§ 1511.Money Order, Travelers Check Or Similar Written Instrument
Title 10. Unclaimed Property · Chapter 7. Unclaimed Property Law · Article 2. Escheat of Unclaimed Personal Property · Enacted 1975 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1511 escheats the sum payable on a money order, traveler's check, or similar instrument (other than a third-party bank check) to California when it was purchased here, or when the issuing association is based here and the purchase state is unknown or would not escheat the sum itself.
(a)Any sum payable on a money order, travelers check, or other similar written instrument (other than a third-party bank check) on which a business association is directly liable escheats to this state under this chapter if the conditions for escheat stated in Section 1513 exist and if:
(1)The books and records of such business association show that such money order, travelers check, or similar written instrument was purchased in this state;
(2)The business association has its principal place of business in this state and the books and records of the business association do not show the state in which such money order, travelers check, or similar written instrument was purchased; or
(3)The business association has its principal place of business in this state, the books and records of the business association show the state in which such money order, travelers check, or similar written instrument was purchased, and the laws of the state of purchase do not provide for the escheat of the sum payable on such instrument.
(b)Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, this section applies to sums payable on money orders, travelers checks, and similar written instruments deemed abandoned on or after February 1, 1965, except to the extent that such sums have been paid over to a state prior to January 1, 1974. For the purposes of this subdivision, the words "deemed abandoned" have the same meaning as those words have as used in Section 604 of Public Law Number 93-495 (October 28, 1974), 88th Statutes at Large 1500.
Plain-English Summary
Money orders and traveler's checks cross state lines constantly, so this chapter needs its own rule for deciding which state gets to claim an unredeemed one. Section 1511 escheats the sum payable on such an instrument, where a business association bears direct liability, to California if the association's books show it was purchased here. If the association's principal place of business is in California and its records do not show where the instrument was purchased, California can claim it on that basis alone.
The section adds a third route: if the association's principal place of business is in California, its records do show the state of purchase, but that other state's laws do not provide for escheat of the sum, California can still claim it. All of this reaches back further than most of this chapter's other provisions; the section applies to instruments deemed abandoned on or after February 1, 1965, tying its own retroactive reach to the federal statute governing unclaimed money orders and traveler's checks, except to the extent a sum was already paid to a state before 1974.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does an unredeemed money order or traveler's check escheat if the issuer's records show it was purchased in California?
To California, once the conditions for escheat under Section 1513 are otherwise met.
What if the issuer's records do not show which state the instrument was purchased in?
California can still claim the sum if the issuing business association's principal place of business is here.
Does this section apply to ordinary third-party bank checks?
No. It specifically excludes third-party bank checks, reaching only money orders, traveler's checks, and similar written instruments on which a business association is directly liable.
How far back does this section's coverage reach?
To instruments deemed abandoned on or after February 1, 1965, tracking the same starting point used by the related federal statute on unclaimed money orders and traveler's checks.
Amendment History
Repealed and added by Stats. 1975, Ch. 25.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as:unclaimed money order escheat californiatraveler's check abandoned property rule