Tax Law Center Blog

FBARs are due this week (again).  Below are the top 4 exceptions we often see for the FBAR filing requirement.  Certain Accounts Jointly Owned by Spouses – the spouse of an individual who files an FBAR is not required to file a separate FBAR if (1) all the financial accounts that the non-filing spouse is required to report are jointly owned with the filing spouse; (2) the filing spouse reports the jointly owned accounts on a timely filed FBAR electronically signed; and (3) the filers have completed and signed Form 114a, “Record of Authorization to Electronically File FBAR’s”

IRA Owners and Beneficiaries – An owner or beneficiary of an IRA is not required to report a foreign financial account held in the IRA
Participants in and Beneficiaries of Tax-Qualified Retirement Plans -A participant in or beneficiary of a retirement plan described in Internal Revenue Code section 401(a), 403(a), or 403(b) is not required to report a foreign financial account held by or on behalf of the retirement plan
Trust Beneficiaries – A trust beneficiary with a financial interest described previously is not required to report the trust’s foreign financial accounts on an FBAR if the trust, trustee of the trust, or agent of the trust: (1) is a U.S. person and (2) files an FBAR disclosing the trust’s foreign financial accounts.

Patel Law Offices has consulted with hundreds of clients regarding their FBAR compliance issues. Patel Law Offices is a law firm dedicated to helping clients resolve complicated tax, criminal tax, and international tax problems.