If you have a financial interest in or signature or other authority of certain types of accounts outside the United States, or if the aggregate value collectively of these accounts exceed $10,000 at any time during calendar year 2021, you must file an FBAR, or Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts.

The Internal Revenue Service is reminding U.S. citizens, resident aliens and domestic legal entities that the deadline to file this report is October 15, 2022. For filers who previously missed the April 15 annual due date this year, the IRS automatically granted an extension earlier this year until October 15, 2 2022. This extension did not need to be requested by the taxpayer.

Pursuant to the Bank Secrecy Act, U.S. persons must file an FBAR if:

1. They have a financial interest in or signature or other authority over one or more accounts, such as a bank account, brokerage account, mutual fund or other financial account located outside the United States, and

2. The aggregate value of all foreign financial accounts exceeds $10,000 at any time during the calendar year 2021.

It is recommended that even if U.S. persons have a foreign account with even a small amount, that the taxpayer should do their due diligence and see if this filing requirement applies. The IRS defines a U.S. person as “a citizen or resident of the United States or a domestic legal entity such as a partnership, corporation, limited liability company, estate or trust.” There are significant civil and criminal penalties for failure to file an accurate report, up to and including fines and/or imprisonment.

Lastly, the FBAR is not filed with a federal income tax return, but must be filed electronically with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FINCEN) and on the BSA E-Filing System website. The IRS states that “individuals who are unable to e-file their FBAR must contact FinCEN at 800-949-2732 or [email protected] to request an alternative filing method. Callers from outside the U.S. can contact the helpline at 703-905-3975.”