Royalty money that could not be paid does not vanish. It sits with the operator, then goes to the state, under the name of whoever owned the minerals, which is often someone who died years ago. Here is where Alaska puts it, how long it takes to get there, and how to get it back. The search is free and so is our help.
Updated November 2026. Written by Stephen Clayman, career landman and owner of Berlin Royalties. Statutes were checked against primary sources; where we could not confirm a detail the page says so. This is general information from a buyer, not legal advice.
Search the Alaska Department of Revenue, Treasury Division, Unclaimed Property Program database under the name of every family member who ever owned the minerals, including maiden names, initials and misspellings. Then call the operator's owner relations department, because money inside the dormancy period is still at the operator and will not show up in the state's search. Both steps are free, and we will run both for you free.
The Alaska search is run by the Alaska Department of Revenue, Treasury Division, Unclaimed Property Program at unclaimedproperty.alaska.gov/app/claim-search. Search by name only, so try every variant. For money still at the operator, our free operator directory has the owner relations contact for every company registered in the state, including the ones that no longer exist, which is where older wells' money usually sits.
Three years after the money becomes payable, under AS 34.45.110(a); SB 231 cut the period from five years to three. There is no separate mineral period.
Yes. AS 34.45.760 defines mineral proceeds to include, on abandonment of the first payments, all payments that become payable afterward, covering bonuses, royalties, shut-in and minimum royalties, delay rentals, overriding royalties and production payments. In a pay-to-current state, once an owner's first payment is reported, every later royalty follows it, so the state's balance under a family name keeps growing and the operator holds nothing. In the other states, each payment runs its own clock, and the newest money is still with the operator.
Only the owner, an heir or a court-appointed representative may claim. The program requests documents by email or letter and gives claimants 90 days to respond. There is no fee. The state pays the owner of record or that owner's legal successor, so the title question and the claim question are the same question: who inherited the minerals, and what document proves it.
Fee-finder contracts must be in writing, last no more than six months, and state the fee and the net value; the fee cannot exceed 10 percent for property of $500 or more or 20 percent under $500, and the contract is unenforceable within 24 months after the money reached the state, under AS 34.45.700. You do not need one. Companies that write to heirs offering to "recover" unclaimed royalties for a percentage are selling you a search you can run in two minutes. Some of them also ask for the minerals themselves. Do not sign anything that conveys an interest in exchange for help with a claim.
Send a photo of whatever you have. We will identify the interest, tell you why the money is suspended, and tell you what document unlocks it. Free, and the answer is the same whether or not you sell.
Get a Free Valuation Text a Check StubOr call or text 918-984-1645 and ask for Stephen.
Three years after they become payable under AS 34.45.110(a), down from five after SB 231. Later payments follow the first abandoned one automatically.
Ten percent for property of $500 or more, 20 percent under $500, a written contract of no more than six months, and nothing enforceable within 24 months of the money reaching the state, under AS 34.45.700.
The owner, an heir, or a court-appointed representative. The program asks for documents by email or letter and allows 90 days to respond; there is no fee.