I received a check for unclaimed property that I will need to split with my brother. Since the check was made out to me, do I assume the responsibility for the tax on it?

[bigredhusker]

Should I deduct the amount that will be taxed before splitting the check? At what rate should I withhold (Nebraska)?

[Critter-3]

Depends ... what was the check for exactly ?   Did it include any  income like interest or dividends ? 

[Mike9241]

it may or may not be taxable. for example, if a bank a/c is left idle for a period of time it escheats to the state. so a bank account recovery wouldn't be taxable.  even dividends and interest might not be taxable if it was already reported on an income tax return.  so what the check was for and if some form of income is it taxable need to be determined. 

[Carl]

You need to provide a lot more details. What unclaimed property? From whom or what entity did you receive the check? Why was the check made out to you, and you only? Why do you need to split it with anyone? Why was the property unclaimed? Seems it would make more sense to claim the property. But I really can't say since I've no clue just what the property is that is unclaimed.

[Opus 17]

In most cases, the state will not issue any tax documents such as a 1099, so the IRS will not get official notice of the income and you are on the honor system to report it.  If the reason you are splitting this income with your siblings is that it originally belong to one of your parents, I would simply report as taxable income the amount of income that is your share. You would owe between 12 and 22% federal tax in 3 to 6% state tax, depending on your other income.

however, that assumes that all the money is taxable. It may not be, depending on where it ultimately came from. You would have to give us a lot more details before we could help you with that. Was this a life insurance policy? Abandoned investment account? Forgotten bank account? It really makes a difference, because the income may only be partly or nontaxable.