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Information regarding W-8BEN and W-8BEN-E Forms

General Information & Purpose

  • W-8BEN is a US Treasury form that allows foreign investors to claim special tax treaty benefits, including a reduced rate of withholding tax.
  • The W-8BEN form needs to be completed to trade US shares to avoid double taxation. 
  • All FinClear international accounts have access to trade US shares, so it is a mandatory requirement to complete the W-8BEN form (even if the client does not intend to trade US shares). 
  • You will also need to complete a W-8BEN-E form for your business as part of onboarding to our international solution, for the purpose of attaching to your house/errors account. 

Individual or Joint Accounts

  • Complete a W-8BEN for each individual.
  • General instructions on the form can be found here.

Corporate, Trusts and Super Funds

  • Complete a W-8BEN-E.
  • General instructions on the form can be found here.

Expiry 

  • W8 forms expire every three years and need to be replaced during the third calendar year. Note there may be a fee applicable to refreshing the W8 in certain circumstances i.e. if the account has no international holdings. 

Renewal reminders

FinClear regularly reviews W-8BEN forms that are due to expire within the next 12 months. When a client’s form is coming up for renewal, we’ll email you, the intermediary, with a list of the affected clients for you reach out for the renewal before the form expires. 

If the form still hasn’t been renewed closer to the expiry date, we’ll send a follow-up reminder.

If you’ve received one of these emails, please contact the listed clients as soon as possible.