(a) The contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, any safe deposit box or any other safekeeping repository, held in this state by a business association, escheat to this state if unclaimed by the owner for more than three years from the date on which the lease or rental period on the box or other repository expired, or from the date of termination of any agreement because of which the box or other repository was furnished to the owner without cost, whichever last occurs.
§ 1514.Proceeds of Contents of Safe Deposit Box Or Other Safekeeping Repository
Title 10. Unclaimed Property · Chapter 7. Unclaimed Property Law · Article 2. Escheat of Unclaimed Personal Property · Last amended 2013 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1514 escheats the contents, or sale proceeds, of a safe deposit box or similar repository three years after the lease or rental period ends or the free-use arrangement terminates, requires notice to the owner within the year before escheat, and shields the contents from escheat if the owner keeps another active account at the same institution.
Full Text of § 1514
(b) If a business association has in its records an address for an apparent owner of the contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, a safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository described in subdivision (a), and the records of the business association do not disclose the address to be inaccurate, the business association shall make reasonable efforts to notify the owner by mail, or, if the owner has consented to electronic notice, electronically, that the owner's contents, or the proceeds of the sale of the contents, will escheat to the state pursuant to this section. The business association shall give notice not less than 6 months and not more than 12 months before the time the contents, or the proceeds of the sale of the contents, become reportable to the Controller in accordance with this chapter.
(c) The face of the notice shall contain a heading at the top that reads as follows: "THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA REQUIRES US TO NOTIFY YOU THAT YOUR UNCLAIMED PROPERTY MAY BE TRANSFERRED TO THE STATE IF YOU DO NOT CONTACT US," or substantially similar language. The notice required by this subdivision shall specify the date that the property will escheat and the effects of escheat, including the necessity for filing a claim for the return of the property. The notice required by this section shall, in boldface type or in a font a minimum of two points larger than the rest of the notice, exclusive of the heading, do all of the following:
(1) Identify the safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository by number or identifier.
(2) State that the lease or rental period on the box or repository has expired or the agreement has terminated.
(3) Indicate that the contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, the safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository will escheat to the state unless the owner requests the contents or their proceeds.
(4) Specify that the Unclaimed Property Law requires business associations to transfer the contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, a safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository to the Controller if they remain unclaimed for more than three years.
(5) Advise the owner to make arrangements with the business association to either obtain possession of the contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, the safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository, or enter into a new agreement with the business association to establish a leasing or rental arrangement. If an owner fails to establish such an arrangement prior to the end of the period described in subdivision (a), the contents or proceeds shall escheat to this state.
(d) In addition to the notice required pursuant to subdivision (b), the business association may give additional notice in accordance with subdivision (c) at any time between the date on which the lease or rental period for the safe deposit box or repository expired, or from the date of the termination of any agreement, through which the box or other repository was furnished to the owner without cost, whichever is earlier, and the date the business association transfers the contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, the safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository to the Controller.
(e) The contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, a safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository shall not escheat to the state if, as of June 30 or the fiscal yearend next preceding the date on which a report is required to be filed under Section 1530, the owner has owned, with a banking organization providing the safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository, any demand, savings, or matured time deposit, or account subject to a negotiable order of withdrawal, which has not escheated under Section 1513 and is not reportable under subdivision (d) of Section 1530.
(f) The contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, a safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository shall not escheat to the state if, as of June 30 or the fiscal yearend next preceding the date on which a report is required to be filed under Section 1530, the owner has owned, with a financial organization providing the safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository, any demand, savings, or matured time deposit, or matured investment certificate, or account subject to a negotiable order of withdrawal, or other interest in a financial organization or any deposit made therewith, and any interest or dividends thereon, which has not escheated under Section 1513 and is not reportable under subdivision (d) of Section 1530.
(g) The contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, a safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository shall not escheat to the state if, as of June 30 or the fiscal yearend next preceding the date on which a report is required to be filed under Section 1530, the owner has owned, with a banking or financial organization providing the safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository, any funds in an individual retirement account or under a retirement plan for self-employed individuals or similar account or plan pursuant to the internal revenue laws of the United States or the income tax laws of this state, which has not escheated under Section 1513 and is not reportable under subdivision (d) of Section 1530.
(h) In the event the owner is in default under the safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository agreement and the owner has owned any demand, savings, or matured time deposit, account, or plan described in subdivision (e), (f), or (g), the banking or financial organization may pay or deliver the contents of, or the proceeds of sale of the contents of, the safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository to the owner after deducting any amount due and payable from those proceeds under that agreement. Upon making that payment or delivery under this subdivision, the banking or financial organization shall be relieved of all liability to the extent of the value of those contents or proceeds.
(i) For new accounts opened for a safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository with a business association on and after January 1, 2011, the business association shall provide a written notice to the person leasing the safe deposit box or safekeeping repository informing the person that his or her property, or the proceeds of sale of the property, may be transferred to the appropriate state upon running of the time period specified by state law from the date the lease or rental period on the safe deposit box or repository expired, or from the date of termination of any agreement because of which the box or other repository was furnished to the owner without cost, whichever is earlier.
(j) A business association may directly escheat the contents of a safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository without exercising its rights under Article 2 (commencing with Section 1630) of Chapter 17 of Division 1 of the Financial Code.
Plain-English Summary
A safe deposit box holds physical items rather than cash, so this chapter treats it differently from an ordinary deposit account, and Section 1514 lays out that separate rule. The contents, or the proceeds if the business association sold them, escheat once three years pass, unclaimed, from whichever comes later: the date the lease or rental period expired or the date any free-use arrangement for the box was terminated. Before that happens, if the association has an address on file that does not appear inaccurate, it must send notice, six to twelve months ahead of when the contents become reportable, in a specific format that names the box, explains the expired arrangement, and warns of the coming escheat.
The section builds in real protection for customers who keep other business with the same institution. Contents will not escheat if, as of the relevant reporting date, the owner still has an active deposit or account, or an individual retirement account, with the same banking or financial organization that also holds the box. If the owner is behind on box or repository fees, the institution can pay itself out of the contents or proceeds before returning what remains, and doing so relieves the institution of further liability for that value. A business association can also send the contents straight to escheat under this section without first exercising its separate lien rights under the Financial Code.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long after a safe deposit box lease expires does the state get the contents?
Three years from whichever is later, the expiration of the lease or rental period or the termination of any free-use arrangement, if the contents remain unclaimed.
Does the bank have to warn a customer before sending safe deposit box contents to the state?
Yes, if it has an address on file for the owner that is not known to be inaccurate, notice must go out six to twelve months before the contents become reportable.
Will the contents escheat if I still have an active checking account at the same bank?
No. Section 1514 protects the contents from escheat if the owner has another active deposit, account, or IRA with the same institution as of the relevant reporting date.
What happens if I owe unpaid rental fees on the box?
The institution can deduct what is owed from the contents or proceeds before delivering the remainder, and that payment relieves the institution of further liability for that amount.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats 2012 ch 162 (SB 1171),s 16, eff. 1/1/2013. Amended by Stats 2011 ch 305 (SB 495),s 3, eff. 1/1/2012. Amended by Stats 2009 ch 522 (AB 1291),s 3, eff. 1/1/2010.
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: safe deposit box unclaimed contents californiasafe deposit box escheat three years