Per the Bank Secrecy Act, every year you must report certain foreign financial accounts, such as bank accounts, brokerage accounts and mutual funds, to the Treasury Department by filing a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) on Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Form 114.
Who must file?
Any US person (citizens, resident aliens, trusts, estates and domestic entities) with an aggregate (combined) account balance of $10,000 or more at any point during the tax year. This applies to all foreign financial accounts in which you have a financial interest or signature authority.
What is the deadline?
The FBAR is an annual report, due April 15 following the calendar year reported. You’re allowed an automatic extension to October 15 if you fail to meet the FBAR annual due date of April 15. You don’t need to request an extension to file the FBAR.
How to file?
You must file the FBAR electronically through FinCEN’s BSA E-Filing System. You don’t file the FBAR with your federal tax return. The form must be completed in US dollar amounts. Each year the Treasury Department publishes updated foreign exchange rates.
In order to help you gather your information in one spot, click here to download this Excel worksheet (file will download automatically). It contains all the relevant information that will facilitate the FBAR filing process.
