# FATCA questions



## RomanianGuy (Nov 14, 2016)

I have some questions regarding the FATCA law. I am EU born and US citizen. I live in the US and I never use any of my foreign (EU) bank accounts, these accounts never had more than few hundred $ in value.

Recently, my EU relatives sold some of their properties and gifted some money to me, so that the value of one of my bank account rose over $50,000 which is supposed to be reportable under FATCA now.

When I opened the account(s) 20+ years ago I used EU identification without any link to the U.S. Never filed an FBAR, both because I was not required to and because I had never known.

I feel like the FATCA is a bad law severely violating my privacy and my rights under US constitution. I don't feel comfortable making it public to a foreign tax bureau. Questions:

How do you know your bank account is actively being reported to the USA?
Do you first receive a letter from the bank telling you you'll be reported?
Any chance that the new republican administration repeal this horrible law?


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

RomanianGuy said:


> How do you know your bank account is actively being reported to the USA?


Basically, you don't. If they have no idea that you have taken US citizenship, they probably won't report anything about your account. OTOH, as a US citizen, you are supposed to report ALL foreign accounts any year when the combined total of all your foreign accounts exceeds $10,000. (This is the FBAR or FinCEN filing you'll see reference to here in the Expat Tax section.)


> Do you first receive a letter from the bank telling you you'll be reported?


No. If the bank happens to know that you are a US citizen (like, if you have a US birthplace), they may contact you asking you to fill out a W-9 form for their records. But if they don't ask, there is no reason to tell them anything.


> Any chance that the new republican administration repeal this horrible law?


There is another thread going on just this topic. My personal opinion is that the issue is nowhere on the radar of anyone in the legislature so don't hold your breath. However, opinions vary.
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## RomanianGuy (Nov 14, 2016)

Bevdeforges said:


> No. If the bank happens to know that you are a US citizen (like, if you have a US birthplace), they may contact you asking you to fill out a W-9 form for their records. But if they don't ask, there is no reason to tell them anything.


I am not sure if we are on the very same page. The question again in another words. If they suspect me to be a US citizen, can they start reporting my account without first having the W-9 signed from me?


----------



## LC3622 (Jan 8, 2014)

Yes they can and they will. If they suspect, they will cover their a** and will report.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

RomanianGuy said:


> I am not sure if we are on the very same page. The question again in another words. If they suspect me to be a US citizen, can they start reporting my account without first having the W-9 signed from me?


Actually, they can simply report all their customer accounts to the IRS and let them sort out which ones are US citizens. In many countries, the banks report to the national bank or to the national tax service anyhow. In those countries, it's the national bank that forwards information on to the IRS. (In France, the banks all report to the Banque de France - and the Banque de France reports on to the IRS.)

But no, they don't have to notify you that they are passing your information along to the IRS. Without having your US SSN it's questionable whether or not the IRS can connect a given account to you, however.
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## iota2014 (Jul 30, 2015)

Bevdeforges said:


> Actually, they can simply report all their customer accounts to the IRS and let them sort out which ones are US citizens. In many countries, the banks report to the national bank or to the national tax service anyhow. In those countries, it's the national bank that forwards information on to the IRS. (In France, the banks all report to the Banque de France - and the Banque de France reports on to the IRS.)


OP, are the banks in Romania? You can see the Romanian IGA on the Treasury website (https://www.treasury.gov/resource-c...cuments/FATCA-Agreement-Romania-5-28-2015.pdf). That should tell you what information might cause your account to be flagged as possibly US. For instance, if the account has a US address or telephone number associated with it.



> But no, they don't have to notify you that they are passing your information along to the IRS. Without having your US SSN it's questionable whether or not the IRS can connect a given account to you, however.


If an account gets reported, doesn't the information that is reported include the address which the bank holds for the accountholder?


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

iota2014 said:


> If an account gets reported, doesn't the information that is reported include the address which the bank holds for the accountholder?


Not sure, but it very well may - however, it's not always necessary that a bank account carry the residential address of the account holder. How many folks on this forum are advised to maintain their US accounts through the address of a friend or family member? Banks here in Europe do tend to ask for proof of residence when you open an account, but they may very well process a change of address without requiring any proof of your residence at that address.

The "traditional" means of identifying someone without a SSN are name, dob and place of birth - but even that can be a hit or miss proposition. At the moment, there is nothing to indicate that the IRS is even attempting to match up bank account reports with either FBARs or tax returns unless they note an "issue" on someone's tax return. 
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## ForeignBody (Oct 20, 2011)

RomanianGuy said:


> I have some questions regarding the FATCA law. I am EU born and US citizen. I live in the US and I never use any of my foreign (EU) bank accounts, these accounts never had more than few hundred $ in value.
> 
> Recently, my EU relatives sold some of their properties and gifted some money to me, so that the value of one of my bank account rose over $50,000 which is supposed to be reportable under FATCA now.
> 
> ...


If you want to lie on your 1040 Schedule B then good luck, all for the sake of a few minutes completing an on-line form.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

ForeignBody said:


> If you want to lie on your 1040 Schedule B then good luck, all for the sake of a few minutes completing an on-line form.


Actually a good point - unless you have foreign investment accounts that can be deemed to be "foreign trusts" or one of those other categories that add layers of complexity to your US tax returns, the main FATCA forms are merely reporting forms. As long as you are reporting your bank interest on your US returns, the FBAR is just an informational form.
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## Nononymous (Jul 12, 2011)

ForeignBody said:


> If you want to lie on your 1040 Schedule B then good luck, all for the sake of a few minutes completing an on-line form.


That was going to be my point. Non-resident US citizens like myself can (and probably should) remain cheerfully non-compliant, but if I was a US citizen and resident like the OP, presumably with US income and assets, I would NOT be screwing around concealing foreign accounts from the IRS.


----------

