Unclaimed Savings Bonds: How to Find Lost U.S. Savings Bonds
- The Unclaimed Money Guy
Check for Unclaimed Money in Your State
Maybe a grandparent tucked a savings bond into a birthday card when you were a kid. Maybe you bought them through payroll at an old job, or you're cleaning out a parent's house and keep wondering if there were bonds somewhere. Either way, there's a good chance some of that money was never cashed.
Savings bonds don't send reminders. When they stop earning interest, they just sit, and the Treasury holds the money until someone asks for it. Here's how to figure out what you might have, how to replace bonds you can't find, and how to cash them, including bonds that belonged to someone who died.
What You Need to Know
Lost Savings Bonds Are Still Worth Claiming, but There's No Quick Online Search Anymore
The Treasury is holding tens of billions of dollars in savings bonds that have stopped earning interest and were never cashed. Recent reports put it at about 80 million bonds worth roughly $29.7 billion. That money doesn't expire. A matured bond can still be cashed years later.
The catch: Treasury Hunt, the free online tool people used to look up lost bonds, was shut down in 2025. Today, finding lost bonds means checking paper records at home, searching state unclaimed property, and filing FS Form 1048 with the Treasury if you know or suspect a bond is missing.
The Quick Answer
Finding Lost Savings Bonds at a Glance
Search at Home First
Safe deposit boxes, file cabinets, baby books, old desks and family keepsake boxes are where most paper bonds turn up.
Treasury Hunt
No longer available. The Treasury shut down its online lookup in 2025.
State Unclaimed Property
Search every state you or your family lived in. Paper bonds left in abandoned safe deposit boxes can end up with the state.
Lost or Destroyed Bond
File FS Form 1048 with the Treasury. You can ask for cash or an electronic replacement. Expect 11 months or more.
Matured Bonds
Bonds stop earning interest after 20 to 40 years, depending on the series, but you can still cash them any time.
Cost to Claim
Free. The Treasury and your state never charge a fee to replace or cash your bonds.
Before You Start
Write down everything you remember: whose name was on the bond, the buyer's Social Security number, roughly when it was bought, and the address at the time. The more you know, the better your chances with the Treasury.
Check Your Bond
Has Your Savings Bond Stopped Earning Interest?
Every savings bond has a final maturity date. After that, it stops growing, so there's no reason to keep holding it. Here's when each series stops earning:
Series EE and I Bonds
Earn interest for 30 years. An EE bond bought in 1995 or earlier has stopped earning. The first I bonds were sold in 1998, so they start reaching 30 years in 2028.
Series HH Bonds
Earn interest for 20 years. The last HH bonds were issued in 2004, so all of them stop earning by 2024.
Series E Bonds
The older bonds many grandparents bought. Every Series E bond has stopped earning interest, so any you find are ready to cash.
Series H Bonds
Older income bonds that paid interest twice a year. All of them have stopped earning interest too.
To see what a paper bond is worth, enter its series, denomination and issue date in the Treasury's Savings Bond Calculator.
What Changed
What Happened to Treasury Hunt?
For years, Treasury Hunt let you type in a Social Security number and see if any matured, uncashed bonds were on file. The Treasury discontinued it in 2025, and there is no direct replacement on TreasuryDirect.
Under the SECURE 2.0 Act, the Treasury is supposed to share information about old, uncashed bonds with state unclaimed property programs, so owners can eventually find them there. As of late 2026 that program is still being set up, so you can't count on state databases to show your bonds yet.
Be Wary of “Bond Finder” Offers
With Treasury Hunt gone, some websites and letters offer to find your bonds for a fee or a cut of the money. You don't need them. Everything below is free, and the Treasury never charges to replace or cash a bond.
Start Searching
Where to Look for Lost Savings Bonds
Most lost bonds aren't really lost. They're in a drawer, a box or a bank vault that nobody has opened in years. Check these places first:
- Safe deposit boxes, including ones in a parent's name
- File cabinets, desks and fireproof boxes
- Baby books, scrapbooks and old greeting cards
- Tax returns that report savings bond interest
- Old pay stubs showing payroll savings bond deductions
- Grandparents, aunts and uncles who gave bonds as gifts
Search State Unclaimed Property
When a safe deposit box goes unpaid and untouched for years, the bank turns its contents over to the state. Paper savings bonds are sometimes inside. Search your name, and the names of parents and grandparents, on the official unclaimed property site for every state where your family lived. Use our state-by-state search links to find each one. It's free.
If a relative had a box you didn't know about, our guide to finding an unclaimed safe deposit box after someone dies walks through it.
Check for Electronic Bonds
Bonds bought after 2011 are almost always electronic, held in a TreasuryDirect account. If you think you had an account but can't log in, contact TreasuryDirect to recover it. If the account belonged to someone who died, contact the Treasury and it will place a hold on the account while you sort out the estate.
Lost, Stolen or Destroyed
How to Replace a Lost Savings Bond
If you know a paper bond existed but can't find it, or it was stolen or destroyed, the Treasury can replace it or pay you for it. The bond is registered in the owner's name, so losing the paper doesn't mean losing the money.
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Gather What You Know
Serial numbers help the most, but they aren't required. Without them, give the names and Social Security numbers on the bond, the address at the time, and the approximate month and year it was bought.
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Fill Out FS Form 1048
Download FS Form 1048 from TreasuryDirect. Choose whether you want the money or a replacement electronic bond. A replacement EE or I bond goes into a TreasuryDirect account, so you'll need one.
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Sign in Front of a Certifying Official
Don't sign the form until you're with a certifying official, such as an officer at your bank or credit union. The form lists who qualifies.
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Mail It and Be Patient
Mail the form to Treasury Retail Securities Services at the address on the form. These claims can take 11 months or more, so keep a copy and note the date you sent it.
Found the Original Later?
Once a bond has been replaced or paid, the original belongs to the government. Mail it back to Treasury Retail Securities Services, P.O. Box 9150, Minneapolis, MN 55480-9150.
Get Paid
How to Cash a Savings Bond
Once you have the bond in hand, you have three options:
At Your Bank
Many banks and credit unions will cash EE and I paper bonds for their customers. Call first and ask what ID they need and whether they limit the amount.
By Mail
Send the bond with FS Form 1522 to Treasury Retail Securities Services. HH bonds can't be cashed at a bank, so they go this way.
Convert to Electronic
You can convert paper bonds into electronic ones in your TreasuryDirect account and cash them there. Conversions can take nine months or longer.
Plan for Taxes
Savings bond interest is taxed by the federal government but not by your state or city. You'll get a 1099-INT for the interest in the year you cash the bond, so a big stack of old bonds can mean a bigger tax bill that year.
Inherited Bonds
Savings Bonds That Belonged to Someone Who Died
Who can cash a bond after the owner dies depends on whose names are on it.
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You're Named on the Bond
If you're the co-owner or the beneficiary (“POD”), the bond is yours. You can cash a paper EE or I bond at a bank that offers the service, have it reissued as an electronic bond in your name, or keep it if it's still earning interest. Bring a certified death certificate.
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Nobody Living Is Named, and the Estate Is Small
If no one named on the bond is alive, there's no probate, and the bonds total $100,000 or less in value at the date of death, a close relative can act as the “voluntary representative.” Use FS Form 5336 to cash or distribute the bonds.
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The Estate Goes Through Probate
If there's an executor or administrator, that person handles the bonds with court papers showing their authority. Bonds can't be split, so each one is cashed or passed to one person in full.
Send a certified copy of the death certificate for each person named on the bond, leave the bonds unsigned, and mail everything together. For other money a parent may have left behind, see our guide to claiming unclaimed money for a deceased parent or relative.
Savings Bond FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions About Lost Savings Bonds
Can I still use Treasury Hunt to find my savings bonds?
No. The Treasury shut down Treasury Hunt in 2025. Search at home and with your state's unclaimed property program, and file FS Form 1048 if you believe a bond is missing.
Can I look up savings bonds by Social Security number?
Not online anymore. The Treasury can still search its records when you file FS Form 1048 with the Social Security number of the person who bought or owned the bond.
Do savings bonds expire?
They stop earning interest at final maturity, but they never become worthless. You can cash a matured bond at any time.
How long does it take to replace a lost savings bond?
Plan on 11 months or more after the Treasury receives your FS Form 1048.
Are unclaimed savings bonds sent to the state?
Usually not. The Treasury keeps the money until the owner claims it. Paper bonds can reach the state when they were inside an abandoned safe deposit box, which is why a state search is still worth it.
Do I have to pay someone to find my bonds?
No. Replacing and cashing savings bonds through the Treasury is free. Be cautious of any service that asks for an upfront fee or a share of your money.
Start Your Search
Check Your State's Unclaimed Property List Today
It takes a few minutes, it's free, and it may turn up a savings bond, a forgotten bank account or other money with your family's name on it.
