Have you ever wondered what happens to someone’s MPESA balance once they pass on? Does it automatically go to their next of kin or does someone have to claim it from Safaricom?
MPESA has transformed the financial sector, allowing small businesses, people from underprivileged backgrounds and the youth to transact and save money conveniently. Over time, it has become the go-to way for many to receive their income and keep their savings, making MPESA accounts a significant part of one’s assets which should be included in one’s will.
However, many still don’t include their MPESA accounts in their will or inform their loved ones about the accounts. The last thing on someone’s mind, in the event of death, is claiming their loved one’s assets. For many, the grief of death is too overwhelming to think of anything else.
Therefore, it’s necessary to not only inform your relatives and loved ones about your assets including your MPESA accounts but also make arrangements for them to claim the assets easily.
In cases where the deceased doesn’t inform their relatives about their MPESA balance, the money is often left unclaimed. If it remains unclaimed for 2 years, Safaricom gives the money to the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority (UFAA) where the next of kin can claim it.
Safaricom has put measures for relatives and loved ones of a deceased person to claim their MPESA balance in the event of death, whether the deceased left a will or not.
To be registered as a claimant, the account holder should do the following:
- Dial *234#
- Select option 2: My M-PESA Information
- Input option 6: Next of kin
- Enter your Bonga PIN
- Enter the claimant’s details ie name, ID number, phone number etc
Requirements to claim MPESA balance in the event of death
- Claimant’s ID
- Duly filled Safaricom next of kin claims form
- Death certificate
- Statutory declaration (affidavit) administered by a commissioner of oaths to ascertain the relationship between the next of kin and deceased
- Grant of Letters of Adminstration obtained from any probate & administration court when one dies without a will. This is issued when the court is satisfied that the person can act as a legal representative of the deceased’s estate
- Grant of Probate issued by a probate & administration cour to an executor of the deceased’s estate where a will was left
- Confirmation of Grant of Probate or Confirmation of Grant of Letters of Administration issued by a court naming beneficiaries and documenting their entitlement
- Letters from the the County Commissioner or Deputy County Commissioner confirming details about the deceased and the beneficiaries
Process to claim MPESA balance in the event of death
- Visit any Safaricom retail store and produce the following documents:
Amount between Ksh 1 – 30,000
Claimant’s national ID
Duly filled Safaricom next of kin claims form
Deceased’s death certificate
Statutory declaration/affidavit or Letters of Administration or Letters from the County Commissioner or Deputy County Commissioner
Amount between Ksh 1 – 200,000
Claimant’s national ID
Duly filled Safaricom next of kin claims form
Deceased’s death certificate
Letters of Administration or Letters from the County Commissioner or Deputy County Commissioner
Amount above Ksh 200,000
Claimant’s national ID
Duly filled Safaricom next of kin claims form
Deceased’s death certificate
Letters of Administration/Grant of Probate
- Once Safaricom is notified of the subscriber’s death, the MPESA account is frozen
- The documents are then reviewed and if they’re in order, the MPESA balance is transferred to the claimant’s MPESA account
Note: The funds cannot be transferred in any other way except to an MPESA account