# Information forms in year of renouncing Green Card



## Idaho72 (Jan 5, 2022)

I lost my previous login so had to start a new account; sorry. But I have a quick question again. I was a short-term Green Card holder for 5 years and renounced in 2021. USCIS confirmed receipt of my I407 form back in September.

I soon have to file taxes for 2021 which will be my last US return. I have been living in my home country (Belgium) for the entire year so I will file a non-resident return for 2021 along with a tax treaty election. My accountant says I qualify for that.

Now to the question: My accountant says there is no clear-cut consensus about whether to file information returns such as FATCA, FBAR and 5471 in the year of renouncing a short term Green Card, since obviously I am not a US resident anymore by the time that I file. But he suggests doing it anyway just in case. This advice comes with a hefty price tag since I would have to do multiple 5471s in that case.

I'm looking for a second opinion. My issue with filing all these informational forms is that I put my assets into the system of the US tax authorities. And whether or not I file them won't actually change my tax burden to the US because of the treaty so it's not like I'm evading taxes if I don't. I never had to file information forms when I lived in the US because I had no foreign holdings back then. So this is a first for me.

So now: I'll of course file a non-resident return + tax treaty election for my final year. But how to I handle FBAR, FATCA, 5471s etc? And what are the worst-case consequences if I don't file them? If there's no clear-cut consensus as my accountant puts it, do I just say that I'm not a US resident anymore and that this is none of the IRS' business?

(Fwiw: because I am a Belgian citizen I am 99.9% sure my bank etc is not reporting anything to the IRS - but my question doesn't really depend on that. Even if nothing is reported I would still like to do things correctly enough that the IRS won't have anything on me in the future if I ever move back......Still that has to be balanced against a huge filing fee plus putting holdings on their radar).


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## 255 (Sep 8, 2018)

@Idaho72 -- 5471 is for U.S. Persons; you are no longer a U.S. Person, so I think you are safe not filing. Same with the FBAR. The 8938 (FATCA form) is a different story -- the instructions indicate you need to file for the period you were a U.S. person, so 1 Jan until you were no longer a U.S. person. Remember to also file 8854, to remove yourself from the U.S. Federal Income Tax System. Cheers, 255


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## Idaho72 (Jan 5, 2022)

@255 Thanks so much for the reply. My accountant - and the IRS instructions - say that 8854 is only for long term green card holders (8 years or more). Since I'm a short term GC holder I believe I shouldn't file it based on the advice I've been given. And I definitely shouldn't be subject to exit tax. Do you disagree with any of that?


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## 255 (Sep 8, 2018)

@Idaho72 -- I agree. Sorry I missed the short-term/long term difference before. Cheers, 255


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## Moulard (Feb 3, 2017)

I take a slightly more nuanced position to this than 255 - but end up at the same place so I won't bore you with my logic.

As to the FBAR, it relies on the Title 26 definition of a US Person. The tax treaty overrides Title 26, so if you are not a US person for US Taxes due to the treaty rules, then you are not a US person for the purposes of Title 31 and thus have no filing obligation.

By claiming treaty benefits, an expatriating act you are not a US Person.

FBAR is completely silent on how to proceed if one is dual status... ie. is a US person at the start of the year but not at the end of the year. A literal (ie purely gramatical) reading of the instructions suggest that if you are not a US person at the point in time that you would otherwise need to file, then you have no filing requirment. But one would have to dig through Title 31 regulations to be sure.. and even then it is likely to be silent as it started life as an anti-money laundering initiative.


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