New Legislation Could Affect Filers of the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, but Potential Issues Are Being Addressed
September 29, 2010
Reference Number: 2010-30-125
This report has cleared the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration disclosure review process and information determined to be restricted from public release has been redacted from this document.
Phone
Number | 202-622-6500
Email Address | inquiries@tigta.treas.gov
Web Site | http://www.tigta.gov
HIGHLIGHTS
NEW LEGISLATION COULD AFFECT FILERS
OF THE REPORT OF FOREIGN BANK AND FINANCIAL ACCOUNTS, BUT POTENTIAL ISSUES ARE
BEING ADDRESSED
Highlights
Final
Report issued on September 29, 2010
Highlights
of Reference Number: 2010-30-125 to the
Internal Revenue Service Commissioner for the Small Business/Self-Employed
Division.
IMPACT ON TAXPAYERS
As
a result of new legislation on foreign tax reporting and disclosure of
financial assets, some taxpayers may be required to file the Report of Foreign
Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) and the new foreign financial assets
disclosure statement with their income tax return. These reporting requirements will potentially
add to both taxpayer burden and the complexity of tax law changes. Specifically,
WHY TIGTA DID THE AUDIT
This audit was initiated as part of our Fiscal Year 2010
Annual Audit Plan and addresses the major management challenge of
Globalization. The overall audit
objectives of this review were to assess the policies and guidelines in place
over information gathered with the FBAR by the Department of the Treasury and to
determine how the IRS is monitoring and improving compliance with the FBAR
filing.
WHAT
TIGTA FOUND
The IRS, in collaboration with the Financial Crimes
Enforcement Network, has revised the FBAR form and instructions, conducted
education and outreach efforts on the filing of FBARs, increased the number of
civil examination closings dealing with FBARs, and increased the number of FBAR
penalty assessments and collections.
From Calendar Years 2004 to 2009, the number of FBARs filed with the IRS
has increased 145 percent from 217,699 to 534,043. In addition, the recently passed new legislation
added Internal Revenue Code Section 6038D, requiring an individual
taxpayer with an aggregate balance of more than $50,000 in foreign financial
assets to file a disclosure statement with his or her income tax return in
addition to possibly being required to file an FBAR.
WHAT TIGTA RECOMMENDED
TIGTA
made no recommendations in this report. However,
IRS management officials reviewed the report prior to its issuance and agreed
with the facts and conclusions presented.
September 29, 2010
MEMORANDUM FOR COMMISSIONER SMALL BUSINESS/SELF-EMPLOYED DIVISION
FROM: Michael R. Phillips /s/ Michael R. Phillips
Deputy Inspector General for Audit
SUBJECT: Final Audit Report – New Legislation Could Affect Filers of the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, but Potential Issues Are Being Addressed (Audit # 201030039)
This report presents the results of our review to assess the policies and guidelines in place over information gathered with the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) by the Department of the Treasury and to determine how the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is monitoring and improving compliance with the FBAR filings. This audit was conducted as part of our Fiscal Year 2010 Annual Audit Plan and addresses the major management challenge of Globalization.
Although we made no recommendations in this report, we did
provide IRS officials an opportunity to review and provide comments on a draft
of this report. IRS management did not
provide us with any comments on the draft report. We intend to continue to follow the IRS’
progression with addressing the FBAR reporting requirement and its impact on
Copies of this report are also being sent to the IRS
managers affected by the report conclusions.
Please contact me at (202) 622-6510 if you have any questions or
Margaret E. Begg, Assistant Inspector General for Audit (Compliance and
Enforcement Operations), at (202) 622-8510.
Actions Are Being Taken to
Address Taxpayers’ Concerns With New Foreign Reporting Requirements
Appendices
Appendix
I – Detailed Objectives, Scope, and Methodology
Appendix
II – Major Contributors to This Report
Appendix
III – Report Distribution List
Appendix IV – Authoritative Aspects of the Report of Foreign
Bank and Financial Accounts
Abbreviations
|
BSA |
Bank Secrecy Act |
|
CBRS |
Currency Banking and Retrieval System |
|
C.F.R. |
Code of Federal Regulations |
|
ECC |
|
|
FBAR |
Report of Foreign Bank and Financial
Accounts |
|
FinCEN |
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network |
|
HIRE |
Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment |
|
I.R.C. |
Internal Revenue Code |
|
IRS |
Internal Revenue Service |
|
SB/SE |
Small Business/Self-Employed |
|
|
|
Congress passed the Bank Records and Foreign Transactions Act of 1970, commonly referred to as the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) of 1970,[1] due to concerns about the growing use of secret foreign bank accounts to hide income, manipulate United States (U.S.) securities markets, circumvent insider trading rules, act as a depository for illegally acquired funds, and acquire control of U.S. industries. The law was enacted because of the growing complexity of the national and international economy and a technological revolution in white-collar crime where the activities of white-collar criminals had increased using financial institutions at home and abroad. The Department of the Treasury delegated authority to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for the filing and enforcement of Section (§) 5314 of the BSA[2] that requires citizens or residents of the U.S. or a person in, or doing business in, the U.S. to file reports and keep records if they have a financial interest in, or signature or other authority over, one or more financial accounts outside the U.S. with an aggregate value greater than $10,000 at any time during the year. Thus, in December 1970, the IRS created the first Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) form, originally named the U.S. Information Return on Foreign Bank, Securities, and Other Financial Accounts (Form 4683), to assist taxpayers in complying with their compliance responsibilities under the BSA on transactions with foreign financial institutions by filing it with their returns.
As a result of the attempted misuse of the IRS and its
authority during the Watergate scandal[3]
and other abuses of tax return and tax return information, Congress revised the
law regarding the confidentiality and disclosure of tax return and tax return
information with the passage of the Tax Reform Act of 1976,[4]
amending Internal Revenue Code (I.R.C.) § 6103. This revision made fundamental changes in the
treatment of tax return and tax return information that required substantial modifications
in the methods of filing and enforcement of the FBAR. Consequently, after 1976, access to tax return
and tax return information outside the IRS became highly restricted under the
new provisions of I.R.C. § 6103.
In order for the Department of the Treasury to maintain access to FBAR
information for other criminal, tax, and regulatory investigations and
proceedings and to comply with the original intent of the 1970 BSA legislation,
the Department of the Treasury removed the foreign bank account report from the
income tax return and reissued and renamed U.S. Information Return on Foreign
Bank, Securities, and Other Financial Accounts (Form 4683) (the FBAR
reporting mechanism from 1970 to 1976) to Treasury Form Report of Foreign Bank
and Financial Accounts (TD F 90-22.1) (the existing FBAR reporting mechanism). It also made the form applicable to all
As a result of these authoritative changes, the IRS is now responsible for:
In addition, the IRS’ Office of Chief Counsel will provide legal advice, interpretation, and assistance to IRS officers and employees on all matters pertaining to the FBAR. The IRS’ Chief Counsel will also advise on, prepare, or issue administrative rulings and proposals for regulatory revisions, including consulting with the FinCEN’s Office of Chief Counsel. The FinCEN retained its authority to draft regulations for the FBAR.
On March 18, 2010, the President signed the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act[6] that contains a provision that will both complement and contrast with the FBAR filing requirement. Specifically, § 511 of the HIRE Act added § 6038D to Title 26 of the U.S.C., the Internal Revenue Code, requiring individual taxpayers with an aggregate balance of more than $50,000 in foreign financial assets to file a statement with his or her income tax return. Unlike the FBAR information, which originates under Title 31 of the U.S.C. and normally is not permitted to be verified against tax return or tax return information due to privacy and disclosure concerns, the new provision under I.R.C. § 6038D will have none of these restrictions. This change will allow the IRS to use its full complement of tools to verify the information or lack of information filed. The legislative history of the FBAR stresses that its broad, primary purpose is intended to be a resource to combat white-collar crime and not just the narrower objectives of the Internal Revenue Code.
This review was performed at the IRS National Headquarters
in
The Internal
Revenue Service Is Engaged in Public and Employee Awareness Activities on the Filing
of the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts
Each
Individuals required to file the FBAR form are defined as a United States person[7] who has a financial interest in or signature or other authority over any foreign financial accounts, including bank, securities, or other types of financial accounts in a foreign country,[8] if the aggregate value of these financial accounts exceeds $10,000 at any time during the calendar year. These individuals must report that relationship each calendar year by filing this report with the Department of the Treasury on or before June 30 of the succeeding year. FBAR filers send the reports to the IRS’ Enterprise Computing Center (ECC) where they are received, numbered,[9] and perfected.[10] The reports are then shipped to a private contractor who transcribes the data. The information from the FBAR is then downloaded and posted onto the CBRS for use by Federal and State criminal, tax, and other government regulatory agencies.
The transcribed documents are returned to the ECC, where
they are temporarily stored before being sent for final storage at a
Revisions
to the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts
With the delegation of civil enforcement authority from the FinCEN to the IRS in April 2003, the IRS’ SB/SE Division was given the task of revising the FBAR Form TD F 90-22.1 and its instructions. Prior to handing over the effort to revise the form, the FinCEN had gathered comments from FBAR filers indicating that an updated form should eliminate duplicate information in the form, incorporate user-friendly instructions, use understandable definitions, contain a continuation sheet for use by multiple filers, address procedures for joint accounts of spouses or business partners, and include updated terminology and more examples of the types of financial accounts that are to be reported on the FBAR.
During the 2003 and 2004 FBAR filing periods, the IRS gathered additional information from the following sources to determine areas of confusion in completing the form:
In addition, requests from the public clarified for the FinCEN and the IRS that the new form and instructions needed to explain and expand, if possible, the filing exceptions for persons with no financial interest in, but signature or other authority over, foreign financial accounts. Based on all the information gathered by the IRS and the FinCEN, the FinCEN and the IRS prepared a revised FBAR form and related instructions. In early Calendar Year 2006, a revised form and instructions were published on the IRS web site and in the Federal Register for public comment. As a result, a revised FBAR Form TD F 90-22.1 modifying several aspects of the FBAR form and instructions was issued in October 2008. An electronic version of the FBAR form is under development jointly by the FinCEN and the IRS for future use.
Education
and outreach activities encouraging filing compliance
In prior FBAR reports to Congress,[12] it was recommended by the Secretary of the Treasury to implement outreach and education efforts to improve compliance with the FBAR reporting requirements. The IRS received delegation of civil enforcement authority from the FinCEN in April 2003 and, therefore, became responsible for assessing better education and guidance on FBAR filing requirements and implementing improvements.
In CY 2003, the SB/SE Division’s Taxpayer Education and Communications Unit created the brochure, Do You Have a Foreign Financial Account? (Publication 4261). Additionally, IRS educational and outreach activities have been extensive. Using CY 2008 as an example, the following outreach events occurred:
In addition to the CY 2008 events, the IRS issued a news release, assisted in answering individual taxpayer’s FBAR questions, and assisted with an FBAR article published by the Journal of Tax Practice & Procedure.[13] Also, the IRS Currency Transaction Report Operations in the Fraud/BSA Unit established a toll-free telephone line to address FBAR questions from the public and received 5,213 inquiries. The Currency Transaction Report Operations also handled 64,089 FBAR written inquiries, most of which were responses to correspondence generated by the ECC regarding FBAR filings.
Report
filings and compliance activities increased from Calendar Year 2004 to 2009
Since the IRS assumed civil compliance efforts in April 2003, the number of FBAR filers has continued to increase each year. Specifically, between Calendar Years 2004 and 2009, the number of FBARs filed increased 145 percent from 217,699 to 534,043 (see Figure 1).
Figure 1: Report Filings – Calendar Years 2004 to 2009
Figure 1 was removed
due to its size. To see Figure 1, please
go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
The IRS and the FinCEN currently do not have an established
method to estimate the potential population of required filers.[14] First and foremost, the FBAR filing program
relies on self-reporting. Persons trying
to hide money abroad often open their financial accounts in jurisdictions well
known for their bank secrecy laws. In
addition, some of these jurisdictions do not have Mutual Legal Assistance
Treaties[15]
with the
When the IRS is conducting compliance activities under its delegated authority from the FinCEN regarding the FBAR, it is acting as the FinCEN’s agent and it is not normally permitted to use tax return or tax return information gathered under Title 26. This stipulation is because the authority to enforce the FBAR filing requirements is derived from delegations of authority from the FinCEN and is wholly independent from the IRS’ tax administration enforcement authority under Title 26. Under the basic principles of agency law, a principal (the FinCEN) may not delegate to its agent or nominee (the IRS) authority that it does not possess. Because the FinCEN could not access or disclose tax return or tax return information for purposes of enforcing the FBAR provision of Title 31 unless a related statute determination is made, the FinCEN cannot achieve that same purpose by delegating enforcement authority to the IRS. As a result, when the IRS is operating solely on its delegated authority from the FinCEN while enforcing FBAR provisions, it is precluded from using tax return or tax return information or information systems derived from that information. Therefore, not only does the IRS have separate examination guidelines in the Internal Revenue Manual for FBAR examinations,[16] it has also been required to develop FBAR processing and inventory case control systems separate and apart from the tax return processing and examination return control systems. The IRS is permitted to use return information in a limited case-by-case basis for FBAR compliance purposes only if a related statute determination is made that the information needed in the FBAR case is also relevant to the ongoing income tax examination.
Based on its FBAR authority from the FinCEN, the IRS operated two Compliance Initiative Projects.[17] In one initiative, a test group of 117 individuals was identified that had not filed an FBAR, but filed another BSA report that indicated they might have an FBAR filing requirement. Letters were sent to the test individuals asking them to respond to indications of a potential FBAR filing liability. Of the 117 letters mailed, 26 were returned undeliverable. Of the 91 letters not returned, 25 responses were received with 3 people filing 5 FBAR reports. Due to the small and non-statistical nature of the sample size, the IRS does not consider the results meaningful and, therefore, closed the initiative. During our review, the IRS advised us they plan to conduct additional work in this area in the future.
A second initiative for FBAR compliance is the FBAR Stop Filer Project. This Project identifies individuals who filed FBAR reports in prior calendar years, but did not file in the current year. Correspondence is generated to remind those identified individuals that an FBAR filing may be required if the account(s) still exist. The SB/SE Division’s Fraud/BSA Unit staff at the ECC is coordinating with the IRS Information Technology Office to develop an automated system within the CBRS that identifies individuals who filed in prior calendar years, but not in the current year. There are no results yet for this initiative as it is still being worked.
Between Fiscal Years 2004 and 2009, FBAR-related examinations created a 96 percent increase (from 334 to 656) in FBAR civil examinations. In addition, Examination function FBAR penalty assessments grew from $4.2 million to $20.5 million, an increase of 388 percent over the same period, while FBAR penalty collections grew from $1.8 million to $9.8 million, an increase of 444 percent (see Figure 2). Between Calendar Years 2007 and 2009, criminal sentencings for failure to file an FBAR declined from four to two.
Figure 2: The Report of Foreign Bank and Financial
Accounts Civil Examinations, Assessments, and Collections
(Fiscal Years 2004 to 2009)
Figure 2 was removed
due to its size. To see Figure 2, please
go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Actions Are Being Taken to Address Taxpayers’
Concerns With New Foreign Reporting Requirements
On March 18, 2010, the President signed the HIRE Act, containing the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, into law. Section 511 of the HIRE Act added I.R.C. § 6038D, requiring an individual taxpayer with foreign financial assets with an aggregate balance exceeding $50,000 during a taxable year to file a disclosure statement with his or her income tax return for that taxable year. The new law requires that the disclosure statement describes the maximum value of the assets during the taxable year. The disclosure statement should also provide the following information in the case of a:
1. Financial account – the name and address of the foreign financial institution in which such account is maintained and the number of such account.
2. Stock or security – the name and address of the foreign issuer and such information as is necessary to identify the class or issue of which such stock or security is part.
3. Contract, interest, or other instrument – such information as is necessary to identify such contract, interest, or other instrument and the names and addresses of all foreign issuers and counterparties with respect to such contact, interest, or other instrument.
The IRS is in the process of developing procedures and releasing guidance to implement these new Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act provisions. On April 19, 2010, the Department of the Treasury and the IRS asked for public comment regarding guidance projects and issues concerning interpretation and implementation of the new provisions.[18] Unlike its FBAR compliance efforts that rely on delegated authority from the FinCEN and that are restricted due to concerns in the use of tax return or tax return information under I.R.C. § 6103, the new provision under I.R.C. § 6038D eliminates these concerns and allows the IRS to use its own tax administration authority. This authority should allow the IRS to develop a matching system where it can verify the I.R.C. § 6038D data against the Automatic Exchange Information Program[19] data to identify undisclosed accounts or assets.
While there are benefits to the IRS using its own tax administration authority, I.R.C. § 6038D is not a cure. Many of the problems encountered with the FBAR will continue to plague the new provision as well. For example:
Another problem is that many taxpayers will find that their filing requirements will not only have increased, but also become considerably more complicated as a result of the addition of I.R.C. § 6038D. For example:
The following example demonstrates the potential differences in these two provisions:
Two individual taxpayers owning foreign stocks worth $55,000 can end up with entirely different reporting outcomes. One taxpayer that owns $55,000 in foreign stocks through a foreign stock brokerage account would be required to file both an FBAR and complete the I.R.C. § 6038D disclosure on his or her tax return, while the other taxpayer that held $55,000 worth of foreign stocks issued by a person other than a U.S. person outside of a foreign financial account would only be required to complete the I.R.C. § 6038D disclosure on his or her tax return. In this example, if the amount the stock is worth is reduced from $55,000 to $45,000, the first taxpayer is only required to file an FBAR and the second taxpayer is not required to file a disclosure of any type.
The
IRS continues to make progress in compliance, education, and outreach programs
for the FBAR that are resulting in increased FBAR filings despite the legal
impediments that exist. The new reporting
provision under I.R.C. § 6038D should remedy many of the current
legal restrictions that the IRS now faces when using the FBAR provision or FBAR
data in tax investigation of foreign financial accounts that result from the
interaction of the disclosure provisions of Title 26, I.R.C. § 6103,
with Title 31. This change should
permit the IRS to use its full range of tax administration tools on tax
investigations for foreign financial accounts with balances of more than
$50,000. However, taxpayers with foreign
financial assets may face additional complexity and burden resulting from an additional
layer of the new disclosure requirements.
We intend to continue to follow the IRS’ progression with addressing the
FBAR reporting requirements and their impact on
Appendix I
Detailed Objectives, Scope, and Methodology
Our overall objectives were to assess the policies and guidelines in place over information gathered with the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Account (FBAR) by the Department of the Treasury and determine how the IRS is monitoring and improving compliance with the FBAR filing. To accomplish our objectives we:
I. Reviewed the history surrounding the FBAR and the IRS’ history in administering it by:
A. Reviewing the committee reports and other pertinent information regarding passage of the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970[22] that established the FBAR.
B. Reviewing the changes to the FBAR and FBAR administration brought about due to revision of I.R.C. § 6103 concerning disclosure of tax return and tax return information in the Tax Reform Act of 1976.[23]
C. Reviewing the delegation orders that transferred authority to the IRS for administering the FBAR.
II. Identified and reviewed the legal requirement in the United States Code and Combined Federal Regulations requiring information in the FBAR and the civil and criminal penalty provisions for failure to file the FBAR or maintain the information.
III. From information provided by the IRS, determined:
A. The number of FBARs filed annually between CY 2004 and CY 2009.
B. The number of civil FBAR examinations closed annually between FY 2004 and FY 2009.
C. The number of civil FBAR enforcement actions closed annually between FY 2004 and FY 2009 resulting in no action, a warning letter, or civil penalties.
D. The number of criminal sentencings obtained between CY 2004 and CY 2009.
E. Reviewed Internal Revenue Manual 4.26 Bank Secrecy Act sections regarding civil examinations and assessments of the FBAR penalty.
F. Reviewed the information from the CY 2002 through CY 2008 annual reports submitted to Congress on FBARs required by Section 361 of the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT) Act of 2001[24] and a draft of the CY 2009 report submitted to FinCEN regarding IRS taxpayer and practitioner outreach and educational activities.
IV. Reviewed IRS activities to use other Title 31 information and reports to identify potentially unfiled FBARs and activities to identify or determine the universe of FBAR filers.
V. Reviewed pending legislative actions that the Administration and Congress were considering, including:
A. Reviewed the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act,[25] containing the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, to determine how it would impact FBAR filers by comparing and contrasting the provisions.
B. Reviewed the General Explanation of the Administration’s Fiscal Year 2010 and 2011 Revenue Proposals (Green Book).
C. Reviewed Senate Bill 506, the Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act.
Internal controls methodology
Internal controls relate to management’s
plans, methods, and procedures used to meet their mission, goals, and
objectives. Internal controls include
the processes and procedures for planning, organizing, directing, and
controlling program operations. They
include the systems for measuring, reporting, and monitoring program
performance. We determined the following
internal controls were relevant to our audit objective: FBAR document processing providing data for
the CBRS and the FBAR examination and penalty assessment process in the FBAR
case tracking system at the ECC. We
conducted a walkthrough of the FBAR return processing and FBAR case processing systems
at the ECC. We evaluated these controls based
on information contained in our prior audit report,[26] observations, onsite interviews with
management and personnel, review of procedures, and inspection of some
completed FBAR examination case input files.
Appendix II
Major Contributors to This Report
Margaret E. Begg, Assistant Inspector General for Audit (Compliance and
Enforcement Operations)
Amy Coleman, Acting Director
Earl Charles Burney, Lead Auditor
Carol Gerkens, Senior Auditor
Appendix III
Commissioner C
Office of the Commissioner – Attn: Chief of Staff C
Chief Counsel CC
Deputy
Commissioner for Services and Enforcement
SE
National Taxpayer Advocate TA
Commissioner, Large and Mid-Size Business Division SE:LM
Division Counsel/Associate Chief Counsel (Large and Mid-Size Business Division) CC:LMSB
Division Counsel/Associate Chief Counsel (Small Business/Self-Employed Division) CC:SB
Division Counsel/Associate Chief Counsel (Tax Exempt and Government Entities) CC:TEGE
Associate Chief Counsel (International) CC:INTL
Associate Chief Counsel (Procedure & Administration) CC:P&A
Deputy Commissioner, Large and Mid-Size Business Division (International) SE:LM:IN
Deputy Commissioner, Small Business/Self-Employed Division SE:S
Chief, Criminal Investigation SE:CI
Director, Fraud/BSA SE:S:F/BSA
Director, Office of Legislative Affairs CL:LA
Director, Office of Program Evaluation and Risk Analysis RAS:O
Office of
Internal Control OS:CFO:CPIC:IC
Audit Liaisons:
Chief Counsel
National Taxpayer Advocate
Commissioner, Large and Mid-Size Business Division SE:LM
Commissioner, Small Business/Self-Employed Division SE:S
Chief, Criminal Investigation SE:CI
Appendix IV
Authoritative Aspects of the
Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts
|
Year |
Description of Authority |
|
1992 |
The Assistant Secretary
of the Treasury (Enforcement) delegated authority to investigate possible
violations of the regulations with respect to the reporting and record
keeping on foreign bank accounts to the Commissioner of the IRS. This authority permitted the IRS Criminal
Investigation Division to review failure to file cases identified by the IRS Examination
function staff for possible criminal investigation. The Criminal Investigation Division would
forward cases that it recommended for prosecution through the IRS Office of
Chief Counsel, which would conduct its own independent review, to the
Department of Justice, which would make the final decision to prosecute or
not. |
|
1994 |
The Secretary of the
Treasury delegated his authority to administer FBAR and other provisions of
the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970[27] to the FinCEN, a bureau of the Department of the
Treasury. The FinCEN’s mission is to
enhance |
|
2001 |
In response to the
September 11, 2001, attack, Congress passed the Uniting and
Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept
and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT) Act of 2001.[28] Section 361(b) of the Act requires the
Secretary of the Treasury to study methods for improving FBAR compliance and
report to Congress each year. |
|
2003 |
The IRS was delegated authority
from the FinCEN to assess and collect civil penalties;[29]
investigate possible civil violations of these provisions; employ the summons
power of |
Source: Our analysis of Treasury
Directive 15-41; 2002 and 2003 Reports to Congress in Accordance with
§361(b) of the USA PATRIOT Act; and Memorandum of Agreement and Delegation of
Authority
for Enforcement of FBAR Requirements,
dated April 2, 2003.
Appendix V
Comparison of 31 United States Code Section 5314
and Internal Revenue Code Section 6038D Provisions
|
Description |
31 U.S.C. § 5314 Provisions |
I.R.C. § 6038D Provisions |
|
Type of Taxpayer |
|
|
|
Time period covered |
Any time during the
calendar year. |
Taxable year. |
|
Information due date |
June 30, with no
extensions. |
April 15, with
extensions. |
|
Type of interest in
foreign financial accounts/assets |
Financial interest in,
or signature authority over, foreign financial accounts. |
Any interest in foreign
financial asset. |
|
Value making foreign
account/asset reportable |
Aggregate value of
financial accounts exceeds
$10,000. |
Aggregate value of all
such assets exceeds
$50,000. |
|
Type of foreign
financial accounts/assets reportable |
Bank account,
securities account, or other financial account in a foreign country. Term also includes savings, demand,
checking, deposit, time deposit, or other account (including debit card and
prepaid credit card accounts) maintained with a financial institution or
other person engaged in the business of a financial institution. |
1. Any
financial account maintained by a foreign financial institution. 2. Any of the
following assets which are not held in an account maintained by a financial
institution— A. Any stock
or security issued by a person other than a B. Any
financial instrument or contract held for investment that has an issuer or
counterparty which is other than a C. Any interest in a foreign entity. |
Source:
Our analysis of 31 U.S.C. § 5314,
31 C.F.R. § 103.11, 31 C.F.R. § 103.24,
31 C.F.R. § 103.27(c),
Instructions to FBAR Form TD F 90-22.1,
and 26 U.S.C. § 6038D.
[1] Public Law (Pub. L) 91-508.
[2] 31 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section (§) 5314 (2010).
[3] The
Watergate scandal was a political scandal in the
[4] Pub. L. 94-455.
[5] The CBRS is a system of databases operated and maintained by the IRS on which information from both paper-filed and electronically filed forms (required by the BSA) reside for research by Federal, State, and local law enforcement organizations.
[6] Pub. L 111-147.
[7] The term
“
[8] A
“foreign country” includes all geographical areas located outside the
[9] FBAR reports are individually numbered with a document locator number.
[10] FBAR report entries are standardized and then reviewed for accuracy.
[11] The Detroit Computing Center Adequately Processed Paper Bank Secrecy Act Documents, but Quality Reviews Should Be Implemented to Ensure Compliance With Quality Standards (Reference Number 2004-30-070, dated March 9, 2004).
[12]
Required by § 361(b) of the
[13] Steven Toscher and Michel R. Stein, “FBAR Enforcement Five Years Later,” Journal of Tax Practice & Procedure, (June-July 2008): pages 37–58.
[14] In April 2002, the Department of the Treasury reported to Congress that as many as 1 million U.S. taxpayers may be required to file FBARs; however, the IRS notified the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration during this review that the estimate could not be relied upon because factors used in making the original estimate were later found to have no actual correlation to the population.
[15] Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties are bilateral treaties for criminal matters that seek to improve the effectiveness of judicial assistance and to regularize and facilitate procedures.
[16] Internal Revenue Manual 4.26.16, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Account (FBAR) and Internal Revenue Manual 4.26.17, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) Procedures.
[17] A Compliance Initiative Project is any activity involving contact with specific taxpayers and collection of taxpayer data within an Examination function group, using either internal or external data to identify potential areas of noncompliance with the Examination function group, for the purpose of correcting the noncompliance.
[18] Announcement 2010-22, 2010-16 I.R.B. 602.
[19] The
Automatic Exchange Information Program works through operation of
[20] 31 C.F.R. § 103.11(nn) (2010).
[21] I.R.C. § 7701(a)(9) (2010).
[22] Public Law (Pub. L) 91-508.
[23] Pub. L. 94-455.
[24] Pub. L. 107-56.
[25] Pub. L 111-147.
[26] The Detroit Computing Center Adequately Processed Paper Bank Secrecy Act Documents, but Quality Reviews Should Be Implemented to Ensure Compliance With Quality Standards (Reference Number 2004-30-070, dated March 9, 2004),
[27] Public Law (Pub. L) 91-508.
[28] Pub. L. 107-56.
[29] Under 31 U.S.C. §5321 and 31 C.F.R. § 103.57
[30] List is not all inclusive.
[31]
I.R.C. § 7701(a)(30)