Financial institutions, as part of their obligations under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) are now starting to contact customers after they have performed a review of their accounts to determine whether these accounts are held by US citizens, US tax residents, US entities, or non-US entities controlled by US persons. FATCA was enacted to improve compliance with US tax laws. FATCA imposes certain due diligence and reporting obligations on foreign (non-US) financial institutions, including Australian institutions. These institutions will be required to report to Australian Taxation Office (ATO) information on US citizens with financial accounts. The information reported to the ATO will then be passed on to the IRS.
Should your bank contact you, you may receive a FATCA Self Certification Declaration from your bank/financial institution similar to the Suncorp form attached.
Please contact our office should you have any questions.
