Cleveland readers familiar with the archaic procedure rules of Congress and the misdirection and sleight of hand of skilled lawmakers know that an innocuous-sounding bill can have buried deep within it important changes in law or funding. Take, for example, the recently passed mass transit and highway funding bill. It sounds like a straightforward means of paying for concrete and rails, but the bill actually contained some significant changes to tax return due dates.
The new law moves the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FinCEN Report 114) due date from June 30 to April 15. Those readers with foreign accounts should certainly mark the new, earlier due date on their calendars.
The good news for the FBAR report is that it now has a 6-month extension available to October 15, Forbes reports. The new due date applies to taxable years after the end of 2015. For most people, that means the new date will be in effect on April 15, 2017, when you file your 2016 returns.
The due date for foreign trust reporting has been changed, too. It's now the 15th day of the third month after the trust's tax year closes. So if your trust's tax clear closes on December 31, the report would be due March 15.
Forbes notes that the due date for the Annual Return to Report Transactions with Foreign Trusts and Receipt of Certain Foreign Gifts is now April 15.
With all the dates and forms demanded by the IRS, it is no wonder that so many people with foreign bank accounts and trusts find themselves at times out of compliance. An experienced Cleveland tax law attorney can help you make things right with the IRS and negotiate for smaller penalties, if any are applicable.
