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- What is the FBAR?
- Who must file FinCEN Form 114?
- Which accounts are foreign financial accounts?
- How the $10,000 aggregate test works
- FBAR due date and automatic extension
- How to file electronically
- Information needed for each account
- Joint accounts and spouses
- Signature authority without ownership
- FBAR recordkeeping
- FBAR compared with Form 8938 and Schedule B
- Late, missed, or incorrect FBARs
- Final filing checklist
- Sources
Key Facts
- Federal level: A U.S. person generally files an FBAR when foreign financial accounts exceed $10,000 in aggregate at any time during the calendar year.
- Federal level: The FBAR is FinCEN Form 114, filed electronically with FinCEN rather than attached to a federal income tax return.
- Federal level: The regular due date is April 15 following the report year, with an automatic extension to October 15 that requires no extension request.
- Federal level: Filing can be required for financial interest, signature authority, or other authority even when the account produced no taxable income.
- Federal level: Each reportable account’s maximum value is converted to U.S. dollars, and required account records are generally retained for five years from the FBAR due date.
- Federal level: FBAR and Form 8938 are separate regimes; satisfying one does not automatically satisfy the other.
What is the FBAR?
The Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts is a Bank Secrecy Act report filed on FinCEN Form 114. It discloses certain foreign financial accounts to the Treasury Department and is not an income tax form.
A person can have an FBAR obligation without owing tax on an account. Interest, dividends, gains, and other income still require separate treatment on the federal income tax return.
Who must file FinCEN Form 114?
A U.S. person generally must file when that person has a financial interest in, or signature or other authority over, at least one foreign financial account and the aggregate value of all such accounts exceeds $10,000 at any time during the calendar year. The linked overview of FBAR filing requirements focuses on that threshold analysis.
U.S. persons include citizens, residents, and domestic entities such as corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies, trusts, and estates. An entity’s separate FBAR obligation does not necessarily eliminate an owner’s or authorized person’s obligation.
Which accounts are foreign financial accounts?
Reportable accounts can include foreign bank, securities, brokerage, mutual fund, and certain insurance or annuity accounts with cash value. The institution’s physical location generally determines whether an account is foreign, not the currency or the account holder’s location.
An account maintained at a U.S. branch of a foreign bank generally is not foreign for FBAR purposes, while an account maintained at a foreign branch of a U.S. bank generally is. Direct ownership of foreign real estate is not itself a financial account, although an account holding real-estate proceeds can be.
How the $10,000 aggregate test works
The threshold is more than $10,000, not $10,000 or more. It applies to the combined value of all reportable foreign accounts at any time on a particular day, so several smaller accounts can trigger filing.
After the aggregate threshold is crossed, each reportable account is listed even if no single account exceeded $10,000. Jointly owned, directly or indirectly owned, and signature-authority accounts enter the analysis.
Determine each account’s maximum value in its original currency from periodic statements or other reasonable records. Convert that maximum to U.S. dollars, generally using the Treasury year-end exchange rate for the reporting calendar year.
FBAR due date and automatic extension
The FBAR for a calendar year is due April 15 of the following year. A filer who misses April 15 receives an automatic extension to October 15 and does not submit a separate extension form.
When October 15 falls on a weekend or legal holiday, ordinary federal filing rules can affect the deadline. FinCEN can also announce special relief after federally declared disasters or other events, so affected filers should verify official notices.
How to file electronically
File through FinCEN’s BSA E-Filing system, either with the online form or an approved filing method. Do not attach Form 114 to Form 1040, mail a printed electronic form to the IRS, or use the obsolete TD F 90-22.1.
A filer seeking a paper-filing exemption must contact FinCEN’s Resource Center. Paper filing is permitted only after FinCEN grants the exemption and supplies the appropriate procedure.
Information needed for each account
Collect the account holder’s name, account number or other designation, account type, institution name and address, country, and maximum annual value. The form separates accounts owned individually, jointly, and through other financial interests from accounts reported only because of signature authority.
Filers with 25 or more accounts can use abbreviated reporting provisions, but they must retain complete details and provide them when FinCEN or the IRS requests them. Abbreviated form entry does not reduce the underlying recordkeeping duty.
Joint accounts and spouses
Each joint owner generally reports the entire maximum value of a jointly held account, not only a fractional share. That full value is also used when testing the individual owner’s aggregate accounts.
One spouse can sometimes file a single FBAR covering both spouses when all accounts reportable by the nonfiling spouse are jointly owned with the filing spouse, the accounts are timely reported, and both spouses complete Form 114a. Otherwise, each spouse files separately.
Form 114a is kept with the filers’ records and is not submitted with the FBAR. It can also authorize a third party to electronically file on someone’s behalf.
Signature authority without ownership
Signature or other authority generally exists when a person can control disposition of assets by direct communication with the financial institution. Employees and officers can therefore have reporting duties for employer accounts they do not own.
Regulations provide exceptions for certain officers and employees of specified regulated entities, governmental accounts, retirement plans, and other categories. The exception’s exact conditions should be checked rather than inferred from job title alone.
FBAR recordkeeping
For every reported account, retain the name on the account, account number, financial institution’s name and address, account type, and maximum value. Statements and a copy of the filed FBAR can help, but the records must contain the required information.
Records are generally kept for five years from the FBAR due date and made available for inspection. An officer or employee reporting only signature authority over an employer’s account has a limited recordkeeping exception when the employer keeps the records.
FBAR compared with Form 8938 and Schedule B
Form 8938 is an Internal Revenue Code information return attached to an income tax return and uses different asset categories and thresholds. The FBAR arises under Title 31, covers foreign financial accounts, and is sent separately to FinCEN.
A taxpayer may need both forms, one, or neither. Schedule B also asks foreign-account questions, and answering them does not replace Form 114.
Late, missed, or incorrect FBARs
FinCEN’s electronic system permits amended and delinquent FBAR submissions with identifying information and an explanation. Filing should use accurate records rather than guesses, and late filers should review whether an official penalty-relief or compliance procedure applies.
Civil penalties depend on the violation and facts, and statutory maximums are adjusted for inflation. Willful violations and false records can produce substantially more serious civil or criminal consequences, so current official guidance is essential.
Final filing checklist
List every foreign account and authority relationship, identify the maximum local-currency value, convert consistently, and test aggregate value across all accounts. Confirm exceptions, joint ownership, spouse authorization, and entity-level obligations.
File through the official BSA E-Filing system by the applicable deadline, save confirmation, and retain the supporting account records and any Form 114a. Then separately reconcile foreign income, Schedule B, Form 8938, and other international information returns.
