How can I find my pension plan from a previous employer? 

Summary

How do I find my pension?

Pension plans, like 401(k)s and similar retirement savings plans, can get lost when people change jobs or don’t keep up with their finances.

If you lose track of your pension or pension arrangements, you can rest easy: The money isn’t gone, and you can probably track it down. It may take some time and effort, but there are tens of thousands of people — roughly 80,000, according to data from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) — who have likewise lost track of their pension plans or otherwise not claimed them.

To find a lost pension, you can begin your search with some relatively simple steps. 

How can I find my pension plan from a previous employer?

There are a few key ways you can start your search for a lost pension from a previous employer. 

Getting in touch with your old employers — specifically, those that you suspect may have been involved with your pension plan — is a great way to start. 

If you’ve only had a handful of jobs, this may be fairly easy, but you’ll want to have some information on hand, too, such as the dates you worked for the company and your personal information, like your Social Security number.

If the company no longer exists or has been acquired or absorbed by another company, it may make things tricker. If possible, review any paperwork (like paystubs) that you’ve held on to, and see if you can figure out which company may be able to help you. Alternatively, you can reach out to a new or another company that may have information about your pension. 

Your plan may have been given to an insurance company or other firm as a part of bankruptcy proceedings or something similar. 

As such, you may want to see if you have paperwork lying around that can point you to specific financial or insurance firms to reach out to. If your old employer was acquired, or its assets were acquired, it may be worth a call to the new company’s HR department.

If you’re still in contact with any former coworkers, you can also ask them if they have any helpful information. 

The PBGC insures private-sector pension plans, and it maintains a database of unclaimed pensions. Yours may be one of them. 

Again, there are tens of thousands of people’s pensions, and those plans typically end up there because their owners couldn’t be found. 

Checking the PBGC’s records isn't difficult, either. Its website has a searchable database that allows you to enter your last name and the last four digits of your Social Security number to try to find matching information.

Additionally, you can use the “abandoned plan search” program from the U.S. Department of Labor to see if there are any leads as to where your pension may have ended up. Some states have databases that you can try searching as well.

There are even more resources out there that may prove helpful. The nonprofit Pension Rights Center works with people to track down lost pension plans, and it may also have resources to help your search. You can also try the National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits.

Even more resources are on the way, too. At the end of 2024, the Department of Labor launched the Retirement Savings Lost and Found Database, as codified in the Secure 2.0 Act of 2022. You can use that tool as well, but note that it only started taking information in late 2024.

What do I do if I find an old pension?

If your search proves fruitful and you manage to track down your pension, claim it. 

You’ll need to contact the PBGC to prove your identity and make your claim, and you should be able to take ownership of the plan and start drawing on the benefits if you’re of retirement age. 

If not, you’ll need to wait until you reach retirement age.

How do I keep track of my retirement plans?

To keep track of your retirement plans, you can use one of many online tools on the market or create your own spreadsheet or document with all of the information on it. 

Of course, you’ll want to make sure those documents are secure, as they’ll be rife with personal information. 

It’s best to check out what’s available and try a few things before deciding on what works best for you.

Get expert financial advice

It may seem inconceivable to some people that it’s possible to simply lose track of a pension or retirement plan, but it happens. The good news is that there are some ways to track them down. 

You can take additional steps to make sure you retire comfortably by working with an expert. 

Financial advisors can help you create a personalized retirement plan and track your existing plans to help you meet your retirement goals.

Match with a financial advisor now.