Why is my European tax withholding higher than the treaty rate?

Depending on which entity of Interactive Brokers your account is opened with, and your country of legal residence, IBKR might act as a withholding agent and apply the applicable treaty rates, or the tax might be applied by our clearing agent or depository prior to receipt. The clearing agent executes withholding on payments from issuers before it is received by Interactive Brokers. Interactive Brokers then delivers the funds to the respective parties. Withholding is often executed based on the nature of the entity holding the shares.

In this case, Interactive Brokers holds all positions registered in its name. This means that Interactive Brokers provides no final beneficiary information to third parties unless required by regulation or by law. As a result, clearing agents or depositories will often treat the owner of the shares as Interactive Brokers. There may be some recourse for you if the withholding is higher than the treaty between your country of legal residence and the taxing authority.

Interactive Brokers can provide clients with Tax Vouchers for German and Swiss dividends with details of withholding taxes deducted upon request to IBKR Client Services. A fee applies per each request. Please consult with your tax advisor for support on how to proceed with the tax reclaim.

Interactive Brokers can support clients with tax reclaims for French and Spanish stock dividends.

Additional Information

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