Staffed by employees with decades of experience in this field, Greenberg International provides clients with thorough and thoughtful answers to the most challenging abandoned property questions. Additionally, through Greenberg International's proprietary escheat compliance system, Greenberg's clients can be assured that the requirements of all reporting jurisdictions are fulfilled.

Due Diligence, Annual Reporting and Remittance

Due Diligence, Annual Reporting and Remittance
States often require government agencies and businesses that hold abandoned and unclaimed property to perform a certain level of due diligence in an attempt to locate an owner before the funds are remitted to the state. As a result of Greenberg International's contacts with G20 foreign government agencies, several multi conglomerate marketing firms on a global scale and its sophisticated system of proprietary search algorithms and data linking technology databases Greenberg has been contracted by several U.S. government agencies and a broad range of corporations to locate owners of property within the United States and internationally.

Greenberg International can also handle annual reporting responsibilities by analyzing records and identifying items slated for escheatment and utilizing our proprietary software to complete the required reports in all states or territories where remittance is due. For states that require “negative” reporting (a statement by the holder verifying that no money is escheatable to that state), Greenberg International can complete and file those reports as well. Also, Greenberg International provides its clients the option of having Greenberg creates and sign state report cover sheets and remittances and filing the cover sheets, remittances, and reports directly with pertinent states. Obviously, these services expand to lower level government agencies, subsidiaries or affiliated organizations of a parent company that may also need to report.

Recovery

Recovery
Each year, Greenberg International arranges for the return of millions of dollars to its corporate clients. Greenberg also routinely assists corporations in securing refunds of amounts that have been escheated to the states in error. Finally, working with strategic partners that have access to unpublished accounts, Greenberg International is able to deliver one-stop shopping for corporations seeking to obtain all funds due to them from public and non-public sources. These recoveries, which are obtained from hundreds of sources in addition to unclaimed property funds, can contribute to the corporation's bottom line. For companies interested in process improvement, they also assist in identifying opportunities to strengthen the accounts receivable and case management processes.

An additional benefit to working with Greenberg is its ability to review the items your company has identified for escheatment in order to determine if there are any opportunities to correct reporting errors. In the past, Greenberg has identified amounts in the millions of dollars for companies. While these results are not typical, the process provides tremendous benefits for all recoveries, regardless of the amount.

Government Agencies

Government Agencies

At Greenberg, we never lose sight of the principle supporting unclaimed or abandoned property efforts, and with our proprietary databases and services, we reunite more people with their property than any other firm in the nation. In fact we work hand in hand with the following government agencies in repatriating abandoned property to their rightful owners:

• Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
• Department of Treasury
• IRS
• Securities and Exchange Commission
• Office of the State Comptroller (all states)
• All levels of Law Enforcement
• Executors

In addition we operate globally in delivering property in accordance with international law.

Greenberg International works to reunite owners with assets they have forgotten about or never knew they had, including:

• Stocks
• Mutual Funds
• Cash
• Insurance Proceeds
• Royalties

The nation's most comprehensive unclaimed property firm, Greenberg International provides expert compliance and consulting services, risk mitigation, and sophisticated owner location tools and outreach programs that always disclose the owner's assets.

Now more than ever companies must be vigilant when considering the course of action to take regarding lost, dormant or decedent accounts. Greenberg International provides your company with a proactive approach to maximize the results of your shareholder location efforts.

The Pre-Escheat Location Program, or PEL, has been designed to exceed SEC-mandated location searches and employs state-of-the-art search processes to identify and locate both decedent accounts and next of kin. Whether the account is large or small, dormant or lost, PEL will search, locate and activate the account while always providing full property disclosure.

State Relationships/Interest Abatement

State Relationships/Interest Abatement
Abandoned and unclaimed property is a small world, and Greenberg has fostered a working relationship with many state unclaimed property administrators. This permits Greenberg to negotiate with the appropriate personnel at each state for various reasons, including the filing of VDA's and seeking abatement of any interest or penalties that may be assessed for property not reported in previous years.

Audit Defense

Audit Defense
States have increased their audit efforts to ensure compliance with unclaimed property laws and have become more aggressive in using tactics to challenge the accuracy of state reports. Greenberg's clients can rest assured, however, that in the unfortunate event that they receive an audit notice from a state or third-party auditor, Greenberg International can provide support. Finally, in addition to answering questions or providing guidance, Greenberg International can also asses potential audit liability and can develop strategies to minimize exposure.

Close

In order to satisfy U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tax reporting requirements, non-U.S. persons must declare their country of residence and to verify their status as a non-U.S. citizen or resident to the IRS and Greenberg International on IRS Form W-8BEN. Schwab U.S. will then withhold U.S. taxes from non-U.S. customers based on customer's country of residence as declared on the IRS Form W-8BEN.

In the absence of a valid IRS Form W-8BEN along with required supporting documents (see Required Document Checklist) on file for each account holder appearing on the account, Greenberg International is required to collect and/or withhold 30% of all sales proceeds and of certain other corporate actions that result in a cash payment to your account. Without a valid IRS Form W-8BEN, Greenberg International is also required to collect withholding tax on non-U.S. customers' accounts at the maximum tax rate of 30%, which is generally higher than rates available to residents of countries that have a tax treaty with the United States. Information included in the IRS Form W-8BEN will be reported annually by Greenberg International to the IRS and to the account on IRS Form 1042-S.

Determining Non-U.S. Person Status

Determining Non-U.S. Person Status
A non-U.S. person is an individual who is not a U.S. citizen or a legal resident of the United States. A foreign person includes a non-resident alien individual, foreign corporation, foreign partnership, foreign trust, a foreign estate, and any other person that is not a U.S. person.

If any person listed in the account title is a U.S. citizen or a legal U.S. resident, the account may not be classified as a non-resident account. Instead, the account must be opened as a U.S. resident account, with the name of the U.S. person appearing first on the account title. Reportable transactions will be reported under the Tax ID of the U.S. person, who must certify their Tax ID number on an IRS Form W-9.

Clients must determine for themselves whether they are or are not residents of the United States. Greenberg International cannot determine residency for clients. However, if Greenberg International has knowledge that an owner of the account is a U.S. person, withholding rates applicable to an uncertified U.S. account will be applied to the appropriate transactions until an IRS Form W-9 is received from that person.

Regulatory Compliance

Regulatory Compliance
We are sensitive to the needs of companies and individuals that must comply with the requirements of national and international regulators, including capital market regulators such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as well as the pronouncements of accounting standard-setters, such as the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB).

Our partners and staff take part in regular training, and our national assurance, accounting, and SEC leadership teams are active in professional and technical committees. We express our views and perspectives through these committees and through comment letters to the SEC, FASB and other regulators and standard-setters.

The rigorous training and participation in professional activities enable us to take a proactive role in working with our clients to help them remain abreast of today's ever-changing rules. We can assist with technical training and presentations to management and audit committees, in addition to working meetings to consider implementation approaches and timetables.

IRS Form W-8BEN and NRA Withholding

IRS Form W-8BEN and NRA Withholding
In order to have the correct amount of tax withheld – which can vary from 10% to 30%, depending on the account holder's country of residence – a non-U.S. person must have provided to Greenberg International a valid IRS Form W-8BEN along with any supporting documentation required by the IRS or by Greenberg International.

A non-U.S. person's residency status must be re-certified before December 31st of the third year following the year the IRS Form W-8BEN was submitted to Schwab, or when any information on the original IRS Form W-8BEN has changed. If we have no valid IRS Form W-8BEN on file for each account holder, we must withhold the maximum tax rate, currently 30%, on dividends and interest in that account. We must also withhold 30% of sale proceeds and of certain other payments made to an account.

What is the NRA Withholding?

What is the NRA Withholding?
Generally, a foreign person is subject to U.S. tax on his/her U.S. source income. Investment income subject to tax includes dividend income paid by U.S. corporations, as well as some interest income. The non-U.S. person tax rate is 30%, although a reduced rate, including an exemption from tax, may apply if there is a tax treaty between the foreign person's country of residence and the United States.

Greenberg International is required to collect and/or withhold this tax (NRA withholding) from payments made to the foreign person.

Regulated reporting firms located in the United States are required to report to the IRS once a year on IRS Form 1042-S all U.S. source income for each account at the firm.

Payments to all foreign persons, including nonresident alien individuals, foreign entities and governments, may be subject to NRA withholding.

What is U.S. Source Income?

What is U.S. Source Income?
"U.S. source income" is, in general terms, defined under U.S. tax regulations as dividend and interest income earned on securities issued by U.S. companies or U.S. registered mutual funds.

In addition, interest earned on U.S. Treasury and U.S. Government agency securities is U.S. source income.

Therefore, to the extent that you have dividends or interest from U.S. companies, the U.S. Treasury or U.S. government agencies, the amount will be included in the annual report we are required to send to the IRS.

Close

Hallmarks of our Audit Approach

Hallmarks of our Audit Approach

• We believe that high-quality audits, in fact and perception, are essential to the growth of financial markets. With that goal in mind, Greenberg International has pledged to maintain the integrity of our audit process. Our professionals are highly sensitized to the need to maintain objectivity and independence. Moreover, our audits are led by partners who are heavily involved in the engagements and staffed by individuals with the appropriate level of skill and knowledge of our clients' businesses. Each audit also has a suitable level of independent technical oversight.
• We recognize the benefits of a planned, proactive approach. In that regard, we identify possible areas of risk that might require special attention. This advance planning also typically results in an efficient audit process.
• Our integrated audits for public companies combine the financial statement audit with an attestation regarding the effectiveness of a company's internal control over financial reporting. Our approach to these integrated audits reflects the top-down, risk-based methodology advocated by regulators as a way to make audits more efficient without losing the benefits of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
• Many aspects of assurance services benefit from industry experience. For example, audits of general-purpose financial statements may require industry experience to understand the full implications of accounting standards and risk assessments. Greenberg International has experience advising clients of risks and opportunities that are unique to their industries. We have professionals experienced in real estate, not-for-profit, technology, retail, and financial services and other industries. We bring our experience to bear in both our audits of financial statements and in our advisory role.

For non-audit clients, we provide advisory services to assist with the internal control reporting requirements established by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Some private companies and not-for-profit organizations have followed the example set by public companies and voluntarily undertaken similar initiatives to enhance their internal controls. Greenberg's Risk Advisory Services group has trained professionals to help management with these initiatives by providing some perspective on what regulators and auditors expect in this difficult and changing arena.

International Tax Consulting

International Tax Consulting
While businesses devote considerable resources toward minimizing domestic taxes, many organizations spend significantly less effort on reducing foreign taxes – even though their effective tax rates are frequently higher than the U.S. tax rate. In addition, multinational companies are not paying as close attention to transfer pricing and treaty shopping issues – during a time when many foreign revenue authorities are especially focused on those issues.

Without careful planning, a company's earnings could be depleted by additional tax costs and the costs of defending tax cases.

Greenberg International's Tax Consulting practice offers a wide range of services to assist companies navigate international rules to identify risks and opportunities. Our services include (as related to both inbound and outbound tax planning):

• Basic Structuring: Choosing among branch and subsidiary, tax-efficient acquisitions and joint ventures, financing and utilizing foreign losses.
• Sophisticated Structuring: Location and use of holding, service and intellectual property companies; tax arbitrage; treaty planning; hybrid planning; and effective use of low-tax jurisdictions.
• Risk Management & Compliance: Transfer pricing reviews, compliance and reporting.
• Profit Realization: Dividends and foreign tax credits and planning for sales and flotations.

We can also advise clients on using new financing ideas for tax-effective repatriation and financing; moving intellectual property revenue streams to tax-friendly jurisdictions; and organizing and streamlining tax functions.

Private Client Tax Services

Private Client Tax Services
Greenberg International’s Private Client Tax Services practice helps clients achieve their goals through a wide range of services, including compliance, sophisticated estate planning and business succession planning. In addition to providing planning guidance to individuals and families, we also provide services to not-for-profit entities and their beneficiaries and to clients who have created private foundations.

Our experienced professionals advise clients on income, estate, trust, cash flow, retirement, personal insurance and charitable planning, in addition to preparation of tax compliance associated with family planning structures.

Our Team
The Private Client Tax Services practice is comprised of professionals with deep backgrounds and experience in estate tax, income tax, gift tax, trust tax planning, charitable giving planning, executive compensation and benefits and life insurance planning. Our team members have the insight and knowledge needed to help clients address their personal tax and financial circumstances, lifestyle decisions and philanthropic motivations.

Our Services
We can assist with:

• Estate Planning - We work with family members to determine the client’s goals with respect to the distribution of family wealth, whether private or charitable. Planning activities typically include estate tax projections, liquidity analysis and suggestion of planning ideas that may reduce wealth transfer taxes. We also can advise on business succession planning and structuring the acquisition of life insurance.
• Income and Gift Tax Planning - Overlooking the need to monitor income tax issues associated with trusts and estates can result in missed opportunities. When sophisticated transactions are involved, we can assist clients in areas such as stock-option planning, like-kind exchanges, involuntary conversions, family limited partnerships, charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, exchanges of life insurance policies and annuities, retirement planning and minimum required distribution planning.
• Charitable Planning - We can assist clients with philanthropic desires by providing planning concerning the formation, operation and reporting in connection with private foundations, public charities, supporting organizations, donor-advised funds, charitable remainder trusts and charitable lead trusts. We can also advise family members regarding the deductibility of various contributions to charitable entities for income, estate and gift tax purposes.

Close