what is escheat 
escheat is the right of a government to take ownership of estate assets or unclaimed property in the event that there are no heirs or beneficiaries escheat rights can also be granted when assets are unclaimed for a prolonged period these situations can also be referred to as bona vacantia or simply unclaimed property the concept of escheat is that property always has a recognized owner which would be the state or federal government if no other claimant to ownership exists or is readily identified in the u s each state jurisdiction has its own laws and regulations governing escheat rights and related matters understanding escheatescheat is a government s right to property if it remains unclaimed for any reason after some period time escheat rights can be granted by a court of law or given following a standard period of time in the case of death with no will or heirs escheat rights may be granted to a state in a probate decision each state in the u s has rules and regulations governing escheat rights often property that has been escheated may later be reclaimed some states may incorporate a statute of limitations which creates an expiration date after which reclaiming property is no longer allowed escheatment is the process of transferring assets to the state escheat rights are often revocable reclamation rights can extend into perpetuity if no statute of limitations exists this means that ownership of an estate or property assets could revert to a lawful heir or owner should one turn up u s states also have processes and procedures for granting escheat rights when property has been unclaimed for a prolonged period these processes vary by the type of asset and usually by state some of the financial accounts that can become escheated are escheat and deathin the case of death estate assets with no will are considered intestate all deaths and death wishes usually go through a probate court for final determination intestate deaths also go through probate which involves researching heirs who may be given property assets heirs eligible to inherit assets intestate may include spouses siblings aunts uncles nieces nephews cousins and potentially more distant relatives if a probate court finds no heirs to unclaimed assets in death then a judge would grant escheat rights to the state escheat may also occur if a will or trust is deemed defective and legal heirs to an estate cannot be readily identified generally identifying heirs in most intestate deaths foregoes the need for escheatment however escheat can also kick in if an individual s legal heirs are deemed incompetent to manage the inheritance and no other rightful heirs can be identified if a rightful heir comes forward after escheat rights have been granted property can be given to such heirs as outlined by laws laws vary widely from state to state and may include a statute of limitations that can make asset ownership rights irrevocable escheatment of unclaimed assetsescheat rights can be granted to the government for different types of assets assets may include real estate bank deposits and unclaimed securities in accounts that have been dormant for a prolonged period financial institutions and brokerages keep records of inactivity labeling inactive accounts dormant after a specified period financial institutions keep records of dormant accounts these accounts are usually required to be turned over to the government after a specified period typically determined by each state by law financial institutions with dormant accounts are usually required to make efforts such as sending reminders and issuing notices to locate the owners of these assets before finally transferring them to the state through escheatment escheatment for financial accounts often occurs automatically after a specified amount of time has elapsed each state determines the time frame for granting escheat rights to the government and the process for doing so this table provides each u s state s escheatment timing for checking and savings accounts bank checks and wages or salaries your state may have additional specifics pertaining to the data below so be sure to review the latest information by visiting its official website or the national association of unclaimed property administrators 1escheat reclamationsome states maintain online registries of unclaimed assets and dormant accounts and register this information with the national association of unclaimed property administration you can find unclaimed property on its website 2however reclamation is ultimately subject to state law and states can institute a statute of limitations that restricts claims after a specified period statutes of limitation usually help protect states that sell assets or spend funds for their own use making these assets less recoverable 