Alston & Bird Tax Blog

FBAR

Federal Circuit Court of Appeals Weighs In on Willful FBAR Penalties

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Recently, a federal appellate court ruled in the ongoing battle between the IRS and taxpayers over the maximum penalty for willfully failing to file an FBAR to report offshore accounts as required under the Bank Secrecy Act. Our International Tax Group discusses: Federal Circuit rules in favor of the IRS, upholding higher statutory ceiling Lower courts have split on the issue What’s next? Read the full advisory here. [...]Read more

Back to School: FBAR Penalties and a Lesson in Statutory Construction

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There is a disconnect between the statute and the regulation that impose penalties for violating FBAR filing requirements. Our International Tax Group covers the bases of the three court cases that have the IRS batting just 1 for 3. The 2004 statute can impose a penalty greater than $100,000 The regulation, which wasn’t updated, limits penalties to $100,000 Two courts favor the regulation; one the statute Read the full advisory here.   [...]Read more

FBAR Deadline Will Move to April 15, 2017 for 2016 Year

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Beginning with foreign bank account reports (FinCEN Form 114, known as the FBAR) for the 2016 calendar year, FBARs will be due on April 15 of the following year. A six-month extension to October 15 will be available upon request. FBARs of U.S. citizens and residents living abroad will be due on June 15 – with an additional four-month extension available to October 15. No additional two-month extension to December 15 will be allowed, however, as is permitted for the tax returns of U.S. persons living abroad. These changes were part of the Surface Transportation and Veterans Health Care Choice [...]Read more

International Tax ADVISORY: Taxpayer Settles for Less than 150 Percent FBAR Penalty after Jury Found Willful Failure to File

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This advisory discusses United States v. Zwerner, which raised important questions not only about the FBAR penalties at issue, including their constitutionality, but also about the IRS’ administration of the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program.

The advisory is provided in PDF on the Alston & Bird website: http://www.alston.com/advisories/june-intl-tax/