Archive for FinCEN

FinCEN Intends To Amend FBAR Regulations To Include Virtual Currency

FinCEN Intends to Amend FBAR Regulations to Include Virtual Currency

Every year, U.S. persons are required to file FinCEN Form 114, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (“FBAR”), if the total amount of their foreign accounts exceed $10,000.  Under current regulations, reportable foreign accounts include bank accounts, securities accounts, and certain other specified financial accounts (e.g., insurance accounts with cash values).  See 31 C.F.R. § 1010.350(c).

On New Year’s Eve, however, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) announced its intent to broaden the list of reportable accounts to include virtual currency.  Specifically, FinCEN issued a notice that provides:

Read More

Written by | Posted in FBAR Regulations • FinCEN • Virtual Currency

FinCEN Issues $8 Million Penalty on California Card Club for Willful Violation of Anti-Money Laundering Controls

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced an $8 million civil money penalty against Artichoke Joe’s, a California corporation, doing business as Artichoke Joe’s Casino (AJC). AJC, one of the largest card clubs in California, willfully violated U.S. anti-money laundering (AML) laws from October 2009 to November 2017. During this 8-year period, AJC failed to implement and maintain an effective AML program, and failed to detect, deter, and timely report many suspicious transactions. Read More

Written by | Posted in FinCEN • United States

FinCEN Further Restricts North Korea’s Access to the U.S. Financial System and Warns U.S. Financial Institutions of North Korean Schemes

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a final rule under Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act that severs Bank of Dandong, a Chinese bank that acts as a conduit for illicit North Korean financial activity, from the U.S. financial system. FinCEN also issued today an advisory to further alert financial institutions to schemes commonly used by North Korea to evade U.S. and United Nations (UN) sanctions, launder funds, and finance the North Korean regime’s weapons programs.

Read More

Written by | Posted in Financial Institutions • FinCEN • International • Treasury Regulations • United States

Set Up Your 2017 Calendar To Reflect New Filing Dates For 2016 U.S. Tax Returns

Ron Marini

On July 31, 2015, President Obama signed into law P.L. 114-41, the “Surface Transportation and Veterans Health Care Choice Improvement Act of 2015,” which includes a number of important tax provisions, including revised due dates for partnership, S corporations and C corporation returns and revised extended due dates for some returns.

Read More

Written by | Posted in Corporate • FinCEN • Tax Forms • Tax Return

FinCEN Expands Reach of Real Estate “Geographic Targeting Orders”

William Byrnes

U.S. Title Insurers Required to Identify High-End Cash Buyers in Six Major Metropolitan Areas

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) today announced Geographic Targeting Orders (GTO) that will temporarily require U.S. title insurance companies to identify the natural persons behind shell companies used to pay “all cash” for high-end residential real estate in six major metropolitan areas.

Read More

Written by | Posted in FinCEN • Tax Fraud/Evasion/Crimes

Foreign Bank Account Reporting (FBAR)—FinCEN Form 114

John Dundon

Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) is a bureau of the Treasury Department. Authorized under the Bank Secrecy Act, foreign bank account reporting, commonly referred to as “FBAR”, is electronically reported to the IRS via FinCen Form 114, separate and distinct from filing a U.S. income tax return.

Read More

Written by | Posted in FATCA • FinCEN • Tax Forms

This Year’s FBAR Deadline Is Upon Us

Ephraim Moss

The IRS has just issued a reminder to taxpayers that the FBAR filing deadline of June 30th is fast approaching. Unlike other tax forms, extensions for filing the FBAR are not allowed, so June 30th remains a hard deadline.

Read More

Written by | Posted in FBAR • FinCEN

Is This Canadian Baby An American Tax Cheat?

Is This Canadian Baby An American Tax Cheat?

A Canadian baby is learning about taxes, banking and activism at a tender age. The eight month old girl received a “Dear Valued Customer” letter from her Canadian bank when she was six months old advising her that her account information may be provided to Canada Revenue Agency to pass on to IRS.  The wee “Valued Customer” was directed to complete, sign and mail forms to the bank.

Baby Elle (not her real name) and her Canadian parents were Read More

Written by | Posted in Canada • FATCA • FBAR • FinCEN • International • IRS • OVDP • United States

The ongoing saga of FinCEN and FBME – Let Round 3 Begin.

FinCEN re-issued its order March 25, 2016 [Download FBME_Final Rule March 25 2016] declaring that FBME is a bank of primary money laundering concern, setting the state for the court showdown between the agency and the bank FBME (it’s a dispute that I have been following for a couple years because of the uneven treatment that was applied to this little, unheard of bank versus “banks too big to fail”.On the one side, FinCEN finds that FBME is a great scourge to the US Financial System (“primary money laundering concern”) and the only remedy for such egregious behavior is to shut the bank down (i.e. cancel its correspondent accounting relationships with the US, and thus US dollars).  FinCEN states that it gave FBME every opportunity to reform itself and that FBME simply refuses to do so.  FinCEN points to lack of employee education and training, lack of client diligence and monitoring, as well as transactions.  FinCEN also restates all of its former charges.   Read More

Written by | Posted in FinCEN • FMBE

Foreign Account Disclosures Soar To Over 1 Million

The IRS published a News Release on March 15, 2016 entitled, Foreign Account Filings Top 1 Million; Taxpayers Need to Know Their Filing Requirements that readers of this blog might find interesting.

Below are some snippets:

WASHINGTON — Strong and sustained growth of taxpayers Read More

Written by | Posted in FBAR • FinCEN

FBARs for Unsuspecting Canadians Present in the United States

FINCEN114 due June 30th for the 2015 taxation year, reporting beneficial interest or signature authority in non-U.S. financial accounts where the annual aggregate highest balance is greater than $10K U.S., may have to be filed by Canadian taxpayers.

Those who meet the substantial presence test for residency in the U.S., regardless of a claim under Article IV of the Canada/U.S. tax Read More

Written by | Posted in Canada • FBAR • FinCEN • Streamlined Procedures