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Online form to be completed to open Swiss Bank account online

This form is for opening a Swiss Account for individuals. It's easy to compile this form: just cancel the entries that don't apply and keep the ones that apply. Once finished send it back to us.
Personal Information
--------------------  
Title:  Mr Mrs
First Name: 
Last Name: 
Date of Birth: Day Month Year
Place of Birth:
Nationality:
Residence Address
-----------------
Street/Number: 
City: 
Postal Code: 
Country:
Correspondance Address (if same as above you do not need to complete it)
-----------------
Street/Number: 
City: 
Postal Code: 
Country:

Contact Details
---------------
Day Phone Number:
Mobile Phone Number:  If available
E-mail: 
Alternative Phone Number:  If available
Fax Number:  If available

Other Personal Information:
--------------------------
Occupation:
Company: 
Language:
-----------------
English
Deutsch
Français
Italiano
Marital Status:
-------------------------
married
single
divorced
widowed
other
Planned Investment:
--------------------------------
0 - 100'000 CHF
100'000 - 500'000 CHF
more than 500'000 CHF

Origin of money to invest:
--------------------------
(Select as many as apply)
Savings 
Pension Fund 
Trading gains
Income 
Annuity 
Gift
Inheritance
Lottery gains


Do you exercise any important public function ?
-----------------------------------------------
No 
Yes 
If yes, which one ? 

Declaration of non-US tax liability
-----------------------------------
 I declare that I am not a US citizen and that I am not a resident of the US and that I do not have a permanent US residence visa and that I am not liable to taxation in the US for any other reason.
OR
 I declare that I am a US citizen or that I am a resident of the US or that I have a permanent US residence visa or that I am liable to taxation in the US for any other reason. In this event, I acknowledge and accept that, for legal and tax reasons, Bank cannot offer me access to stock markets in the United States, to US securities listed on other markets or to investment funds traded via its trading platform.

Identification of the Beneficial Owner
--------------------------------------
 I declare that I am the beneficial owner of the assets deposited with the Bank.
(Form Ends here)
OR
  I declare that the beneficial owner of the assets deposited with the Bank is:
(Please fill out the form below)
Title:  Mr Mrs
First Name: 
Last Name: 
Date of Birth:  Day Month Year
Place of Birth:
Nationality:
Street/Number: 
City: 
Postal Code: 
Country:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note 1 : Please double check information above is accurate.
Note 2 : the bank will send you the account agreements etc for signing to your physical address. You have to sign these documents and return them to the bank together with a certified copy of government issued photo ID (passport recommended for international use) before the account can be fully activated.

How to Find a Deceased Person’s Bank Account


How to Find a Deceased Person’s Bank Account in Switzerland http://moneysafebox.com/swiss-dormant-accounts.html
To find a deceased person’s bank account, it is helpful to know the name and address of the bank where
the money was deposited since there is no central register of bank accounts in Switzerland. Depending
on the date when the account in question was opened, you may contact the following institutions:
a) Swiss bank accounts opened by individuals who are not or were not Swiss nationals or
residents of Switzerland after May 9, 1945
The Ombudsman of the Swiss Banks is an impartial source of information and an intermediary whose
services are free of charge. He handles specific complaints made against banks based in Switzerland.
For reasons of confidentiality, please note that inquiries cannot be made by e-mail.
Swiss Banking Ombudsman
Bahnhofplatz 9
P.O. Box 1818
CH-8021 Zurich, Switzerland
Tel.: ++41 43 266 14 14 (Monday through Friday from 8:30-11:30 a.m. GMT+1)
Fax: ++41 43 266 14 15, Internet:
http://www.bankingombudsman.ch/english/
The Ombudsman also runs a contact office for individuals searching for
thinks that he or she might be entitled to assets held by a Swiss bank, but does not know which bank, the
contact office can initiate a search. Since this facility only searches for dormant assets, it does not
provide services connected with active or terminated bank-client relationships. A handling fee of SFr 100
is charged, and a search questionnaire can be obtained from the Swiss Banking Ombudsman.
In principle, the Ombudsman could also search for the assets of individuals who have had no contact
with their bank since the end of World War II. However, it must be pointed out that searches extending
that far back have little chance of success since the Swiss Bankers Association and the Independent
Committee of Eminent Persons (ICEP) already published the names of relevant clients in 1997 and in
2001. Please note that the Ombudsman is not responsible for issues concerning the names published in
1997 and in 2001, or for Holocaust-related matters.
dormant assets. If someone
b) Accounts of victims and targets of Nazi persecution
In February 2001 and January 2005, two lists of accounts of possible victims or targets of Nazi
persecution were published on the Internet. The lists were compiled by the ICEP, which conducted an
extensive investigation in Swiss banks between 1996 and 2000. For additional information, please visit
the Claims Resolution Tribunal homepage at
Resolution Tribunal (CRT-II) directly at the following address:
Claims Registration Office / Claims Resolution Tribunal
P.O. Box 1279
Old Chelsea Station
New York, NY 10113, USA
Tel.: 1-800-697-6064
http://www.crt-ii.org. You may also contact the Claims
c) Claims of individuals who were not victims of Nazi persecution related to accounts
published in 1997 and in 2001 from dormant accounts since May 9, 1945
Although the 1997 list is no longer available, Swiss banks still accept claims related to an account
included on that list. The 2001 lists are published at
lists may be sent to:
Contact Office for Swiss Bank Accounts Dormant Since World War II
P.O. Box 2761
CH-4002 Basel, Switzerland
Tel.: ++41 61 272 08 11, Fax: ++41 61 272 07 12
http://www.crt-ii.org. Requests concerning those

Open Offshore Bank account in Luxembourg

Your International Online Broker in Luxembourg


Opening an account with Internaxx is easy. Just fill out and sign the an application form, add a copy of your EU ID card or passport, and return them by post. If you intend to trade US securities, you must also complete the form W-8BEN.

Internaxx Bank is a premium offshore bank for international investors and expatriates. Realise your investment goals with online access to Stocks, CFDs, Futures and Forex trading on 17 exchanges worldwide. Manage your money conveniently with Multi-Currency Accounts. And take advantage of our 0% entry-fee investment funds. Internaxx is a member of the Aaa-rated TD Bank Group.

What is Apostille? How to apostille ? and Where ?

What is Apostille?
What is The Hague Conference?
This is an intergovernmental convention which set about establishing a simplified system to allow documentation originating in one member country, to be easily recognized as authentic in another member country. The norms were established at The Hague Convention of 6th of October 1961.

What is an Apostille?
This is the documentary device by which a government department, usually the State Department, Justice Ministry or Foreign Ministry, authenticates a document as genuine, thereby legalizing it for use in another member country under the terms laid out in 1961.
Once a document has been Apostilled, thereby providing official government authentication of the signatures and stamps appearing on it, it is automatically deemed legalized for use in another member country.

An Apostille consists of the following:
(1) name of country from which the document emanates;
(2) name of person signing the document;
(3) the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted;
(4) in the case of unsigned documents, the name of the authority which has affixed the seal or stamp;
(5) place of certification;
(6) date of certification;
(7) the authority issuing the certificate;
(8) number of certificate;
(9) seal or stamp of authority issuing certificate;
(10) signature of authority issuing certificate.
The simplicity and lack of ambiguity has led to the Apostille becoming a favored form of validation of documents worldwide, even in countries that are not actually signatories to The Hague Conference.

In which Countries is the Apostille accepted?
ANTIGUA & BARBUDA
ARGENTINA
ARMENIA
ARUBA
AUSTRALIA
AUSTRIA
BAHAMAS
BELARUS
BELGIUM
BELIZE
BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA
BOTSWANA
BULGARIA
COLOMBIA
CROATIA
CYPRUS
CZECH REPUBLIC
EL SALVADOR
ESTONIA
FIGI
FINLAND
FRANCE
 GERMANY
GREECE
HUNGARY
ISRAEL
ITALY
JAPAN
KAZAKHSTAN
LATVIA
LESOTHO
LIECHTENSTEIN
LIITHUANIA
LUXEMBOURG
MACEDONIA
MALAWI
MALTA
MARSHALL ISLANDS
MAURITIUS
MEXICO
NETHERLANDS
NIUE (SAVAGE ISLAND)
NORWAY
PANAMA
 RUSSIA
SAN MARINO
SEYCHELLES
SLOVAK
SLOVENIA
SPAIN
SOUTH AFRICA
SURINAME
SWAZILAND
SWEDEN
SWITZERLAND
TONGA
TRINIDAD & TOBAGO
TURKEY
UKRAINE
UNITED KINGDOM & NORTHERN IRELAND
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
VENEZUELA
YUGOSLAVIA

Source: ApostilleofDocuments.com

United States
If you are from United States, here are the State Authentication Authorities where you can get your apostille. There are some agent that can help you to get your apostille on your behalf with some fee. You mail them the documents and they will get the apostille for you and then mail them back to you. To locate these services, please click here for the Google search result page and pay attention to the Sponsored Links on the right. I have not use any of them before so I couldn't give you any recommendation.
Alabama
Office of the Secretary of State
Authentication Section
State Capitol, Room E-204
600 Dexter Ave.
Montgomery, AL 36104
334-242-7210
http://www.sos.state.al.us/authenticate/index.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State
Alaska
Notary Administrator
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
P.O. Box 110015
Juneau, AK 99811- 0015
907-465-3509
http://www.gov.state.ak.us/ltgov/notary/authentications.htm
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Lieutenant Governor; Attorney General; Clerk of the Supreme Court
Arizona
Office of the Secretary of State
Business Services Division, Notary Section
1700 W. Washington, 7th Floor
Phoenix, AZ 85007-2888
602 542-4086/ 602 542-4758
http://www.sosaz.com/notary
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State.
Arkansas
Office of Secretary of State
Corporations Division
State Capitol
Little Rock, AR 72201-1094
501-682-3409
http://www.sosweb.state.ar.us/business.html
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State.
California
Office of the Secretary of State
Business Programs Division
Notary Public Section
P.O. Box 942877
Sacramento, CA 94277-0001
916-653-3595
http://www.ss.ca.gov/business/notary/notary.htm
Fee: $20.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; any Assistant Secretary of State; any Deputy Secretary of State.
Colorado
Office of Secretary of State
1560 Broadway, Suite 200
Denver, CO 80202
303-894-2680
http://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/info_center/2001fees.htm
Fee: By Mail: $2.00 While You Wait: $17.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Connecticut
Office of the Secretary of State
Authentication Unit
30 Trinity St.
Hartford, CT 06106
860-509-6135
http://www.sots.state.ct.us/recordslegislativeservices/authen.html#orders
Fee: $20.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Delaware
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Division
401 Federal St., Suite 3
Dover, DE 19901
302- 302/739-4111
http://www.state.de.us/sos/sos.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Acting Secretary of State.
District of Columbia
Office of the Secretary, D.C.
Notary Commissions & Authentications Section
441 4th St. N.W. (One Judiciary Square)
Washington, D.C.
202-727-3117
http://os.dc.gov/info/notary/notary.shtm#document
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Executive Secretary; Assistant Executive Secretary; Mayor's Special Assistant and Assistant to the Executive Secretary; Secretary of the District of Columbia.
Florida
Department of State
Office of International Affairs
Notary Certification/Apostille Section
The Capitol Building
Suite 1902
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0250
804-488-7521
http://notaries.dos.state.fl.us/notproc7.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State
Georgia
Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority
Notary Division
1875 Century Boulevard, Suite 100
Atlanta, GA 30345
404-327-6023
http://www2.gsccca.org/projects/apost.html
or
Office of Secretary of State
Administrative Procedures Unit
2 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive
Suite 820 - West Tower
Atlanta, Georgia 30334
404-656-2885
http://www.sos.state.ga.us/administration/notary.htm
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority.
Hawaii
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
State Capitol, 5th Floor,
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
808-586-0255
http://www.state.hi.us/ltgov/page8.html
Fee: $1.00
Designated Authority: Lieutenant Governor of the State of Hawaii.
Idaho
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Department
Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720
208- 332-2810
http://www.idsos.state.id.us/notary/apostill.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State; Notary Public Clerk.
Illinois
Office of the Secretary of State
Index Department, Notaries Public Division
111 E. Monroe St.
Springfield, IL 62756
217- 217-782-7017
http://www.sos.state.il.us/departments/index/division.html
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Indiana
Office of Secretary of State
Statehouse
Suite 201
Indianapolis, IN 46204
317-232-6532
http://www.in.gov/sos/notary/seal.html
Fee: no charge
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State
Iowa
Office of Secretary of State
Lucas Building
First Floor, Public Service
Des Moines, IA 50319
515-281-5204
http://www.sos.state.ia.us/
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State
Kansas
Office of Secretary of State
State Capitol
Second Floor
Topeka, KS 66612
913-296-2744
http://www.kssos.org/
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; any Deputy Assistant Secretary of State.
Kentucky
Office of Secretary of State
Capitol Building
P.O. Box 718
Frankfort, KY 40602-0178
502-564-7330
Fee: $5.00
http://www.kysos.com/
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State.
Louisiana
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 94125
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9125
504-342-4981
Fee: $5.00
http://www.sec.state.la.us/comm/comm-index.htm
Designated Authority: Secretary of State.
Maine
Office of Secretary of State
Bureau of Corporations
Elections and Commissions
101 State House Station
Augusta, ME 04333-0101
207-624-7650
http://www.state.me.us/sos/cec/rcn/notary/authapos.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Maryland
Office of Secretary of State
Statehouse
Annapolis, MD 21401
410-974-5520
http://www.sos.state.md.us/sos/certif/html/certif2c.html#apos
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State.
Massachusetts
Secretary of the Commonwealth
Public Records Division
Commissions Section
McCormack Building, Room 1719
One Ashburton Place
Boston, MA 02108
617-727-2832
http://www.state.ma.us/sec/pre/precom/comidx.htm
Fee: $3.00
Michigan
Department of State
Office of the Great Seal
7064 Crowner Boulevard
Lansing, MI 48918
517-373-2531
http://www.michigan.gov/sos/1,1607,7-127-1638_8734---,00.html
Fee: $1.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Minnesota
Secretary of State's Office
180 State Office Bldg.
St. Paul, MN 55155
651-296-2803
http://www.sos.state.mn.us/uccd/authinfo.html
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Mississippi
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 136
Jackson, MS 39205-0136
601-359-1615
http://www.sos.state.ms.us/busserv/notaries/notaries.html
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; any Assistant Secretary of State.
Missouri
Office of Secretary of State
Commission Division
600 West Main, Room 367
Jefferson City, MO 65102
573-751-2783
http://www.sos.state.mo.us/business/commissions/certify.asp
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Montana
Office of Secretary of State
Room 225
Box 202801
State Capitol
Helena, MT 59602
406-444-5379
http://sos.state.mt.us/css/index.asp
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State; Government Affairs Bureau Chief.
Nebraska
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Division
Box 95104
State Capitol
Lincoln, NE 68509
402-471-2558
http://www.sos.state.ne.us/Notary/notauth.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Nevada
Secretary of State
101 N. Carson Street, #3
Carson City, NV 89701-4786
775-684-5708
http://sos.state.nv.us/notary/apostille.htm
Fee: $20.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
New Hampshire
Office of Secretary of State
Statehouse
Room 204
Concord, NH 03301
603-271-3242
http://www.state.nh.us/sos/certific.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State
New Jersey
Department of State
Notary Public Unit
Division of Commercial Recording
PO Box 452
Trenton, NJ 08625
609-530-6421
http://www.state.nj.us/treasury/revenue/dcr/programs/notary.html
Fee: Regular Service: $25.00 Expedited Service: $35.00
Designated Authority: NJ Department of the Treasury, Division of Revenue
New Mexico
Office of the Secretary of State
State Capitol North Annex, Suite 300
Santa Fe, NM 87503
505-827-3600
http://www.sos.state.nm.us/notary-cert.htm
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State
New York
Upstate Counties
Miscellaneous Records
162 Washington Ave.
Albany, NY 12231
518-474-4770
http://www.dos.state.ny.us/
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Executive Deputy Secretary of State; any Deputy Secretary of State; any Special Deputy Secretary of State.
Down State Counties
New York authorities in Albany advise that documents issued in the nine down state counties are authenticated under the Convention by the New York City office. The nine down state counties are New York, Kings, Queens, Bronx, Westchester, Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland and Richmond. The address of the New York Department of State, Certification Unit is 6th Floor, 270 Broadway, New York, New York 10007, tel: 212-417-5684. Fee: $10.00
North Carolina
Office of Secretary of State
Authentication Division
PO Box 29622
Raleigh, NC 27626-0622
919-807-2140
http://www.secretary.state.nc.us/authen
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State
North Dakota
Office of Secretary of State
Capitol Building
600 E Boulevard Ave., Dept 108
Bismarck, ND 58505
701-328-2900
http://www.state.nd.us/sec
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Ohio
Office of the Secretary of State
30 East Broad St.
15th Fl.
Columbus, OH 43266-0418
877-767-6446
http://www.state.oh.us/sos/authentication_of_documents_stat.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State.
Oklahoma
Office of Secretary of State
2300 N. Lincoln
Room 101
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
405-521-4211
http://www.sos.state.ok.us/
Fee: $25.00 (cashiers check or money order)
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; Budget Officer of the Secretary of State.
Oregon
Office of Secretary of State
255 Capitol St.
Suite 151
Salem OR 97310
503-986-2200.
http://www.filinginoregon.com/notary/index.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State; Acting Secretary of State; Assistant to the Secretary of State.
Pennsylvania
Department of State
Bureau of Commissions
Elections and Legislation
North Office Building
Room 304
Harrisburg, PA 17120
717-787-5280
http://www.dos.state.pa.us/bcel/certifications/certifications.html
Fee: $15.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of the Commonwealth; Executive Deputy Secretary of the Commonwealth.
Rhode Island
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Division
100 N. Main St.
Providence, RI 02903
401-277-1487
http://www.corps.state.ri.us/notaries/notaries.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; First Deputy Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State
South Carolina
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 11350
Columbia, SC 29211
803-734-2119
http://www.scsos.com/notariesbc.htm
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State
South Dakota
Office of Secretary of State
500 East Capitol
Pierre, SD 57501-5077
605-773-5004
http://www.state.sd.us/sos/Notaries/apostilles_and_authentications.htm
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State
Tennessee
Office of Secretary of State
James K. Polk Building
Division of Business Services
312 Eighth Avenue North
6th Floor, William R. Snodgrass Tower
Nashville, TN 37243
615-741-3699
http://www.state.tn.us/sos/service.htm#apostilles
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State.
Texas
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 12079
Austin, TX 78711
512-463-5705
http://txsos-7.sos.state.tx.us/authfaqs.shtml
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State
Utah
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
210 State Capitol
Salt Lake City, UT 84145-8414
801-538-1040
http://governor.state.ut.us/lt_gover/internationaltemplate.html
Fee: Certifying Notary's Seal: $10.00 Apostille: $5.00
Designated Authority: Lieutenant Governor; Deputy Lieutenant Governor; Administrative Assistant.
Vermont
Office of Secretary of State
109 State St.
Montpelier, VT 05609-1103
802-828-2308
http://www.sec.state.vt.us/
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
Virginia
Office of Secretary of Commonwealth
Authentications Division
830 East Main Street, 14th Floor
Richmond, VA 23219
804-786-2441
http://www.soc.state.va.us/
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of the Commonwealth; Chief Clerk, Office of the Secretary of Commonwealth.
Washington
Office of the Secretary of State
Corporations Division
Apostille and Certificate Program
PO Box 40228
Olympia, WA 98504-0228
360-586-2268
http://www.secstate.wa.gov/apostilles
Fee: $15.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; Director, Department of Licensing.
West Virginia
Office of Secretary of State
Capitol Building
1900 Kanawha Blvd. East
 No. 157-K
Charleston, WV 25305-0770
304-558-6000
http://www.wvsos.com/execrecords/other/authentication.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Under Secretary of State; any Deputy Secretary of State.
Wisconsin
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 7848
Madison, WI 53707-7848
608-266-3159
http://badger.state.wi.us/agencies/sos/authen.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State.
Wyoming
Office of Secretary of State
The Capitol
Cheyenne, WY 82002-0020
307-777-5342
http://soswy.state.wy.us/authenti/authenti.htm
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.
American Samoa
Office of the Governor
Pago Pago, AS 96799
011-684-633-4116
http://www.amsamoa.com/
Designated Authority: Secretary of American Samoa; Attorney General of American Samoa.
Guam (Territory of)
Office of the Governor
P.O. Box 2950
Agana, GU 96910
011-671-472-1537
http://www.admin.gov.gu/doa
Designated Authority: Department of Administration
Northern Mariana Islands (Commonwealth of the)
Designated Authority: Attorney General; Acting Attorney General; Clerk of the Court, Commonwealth Trial Court; Deputy Clerk, Commonwealth Trial Court
http://www.saipan.com/gov
Puerto Rico (Commonwealth of)
Supreme Court of Puerto Rico
Office of Notarial Inspection
P.O. Box 190860
San Juan, PR 00919-0860
787-763-8816
http://www.lexjuris.com/lexnotaria.htm
Designated Authority: Supreme Court of Puerto Rico
U.S. Virgin Islands
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
7 & 8 King St.
Christiansted, St. Croix, USVI 00802
340-774-2991
http://www.ltg.gov.vi/Departments/Administration/index.html
No authority designated: refer requests to the U.S. Department of State, Authentications Office, 2400 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20520. 202-647-5002
Canada
Canada does not sign the Hague Convention. You should get certificates of authentication from Goverment of Ontario.
http://www.gov.on.ca/MBS/english/mbs/ods/authent.html

Would you like to Open a Swiss Bank Account online? How to Open a Swiss Bank Account without going to Switzerland.-

Keep reading this site is just for you!!
Get your legal, private, personal, secure SWISS BANK ACCOUNT with this Reliable Source. TAX FREE, OFFSHORE HAVEN
As far as I know, you can open 2 Swiss bank accounts without going to Switzerland. Basically what you need to do is to send in the signed application forms and passport copy to them. Below is the description of the 2 Swiss bank accounts.
Swiss Bank Account #1
 This is a multi-currency account which holds CHF (Switzerland Francs), USD (United States Dollar) and EUR (Euro Dollar) together.  What it means is that you can deposit different currencies into your account and they will remain in their currency without suffering from any conversion lost. You can also request to add more currency later after your account is opened.
 No minimum initial deposit required. You can make any amount of deposit after your account is opened.
 No monthly minimum balance require after your account is opened.
 No monthly maintenance charge or service fee.
 You can open an individual account or a joint account. (Only for Private Customer)
 You can easily open an account if your are from Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Canada, Canary Islands, Cayman-Islands, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, El Salvador, Finland, France, French Antilles, French Guyana, Germany, Gibraltar, Granada, Greece, Greenland, Guadeloupe, Guernsey, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jersey, Korea (South), Kuwait, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Martinique, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Panama, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Romania, Russian Fed, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela or Vietnam. 
 Online banking is available in English, German, French and Italian.
 You can deposit foreign checks by mailing them directly to the bank.
 You can get money in and out of your account using wire transfer. Incoming wire transfer is FREE. Outgoing wire transfer is $15 of the wire transfer currency, i.e. if you wire in USD, the fee will be USD$15; if you wire om EUR, the fee will be EUR$15. ATM card and check book is NOT available.
 Visa and MasterCard credit cards are available. They are REAL credit cards like in the US or other countries and you can use them online and offline. You can request any amount of credit card limit. The amount blocked on your account depends on your chosen credit card limit. They will block the double amount of your credit card limit in cash on your account. If you apply for a credit card with a limit of USD 1,000, they will block USD 2,000 in cash on your account. There is no need to pay your credit card bill manually as the bank will deduct the bill amount directly from your bank account every month.
 You need a Notarized Passport Copy. Apostille is not required. You must have a passport to open an account. (No Passport = No Bank Account!). To notarized your passport copy, you need to bring your original passport along with your passport copy to the nearest notary public. Notary public are special lawyers who are given the right to notarized documents so that they can be used internationally. To locate notary public, you can search for them through yellow pages, Google or simply ask any lawyers.
 You will received your welcome kit in FedEx within 2 weeks after your order! (It usually comes in 1 week) Your account number will already be included in the package. What you need to do is to return a notarized passport copy to the bank and your account will be fully activated. Online banking information will be sent to you after they received your notarized passport copy.
 Member of Swiss Banking Association.
Note: This Bank is not PostFinance. PostFinance no longer accept non resident clients. This bank is another bank.

 
Swiss Bank Account #2
 You can open your account in all major currencies, usually clients open account in CHF (Switzerland Francs), USD (United States Dollar) or EUR (Euro Dollar).
 Minimum initial deposit of CHF 1,000 (or equivalent in other currency, ~USD 800).
 No monthly minimum balance require after account is opened.
 No monthly maintenance charge or service fee.
 You can open an individual account or a joint account. (For Business account, please read p/s at the bottom of this page)
 Bank will not accept applicants from Argentina, Albania, Columbia and Nigeria.
 Online banking is available in English, German, French and Italian.
 You can deposit foreign checks by mailing them directly to the bank.
 Maestro ATM/Debit card is available. Each withdrawal fee is CHF 5. In order to received the card, you will need to place a secured deposit with the bank. The amount of the secured deposit is double your preferred monthly withdrawal limit. For example, if you want to withdraw maximum CHF 500 in a month, you will need to place a secured deposit of CHF 1,000. This rule is common among Swiss banks towards foreign customers (customers not from Switzerland). You can also shop offline with your Maestro card and the fee is CHF 1.50 per transaction. The card can not be used online. Card is applied after account is opened.
 Visa and MasterCard credit cards are also available. They are REAL credit cards like in the US or other countries and can be used online and offline. The secured deposit for a credit card is CHF 10,000. If you withdraw money with your credit card, the fee is 2.5% (minimum CHF 10). Card is applied after account is opened.
 You only need a photocopy of your Passport. No certification, notarization or apostille required on your passport copy. The bank will verify your identity using a special 'Identification Form'. I will explain this in the next section. This will save you a lot of money because getting notarization and apostille usually cost at least USD 100! And you can't get apostille that easy, I have to drive more than 2 hours to reach the government office who issue apostille. (No Passport = No Bank Account!)
 Member of Swiss Banking Association.
 Bank will not accept applicants from Argentina, Afghanistan, Balkans, Brazil, Bosnia Herzegovina, Colombia, Cook Islands, Dominica, Egypt, Grenada, Gautemala, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kenya, Lebanon, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Myanmar, Moldova, Morocco, Nauru, Nigeria, Niue, Pakistan, Russia, St.Vincent, Phillipines, Thailand, Ukraine, Vietnam, Yugoslavia.
Note: This Bank is not PostFinance. PostFinance no longer accept non resident clients. This bank is another bank.

All Swiss banks need to identify you before they can open an account for you. This section explains the identification process for Swiss Bank Account #2.
Due to Swiss banking regulations, all Swiss banks are required to identify a customer before they can open an account for them. That means they need to 'Know You' before they can open an account for you. Although the regulations didn't specify exactly how to identify a customer, most Swiss bank will require a customer to send in a notarized passport copy, i.e. Swiss Bank Account #1. Some also require that the passport copy to be apostilled.
For Swiss bank account #2, they will identify you through the use of a single page identification form. This form will be sent to you by me which you can print it directly. The form will ask you for your personal information which include your name, permanent address, date of birth and passport information. After you fill up the form, you need to bring it to your local banker. Your local banker will need to look at the information and compare it with your original passport. He will then verified it by signing and bank stamp on it. This completes the 'identification' process which is required by the Swiss regulation before the bank can open an account for you.
If for any reason you do no wish to verify your identification form through your local banker, you can verified it by getting notarization AND apostille. (Note: Notarization and apostille on the identification form, not on the passport copy) Also you must have a Passport to open any Swiss bank account. No passport simply means no Swiss bank account (no exception).
After the completion of your identification form, returned it to the bank along with your passport copy. After you account is opened, you will receive your account number. You will then need to wire minimum CHF 1,000 initial deposit to them. Once the money is received, your account will be fully activated and they will send you your online banking information. You can now start enjoying your Swiss bank account!
 

Swiss Banking

HISTORY
The history of Switzerland has followed a broadly different course from that of its European neighbours, mainly because no ruler since the 14th century was able to claim more than a theoretical suzerainty over the small, well-organised and prosperous group of cantons that comprise it. In the period between 1315 and 1388, they inflicted a series of crushing defeats on the armies of the Dukes of Austria, resulting in several other cantons joining the original three in the Swiss Confederation. Their location left them well placed to interfere in the interminable power-struggles of the period, and their influence was backed up by the formidable reputation of their army, probably the most powerful in Europe at the end of the 15th century. The Reformation led to a division in Swiss society between the followers of the reformer Zwingli and, later, Calvin, and the Catholics. The bitter controversy considerably reduced Swiss influence in Europe, and the Confederation was lucky to survive a series of defeats. Swiss independence from the Holy Roman Empire was one of the results of the Peace of Westphalia (1648) which concluded the Thirty Years' War, in which Switzerland had suffered badly. In the following 100 years little progress was made towards a formal union of the cantons, and the religious controversy rumbled on; the dominance of the Protestants was not established until after the Second Villmergen War in 1712. The dramatic events of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Empire resulted in a confusing period, with much of the country being annexed by France. Independence was restored by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 (which also laid down the principle of the perpetual neutrality of Switzerland), but the repressive policies of the cantons and the lack of any central power continued to work against political unity or economic growth. It was not until the end of the 19th century that the Federal Government began to be truly effective, although the cantons continued to enjoy wide powers and do so to this day.


 GEOGRAPHY
Switzerland is bordered by France to the west, Germany to the north, Austria to the east and Italy to the south. It has the highest mountains in Europe, with waterfalls and lakes set amid green pastures. The highest peaks are Dufour Peak, 4634m (15,217ft), on the Italian border; the Dom, 4545m (14,912ft); the Matterhorn, 4478m (14,692ft); and the Jungfrau, 4166m (13,669ft).

 CONOMY
Switzerland has a typical West European mixed economy with a bias towards light and craft-based industries: Swiss precision manufacturing such as watch-making is renowned throughout the world. The country is highly industrialised and heavily dependent on exports of finished goods. A dearth of raw materials, on the other hand, means that almost all must be imported. In manufacturing, the machinery and equipment industry specialises in precision and advanced technology products: machine tools, printing and photographic equipment, electronic control and medical equipment. There is also a substantial chemical industry, employing 10% of the workforce, which continues to experience steady growth. Although half the country's food is imported, the agricultural sector is strong and a major employer. The processed foods industry has a high international profile, particularly in such products as chocolate, cheese and baby foods.

GOVERNMENT
Federal Republic since 1848. Head of State and Government: President Adolf Ogi since 2000. The present constitution dates back to 1874. There are 26 cantons (three of which are subdivided) and over 3000 communes. The Federal Assembly is bicameral, comprising a Council of State (upper house) with 46 members and a 200-strong National Council (lower house) whose members are elected every four years.

 FINANCE/BUSINESS
The service sector is dominated by banking, where the particular reputation of the Swiss banking community for discretion has attracted large deposits. In recent years, however, the Government has come under strong international pressure to allow disclosure in the course of criminal and other investigations. Irrespective of this, Switzerland remains one of Europe's major financial centres. The type of Company for International Trade and Investment are:
Aktiengesellschaft (AG) - Stock Company and Gesellschaft mit beshränkter Haftung (GmbH) - Limited Liability Company
Double tax agreements exist with Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Portugal, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Trinidad and Tobago and the USA.
Frequently-asked questions

Over the past several hundred years Swiss banks have acquired an excellent reputation for stability, competence, efficiency, and discretion and these qualities have attracted a loyal domestic and international clientele. Every day receives inquiries from all over the world from members of the public asking how to open a Swiss bank account. Here we give answers to some of the more common questions:
1. Can anybody open a Swiss bank account?
In principle, any private individual or a company or corporation can open an account at a bank in Switzerland. However, banks reserve the right not to enter into a banking relationship in some circumstances. For example, a bank might refuse to offer banking services to a so-called "politically exposed person" who the bank believes would pose too great a reputational risk if he or she were to become a client. A bank might also refuse to start a banking relationship if it has doubts about the origins of the potential client's funds because Swiss banks are forbidden by law to accept money which they know or must assume stem from crime.
2. Do I physically have to come to Switzerland to open a bank account, or can I open it from my home country?
You do not physically have to come to Switzerland to open an account with a Swiss bank. You can open an account by contacting the bank's representative office in your country (if there is one) or by writing to the bank in Switzerland which will then advise you what to do next.
3. How can I open an account from my home country?
First of all it must be understood that Swiss banks have very strict procedures concerning the opening of accounts, no matter whether the potential client is Swiss or foreign. The bank must comply with strict Swiss legal requirements concerning what is  known as "due diligence". Amongst other things, the bank must verify the identity of  the customer on the basis of a conclusive document. If the Swiss bank you are interested in has a subsidiary, branch or representative office in your country you  should make contact with this office and the staff will advise you on the correct  procedure. If the bank is not represented in your country, please write directly to the bank in Switzerland stating what sort of account you wish to open and what other banking services you require. Some banks will send an official to meet and identify you and provide you with the necessary forms to fill in. Other banks will send the necessary forms by post along with instructions on how to certify your signature.
Again, please check with the bank.
4. Can I open an account via the Internet?
Yes, but at the present time the bank must follow the identification procedures laid down for opening an account by correspondence. In accordance with the Due Diligence Agreement (CDB 03), the bank verifies the identity of the contracting partner by obtaining a certified copy of an official identification document (passport, identity card, driving licence, etc.). The certified copy may be provided by a branch, representative office or group company of the bank; by a correspondent bank; by a financial intermediary specifically appointed by the bank; or by a public notary or public office that customarily issues such authentications. The bank also checks the address of the new customer through an exchange of correspondence.
For technical and legal reasons is is not yet possible to carry out the identification procedure “online”.
5. What questions will the bank ask me?
The bank will ask for proof of your identity. The bank may also ask you to sign what is known as a “Form A” declaring that you are the beneficial owner of the assets or identifying the beneficial owner if you are depositing funds on behalf of someone else.
The bank's staff may also want to know about the origin of the funds and the nature of your professional business and they will also want to get an idea of your usual financial transactions. In order to offer you the best advice, the bank will also ask about your future plans, for example whether you intend to buy a house, start a business, send children to school, retire, etc. If you are asking the bank to manage an investment portfolio they will also want to know how much risk you are willing to accept. In short, the more the bank knows about you, the more suitable will be the advice and service they can give you.
6. What documentation will the bank want to see?
As mentioned above, Swiss banks are obliged to verify the identity of a client. For this reason a bank would very much prefer to meet you face-toface for an initial discussion. The bank will certainly want to see official identification papers such as a valid passport or an equivalent official identification document containing a photograph. The bank may also ask for documentation that can prove the origin of your funds, such as the contract for a house sale, a statement from a foreign bank, a receipt from the sale of securities, etc. In the course of the banking relationship the bank may also ask to see documentation connected with specific transactions.
7. Can I open an "anonymous" account?
No. There is no such thing as an "anonymous" account in Switzerland. By Swiss law, the bank must know who you are. Anonymous accounts at Swiss banks exist only in the imagination of thriller writers!
8. What about "numbered" accounts?
The procedure for opening a “numbered” account is exactly the same as for any other type of account. The bank must verify your identity and establish the identity of the beneficial owner. With a “numbered” account your business at the bank is carried out  not under your name but under a number or code. This is simply an internal security measure to restrict knowledge of the customer's identity to a small group of  employees and apart from this a “numbered” account enjoys no additional privileges in terms of confidentiality.
9. Is there a minimum opening deposit?
Most Swiss high-street banks do not require a minimum deposit for an ordinary current or savings account. However, some of the private bankers and other banks offering private banking services (such as portfolio management) do require a minimum deposit. The bank itself will tell you about this.
10. Does the account have to be in Swiss francs?
Many banks offer accounts in US dollars, euros and other currencies besides the Swiss franc, but please check with the bank first.
11. How much interest will the bank pay on my money?
The amount of interest you receive will depend on market conditions governing interest rates in general and the type of account you have at the bank. Please do not forget that any Swiss-domiciled entity paying interest or dividends is legally obliged to deduct withholding tax at 35%. This can be claimed back if your country has a double taxation agreement with Switzerland.
12. What fees will the bank charge?
Fees will vary according to the bank, the account and the type of banking relationship you establish. Please check with the bank.
14. How “secret” are Swiss banks?
In Switzerland we have traditionally had great respect for an individual’s privacy, and this has always included financial privacy. Surveys consistently show that the vast majority of the Swiss people want to maintain this privacy. However, the high level of confidentiality Swiss banks offer both their domestic and foreign customers is not absolute and certainly does not shield criminals. The rights to privacy can be suspended when a criminal investigation is underway, and Switzerland extends international legal assistance in cases where the crime in question is punishable under Swiss law. Our aim is to protect the privacy of the honest bank customer while exposing criminals to the full force of the law.
Thank you for your interest in Swiss banking!
N.B.: This information is given for general guidance only. Your chosen bank will be able to give you more specific and detailed information.

Banco en USA para ciudadanos de Venezuela.

Banco en USA para ciudadanos de Venezuela.
La apertura de una cuenta desde Venezuela es necesario tener una cuenta en Banco Mercantil Venezuela y una tarjeta  ABRA24 entre a www.todo1.com . Los pasos son los siguientes:

* Seleccione la opción Mi Cuenta en Commercebank
http://www.commercebankfl.com/  y solicitarla en línea de la siguiente forma (entrar en el link "inscribase ahora"):
* Este servicio se encuentra disponible sólo  los días hábiles bancarios en Venezuela y Estados Unidos y en horario de 9 Am hasta 8 Pm.
* Identifíquese con su Llave Mercantil y clave telefónica.
* Complete los formularios con la información detallada de lo solicitado.
* Obtenga su número de cuenta e ingrese los datos de la transferencia de dinero del Banco Mercantil a Commercebank. Si por alguna razón no se realizo dicha transacción; al cierre mensual de nuestros sistemas; la cuenta solicitada sera cancelada.
* Recuerde: es muy importante que afilie su cuenta a la Llave Mercantil para poder disponer de todos los beneficios que ofrece el Banco..
*Si desea ordenar cheques debe de enviar una carta y pedir que se los envíen DHL que es un correo mas seguro y rápido, este tiene un costo de $21.00.  Una ves que tenga el numero de su cuenta llame para verificar su dirección y los teléfonos para asegurar el envío de la correspondencia.  La tarjeta de débito Visa Check Card sera ordenada automáticamente para las cuentas de cheques.
       
El monto de apertura es de $3,000.00 para cada cuenta.   Esta información la puede verificar en la pagina de internet del Banco Mercantil: TODO1.com, o en la pagina de Commercebank.   Una ves abierta la cuenta puede dar esta información para que le envíen la transferencia ABA 067010509 Numero de cuenta. swift MNBMUS33A y la dirección Commercebank, N. A. 3105 N.W. 107Th Ave. Miami FL 33172.

Si el deposito inicial lo va hacer por medio de una transferencia de una cuenta aquí en Commercebank, envíe un fax con las instrucciones que le debiten de su cuenta para transferir los fondos a la cuenta nueva al fax 305-629-1406, ó 305-629-1463.

Si  necesita mas información, puede comunicarse por línea gratis desde Venezuela 0800-100-2600, o por línea gratis dentro de Estados Unidos por el  1-888-629-0810, ó  por el  305-629-1212.
Para preguntas relacionadas con el internet favor comuníquese por línea gratis desde Venezuela por el  0800-100-5469, ó por línea gratis dentro de Estados Unidos por el 1-866-806-8125, ó por el 305-629-1260.
Mas informacion: www.CuentabancariaenUSA.info o www.bancaoffshore.info

Glossary wiki Early withdrawal

Early withdrawal
If you withdraw assets from a fixed-term investment, such as a certificate of deposit (CD), before it matures, it is considered an early withdrawal.If you withdraw from an individual retirement account (IRA) or tax-deferred retirement savings plan before you turn 59 1/2, it is also considered early.If you withdraw early, you usually have to pay a penalty imposed by the issuer (in the case of a CD) or the government (if it's an IRA or other tax-deferred or tax-free savings plan). However, you may be able to use the money in your account without penalty under certain circumstances. For example, if you withdraw IRA assets to pay for higher education, to buy a first home, or for other qualified reasons, the penalty is waived. But taxes will still be due on the tax-deferred portion of the withdrawal.

Earned income
Earned income is pay you receive for work you perform, including salaries, wages, tips, and professional fees. Your earned income is included in your gross income, along with unearned income from interest, dividends, and capital gains. If you have earned income, you're eligible to contribute to an individual retirement account (IRA).

Earned income credit (EIC)
The earned income tax credit (EIC) reduces the income tax of that certain low-income taxpayers would otherwise owe. It’s a refundable credit, so if the tax that’s due is less than the amount of the credit, the difference is paid to the taxpayer as a refund.To qualify for the EIC, a taxpayer must work, earn less than the government’s ceiling for his or her filing status and family situation, meet a set of specific conditions, and file the required IRS schedules and forms.

Earnings
In the case of an individual, earnings include salary and other compensation for work you do, as well as interest, dividends, and increases in the value of your investments.From a corporate perspective, earnings are profits, or net income, after the company has paid income taxes and bond interest.

Earnings estimate
Professional stock analysts use mathematical models that weigh companies' financial data to predict their future earnings per share on a quarterly, annual, and long-term basis. Investment research companies, such as Thomson Financial and Zacks, publish averages of analysts' estimates for stock market professionals follow closely. These averages are called consensus estimates.

Earnings momentum
When a company's earnings per share grow from year to year at an ever-increasing rate, that pattern is described as earnings momentum. One example might be a company whose earnings grow one year at 10%, the next year at 18%, and a third year at 25%. In many cases, this momentum triggers an increase in the stock's share price as well, as investors identify the stock as one they expect to continue to grow and increase in value.

Earnings per share (EPS)
Earnings per share (EPS) is calculated by dividing a company's total earnings by the number of outstanding shares. For example, if a company earns $100 million in a year and has 50 million outstanding, or existing, shares, the earnings per share are $2. Earnings per share can also be calculated on a fully diluted basis, by adding outstanding stock options, rights, and warrants to the outstanding shares. The results report what EPS would be if all of those options, rights, and warrants were exercised and the company had to issue more shares to meet its obligations.Earnings and other financial measures are provided on a per share basis to make it easier for you to analyze the information and compare the results to those of other investments.

Earnings surprise
When a company's earnings report either exceeds or fails to meet analysts' estimates, it's called an earnings surprise. An upside surprise occurs when a company reports higher earnings than analysts predicted and usually triggers an increase in the stock price. A negative surprise, on the other hand, occurs when a company fails to meet expectations and often causes the stock's price to fall. Companies try hard to avoid negative surprises since even a small deviation can create a big stir.

EBITDA
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization are commonly shortened to EBITDA. EBITDA reports a company’s profits before interest on debt and taxes owed or paid to the government are subtracted. EBITDA is used to compare the profitability of a company with other companies of the same size in the same industry who may have different levels of debt or different tax situations.

Economic cycle
An economic cycle is a period during which a country’s economy moves from strength to weakness and back to strength. This pattern repeats itself regularly, though not on a fixed schedule. The length of the cycle isn’t predictable either, and may be measured in months or in years. The cycle is driven by many forces — including inflation, the money supply, domestic and international politics, and natural events. In developed countries, the central bank uses its power to influence interest rates and the money supply to prevent dramatic peaks and deep troughs, smoothing the cycle’s highs and lows.This up and down pattern influences all aspects of economic life, including the financial markets. Certain investments or categories of investment that thrive in one phase of the cycle may lose value in another. As a result, in evaluating an investment, you may want to look at how it has fared through a full economic cycle.

Economic indicator
Economic indicators are statistical measurements of current business conditions. Changes in leading indicators, including those that track factory orders, stock prices, the money supply, and consumer confidence, forecast short-term economic strength or weakness. In contrast, lagging indicators, such as business spending, bank interest rates, and unemployment figures, move up or down in the wake of changes in the economy. The Conference Board, a nonprofit business research firm, releases its weighted indexes of leading, lagging, and coincident indicators every month. Though the individual components are also reported separately throughout the month, the indicators provide a snapshot of the economy's overall health.

Education savings account (ESA)
You can put up to $2,000 a year into a Coverdell education savings account (ESA) that you establish in the name of a minor child. The assets in the account can be invested any way you choose.There is no limit on the number of accounts you can set up for different beneficiaries, but no more than a total of $2,000 can be contributed in a single beneficiary’s name in any one year. If you choose, you may switch the beneficiary of an ESA to another member of the same extended family.Your contribution is not tax deductible. But any earnings that accumulate in the account can be withdrawn tax free if they're used to pay qualified educational expenses for the beneficiary until he or she reaches age 30. The costs can be incurred at any level, from elementary school through a graduate degree, or at a qualified post-secondary technical or vocational school. There are no restrictions on using ESA money in the same year the student uses other tax-free savings, or the student, parent, or guardian uses tax credits for educational expenses. But you can’t take a credit for expenses you covered with tax-free withdrawals.To qualify to make a full $2,000 contribution to an ESA, your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) must be $95,000 or less, and your right to make any contribution at all is phased out if your MAGI is $110,000 if you’re a single taxpayer. The comparable range if you’re married and file a joint return is $190,000, phased out at $220,000.

Effective tax rate
Your effective tax rate is the rate you actually pay on all of your taxable income. You find your annual effective rate by dividing the tax you paid in the year by your taxable income for the year. Your effective rate will always be lower than your marginal tax rate, which is the rate you pay on the income that falls into the highest tax bracket you reach.For example, if you file your federal tax return as a single taxpayer, had taxable income of $75,000, and paid $15,332 in federal income taxes, your federal marginal tax rate would be 28% but your effective rate would be 20.4%. That lower rate reflects the fact that you paid tax on portions of your income at the 10%, 15%, and 25% rates, as well as the final portion at 28%.

Efficient market
When the information that investors need to make investment decisions is widely available, thoroughly analyzed, and regularly used, the result is an efficient market. This is the case with securities traded on the major US stock markets. That means the price of a security is a clear indication of its value at the time it is traded. Conversely, an inefficient market is one in which there is limited information available for making rational investment decisions and limited trading volume.

Efficient market theory
Proponents of the efficient market theory believe that a stock's current price accurately reflects what investors know about the stock.They also maintain that you can't predict a stock's future price based on its past performance. Their conclusion, which is contested by other experts, is that it's not possible for an individual or institutional investor to outperform the market as a whole. Index funds, which are designed to match, rather than beat, the performance of a particular market segment, are in part an outgrowth of efficient market theory.

Electronic benefits transfer (EBT)
Electronic benefits transfer, or EBT, is a system through which recipients of certain government benefits receive and spend funds electronically, using a plastic EBT card similar to a bank debit card.Benefits are deposited electronically into the recipient’s program account. The recipient can then use his or her EBT card to make purchases, which are debited from the account.All states now use EBT in addition to traditional paper coupons to distribute food stamp benefits. Some states also use EBT to disburse benefits for other programs, including the US Department of Agriculture’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) programs.There are no fees when recipients use EBT cards for purchases, but fees may apply to cash withdrawals from ATMs or electronic balance inquiries.

Electronic bill payment
If you have an electronic bill payment arrangement with your bank, your bills are sent to an account you designate and the bank pays them automatically each month by deducting the money from that account and transferring it to your payees, either electronically or by check.The advantage of using electronic payment is that your bills will be paid on time, though it is your responsibility to ensure that there is enough money on deposit to cover what’s due. When the payments are made to credit accounts with the same bank, you may be offered a slightly reduced interest rate for using the service. However, you’ll want to investigate whether there’s an added fee for automatic payment and how much flexibility you have in determining how much of a bill’s balance due is paid each month on credit accounts where you have the option to pay less than the full amount owed.

Electronic bill presentment
If you pay bills online, you may be able to take advantage of electronic bill presentment, a paper-free method of reporting your outstanding charges and the amount due. The lender may either email your monthly statement or notify you via email that the statement is ready for viewing at a secure website.

Electronic check conversion
Electronic check conversion is a payment process in which you give a payee a check, but the actual payment is processed as an electronic funds transfer. The payment is automatically debited from your account using the account, routing information, and bank ID information on your check, which is either voided and returned to you or destroyed.A business must notify you before it uses electronic check conversion to process your payment. Keep in mind that an electronic funds transfer will be completed much more quickly than a check, so it’s important to have the funds available in your account before you authorize an electronic check conversion. As with any other type of electronic funds transfer, you have the right to ask your bank to investigate any errors or misuses.

Electronic communications network (ECN)
An ECN is an alternative securities trading system that collects, displays, and executes orders electronically without a middleman, such as a specialist or market maker. Trading on an ECN allows institutional and individual investors to buy and sell anonymously. Further, ECNs facilitate extended, or after-hours, trading. ECN trade execution can be faster and less expensive than trades handled through screen-based or traditional markets, though the volume is sometimes thin. However, some ECNs have been approved for official stock exchange status, expanding the number of stocks that can be traded on their systems.

Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval System (EDGAR)
EDGAR is an electronic database that contains all the corporate financial reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).Any company with more than $10 million in assets and over 500 shareholders, or that is listed on a major exchange in the United States or quoted on the Over the Counter Bulletin Board (OTCBB) is required to file prospectuses, an annual 10-K — or audited financial report — three unaudited 10-Qs, notices of insider trades, tender offers, and other detailed company information. Smaller companies may file voluntarily. You can access all EDGAR filings free of charge on the SEC website (www.sec.gov).

Electronic funds transfer
Electronic funds transfer (EFT) is the means by which financial institutions exchange billions of dollars every day without the physical movement of any paper money. Money moves electronically from one bank account to another, usually within 24 hours of a scheduled payment. The system covers all electronic credit and debit money transfers, including direct deposits — which occur when you authorize your employer or other payer to automatically deposit payroll into your bank account — debit card and ATM transactions, online bill payment, wire transfers, and debit transfers — or automatic deductions from your bank accounts to make regular payments.According to the US Department of the Treasury, it costs the federal government only 9 cents to issue an EFT payment as opposed to 86 cents to make a traditional check payment.

Elimination period
If you have disability insurance or long-term care insurance, there’s a waiting period, called the elimination period, from the time you become disabled, or are certified in need of long-term care, and when you begin receiving benefits. You often have a choice of elimination periods — such as 30, 60, or 90 days — when you purchase the insurance, though sometimes the payment gap is dictated by the terms of the policy. In general, the shorter the elimination period the higher the premiums will be for comparable coverage.

Emergency fund
An emergency fund is designed to provide financial back-up for unexpected expenses or for a period when you aren’t working and need income. To create an emergency fund, you generally accumulate three to six months’ worth of living expenses in a secure, liquid account so that the money is available if you need it.It’s a good idea to keep your emergency fund separate from other savings or investment accounts and replenish it if you withdraw. But you don’t have to limit yourself to low-interest savings accounts, and might consider other liquid accounts, such as money market funds, that may pay higher interest. If you’re single or have sole responsibility for one or more dependents, you may want to consider an even bigger emergency fund, perhaps large enough to cover a year’s worth of ordinary expenses.

Emerging market
Countries in the process of building market-based economies are broadly referred to as emerging markets. However, there are major differences among the countries included in this category. Some emerging-market countries, including Russia, have only recently relaxed restrictions on a free-market economy. Others, including Indonesia, have opened their markets more widely to overseas investors, and still others, including Mexico, are expanding industrial production. Their combined stock market capitalization is less than 3% of the worldwide total.

Emerging markets fund
Emerging markets mutual funds invest primarily in the securities of countries in the process of building a market-based economy. Some funds specialize in the markets of a certain region, such as Latin America or Southeast Asia. Others invest in a global cross-section of countries and regions.

Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)
This comprehensive law, best known by the acronym ERISA, governs qualified retirement plans, including most private-company defined benefit and defined contribution plans, and protects the rights of the employees who participate in the plans. ERISA also established individual retirement arrangements (IRAs), made it easier for self-employed people to set up retirement plans, and made employee stock ownership plans part of the tax code.Among ERISA requirements are that plan participants receive a detailed document that explains how their plan operates, what employee rights are — including qualifying to participate and uniform vesting schedules — and what the grievance and appeals process is.In addition, ERISA assigns fiduciary responsibility to those who sponsor, manage, and control plan assets. This means they must act in the best interests of the plan participants. ERISA rules do not apply to plans provided by federal, state, or local governments, church plans, or certain other plans.ERISA has been amended several times since it was passed in 1974, making some provisions more flexible and others more restrictive. Among the changes were the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), which provides continuing access to coverage, for a fee, when an employee leaves an employer who offers health insurance, and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which protects access to health insurance coverage for employees and their families with preexisting medical conditions when the employee leaves a job that provided coverage and moves to a new job where coverage is also offered.

Employee stock ownership plan (ESOP)
An ESOP is a trust to which a company contributes shares of newly issued stock, shares the company has held in reserve, or the cash to buy shares on the open market. The shares go into individual accounts set up for employees who meet the plan's eligibility requirements. An ESOP may be part of a 401(k) plan or separate from it. If it's linked, an employer's matching contribution may be shares added to the ESOP account rather than cash added to an investment account. If you're part of an ESOP and you leave your job, you have the right to sell your shares on the open market if your employer is a public company.If it's a privately held company, you have the right to sell them back at fair market value. The vast majority of ESOPs are offered by privately held companies.

Employer sponsored retirement plan
Employers may offer their employees either defined benefit or defined contribution retirement plans, or they may make both types of plans available. Any employer may offer a defined benefit plan, but certain types of defined contributon plans are available only through specific categories of employers. For example, 403(b) plans may be offered only by tax-exempt, not-for-profit employers, and 457 plans only by state and municipal governments. SIMPLE plans, on the other hand, can only be offered by employers with fewer than 100 workers. Corporate employers who contribute to a retirement plan can take a tax deduction for the amount of their contribution and may enjoy other tax benefits. However, the plan must meet certain Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidelines.Offering a retirement plan may also make the employer more attractive to potential employees. However, employers are not required to offer plans. If they do, they can make the plan as generous or as limited as they choose as long as the plan meets the government's nondiscrimination guidelines.

Enhanced index fund
An enhanced index fund chooses selectively among the stocks in a particular index in order to produce a slightly higher return. By contrast, an index fund strives to mirror the performance of a particular index by owning all of the stocks in the index.The goal is to narrowly beat the index by anywhere from a fraction of a percent to two percentage points, but not more. A wider spread would classify the enhanced fund as an actively managed mutual fund rather than an index fund.Enhanced index fund managers may achieve higher returns by identifying the undervalued stocks in the index. Or, they might adjust holdings to include a larger proportion of securities in higher performing sectors, or use other investment strategies, such as buying derivatives. While enhanced index funds may expose you to the risk of greater losses than their plain-vanilla counterparts, they may also offer an opportunity for higher returns.

Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA)
The Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) is designed to ensure that all qualified people have access to credit. It forbids lenders from rejecting credit applicants on the basis of race, gender, marital status, age, or national origin and requires lenders to consider public assistance in the same light as other forms of income.The act says that creditors must approve or reject your application within 30 days if you’ve filed a complete application, and if you ask within 60 days, it must provide an explanation for turning you down. The ECOA requires creditors to provide specific reasons for rejecting you and forbids indefinite or vague explanations.If you feel you’re being discriminated against and the lender does not respond to your complaints, you can contact the attorney general of your state or the government agency that oversees the creditor. By law, the creditor must provide that information. If you can’t get the information from the creditor, you can contact the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov.

Equity
In the broadest sense, equity means ownership. If you own stock, you have equity in, or own a portion — however small — of the company that issued the stock. Having equity is the opposite of owning a bond or commercial paper, which is a debt the company must repay to you.Equity also means the difference between an asset's current market value — the amount it could be sold for — and any debt or claim against it. For example, if you own a home currently valued at $300,000 but still owe $200,000 on your mortgage, your equity in the home is $100,000.The same is true if you own stock in a margin account. The stock may be worth $50,000 in the marketplace, but if you have a loan balance of $20,000 in your margin account because you financed the purchase, your equity in the stock is $30,000.

Equity fund
Equity funds invest primarily in stock. The stock a fund buys — whether in small, up-and-coming companies or large, well-established firms — depends on the fund's investment objectives and management style.The general approach may be implied by the fund's name or the category in which it places itself, such as large-cap growth or small-cap value. However, a fund's manager may have the flexibility to invest more broadly to meet the fund's objectives.

Equivalent taxable yield
While taxable bonds normally pay higher interest rates than tax-exempt bonds, they sometimes provide a lower overall yield. Finding the equivalent taxable yield lets you determine the minimum interest rate a taxable bond must pay to equal the yield of a comparable tax-exempt bond. The formula for the equivalent taxable yield is tax-exempt interest rate ÷ (100 – your tax rate). So, for example, if a municipal bond pays an annual interest rate of 7%, and your tax rate is 35%, the equivalent taxable yield would be 7 ÷ (100 – 35) = 10.8%. That means that in order to be as attractive an investment as the 7% municipal bond, a taxable bond would need to pay an annual interest rate of 10.8% or more.

Escrow
When someone else holds assets of yours until the terms of a contract or an agreement are fulfilled, your assets are said to be held in escrow. The assets could be money, securities, real estate, or a deed.The person or organization that holds the assets is the escrow agent, and the account in which they are held is an escrow account.For example, if you make a down payment on a home, the money is held in escrow until the sale is completed or the deal falls through. Amounts you prepay to cover property taxes and insurance premiums as part of your regular mortgage payment are also held in escrow until those bills come due and are paid. In that case, you may earn interest on the amount in the escrow account.

Escrow agent
An escrow agent is the person or group that holds certain of your assets in an escrow account while you negotiate the final terms of a contract. For example, if you are buying a home, the escrow agent would hold the down payment you make when your offer is accepted until the purchase is finalized.

Estate
Your estate is what you leave behind, financially speaking, when you die. To figure its worth, your assets are valued to determine your gross estate. The assets may include cash, investments, retirement accounts, business interests, real estate, precious objects and antiques, and personal effects.Then all of your outstanding debts, which may include income taxes, loans, or other obligations, are paid, and those plus any costs of settling the estate are subtracted from the gross estate. If the amount that's left is larger than the amount you can leave to your heirs tax free, you have a taxable estate, and federal estate taxes may be due. Depending on the state where you live and the size of your taxable estate, there may be additional state taxes as well.After any taxes that may be due are paid, what remains is distributed among your heirs according to the terms of your will, the terms of any trusts you established, and the beneficiaries you named on certain accounts — or the rulings of a court, if you didn't leave a will.

Estate tax
Your estate owes federal estate tax on the value of your taxable estate if the estate is larger than the amount you are permitted to leave to your heirs tax free. That amount, which is set by Congress, is $2 million for 2006, 2007, and 2008 and is scheduled to increase to $3.5 million in 2009. Under current law, the estate tax will be eliminated in 2010. Without further Congressional action, the tax will be reinstated in 2011 at 2002 levels. However, modifications may be made before that date.If your estate may be vulnerable to these taxes, which are figured at a higher rate than income taxes, you may want to reduce its value. You could do this by using a number of tax planning strategies, including making nontaxable gifts and creating irrevocable trusts. Further, if you're married to a US citizen and leave your entire estate to your spouse, there are no estate taxes, no matter how much the estate is worth. However, estate taxes may be due when your surviving spouse dies. You may also face estate taxes in your state.

Euro
The euro is the common currency of the European Monetary Union (EMU). The national currencies of the participating countries were replaced with euro coins and bills on January 1, 2002.

Eurobond
A eurobond is an international bond sold outside of the country in whose currency it is denominated, or issued. For example, an Italian automobile company might sell eurobonds issued in US dollars to investors living in European countries. Multinational companies and national governments, including governments of developing countries, use eurobonds to raise capital in international markets.

Eurocurrency
Eurocurrency is any major currency that is deposited by a national government or corporation based outside the country where the bank receiving the funds is located. For example, Japanese yen deposited in a British bank by a Japanese car manufacturer is considered eurocurrency. Eurocurrency is used in international trade and to make international loans.

Eurodollar
Eurodollars are US currency deposited in banks outside the US, usually, but not always in Europe. Certain debt securities are issued in eurodollars and pay interest in US dollars into non-US bank accounts. Eurodollars are a form of eurocurrency.

European Central Bank (ECB)
The European Central Bank is the central bank of the European Monetary Union (EMU), whose member countries use the euro as their currency. The ECB, which is based in Frankfurt, Germany, issues currency, sets interest rates, and oversees other aspects of monetary policy for the EMU.The EMU's National Central Banks (such as the Banque de France and the Deutsche Bundesbank), together with the ECB, form the European System of Central Banks. They play an important role in implementing monetary policy, conducting foreign exchange operations, and maintaining the foreign reserves of member states.

European style option
A listed option that you can exercise only on the last trading day before the expiration date is called a European style option whether it trades on a US exchange, a European exchange, or elsewhere in the world. For example, many index options listed on various US exchanges are European-style options. In contrast, you can exercise an American style option at any point between the day you purchase it and its expiration date. All equity options are American style, no matter where the exchange on which they trade is located.

Ex-dividend
You must own a security by the record date the company sets to be entitled to the dividend it will pay on the payable date. The period between those dates — anywhere from a week to a month or more — during which new investors in the security are not entitled to that dividend is called the ex-dividend period. On the day the ex-dividend period begins, which is the first trade date that will settle after the record date, the stock is said to go ex-dividend. Generally, the price of a stock rises in relation to the amount of the anticipated dividend as the ex-dividend date approaches. It drops back on the first day of the ex-dividend period to reflect the amount that is being paid out as dividend.

Excess contribution
An excess contribution occurs when the salary deferrals or matching contributions of highly compensated employees are higher than the amounts permitted by federal law. If that happens, the company must pay out those amounts to the employees involved before the end of the following tax year or face penalties. Excess contributions are different from excess deferrals, also called after-tax contributions, which employees may legally make to their employer sponsored retirement plans.

Exchange
Traditionally, an exchange has been a physical location for trading securities. Trading is handled, at least in part, by an open outcry or dual auction system. Two examples in the United States are the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), which has the largest trading floor in the world, and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE).However, the definition is evolving. Traditional exchanges handle an increasing number of trades electronically, off the floor. NASDAQ and other totally electronic securities markets, without trading floors, have exchange status.As a result, the terms exhange and market are being used interchangeably to mean any environment in which listed products are traded.The term exchange also refers to the act of moving assets from one fund to another in the same fund family or from one variable annuity subaccount to another offered through the same contract.

Exchange rate
The exchange rate is the price at which the currency of one country can be converted to the currency of another. Although some exchange rates are fixed by agreement, most fluctuate or float from day to day. Daily exchange rates are listed in the financial sections of newspapers and can also be found on financial websites.

Exchange traded notes
Exchange traded notes (ETNs) are debt securities issued by a financial institution, listed on a stock exchange, and traded in the secondary market. Unlike regular bonds, there are no periodic interest payments, and your principal isn’t protected. So you could lose some or all of the amount you invest.You can sell your ETN in the secondary market at its current price or hold it until maturity, though that may be 30 years in the future. The price in the secondary market is determined by supply and demand, the current performance of the index, and the credit rating of the ETN issuer. At maturity, the issuer pays a return linked to the performance of the market index, such as a commodity index, to which the ETN is linked, minus the issuer’s annual fee.

Exchange-traded fund (ETF)
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are listed on a stock exchange and trade like stock. You can use traditional stock trading techniques, such as stop orders, limit orders, margin purchases, and short sales when you buy or sell ETFs.But ETFs also resemble mutual funds in some ways. For example, you buy shares of the fund, which in turn owns a portfolio of stocks. Each ETF has a net asset value (NAV), which is determined by the total market capitalization of the stocks in the portfolio, plus dividends but minus expenses, divided by the number of shares issued by the fund.ETF prices change throughout the trading day, in response to supply and demand, rather than just at the end of the trading day as open-end mutual fund prices do. The market price and the NAV are rarely the same, but the differences are typically small. That's due to a unique process that allows institutional investors to buy or redeem large blocks of shares at the NAV with in-kind baskets of the fund's stocks.

Exclusion
Medical services that insurance companies do not pay for are called exclusions. A typical exclusion is a wartime injury or a self-inflicted wound. But coverage for certain pre-existing conditions, or health problems you had before you were covered by the policy, may also be excluded on some policies.

Executor/Executrix
When you die, your executor administers your estate and follows the directions provided in your will. Among the executor's duties are collecting and valuing your assets, paying taxes and debts out of those assets, and distributing the remaining assets to your heirs. You may want to appoint a family member or close friend as executor. Or you may choose a professional, such as a lawyer or bank trust officer.What some people do is name a professional and a friend or family member to work together, especially if the estate is large or there are potential complications.Executors are entitled to be paid for their work, which ends when your estate is settled, usually anywhere from one to three years after your death. Professional executors always charge, while friends and family may or may not.

Exemption
An exemption is a fixed dollar amount that you can subtract from your adjusted gross income to reduce your taxable income. The per-person exemption amount is set by Congress each year, and typically increases from year to year. If you’re over 65 or blind, you qualify for an additional exemption. Taxpayers whose adjusted gross income is higher than the government limit may not qualify for an exemption.

Exercise
When you act on a buying or selling opportunity that you have been granted under the terms of a contract, you are said to exercise a right. Contracts may include the right to exchange stock options for stock, buy stock at a specific price, or buy or sell the security or product underlying an option at a specific exercise price.For example, if you buy a call option giving you the right to buy stock at $50 a share, and the market price jumps to $60 a share, you'd likely exercise your option to buy at the lower price.

Exercise price
An option's exercise price, also called the strike price, is the price at which you can buy or sell the stock or other financial product that underlies that option. The exercise price is set by the exchange on which the option trades and remains constant for the life of the option.However, the market value of the underlying investment rises and falls continuously during the period in response to market demand.

Expense ratio
An expense ratio is the percentage of a mutual fund's or variable annuity's total assets deducted to cover operating and management expenses.Those expenses include employee salaries, custodial and transfer fees, distribution, marketing, and other costs of offering the fund or contract. However, they don't cover trading costs or commissions. For example, if you own shares in a fund with a 1.25% expense ratio, your annual share is $1.25 for every $100 in your account, or $12.50 on an account valued at $1,000.Expense ratios vary from one fund company to another and among different types of funds. Typically, international equity funds have among the highest expense ratios, and index funds among the lowest. Similar differences in expense ratios are characteristic of different variable annuity investment accounts.

Expiration cycle
Equity and index options expire on a predictable four-month schedule, two of which are determined by the expiration cycle to which the underlying instrument has been randomly assigned and two by when you purchase the option. There are three expiration cycles, one beginning in January, one in February, and one in March. Each cycle includes four months, and an option always expires in two of those months. The other two expiration months are the month in which it is purchased and the following month.For example, if you purchase an option on an equity assigned to Cycle 1, which includes January, April, July, and October, between January 1 and the third Friday in January you have a choice of contracts expiring in January and in February — because they are the current month and the following one — or in April or July — because they are the next two months in Cycle 1.Similarly, if you purchased an option on the same equity in April, you’d also have a choice of four expiration dates: April and May — the current and following months — and then July and October, the next two months in Cycle 1.

Expiration date
The expiration date is the day on which an options contract expires and becomes worthless. Listed options always expire on the Saturday following the third Friday of their expiration month. For example, if you hold an American-style September equity option, you can exercise it any time before the end of trading on the third Friday in September, or whatever cutoff time your brokerage firm sets. In contrast, European-style options can be exercised only at expiration, usually on Friday.Under specific circumstances, listed options will be exercised automatically at expiration unless the owner gives instructions not to exercise them. Unlike the standard term of listed option, the expiration date of an over-the-counter option is negotiated at the time of the trade.