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2018 FBAR Currency Conversion Rates | FBAR Tax Lawyer & Attorney

2018 FBAR and 2018 Form 8938 instructions both require that 2018 FBAR Currency Conversion Rates be used to report the required highest balances of foreign financial assets on these forms. In the case of 2018 Form 8938, the 2018 FBAR Currency Conversion Rates is the default choice, not an exclusive one.

The U.S. Department of Treasury  already published the 2018 FBAR Currency Conversion Rates online (they are called “Treasury’s Financial Management Service rates” or the “FMS rates”).

Since the 2018 FBAR Currency Conversion Rates are very important to US taxpayers, international tax lawyers and international tax accountants, Sherayzen Law Office provides the table below listing the official 2018 FBAR Currency Conversion Rates (note that the readers still need to refer to the official website for any updates).

Country – Currency

Foreign Currency to $1.00

AFGHANISTAN – AFGHANI

74.576

ALBANIA – LEK

107.05

ALGERIA – DINAR

117.898

ANGOLA – KWANZA

310.0000

ANTIGUA – BARBUDA – E. CARIBBEAN DOLLAR

2.7000

ARGENTINA – PESO

37.642

ARMENIA – DRAM

485.0000

AUSTRALIA – DOLLAR

1.4160

AUSTRIA – EURO

0.8720

AZERBAIJAN – NEW MANAT

1.7000

BAHAMAS – DOLLAR

1.0000

BAHRAIN – DINAR

0.3770

BANGLADESH – TAKA

84.0000

BARBADOS – DOLLAR

2.0200

BELARUS – NEW RUBLE

2.1600

BELGIUM – EURO

0.8720

BELIZE – DOLLAR

2.0000

BENIN – CFA FRANC

568.6500

BERMUDA – DOLLAR

1.0000

BOLIVIA – BOLIVIANO

6.8500

BOSNIA – MARKA

1.7060

BOTSWANA – PULA

10.6610

BRAZIL – REAL

3.8800

BRUNEI – DOLLAR

1.3610

BULGARIA – LEV

1.7070

BURKINA FASO – CFA FRANC

568.6500

BURUNDI – FRANC

1790.0000

CAMBODIA (KHMER) – RIEL

4103.0000

CAMEROON – CFA FRANC

603.8700

CANADA – DOLLAR

1.3620

CAPE VERDE – ESCUDO

94.8800

CAYMAN ISLANDS – DOLLAR

0.8200

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC – CFA FRANC

603.8700

CHAD – CFA FRANC

603.8700

CHILE – PESO

693.0800

CHINA – RENMINBI

6.8760

COLOMBIA – PESO

3245.8000

COMOROS – FRANC

428.1400

CONGO, DEM. REP – CONGOLESE FRANC

1630.0000

COSTA RICA – COLON

603.5000

COTE D’IVOIRE – CFA FRANC

568.6500

CROATIA – KUNA

6.3100

CUBA – PESO

1.0000

CYPRUS – EURO

0.8720

CZECH REPUBLIC – KORUNA

21.9410

DENMARK – KRONE

6.5170

DJIBOUTI – FRANC

177.0000

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC – PESO

49.9400

ECUADOR – DOLARES

1.0000

EGYPT – POUND

17.8900

EL SALVADOR – DOLARES

1.0000

EQUATORIAL GUINEA – CFA FRANC

603.8700

ERITREA – NAKFA

15.0000

ESTONIA – EURO

0.8720

ETHIOPIA – BIRR

28.0400

EURO ZONE – EURO

0.8720

FIJI – DOLLAR

2.1080

FINLAND – EURO

0.8720

FRANCE – EURO

0.8720

GABON – CFA FRANC

603.8700

GAMBIA – DALASI

50.0000

GEORGIA – LARI

2.6700

GERMANY – EURO

0.8720

GHANA – CEDI

4.8250

GREECE – EURO

0.8720

GRENADA – EAST CARIBBEAN DOLLAR

2.7000

GUATEMALA – QUENTZAL

7.7150

GUINEA – FRANC

9076.0000

GUINEA BISSAU – CFA FRANC

568.6500

GUYANA – DOLLAR

215.0000

HAITI – GOURDE

77.1180

HONDURAS – LEMPIRA

25.0000

HONG KONG – DOLLAR

7.8320

HUNGARY – FORINT

280.1700

ICELAND – KRONA

116.1100

INDIA – RUPEE

69.8000

INDONESIA – RUPIAH

14440.0000

IRAN – RIAL

42000.0000

IRAQ – DINAR

1138.0000

IRELAND – EURO

0.8720

ISRAEL – SHEKEL

3.7490

ITALY – EURO

0.8720

JAMAICA – DOLLAR

126.0000

JAPAN – YEN

109.8500

JERUSALEM – SHEKEL

3.7490

JORDAN – DINAR

0.7080

KAZAKHSTAN – TENGE

375.1500

KENYA – SHILLING

101.8000

KOREA – WON

1114.4900

KOSOVO – EURO

0.8720

KUWAIT – DINAR

0.3030

KYRGYZSTAN – SOM

69.8000

LAOS – KIP

8535.0000

LATVIA – EURO

0.8720

LEBANON – POUND

1500.0000

LESOTHO – SOUTH AFRICAN RAND

14.3500

LIBERIA – DOLLAR

156.7100

LIBYA – DINAR

1.3860

LITHUANIA – EURO

0.8720

LUXEMBOURG – EURO

0.8720

MACAO – MOP

no listing

MACEDONIA FYROM – DENAR

53.5000

MADAGASCAR – ARIARY

3470.2000

MALAWI – KWACHA

733.0000

MALAYSIA – RINGGIT

4.1300

MALI – CFA FRANC

568.6500

MALTA – EURO

0.8720

MARSHALL ISLANDS – DOLLAR

1.0000

MARTINIQUE – EURO

0.8720

MAURITANIA – OUGUIYA

36.0000

MAURITIUS – RUPEE

34.1500

MEXICO – PESO

19.6540

MICRONESIA – DOLLAR

1.0000

MOLDOVA – LEU

16.9930

MONGOLIA – TUGRIK

2642.9200

MONTENEGRO – EURO

0.8720

MOROCCO – DIRHAM

9.5300

MOZAMBIQUE – METICAL

61.5300

MYANMAR – KYAT

1535.0000

NAMIBIA – DOLLAR

14.3500

NEPAL – RUPEE

111.6000

NETHERLANDS – EURO

0.8720

NETHERLANDS ANTILLES – GUILDER

1.7800

NEW ZEALAND – DOLLAR

1.4900

NICARAGUA – CORDOBA

32.3000

NIGER – CFA FRANC

568.6500

NIGERIA – NAIRA

361.0000

NORWAY – KRONE

8.6800

OMAN – RIAL

0.3850

PAKISTAN – RUPEE

138.6000

PALAU – DOLLAR

1.0000

PANAMA – BALBOA

1.0000

PAPUA NEW GUINEA – KINA

3.2840

PARAGUAY – GUARANI

5956.0000

PERU – NUEVO SOL

3.3750

PHILIPPINES – PESO

52.4900

POLAND – ZLOTY

3.7530

PORTUGAL – EURO

0.8720

QATAR – RIYAL

3.6400

ROMANIA – NEW LEU

4.0690

RUSSIA – RUBLE

69.6800

RWANDA – FRANC

890.0000

SAO TOME & PRINCIPE – NEW DOBRAS

21.5350

SAO TOME & PRINCIPE – DOBRAS

20941.0080

SAUDI ARABIA – RIYAL

3.7500

SENEGAL – CFA FRANC

568.6500

SERBIA – DINAR

103.3900

SEYCHELLES – RUPEE

13.5500

SIERRA LEONE – LEONE

8620.0000

SINGAPORE – DOLLAR

1.3610

SLOVAK REPUBLIC – EURO

0.8720

SLOVENIA – EURO

0.8720

SOLOMON ISLANDS – DOLLAR

7.7520

SOMALI – SHILLING

575.0000

SOUTH AFRICA – RAND

14.3500

SOUTH SUDANESE – POUND

153.7000

SPAIN – EURO

0.8720

SRI LANKA – RUPEE

182.6000

ST LUCIA – EC DOLLAR

2.7000

SUDAN – SUDANESE POUND

47.0000

SURINAME – GUILDER

7.5200

SWAZILAND – LILANGENI

14.3500

SWEDEN – KRONA

8.9380

SWITZERLAND – FRANC

0.9840

SYRIA – POUND

515.0000

TAIWAN – DOLLAR

30.5880

TAJIKISTAN – SOMONI

9.3500

TANZANIA – SHILLING

2295.0000

THAILAND – BAHT

32.3500

TIMOR – LESTE DILI

1.0000

TOGO – CFA FRANC

568.6500

TONGA – PA’ANGA

2.1730

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO – DOLLAR

6.7700

TUNISIA – DINAR

3.0090

TURKEY – LIRA

5.2830

TURKMENISTAN – NEW MANAT

3.4910

UGANDA – SHILLING

3705.0000

UKRAINE – HRYVNIA

27.7000

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DIRHAM

3.6730

UNITED KINGDOM – POUND STERLING

0.7810

URUGUAY – PESO

32.3200

UZBEKISTAN – SOM

8310.0000

VANUATU – VATU

111.6900

VENEZUELA – BOLIVAR – SOBERANO

563.9800

VENEZUELA – BOLIVAR – FUERTE

248832.0000

VIETNAM – DONG

23190.0000

WESTERN SAMOA – TALA

2.5350

YEMEN – RIAL

480.0000

ZAMBIA – NEW KWACHA

11.9000

ZIMBABWE – DOLLAR

1.0000

FBAR Noncompliance & Taxpayer’s Options | FBAR Lawyer & Attorney

FBAR noncompliance is the worst nightmare for US taxpayers due to enormous FBAR penalties even for non-willful taxpayers. US Taxpayers who are not facing an IRS examination or a DOJ (US Department of Justice) lawsuit have three options with respect to their FBAR noncompliance: (1) do nothing with respect to correcting their prior FBAR noncompliance, close the accounts and hope that the IRS will never discover them; (2) do a quiet disclosure; and (3) come forward and voluntarily disclose their unfiled FBARs.

I already explored the highly-risky strategy of a quiet disclosure in another article. In this article, I will focus on option #1 – doing nothing about prior FBAR noncompliance. In the next article, I will discuss the option of Offshore Voluntary Disclosure as a way to deal with prior FBAR noncompliance.

This article does not constitute legal advice, but merely provides information for educational purposes.

Advantages of Doing Nothing With Respect to Prior FBAR Noncompliance

Doing nothing with respect to FBAR noncompliance is a position that some taxpayers prefer, because it requires no action, no immediate legal expenses and no immediate payment of IRS penalties.

In other words, if a taxpayer chooses to do nothing with respect to his late unfiled FBARs and his strategy is successful, he stands to gain in two aspects: (1) he spends no effort, time or money on correcting his past FBAR noncompliance; and (2) if (and this is big “if”) the IRS never finds out about his past FBAR noncompliance, he will not pay any penalties. This whole strategy is based on the hope that the IRS will not find out about their FBAR noncompliance.

Disadvantages of Doing Nothing With Respect to Prior FBAR Noncompliance Even If the Strategy Is Successful

From legal perspective, this strategy of doing nothing can be classified as very risky. If unsuccessful, a noncompliant taxpayer who chooses to do nothing stands to lose a lot more than he could ever gain if his strategy works.

Let’s analyze the disadvantages of doing nothing based on two scenarios: the strategy is successful and the strategy is unsuccessful.

Even if the strategy is ultimately successful and the IRS does not find out about FBAR noncompliance, there is still a heavy psychological price to pay for this success, because the taxpayer will not find out about the success of his strategy until the FBAR statute of limitations expires. In other words, for six long years, the taxpayer will not have any peace of mind and will constantly worry about his potential FBAR penalty exposure. If the taxpayer does not close his foreign accounts, the waiting period could be extended even further.

Moreover, if FBAR noncompliance is combined with income noncompliance and failure to file other US international information returns, the statute of limitations on the tax returns might be open for an indefinite period of time (especially if the IRS can assert a fraud claim against the noncompliant taxpayer).

I have personally seen the psychological effects of such pressure on some of my clients. It was simply destroying their lives. Eventually, they could not live like this and came to me to do an offshore voluntary disclosure to resolve their prior FBAR noncompliance.

Disadvantages of Doing Nothing With Respect to Prior FBAR Noncompliance Where the Strategy Fails

If the success of this strategy exhorts such a heavy price, its failure may potentially result in disastrous consequences. Let’s explore the main two reasons why the strategy of doing nothing is so disfavored among international tax lawyers.

First, as described above, the current international tax enforcement structure severely undermines the entire basis for the strategy – i.e. hope that the IRS will not find out about FBAR noncompliance is simply too risky in the contemporary world dominated by FATCA, CRS and a widely-spread web of bilateral and multilateral automatic information exchange treaties. It is still possible that the IRS will not find out about a US person’s foreign accounts, but it is becoming less and less likely.

Second, since the strategy of doing nothing implies a taxpayer’s conscious choice not to comply with the FBAR requirements, it may turn a relatively simple and non-willful situation into a complex and willful one. In other words, under these circumstances, if the IRS is able to find out about prior FBAR noncompliance, the IRS may pursue willful and, in extreme circumstances, even criminal FBAR penalties.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office for Professional Help With Resolving FBAR Noncompliance Issues

If you never filed your required FBARs and other US tax forms, contact Sherayzen Law Office for professional help. Our legal team is headed by one of the most experienced international tax lawyers in this area – Mr. Eugene Sherayzen. He has helped hundreds of US taxpayers around the world to successfully resolve their prior FBAR noncompliance, and He can help You!

Contact Us Today to Schedule Your Confidential Consultation!

2018 FBAR Criminal Penalties | FBAR Lawyer & Attorney

2018 FBAR criminal penalties should be on the mind of any US taxpayer who willfully failed to file his FBARs or knowingly filed a false FBAR. In this essay, I would like to do an overview of the 2018 FBAR criminal penalties that these noncompliant US taxpayers may have to face.

2018 FBAR Criminal Penalties: Background Information

A lot of US taxpayers do not understand why the 2018 FBAR criminal penalties are so shockingly high. These taxpayers question why failing to file a form that has nothing do with income tax calculation should potentially result in a jail sentence.

The answer to this questions lies in the legislative history of FBAR. First of all, it is important to understand that FBAR is not a tax form. The Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (“FBAR”) was born in 1970 out of the Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”), in particular 31 U.S.C. §5314. This means that the initial primary purpose of the form was to fight financial crimes, money laundering and terrorism. In other words, FBAR was not created as a tool against tax evasion.

Hence, the FBAR penalties were structured from the very beginning for the purpose of punishing criminals engaged in financial crimes and/or terrorism. This is why the FBAR penalties are so severe and easily surpass the penalties of any tax form.

It was only 30 years later, after the enaction of The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (the “USA Patriot Act”), that the enforcement of FBAR was turned over to the IRS. The IRS almost immediately commenced using FBAR to fight the tax evasion schemes that utilized offshore accounts.

The Congress liked the IRS initiative and responded with the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 (“2004 Jobs Act”). The 2004 Jobs Act further increased the FBAR penalties, including the creation of the non-willful penalty of up to $10,000 per violation.

2018 FBAR Criminal Penalties: Description

Now that we understand why the 2018 FBAR criminal penalties are so severe, let’s describe what they penalties actually look like. There are three different 2018 FBAR criminal penalties associated with different FBAR violations.

The first criminal penalty may be imposed under 26 U.S.C. 5322(a) and 31 C.F.R. § 103.59(b) for willful failure to file FBAR or retain records of a foreign account. The penalty is up to $250,000 or 5 years in prison or both.

When the willful failure to file FBAR is combined with a violation of other US laws or the failure to file FBAR is “part of a pattern of any illegal activity involving more than $100,000 in a 12-month period”, then the IRS has the option of imposing a criminal penalty under 26 U.S.C. 5322(b) and 31 C.F.R. § 103.59(c). In this case, the penalty jumps to incredible $500,000 or 10 years in prison or both.

Finally, if a person willingly and knowingly files a false, fictitious or fraudulent FBAR, he is subject to the penalty under 31 C.F.R. § 103.59(d). The penalty in this case may be $10,000 or 5 years or both.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office for Help With Past FBAR Violations

If you were required to file an FBAR but you have not done it, contact Sherayzen Law Office as soon as possible to explore your voluntary disclosure options. Our international tax law firm specializes in FBAR compliance and we have helped hundreds of US taxpayers around the world to bring their US tax affairs into full compliance with US tax laws while reducing and, in some cases, eliminating their FBAR penalties.

We can help You! Contact Us Today to Schedule Your Confidential Consultation!