Another tax deadline is fast approaching but this time it is for the Foreign Bank Account Report (FBAR). June 30, 2013 is the last date the IRS will receive FBAR filings.
Who Needs to File?
If you are a citizen or resident of the United States and have one or more bank accounts in one or more foreign countries, you are required to disclose to the IRS how much money is within the accounts. Even if the money is not yours and you only have the signatory authority, you will still be responsible for reporting it. According to the IRS, if you have “signature authority or other authority comparable to signature authority over the financial accounts whether or not such authority is ever exercised”, you need to file the accounts.
You will need to file only if the total amount from all your bank accounts in a foreign country reached $10,000 or above at any point of time in 2012.
If you are a business owner, you will need to file if you are in a domestic partnership, domestic corporation, or domestic estates or trusts. Non-compliance leads to heavy civil and/or criminal penalties, with the civil penalty can be as high as $10,000 for a single violation. The IRS can charge this amount as a penalty for each account for every year of non-compliance.
How to File
If you are required to file, it is better to fill Form TD F 90-22.1 before June 30th to ensure it reaches the IRS before the 30th of June deadline. It is always better to e-file the form if you are late-filing. You can download the form from http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f90221.pdf.
It is extremely important to read the information at the end of the form before you complete it. In case you make an error and discover it after filing, you can always file an amended report.Labels: Amend Tax, IRS, Tax Filing, Tax News, Taxpayers
