FBAR Lawyers

2011 Form TD F 90-22.1 (FBAR) is Due on June 30, 2012

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Pursuant to the Bank Secrecy Act, 31 U.S.C. §5311 et seq., the Department of Treasury (the “DOT”) has established certain recordkeeping and filing requirements for United States persons with financial interests in or signature authority (and other comparable authority) over financial accounts maintained with financial institutions in foreign countries. If the aggregate balances of such foreign accounts exceed $10,000 at any time during the relevant year, FinCEN form 114 formerly Form TD F 90-22.1 (the FBAR form) must be filed with the DOT.

The FBAR must be filed by June 30 of each relevant year, including this year (2012). Thus, 2011 FBAR must be received by the DOT on June 30, 2012.  This rule is contrary to your regular tax returns where the mailing date determines whether the filing is timely.  There are no extensions available – the FBAR must be received by June 30 or it will be considered delinquent.

If the FBAR becomes delinquent, it may be subject to severe penalties.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office for FBAR Assistance

If you have any questions or concerns regarding whether you need to file the FBAR or how to prepare the form, please contact Sherayzen Law Office directly.  If you have not previous filed the FBARs and you were required to do so, contact our experienced international tax firm to schedule a consultation now.  We will assess your situation, determine your potential FBAR liability, explain the available options and guide you through this complex process of voluntary disclosure.

New FBAR Form: January 2012

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In January of 2012, the IRS issued a new version of the Treasury FinCEN Form 114 formerly Form TD F 90-22.1, popularly known as the “FBAR” (the Report on Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts).

This is a third revision of the FBAR in less than one year.  In March of 2011, the IRS made substantial changes to the FBAR instructions after adopting the final regulations concerning the form.  Then, in November of 2011, the IRS revised the form again to reflect certain changes, particularly concerning amendment of a previously filed FBAR.

The latest revision mostly concerns the contact information if you have any questions about the FBARs – a new telephone number and an email address.

Keep in mind that the 2011 FBARs should be filed separately from your tax returns, and they are due on June 30, 2012. This means that the IRS must receive an FBAR on that date; the usual “mailbox rule” (i.e. if the package is mailed on the due date, then it is timely) does not apply to FBARs.

Only the latest version of the FBAR must be used to report your foreign bank and financial accounts.  As of March 5, 2012, the January of 2012 version is the latest version.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office For the FBAR Issues

If you have any questions about the FBARs or you wish to determine whether this requirement applies to your case, you need to contact Sherayzen Law Office.  Our experienced international tax firm will thoroughly analyze the facts of your case and determine whether an FBAR requirement applies to you and what needs to be reported on the FBAR.

You should also contact Sherayzen Law Office to discuss your case if you were required to file the FBARs for the past years but you have not done so. The FBAR has one of the most severe penalty structures in the entire Internal Revenue Code, and it is important to secure the professional help of Sherayzen Law Office to properly deal with this issue.

New Version of the FBAR Form

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In November of 2011, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued a new version of Form TD F 90-22.1, now known as FinCen Form 114 commonly known as FBAR. All filers must now use this form in order to report their foreign bank and financial accounts.

The main difference between the previous (March 2011) version and the current (November 2011) version is the simplified process of amending the FBARs. However, you can still use the more thorough method described in the FBAR FAQ.

If you are filing the FBARs for previous years (perhaps as part of the voluntary disclosure), you should use the latest FBAR form. While it used to be Ok to use the 2008 version to file FBARs for the prior years, it is becoming doubtful whether the IRS would accept this version at this point. It is highly recommended that the taxpayers use only the latest version of the FBAR.

Any United States person who has a financial interest in or signature authority or other authority over any financial account in a foreign country, if the aggregate value of these accounts exceeds $10,000 at any time during the calendar year. Failure to comply with the FBAR requirements carries a very high penalty. Please, visit our Voluntary Disclosure and FBAR Center for details.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office to Comply with FBAR Requirements

If you need any legal help with FBARs, contact Sherayzen Law Office by telephone or email. Our experienced international tax firm will help you resolve all of your FBAR questions and help you comply with all of the FBAR requirements.

FBAR: Reporting Foreign PayPal Accounts

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Whether an account is reportable for FBAR purposes can sometimes be a relatively complicated question. It is true that it is easy to see that foreign bank and investment accounts should be reported on the FBAR as long as all other requirements are met. It is also well-established that a gold bullion account is reportable for FBAR purposes.

What about foreign PayPal accounts? This question has arisen in the past with some of my clients. On the other one hand, PayPal describes itself as a payment system; on the other hand, the account holder does own the funds within the account – i.e. the account holder has a present-interest value on the account that can be easily withdrawn from the account.

This is why the IRS considers a foreign PayPal account as a reportable account for the FBAR purposes. In fact, whenever I asked the IRS this question with respect to my clients, this determination has been confirmed by the IRS.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office For Help With FBAR Issues

If you have any questions with respect to the FBAR, you want to find out whether you have reportable accounts, or you wish to file your delinquent FBARs and you do not know how to approach it correctly, contact Sherayzen Law Office for legal assistance. Our experienced FBAR tax firm will help you deal with all of your FBAR issues in a professional, efficient, and effective manner.

FBAR Deadline Extension for Signature Authority Only – IRS Notice 2011-54

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On June 16, 2011, the Internal Revenue Service issued IRS Notice 2011-54, granting additional relief to persons with signature or other authority over, but no financial interest in, a foreign financial account held during calendar year 2009 or earlier calendar years.

Previous, IRS Notices 2009-62 and 2010-23 already extended this deadline until June 30, 2010: “Persons with signature authority over, but no financial interest in, a foreign financial account for which an FBAR would otherwise have been due on June 30, 2010, will now have until June 30, 2011, to report those foreign financial accounts.” (IRS Notice 2010-23).

Notice 2011-54 further states that:

Persons having signature authority over, but no financial interest in, a foreign financial account in 2009 or earlier calendar years for which the reporting deadline was extended by Notice 2009-62 or Notice 2010-23 will now have until November 1, 2011, to file FBARs with respect to those accounts. The deadline for reporting signature authority over, or a financial interest in, foreign financial accounts for the 2010 calendar year remains June 30, 2011.

Thus, IRS Notice 2011-54 extends the FBAR filing deadline from June 30, 2011 until November 1, 2011 for all persons with signature authority over, but no financial interest in, a foreign financial account in 2009 or earlier calendar years.

Be careful, though – the deadline for the 2010 FBAR remains June 30, 2011.

Also, note that the relief granted by FinCEN Notices 2011-1 and 2011-2 is not affected by IRS Notice 2011-54.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office NOW For FBAR Help

If you believe that you may be subject to FBAR requirements, contact Sherayzen Law Office as soon as possible. Our experienced international tax firm will guide you through the complex maze of FBAR reporting requirements, including any voluntary disclosure issues.

Remember, it does not matter whether you are located in another state or outside of the United States – we can help!