By: JNS
“These fees impose a significant burden on elderly Holocaust survivors, victims and heirs who often rely on these payments to meet their everyday needs,” Acting Superintendent Adrienne Harris said in a press release on Wednesday.
The New York State Department of Financial Services has asked state-chartered financial institutions to waive wire transfer and processing fees for recipients of Holocaust reparations if they do not already do so.
“These fees impose a significant burden on elderly Holocaust survivors, victims and heirs who often rely on these payments to meet their everyday needs,” Acting Superintendent Adrienne Harris said in a press release on Wednesday. “Waiving these fees sends a powerful message on the willingness of New York’s financial community to have a meaningful impact on the lives of the people they serve.”
The department estimated that over 20,000 Holocaust survivors currently live in the New York City metro area. The Holocaust survivors and their heirs are charged between $15 and $40 per transaction on each compensation payment.
Acting Superintendent Harris said in her letter to NY Chartered Bank: “s you may recall, over two decades ago, New York State created the Holocaust Claims Processing Office (HCPO) within the Department of Financial Services to assist Holocaust victims and their heirs navigate the complicated bureaucracy of international restitution programs. The HCPO remains the only government agency providing assistance free of charge to this vulnerable population, serving individuals from nearly all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and 39 countries.
Your institution is in a unique position to work with the HCPO to correct this unfortunate situation. I urge you to voluntarily waive wire transfer and processing fees associated with Holocaust reparations and restitution payments, if your institution does not do so at this time. Although a small number of institutions have agreed to waive these fees in the past, this group represents less than 5% of the financial institutions in New York State. There is currently no reliable list of institutions that have committed to waiving these fees nor do recipients know how to exercise their right to benefit from the waiver. The New York State Department of Financial Services plans to compile a list of all financial institutions that agree to waive such fees and make the list available to the public by posting on its website.”
The department created in 1997 the Holocaust Claims Processing Office to “help Holocaust victims and their heirs recover assets deposited in banks; unpaid proceeds of insurance policies issued by European insurers; and artworks that were lost, looted or sold under duress.” The HCPO has received claims from 46 states and 40 countries to date, and has helped secure “over $182 million in offers for bank, insurance, and other losses.” The office has also assisted in settlements involving 179 cultural objects.
