LumenWhen do I have to file Form 8938 (FATCA) for my foreign assets as a US resident?
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If you are a US resident for any part of the year and must file a tax return, attach Form 8938 when your specified foreign financial assets exceed the threshold. Living in the US: over $50,000 on the last day of the year or $75,000 at any time; married filing jointly: over $100,000 or $150,000.
Key facts
| What | The rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Who files | A “specified individual”: a US citizen; a resident alien for any part of the tax year; a nonresident who elects resident treatment to file a joint return; certain bona fide residents of American Samoa or Puerto Rico | IRS, Do I need to file Form 8938 |
| What counts | Accounts at foreign financial institutions; and, if not held in an account, foreign stock or securities, interests in foreign entities, and financial instruments or contracts with a non-US issuer or counterparty | IRS, Do I need to file Form 8938; 26 U.S.C. 6038D(b) |
| Threshold, unmarried living in the US | More than $50,000 on the last day of the tax year or more than $75,000 at any time | IRS, Do I need to file Form 8938 |
| Threshold, married filing jointly, living in the US | More than $100,000 on the last day or more than $150,000 at any time | IRS, Do I need to file Form 8938 |
| Threshold, married filing separately, living in the US | More than $50,000 on the last day or more than $75,000 at any time | IRS, Do I need to file Form 8938 |
| No tax return due | No Form 8938, even above the threshold | IRS, Do I need to file Form 8938 |
| How | Attached to your annual income tax return | 26 U.S.C. 6038D(a); IRS |
| Penalty | $10,000 for failing to disclose; then $10,000 per 30 days if the failure continues more than 90 days after IRS notice, up to $50,000 extra | 26 U.S.C. 6038D(d) |
Who has to file
The law sets the base threshold at $50,000 and lets the Treasury set higher amounts; the IRS publishes the thresholds above. You file only if you are a specified individual, have an interest in specified foreign financial assets, and exceed your threshold. A resident alien for any part of the tax year counts, so a dual-status first year can be enough. If you don’t have to file an income tax return, the IRS says you don’t need to file Form 8938.
Accounts you don’t list
The IRS says that you don’t report accounts maintained by a US payer (such as a US financial institution), a foreign branch of a US financial institution, or a US branch of a foreign financial institution. An asset already reported on Forms 3520, 3520-A, 5471, 8621, 8865 or 8891 doesn’t need to be listed again, but you identify those forms in Part IV of Form 8938 and still count the asset’s value toward your threshold.
Living abroad
Higher thresholds apply to taxpayers living abroad: $200,000 at year end or $300,000 at any time ($400,000 or $600,000 on a joint return), according to the IRS.
Related questions
- Form 8938 doesn’t replace the FBAR (FinCEN Form 114), which has its own $10,000 threshold and is filed separately with FinCEN (see the FBAR page).
Sources
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