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Level 2
posted Apr 13, 2025 8:09:46 PM

Foreign share depot / securities account with bank - is that a deposit account or custodial account in Turbotax language?

If you have a bank in a foreign country with checking account, savings account and a securities account = a depot for freely tradable stocks and shares, is the latter a deposit account or a custodial account?
Elsewhere in the forum a custodial account was described as "an arrangement for holding a financial instrument, contract or investment ... for the benefit of another person", which seems to describe what the bank is doing for me!?

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1 Best answer
Level 15
Apr 13, 2025 8:54:43 PM

@Fionja  whether it is  a  Bank or a broker that holds monies for you  for sole purpose of investment activities by you or for you ,  it is a custodial account.   

Accounts  in a financial institution that you own or have signature authority  over are generally  non-custodial  -- either savings or deposit accounts ( because you do the operating )

 

Are you trying to fill out  the FATCA form or what ?

 

Is there more I can do for you ?

2 Replies
Level 15
Apr 13, 2025 8:54:43 PM

@Fionja  whether it is  a  Bank or a broker that holds monies for you  for sole purpose of investment activities by you or for you ,  it is a custodial account.   

Accounts  in a financial institution that you own or have signature authority  over are generally  non-custodial  -- either savings or deposit accounts ( because you do the operating )

 

Are you trying to fill out  the FATCA form or what ?

 

Is there more I can do for you ?

Level 2
Apr 13, 2025 10:58:04 PM

@pk
I read elsewhere that "custodial account" is for example when you make a bank account for a minor dependent.
That threw me off a bit and made me worried I had wrongly assigned the term to my bank-owned brokerage accounts.
Thank you for confirming so quickly that I did everything right!