FBAR DEADLINE FOR 2012 & OFFSHORE VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE PROGRAM (OVDP)

Deadline for FBAR filing for 2012 is June 30, 2013

The due date for filing of the FOREIGN BANK & FINANCIAL ACCOUNT REPORTING (FBAR) Form TDF 90-22.1 is June 30, 2013. FBAR Form may be required to be filed if a US taxpayer has a financial interest in or signature authority over a foreign financial account, including a bank account, brokerage account, mutual fund, trust, or other type of foreign financial account.

FBAR form and instructions had been revised in 2012 to reflect the amendments made by the final regulations. The requirement as per IRS guidelines is that if at any time during the year, the aggregate of balances in overseas accounts was more $10000, then reporting has to be done by filing this form. This filing is independent of the Filing of Federal and/ or State Income Tax returns. You may be required to provide information even when you have signature or other authority but no Financial interest in the account.

New Reporting Requirements by U.S. Taxpayers Holding Foreign Financial Assets (Form 8938) w.e.f. from 2011 onwards

In addition to the FBAR filing, Taxpayers with specified foreign financial assets that exceed certain thresholds must report those assets to the IRS on Form 8938, Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets. The new Form 8938 filing requirement does not replace or otherwise affect a taxpayers requirement to file FBAR. This Form is part of the Tax return and accordingly must be filed by the due date of Individual tax return in Form 1040.

If taxpyers are required to file Form 8938 but do not file a complete and correct Form 8938 by the due date (including extensions), they may be subject to a penalty of $10,000.

OFFSHORE VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE PROGRAM 2012 (OVDP/OVDI) STILL OPEN

The IRS is also currently offering people with undisclosed income from offshore accounts an opportunity to participate in a new, voluntary disclosure initiative in order to get current on their FBAR filings and tax returns. The program is similar to the 2011 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (OVDI) in many ways, but with a few key differences. Unlike OVDI 2011, there is no set deadline for people to apply – at least as of now. The overall penalty structure for the new program is the same for 2011, except for taxpayers in the highest penalty category.

For the new program, the penalty framework requires individuals to pay a penalty of 27.5 percent of the highest aggregate balance in foreign bank accounts/entities or value of foreign assets during the eight full tax years prior to the disclosure. That is up from 25 percent in the 2011 program. Some taxpayers will be eligible for 5 or 12.5 percent penalties; these remain the same in the new program as in 2011.

Taxpayers participating in the new initiative must file all original and amended tax returns and include payment for taxes, interest and accuracy-related penalties.

If anyone would like to avail of the benefit of Amnesty under 2012 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP/ OVDI) and would like our assistance for the purpose, they could call us to make an appointment.

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NEERAJ BHATIA, AICWA(India), FCA(India), CPA(USA), LL.M.(International tax)
Chartered Accountant (India) and Certified Public Accountant (USA)

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