The Report of Foreign Bank accounts, also known as the FBAR was a tool invented by congress in 1970 to make it difficult for criminal masterminds around the world to use the international banking system to facilitate their criminal mastermind plans. And because of that, any US person regardless of age or mental abilities must file an FBAR should their foreign bank accounts exceed $10,000 in the aggregate. Again, believe it or not this requirement extends to someone who is disabled or is a child – even a baby. Read more to find out why

FBAR filing is annoying, an unnecessary breach of privacy, and believe it or not, can be far more complicated than one would at first imagine. The obvious question people ask is “Do I really have to file an FBAR?” “What happens if I don’t file an FBAR?” and “Can I cheat the FBAR?”

UPDATE: In a 77-paragraph indictment, Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller announced on February 22, 2018 that even more FBAR and Bank Secrecy Act criminal charges against Paul Manafort and Robert Gates for conduct that preceded their involvement in the 2016 president election.

Today’s news that a Grand Jury returned an indictment against Paul Manafort and Richard Gates confirms my observation that too many high profile individuals are still not filing FBAR forms at significant risks. While many have learned that FBARs can result in significant civil penalties, today’s indictment reminds us that there can be criminal charges for failing to file an FBAR as well. In this article, I’m going to answer what an FBAR is, the uphill road Manafort and Gates have, and what steps to take if you should have filed an FBAR but did not.

After a string of losses, the government has finally gotten an FBAR penalty win. After a review of the case, we find the “win” is incredibly limited in scope. Although we expect the IRS to claim the case means far more than it does, I will explain why the result was rather a foregone conclusion — the bad facts Letantia Bussell had to over overcome were too onerous.

A recent case in the Third Circuit, Arthur Bedrosian v. United States of America, resulted in a huge win for the taxpayer. Yet it was another loss, after Pomerantz and Hom, for the government, which the court ruled failed to meet the burden for proving a willful FBAR penalty violation. After the entire findings of fact and conclusions of law follows this analysis.

Yes. It is possible to amend FBAR forms. But should you? Or should you get an expert to file it for you?

FBAR penalties cannot be collected like regular taxes. In order to enforce collections, a civil judgement is required. The IRS civilly assessed Mr. Pomerantz FBAR willful penalties and interest on unreported accounts. Things did not go well for the government

Having unfiled taxes is actually quite common, so let’s talk about options if you have unfiled taxes, including unfiled international reporting forms like the FBAR. More and more people are addressing this issue since the law passed saying that your passport can be…

Why is it so important to understand the difference between being “willful”, and being “non-willful” when it comes to FBAR filing? And what are your chances of going through an FBAR audit? …