How the “Notice of Forfeiture” is Published

Visit the Forfeiture.gov website to find the public notices of forfeiture or search for a specific public notice. In the past, the notices of forfeiture actions were published in the newspaper, now those notices are published on a government internet site.Today, the rules allow for the online publication of forfeiture notices as provided in:

• Rule 32.2(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure; or
• 28 CFR Part 8.9, Rule G of the Supplemental Rules for Admiralty or Maritime Claims and Asset Forfeiture Actions.

The Asset Forfeiture Management Staff (AFMS) of the Department of Justice (DOJ) manages the government’s website that contains a list of pending forfeiture notices. The government’s website also explains how to file a claim for immediate court action to get the property back as quickly as possible.

Talk with us about the reasons to hire an attorney to make sure the claim is filed properly and to increase the odds that all of the money or property is returned.

We are especially experienced in finding notice of a seizure of cryptocurrency seized from a cold wallet or exchange account.

Attorneys on Notice Requirements in Forfeitures

If you received a Notice of Seizure letter in the mail, do not attempt to file a petition until you speak with an attorney about the pros and cons of that approach. Find out what the attorneys at Sammis Law Firm always recommend retaining an attorney to file a claim for judicial or court action. Filing the claim quickly forces the agency to turn the case over to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

The filing of the claim starts a 90-day deadline to either give the property back or file a forfeiture action in federal court within 90 days. If the United States Attorney’s Office doesn’t file the claim in time, then your attorney can file a complaint to get the money back with interest, costs, and attorney fees.

Contact us to find out more about what the notice of seizure for forfeiture means and how to beat civil asset forfeiture.

Call 813-250-0500.

Requirements for Notice in Federal Civil Asset Forfeiture Cases

Due process fundamentally requires that any forfeiture proceeding requires “notice reasonably calculated, under all circumstances, to apprise interested parties of the pendency of the action and afford them an opportunity to present their objections.” Mullane v. Cent. Hanover Bank & Tr. Co., 339 U.S. 306, 314, 70 S. Ct. 652, 94 L. Ed. 865 (1950).

Supplemental Rule G goes further, requiring the Government or seizing agency to send notice to “any person who reasonably appears to be a potential claimant on the facts known to the [G]overnment before the end of the time for filing a claim under Rule G(5)(a)(ii)(B),” Supp. R. G(4)(b)(i), and notice by publication, which is required unless certain conditions are met, can be effectuated by “posting a notice on an official internet government forfeiture site for at least 30 consecutive days,” Supp. R. G(4)(a)(iv)(C). “The notice must be sent by means reasonably calculated to reach the potential claimant.” Supp. R. G(4)(b)(iii)(A).

“[T]he burden of proof is on the Government to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the property is subject to forfeiture.” 18 U.S.C. § 983(c)(1). “[I]f the Government’s theory of forfeiture is that the property was used to commit or facilitate the commission of a criminal offense, or was involved in the commission of a criminal offense, the Government shall establish that there was a substantial connection between the property and the offense.” 18 U.S.C. § 983(c)(3).

Finding a Notice of Seizure Posted on Forfeiture.gov

The first way to provide public notice is by publication on an official government forfeiture site for at least thirty consecutive days. Fed. R. Civ. P. Supp. R. G(4)(a)(iv)(C).

The notice must “describe the property with reasonable particularity,” state the deadline to file a claim and to answer, and name the government attorney to be served with the claim and answer. Fed. R. Civ. P. Supp. R. G(4)(a)(ii).

To satisfy these requirements, after filing the Amended Complaint, the United States must post notice of this action on www.forfeiture.gov for thirty consecutive days. To comply with the notice requirements, the notice must:

• properly describe the property;
• explain that any claimant had sixty days from the date of publication to file a verified claim and answer with the Court;
• directed claimants to serve any claim and answer on a designated Assistant United States Attorney.

When those requirements are met, the Court may find that the United States properly published notice of the forfeiture.

Receiving Direct Service of the Personal Notice of Seizure

As for direct service of a personal notice, the United States “must send notice of the action and a copy of the complaint to any person who reasonably appears to be a potential claimant . . . by means reasonably calculated to reach the potential claimant.” Fed. R. Civ. P. Supp. R. G(4)(b)(i), (iii)(A).

The direct service rule requires only that the government attempt to provide actual notice, although it does not necessarily require that the government demonstrate that it was successful in providing actual notice. See United States v. $1,071,251.44 of Funds Associated with Mingzheng Int’l Trading Ltd., 324 F. Supp. 3d 38, 47 (D.D.C. 2018).

The rules are particularly lax for civil asset forfeiture cases involving cryptocurrency because the courts might allow service via email. The courts have found that service via email might constitute a valid form of service, particularly where the potential claimants are “international . . . whose locations are hard to pin down.” United States v. Twenty-Four Cryptocurrency Accounts, 473 F. Supp. 3d 1, 6 (D.D.C. 2020).

In forfeiture cases involving cryptocurrency, the United States might trace the path of the stolen funds and identify potential claimants. The United States can then obtain email addresses from the exchanges that hosted the cryptocurrency.

The United States might then email notice to those email addresses. In many cases, the emails might be returned as undeliverable. Even in those cases, the United States might argue it only needs to show an attempt to provide actual notice, not that it succeeded.

Finding the Notice of Seizure of Cryptocurrency

When the Government brings an action for forfeiture in rem of cryptocurrency, the Court must be particularly careful to determine whether the Government complied with the requirements of the Supplemental Rules. First, the Clerk must issue a warrant to arrest the Defendant Cryptocurrency in compliance with Supplemental Rule G(3)(b)(i).

Second, the record must establish that the Government’s posted notice sufficient to satisfy Supplemental Rule G(4). In United States v. 674,739.480211 USDT of Tether Cryptocurrency, No. 5:25-cv-01040 (BKS/PJE), 2026 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 42940, at *18 (N.D.N.Y. Mar. 3, 2026), the Court found the notice was insufficient explaining:

While the Government published public notice of the action on an official government forfeiture website, www.forfeiture.gov, from August 7, 2025 to September 5, 2025, (Dkt. No. 5, at 3; Dkt. No. 9-2, ¶ 5), it is not clear that the public notice “describe[s] the [Defendant Cryptocurrency] with reasonable particularity” in satisfaction of Supplemental Rule G(4)(a)(ii)(A).

The public notice identifies Defendant Cryptocurrency as “674,739.480211 USDT from Tether account number #XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX5usu, held in the name of Best Acct# XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX (25-FBI-003794) seized from Tether on May 22, 2025 in Albany, NY.” (Dkt. No. 5, at 2). But the verified complaint indicates Tether cryptocurrency was traced from the Victim’s accounts to a “Target Wallet” identified as “Wallet TNj4y6nnTX,” and funds were seized from the Target Wallet. (Dkt. No. 1, ¶¶ 19, 21). There is nothing in this record, beyond the notice of forfeiture, regarding a Tether account ending in 5usu; the Government has not provided any explanation of its connection to the Target Wallet or how the description in the public notice would give sufficient notice to a potential claimant.

Moreover, the Government must send notice “to any person who reasonably appears to be a potential claimant.” Supp. R. G(4)(b)(i). The Government has submitted an affidavit from Government counsel stating that “[t]here are no known potential claimants in this case,” without any explanation. (See Dkt. No. 9-2, ¶ 4). There is no indication that the Government attempted to contact any email or mailing address associated with the Tether account seized. See, e.g., United States v. Twenty-Four Cryptocurrency Accts., 473 F. Supp. 3d 1, 4-5 (D.D.C. 2020) (finding government’s obligation to provide direct notice to potential claimants satisfied where government sent notice via certified mail and email addresses to potential claimants, relying on “know-your-customer” information obtained from cryptocurrency exchanges); see also United States v. Starling, 76 F.4th 92, 96 n.2 (2d Cir. 2023) (“The government need not provide formal service of process in a civil forfeiture proceeding; it must only give notice ‘to any person who reasonably appears to be a potential claimant on the facts known to the government,’ and it may do so by any ‘means reasonably calculated to reach the potential claimant.'” (quoting Supp. R. G(4)(b)(i), (iii)(A))).

Because there are additional deficiencies in the verified complaint, the Court will also consider whether the Government has satisfied the requirements of Supplemental Rule G(2). As a preliminary matter, the complaint is verified in satisfaction of Supplemental Rule G(2)(a), (Dkt. No. 1, at 1, 7); states the grounds for subject-matter jurisdiction, in rem jurisdiction over Defendant Cryptocurrency, and venue in satisfaction of Supplemental Rule G(2)(b), (id. ¶¶ 7-9); describes the property with reasonable particularity in satisfaction of Supplemental Rule G(2)(c), (id. ¶ 5); states Defendant Cryptocurrency’s location when seizure occurred and when the action was filed in satisfaction of Supplemental Rule G(2)(d), (id. ¶¶ 5-6); and identifies the statute under which the forfeiture action is brought in satisfaction of Supplemental Rule G(2)(e), (id. ¶¶ 1-3).

At issue here is whether the verified complaint “state[s] sufficiently detailed facts to support a reasonable belief that the government will be able to [*16] meet its burden of proof at trial.” See Supp. R. G(2)(f). And because the Government’s theory of forfeiture is that Defendant Cryptocurrency was “used to commit or facilitate the commission of a criminal offense, or was involved in the commission of a criminal offense,” the Government must “establish that there was a substantial connection between” Defendant Cryptocurrency and the underlying criminal offenses. See 18 U.S.C. § 983(c)(3).

Id. at 13-14.

Read more about the unique issues for seizures of forfeiture of cryptocurrency.

Federal Agencies that Seize Property for Forfeiture

The following federal agencies seize property for forfeiture including:

• CBP – U.S. Customs and Border Protection
• HSI – Homeland Security Investigations (under CBP)
• DEA – Drug Enforcement Administration
• ATF – Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
• FBI – Federal Bureau of Investigation
• USPIS – U.S. Postal Inspection Service
• IRS – Internal Revenue Service
• USAO – U.S. Attorney’s Office

Additional Resources

Search for a Notice of Forfeiture – Visit the notice search feature found on www.forfeiture.gov, managed by the Department of Justice to find the Public Search Notices. Enter the search criteria including keywords or various filters. For instance, you can use the Notice Letter ID by clicking on the link for petitions or claims. You can also search by Notice Letter ID after the online filing process has begun.

This article was last updated on Friday, April 10, 2026.