FinCEN and the IRS are aware that June 30th falls on a Saturday this year, and therefore, the date by which FBARs must be received this year is a Saturday. There is no plan to issue guidance formally altering the June 30th deadline. Nevertheless, the IRS will take into account the fact that federal postal facilities and federal offices are often closed on Saturday and Sunday when determining whether individuals have timely fulfilled their
FBAR filing requirements. Filers unable to ensure that their FBAR filing is received before Saturday, June 30th, generally will face no adverse consequences if actual receipt is delayed until the following Monday by virtue of the nondelivery of mail over the weekend.FBARs also can be e-filed:
http://www.fincen.gov/news_room/nr/html/20110717.html
http://bsaefiling.fincen.treas.gov/Enroll_Individual.html
Finally, although Section 7502's timely mailing time filing rule for tax forms does not apply to FBARs (Treasury forms) (see that section here), another colleague was advised orally by the IRS hotline that envelopes enclosing the FBARs postmarked that are postmarked by June 29 would not draw a penalty. By analogy to the timely mailing timely filing rulse, for that informally identified rule to apply (if it even applies), the envelope would have to be properly addressed, would have to be received in the ordinary time for mail to get there, have a legible postmark, and received by the IRS. Any FBAR filer wanting to file by mail at this late date should consider using certified mail return receipt requested, obtaining and maintaining a stamped receipt from the IRS. With that protection, even without the timely mailing time rule applying as a matter of law, the IRS would either act prudentially not to assert any penalty or, alternatively, I believe a court would find some way to reach that result if the IRS were to assert a material penalty.
@Jack , your first link doesn't work.
ReplyDeleteHas anyone recently tried to e-file ? I just filled the user application form (Step 1) and when I tried to submit the form, I get a DNS server not found error.
The online FBAR e-file requires a lot of improvements before it can be relied upon. The program is not intuitive. I have had many clients that tried to use it and all had some type of problem and or were locked out caused by using a non Explorer browser or using an Apple computer (why not make this very clear just above section where you create a login rather than burry this fact in small print somewhere that most folks will not find it.
ReplyDeleteThen it takes you about ~30 minutes on hold to reach someone. If you read the user manual - a mere 102 pages - you might be proficient in completing the process.....
Then if that weren't bad enough, if you decide that you are fed up and will file by mail afterall, you have to fill out another FBAR form as the online e-filed FBAR version says, "Printed versions of the BSA-E-FIling forms are not for submission and will not be processed by FInCEN."
Obviously, the persons that designed and implemented the e-file program are clue less and have never completed an FBAR themselves.
By the way, the e-file version of the FBAR form is from March 2011 and is thus outdated. The most recent version on the IRS website is date Jan 2012. So, are all the e-filed FBAR forms technically invalid?
I just tried the link and it worked for me. You might try again.
ReplyDeleteJack Townsend
I think it is better just to do paper and make the IRS do their own data input. Make it a burden on them, as well as you! I am not going to be their "for free" data input clerk for them. I would stay away from the electronic versions.
ReplyDelete