FBAR Filing Deadline — April 15 (Auto-Extended to October)

Who must file or pay

U.S. persons with foreign financial accounts exceeding $10,000 at any point during the calendar year must file FinCEN Form 114 (FBAR). Applies to individuals, partnerships, corporations, LLCs, and trusts.

What you need to know

The FBAR (Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts) is filed separately from your tax return through FinCEN's BSA E-Filing System — not with the IRS. The April 15 due date comes with an automatic extension to October 15; no extension form is required.

FBAR applies to aggregate balances, not individual account balances. If you have three foreign accounts with $4,000, $4,000, and $3,000, you must file because the aggregate exceeds $10,000 at some point during the year.

Note the difference from Form 8938 (FATCA): Form 8938 is filed with your income tax return and has higher reporting thresholds ($50,000 single / $100,000 MFJ). Both may apply simultaneously. Armenia, for example, requires separate FBAR and 8938 filings if you have accounts or property with a Panamanian custodian or foreign financial institution.

TaxosAgent handles FBAR compliance analysis as part of the Empire tier.

Civil penalty for non-willful violations: up to $10,000 per violation. Willful violations: greater of $100,000 or 50% of account balance per violation. Criminal penalties also possible. FBAR penalties are some of the most severe in U.S. tax law.

Required forms

• →FinCEN Form 114 (filed through BSA e-filing system, NOT with the IRS)
• →Form 8938 (FATCA, filed with Form 1040 — separate requirement)

Go deeper

A licensed TaxosAgent professional reviews your situation before this deadline — so you maximize savings, not just compliance.