Frequently Asked Questions

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Form W-8BEN is a standard US tax form that confirms you are not a US taxpayer and states your country of tax residence. Every non-US client of a US broker completes one.

  • It does not make you a US taxpayer or require you to file a US tax return.
  • It doesn’t add any tax. It gives you the Swiss–US treaty rate of 15% on US dividends instead of 30%, and you can credit that 15% on your Swiss tax return.
  • The form stays with our custodian, Alpaca Securities. Each year, Alpaca reports the US dividends paid to you and the tax withheld to the IRS on Form 1042-S, and sends you a copy.
  • It’s valid until the end of the third calendar year after you sign it.
  • The IRS isn’t told about your Swiss bank accounts, other assets or wider finances.