LensCrafters 2003 Annual Report Download - page 24

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consequently the additional dividend amount will be payable to the ADR holders.
Please note that for ADR holders to take advantage of the accelerated tax refund (Quick Refund), the
certification by the respective Tax Authority must be dated before June 24, 2004, or the dividend payable date
in Euro, and The Bank of New York should receive the certification on or before July 5, 2004.
Luxottica Group recommends to all ADR holders who are interested in taking advantage of such an opportunity,
to request more detailed information on the exact procedure to be followed from The Bank of New York
(ADR Department, telephone [phone]; fax [phone], attn. Patrick Mullaly) or directly from
Luxottica Group’s headquarters in Italy (Investor Relations Department - Dividends, telephone [phone]; fax
[phone]).
ADR holders are further advised that, once the amounts withheld are paid to the Italian Tax Authorities, the ADR
holders who are entitled to reduced tax rate may only apply to the Italian Tax Authorities to receive the reimbursement
of the excess tax applied to the dividends received from Luxottica Group. Such procedure customarily takes a number
of years before the reimbursement is actually made. Therefore the above-mentioned procedure for direct application
of the reduced withholding rate was established by Luxottica Group in the best interest of its shareholders.
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such Italian substitute tax. Therefore, the amount of the dividend that the holders of ADRs will initially receive will be
net of such substitute tax.
All holders of ADRs have been given the opportunity to submit to The Bank of New York, in accordance with the
procedure set forth by the same, the documentation attesting their residence for tax purposes in Italy or in countries
which have entered into tax treaties with Italy, pursuant to which reduced/NIL tax rates might become directly
applicable. Concurrently with the delivery of the Proxy Statement, the Depositary has mailed to all ADR holders a
document and necessary forms setting forth the detailed procedure to be used by ADR holders for the purpose of
obtaining the direct application of the reduced/NIL tax rate.
All ADR holders which are Italian resident for tax purposes, should deliver by July 5, 2004, to The Bank of New
York the documentation, dated before June 24, 2004, attesting the tax regime applicable (Form A to G “Dichiarazione
percettore dividendo”).
Also ADR holders, who are not Italian resident for tax purposes, should deliver by July 5, 2004, to The Bank of
New York the documentation, signed before June 24, 2004, attesting their residence for tax purposes in countries
which have entered into tax treaties with Italy, pursuant to which reduced tax rates might become directly applicable
(Form 8802 for U.S. residents, Form A-4 for residents of other countries “Tax relief form for dividends for non-U.S.
resident holders”).
As soon as the documentation is delivered by The Bank of New York to UniCredito Italiano, such bank shall
endeavor to effect repayment of the entire 27 percent withheld or the balance between the 27 percent withheld at the
time of payment and the rate actually applicable to the ADR holder as the case maybe. For example, Italy and United
States (as well as many other countries) are parties to a tax treaty pursuant to which the rate of the tax applicable to
dividends paid by an Italian resident company to a U.S. resident entitled to the treaty may be reduced to 15 percent.
Therefore, U.S. resident ADR holders have the opportunity of being repaid a further 12 percent of the gross dividend,
that is the difference between the 27 percent withheld at the time of payment of the dividend and the 15 percent
substitute tax provided for by the Italy - U.S. tax treaty.
In the past, a number of ADR holders have been unable to provide the required certificates within the
deadline, because the tax authorities can take two months or longer before releasing such documents.
Therefore Luxottica Group recommends that those who expect to be a holder of ADRs of record as of June
23, 2004, and are interested in implementing the procedure to obtain the application of the reduced substitute
tax rate, start such procedure well in advance by completing the appropriate form (Form A to G for Italian
residents, Form 8802 for U.S. residents, Form A-4 for residents of other countries), which needs to be signed,
for non-Italian residents only, by the relevant Tax Authority before June 24, 2004. The procedure established
by The Bank of New York and UniCredito Italiano contemplates that, once the ADR holder has delivered the
proper documentation to The Bank of New York, the latter will make it available to UniCredito Italiano and