or get laid off? No. You always have ownership of the money you contributed to your 401(k) account even after being laid off. Your former employer must allow your money to remain in the plan until you decide to do something with it – with a few exceptions.
You can check your 401(k) balance by logging into your online investment account, checking out the statements you receive in the mail or calling your 401(k) provider directly.
PBGC holds unclaimed benefits for people that were not paid when their retirement plan ended. To help connect them to their benefit, PBGC has created a searchable database. Enter your last name and the last four digits of your Social Security number.
But the money already in the account is still yours, usually, so it can just sit in that account for as long as you want — with a couple of exceptions: First, if you contributed less than $5,000 to that 401(k) while you were with that employer, they can legally tell you, “Closing time!
Call or contact your previous 401(k) plan administrator. Request that your account be liquidated at the close of the next business day. Alternatively, you could choose to liquidate only a portion of your account for withdrawal; you don't need to cash out the entire account.
You can find your 401(k) by using Capitalize's 401(k) Finder tool, contacting your HR administrator, or through the National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits. The process is quick and only requires basic information, including your Social Security number.
Any money you put into the 401(k) always belongs to you, but you may not be entitled to any employer contributions when you leave. It depends on whether your plan includes a vesting schedule. If so, how long you worked before quitting will determine what happens to those contributions.
Additional taxes
If you're under age 59½ at the time of the distribution, any taxable portion not rolled over may be subject to a 10% additional tax on early distributions unless an exception applies.
You just need to contact the administrator of your plan and fill out certain forms for the distribution of your 401(k) funds. However, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) may charge you a penalty of 10% for early withdrawal if you don't roll your funds over, subject to certain exceptions.
When should I roll over? You have 60 days from the date you receive an IRA or retirement plan distribution to roll it over to another plan or IRA. The IRS may waive the 60-day rollover requirement in certain situations if you missed the deadline because of circumstances beyond your control.
Transferring Your 401(k) to Your Bank Account
That's typically an option when you stop working, but be aware that moving money to your checking or savings account may be considered a taxable distribution.