HMRC launches new FATCA online service
HMRC has launched a new online service for UK financial institutions to register and report financial information on behalf of their US clients.
In 2010, the US passed the Foreign Asset Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), meaning foreign financial institutions need to report information to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which became effective in July this year.
The Revenue has published guidance for its new online service, including what to do if you need to submit a FATCA return.
According to HMRC, those filing need to register with the IRS, which will provide you with a Global Intermediary Identification Number (GIIN).
Users will also need to register with HMRC’s online services and can do so from mid-October this year. As part of this process they will be enrolled for the FATCA online service, received a FATCA ID and an HMRC registration number for each financial institution that has been registered.
FATCA returns will need to be submitted by 31 May each year from 31 May 2015.
For simple returns the information can be entered manually using the FATCA online service.
If 200 accounts per submission you can either enter the information manually using the online service and make multiple submissions to report all the data, or download and use the latest version of HMRC FATCA schema to create the returns.
But if the account holder is a non-financial foreign entity with over 30 reportable controlling persons or if any controller person has multiple tax residencies, the FATCA scheme will need to be used.
In this instance it muse be ensured the file is valid before uploading it. Returns must be submitted even if there are no accounts to report. Once returns have been submitted, HMRC will acknowledge this and inform whether the return is in the valid schema format.
Source: accountingweb- HMRC launches new FATCA online service
