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Deadline for Reports of Foreign Financial Accounts Delayed for Victims of Hurricane Irma by James W. Spencer, CPA

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Posted on September 15, 2017 by Jim Spencer

U.S. citizens and resident aliens who live in areas affected by Hurricane Irma will receive an extension of time to report their financial interest in or signature authority over foreign bank, securities or other financial accounts with an aggregate value exceeding $10,000 during any time in 2016.

 

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced that hurricane victims who live in president-designated disaster areas in Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, will have until January 31, 2018, to file their Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) for the 2016 calendar year. Without this relief, FBARs would have otherwise been due on October 15, 2017.

 

Taxpayers who qualify for FBAR relief include those individuals and businesses located in any Florida county.  The FBAR filing extension also applies to taxpayers located on the islands of St. John and St. Thomas and in Puerto Rico’s municipalities of Culebra, Vieques, Canóvanas and Loíza.

 

About the Author: James W. Spencer, CPA, is a director of International Tax Services with Berkowitz Pollack Brant, where he focuses on a wide range of pre-immigration planning, IC-DISC, transfer pricing and international tax consulting issues for individuals and businesses. He can be reached at the CPA firm’s Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., office at (954) 712-7000 or via email at info@bpbcpa.com.