The unclaimed property laws: Gaps, risks, and a call for reform to strengthen corporate accountability

By Nii Okantey Adjetey

Unclaimed property regimes, sometimes called escheat laws, play an important role in protecting citizens’ assets, ensuring that abandoned or forgotten funds are preserved and, where appropriate, returned to their rightful owners. In Ghana, the legal framework that touches on “unclaimed” assets is fragmented.

Existing statutes and regulations address the administration of deceased persons’ estates, unclaimed dividends, and the disposal of certain abandoned physical goods, but there is no comprehensive, modern legal regime that treats financial unclaimed property held by companies and institutions when owners are still alive.

This issue undermines public accountability, creates opportunities for corporate opacity, and leaves Ghanaians without clear remedies when funds such as dividends, deposits, insurance payouts, or other financial instruments go unclaimed for long periods.

This article summarizes Ghana’s current legal landscape on unclaimed property, highlights key shortfalls, and proposes concrete reforms to ensure greater transparency and accountability from registered companies and financial custodians.

What the law does cover (and what it doesn’t)

Ghana’s legal instruments treat different categories of unclaimed or abandoned assets in a piecemeal fashion:

• Deceased estates and probate: The Administration of Estates Act (Act 63, 1961) and the Intestate Succession Law (PNDCL 111, 1985) set out how assets of persons who have died are to be identified, administered, and distributed to heirs and beneficiaries through probate and letters of administration. These statutes and related civil procedure rules govern how courts and the Administrator-General handle the estates of the deceased.
• Unclaimed property on government premises: An Unclaimed Property Decree (NLCD 371) and related older statutes address property found on government premises and public land; these tend to govern physical items located on public property.
• Abandoned physical property: The Abandoned Property (Disposal) Act (NRCD 308, 1974) authorizes removal and disposal of certain abandoned physical items such as scrap metal, timber, signboards, and similar items primarily to address public safety and land management, not to provide remedies for financial assets belonging to private citizens.
• Unclaimed dividends and company duties: The Companies Act, 2019 (Act 992) introduces specific duties concerning unclaimed dividends. Under the new Act, where dividends remain unclaimed for a statutory period, companies must place such dividends in interest-bearing unclaimed dividend accounts, and there are provisions for management by the Registrar of Companies. Regulatory guidance published by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) elaborates on processes for handling and reporting unclaimed dividends. These rules are an important step, but they are narrowly focused on shareholder dividends rather than the broader class of unclaimed financial assets held by companies, banks, insurers, or other custodians.

Taken together, these laws demonstrate that Ghana currently concentrates on (a) settling estates of the deceased, (b) disposing of physically abandoned items on public land, and (c) regulating a particular subset of corporate liabilities (unclaimed dividends). What Ghana lacks is a comprehensive unclaimed property regime that: (1) applies to a broad array of financial assets held by companies and institutions, (2) obliges proactive reporting and remittance to a public registry after standardized dormancy periods, and (3) provides robust mechanisms for reunifying owners with their assets.

Why the gap matters: accountability, lost assets, and financial opacity

The absence of a unified unclaimed property law for financial assets owned by living persons creates several problems:

Assets fall into legal limbo. Without clear dormancy standards and mandatory reporting/remittance, companies can indefinitely retain funds such as dormant customer deposits, unpaid insurance payouts, old payroll credits, or unclaimed vendor payments without centralized oversight. Over time, these funds are effectively removed from productive circulation, and their owners lose access. (See the Companies Act’s narrow focus on dividends for an example of how piecemeal rules leave other asset classes unregulated.)

Weakened public accountability. When registered companies hold unclaimed funds without transparent reporting, it undermines confidence in corporate governance. A comprehensive reporting requirement and an accessible public registry would create accountability and make it easier for regulators, auditors, and civil society to track and audit dormant liabilities.

Inequitable outcomes for vulnerable citizens. Lower-income or geographically mobile citizens—those who change addresses, migrate for work, or have limited financial literacy—are disproportionately likely to lose track of financial assets. A modern unclaimed property system can include outreach and claimant-reunification processes targeted at these groups.

Regulatory arbitrage and enforcement gaps. Fragmentary regulation makes enforcement inconsistent. For example, while the SEC and Registrar have rules for dividends, enforcement capacity, and reporting harmonization between agencies, audit trails remain uneven across financial sectors. This fragmentation raises the risk that firms might exploit loopholes to avoid remitting dormant liabilities.

International practice: what a modern unclaimed property framework looks like

Most jurisdictions with effective unclaimed property laws combine several elements:

• Defined dormancy periods by asset class (e.g., two to five years for bank deposits, three years for dividends, etc.).
• Mandatory reporting by custodians to a central public authority or escheat fund when assets are dormant.
• Public registry of unclaimed assets searchable by name, allowing claimants to find assets without needing to know the custodian.
• Owner-reunification programs that include outreach, advertising, and streamlined claims processes.
• Penalties and audit powers to ensure compliance, plus a clear mechanism for the public authority to manage, invest, or return funds.

Adopting these building blocks would enable Ghana to protect citizen assets while strengthening corporate transparency.

Recommended reforms for Ghana: a roadmap

To close the accountability gap and safeguard citizen assets, Ghana should consider a coherent statutory reform package that includes the following elements:

Enact a Comprehensive Unclaimed Financial Assets Act. The law should define “unclaimed financial assets” broadly, covering bank balances, dividends, insurance proceeds, pension overpayments, vendor credits, and other financial instruments. It should set clear dormancy periods per asset class and require mandatory reporting to a designated national registry after the dormancy period.

Designate a Central Unclaimed Property Authority. Assigning responsibility to an existing agency (e.g., Registrar General’s Department, the Bank of Ghana, or a new standalone authority) to maintain a public registry, accept remittances, and administer reunification and claims processes. The Registrar already has management duties over unclaimed dividend accounts under Act 992; that mandate could be expanded and harmonized under the central unclaimed property division.

Mandate reporting and regular audits. Require annual or more frequent reporting from all regulated custodians, such as banks, insurance companies, pension funds, stock brokers, and corporations, on dormant accounts and unclaimed liabilities. Provide the Centralized Unclaimed Property Authority with audit powers and the ability to impose sanctions for non-compliance.

Create a public, searchable online registry. A user-friendly portal would enable citizens, auditors, and civil society to search for unclaimed assets by name and reference number. The availability of online records reduces dependence on intermediaries and supports transparency.

Embed proactive owner-reunification and outreach. The law should require custodians and CUPA to engage in claimant tracing through direct contact, public notices, and targeted outreach before or after remittance. Special provisions should be made to locate heirs and disadvantaged groups.

Preserve rights and provide clear disposition rules. The statute should protect owners’ rights to claim assets indefinitely or for a long statutory period, while also allowing the authority to invest dormant funds in low-risk instruments for the public benefit until claimed. Rules should also define the limited circumstances under which funds may be transferred to state coffers, if ever, with strong transparency safeguards.

Harmonize cross-sector regulation. Align the Companies Act (which addresses dividends) and SEC guidance with the CUPA’s rules to prevent regulatory gaps and duplication. The piecemeal treatment of dividends offers a model for sector-specific detail; the broader law should adopt that level of specificity across asset classes.

The governance case for reform

Implementing a modern unclaimed property regime is not merely a consumer-protection measure, it is a governance and public-finance reform. When companies reliably report and remit dormant liabilities to a public authority, it:

• Improves government oversight of private-sector liabilities and reduces opportunities for misappropriation.
• Strengthens corporate governance by forcing firms to maintain better record-keeping and to resolve dormant liabilities proactively; and
• Supports fiscal transparency by ensuring that previously hidden liabilities are visible to regulators and auditors.

These outcomes align with Ghana’s broader goals of improving the business environment, protecting investors, and reinforcing the rule of law.

Conclusion: from legal patchwork to robust public accountability

Ghana’s current statutory framework addresses important but narrow slices of the unclaimed property problem. For instance, probate for the deceased, disposal of certain abandoned physical items, and regulation of unclaimed dividends for shareholders.

Yet in an era of increasingly mobile citizens and complex corporate balance sheets, this patchwork approach is no longer sufficient. A modern, centralized unclaimed property regime would protect individuals, reduce financial opacity, and hold registered companies to higher standards of accountability.

Legislators, regulators, and industry stakeholders should act decisively: draft and enact a comprehensive Unclaimed Financial Assets Act; empower a central authority to manage a public registry; harmonize sectoral rules with the new regime; and create clear, enforceable compliance measures. Doing so will not only return money to its rightful owners. It will also strengthen public trust, fortify corporate governance, and advance Ghana’s commitments to transparency and equitable economic opportunity.

The writer is  a Tax Professional with Deloitte Tax LLP,.

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