Questions Remain About Retirement Savings National Lost and Found Database

The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 mandated that the U.S. Department of Labor establish a Retirement Savings Lost and Found Database. The project’s goal was to provide a centralized location where people can search for lost or forgotten retirement benefits and access the information needed to track down and claim those funds.

The DOL’s Employee Benefits Security Administration rolled out the database in November 2024, encouraging retirement plan administrators to submit data to populate the database voluntarily.

While there’s little debate regarding the need and desire for a single location where employees and their beneficiaries can search for missing retirement benefits, questions remain about the effectiveness of the DOL database in its current form.

The Department of Labor has offered some insight into the search tool’s use by individuals hoping to uncover lost funds. In its first full year of use, ending Dec. 31, 2025, more than 236,000 unique visitors logged into the database, according to statistics the DOL provided to CNBC. Nearly 30% of those visitors identified a plan linked to their Social Security number.

Those preliminary numbers are promising, but they don’t paint a complete picture. Unfortunately, the DOL hasn’t published statistics regarding use of the database by plan sponsors, so it’s difficult to establish how much of the estimated $2.1 trillion sitting in former employer 401(k) accounts can be located using the database.

One company providing ESOP support services illustrates the database’s significant shortcomings: “The DOL projected the tool might cover about 0.2% of retirement savers. That’s a fraction of the estimated 70–100 million people with retirement accounts. This limited impact is partly because the database essentially duplicates Form 8955-SSA reporting, but with less participant benefit – the SSA already notifies people about potential retirement benefits when they apply for Social Security benefits (often before age 65).”

It’s also likely that a significant number of visitors failed to complete the login process. Visitors are required to access the site via a Login.gov account. Logging in requires using a mobile device to upload photos of a passport or state-issued ID, along with a full name, date of birth and Social Security number. Providing this level of personally identifiable information online is likely to deter many potential retirement benefit seekers.

An American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries article by Kelsey Mayo sums up the login dilemma quite nicely: “On one hand, it’s reassuring to know our data is protected. On the other hand, I wondered if the process might deter some folks from even trying. Security is great – but are we going to lose people at the starting line?! If it were my unicorn, I’d allow a search to see if my SSN appears anywhere with fewer steps and only require this intense level of verification to get information on the amount, location, etc. of the lost account.”

While participation in the National Lost and Found Database is currently optional for plan sponsors, many industry insiders believe it could become a future expectation or regulatory requirement as part of demonstrating prudent efforts to locate missing participants and ensuring benefits are paid. Taking action today can help reduce your list of lost participants. MarketSphere Retirement Reunification Services can help retirement plan sponsors maintain contact with plan participants and locate missing participants. Learn about MarketSphere’s Retirement Reunification Services and contact our team to get started.

*Content contained in this article is considered accurate as of the publish date.