43 U.S.C. § 99: Repayment of moneys deposited and covered into Treasury

Any person or persons who shall have made payment to an officer designated by the Secretary of the Interior or to his predecessor, and the money shall have been covered into the Treasury pursuant to section 91 or 93 of this title, shall, on presenting satisfactory evidence of such payment to the Government Accountability Office, be entitled to have the same returned by the settlement of an account and the issuing of a warrant in his favor according to the practice in other cases of authorized and liquidated claims against the United States: Provided , That when such moneys shall remain unclaimed in the Treasury for more than five years the right to recover the same shall be barred: Provided , That no homestead entryman shall be required to make payment of the purchase money on any application to make a cash entry until the same shall have been approved by the officer designated by the Secretary of the Interior, but such payment shall be made within ten days after notice of such approval.