FBAR & FATCA Checker

FBAR (Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, FinCEN Form 114) is an annual report US persons file when the combined value of their foreign financial accounts exceeded $10,000 at any point during the calendar year. It's filed online through the BSA e-filing system — separately from your tax return — and is due April 15 with an automatic extension to October 15.

FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) requires certain taxpayers to report specified foreign financial assets on IRS Form 8938, filed with the federal tax return. Its thresholds are much higher than FBAR's and depend on filing status and where you live — starting at more than $50,000 (year-end) for single filers living in the US. Many NRIs end up filing both FBAR and Form 8938 for the same accounts.

No — the two tests are independent, and you have to run each one separately. FBAR is triggered when the combined maximum value of your foreign financial accounts tops $10,000 at any point in the calendar year; that is an aggregate test across all accounts, not a per-account one. Form 8938 uses its own, much higher thresholds that depend on your filing status and on whether you meet the IRS definition of living abroad. You can easily owe one and not the other, or both. Note too that reporting an account does not itself create any tax — but income from that account, such as NRE/NRO interest, may still be taxable on your US return.

Generally yes. NRE and NRO accounts are accounts at financial institutions located outside the US, so they typically count toward FBAR and FATCA totals — even though NRE interest is tax-free in India. NRE/NRO interest is also generally taxable income on a US return. The India-side tax treatment doesn't change the US-side reporting picture.

Generally yes. Fixed deposits are financial accounts at a foreign institution, so they typically count toward the FBAR $10,000 aggregate and FATCA totals. A common trap: each FD is its own account, auto-renewals keep old FDs alive longer than people remember, and the value to use is the highest balance during the year, including accrued interest.

For FBAR, you convert each account's maximum value during the calendar year to US dollars using the Treasury Reporting Rates of Exchange for the last day of that calendar year — published by the Treasury Bureau of the Fiscal Service. Form 8938 is separate: value specified foreign financial assets at fair market value in US dollars following the Form 8938 instructions for that year. Always pull the rate for the year you are actually reporting, apply one consistent source across every account, and keep a record of the rate and where it came from — inconsistent conversions are one of the most common DIY mistakes.

No. FBAR is an information report filed with FinCEN (a Treasury bureau) through the BSA e-filing system, completely separate from your IRS tax return. Filing your 1040 doesn't satisfy FBAR, and filing FBAR doesn't report any income — interest from those accounts still belongs on your tax return, and Form 8938 (if required) is attached to the return itself.

If you have NRE/NRO accounts, FDs, mutual funds, or other Indian financial assets and you're a US person, a CPA familiar with US–India cross-border reporting is usually worth the fee — at least for the first year. Indian mutual funds in particular can raise PFIC questions that are genuinely complex. Use this tool's checklist to arrive at the meeting with documents and questions ready.

Don't panic, and don't just start filing silently going forward. The IRS has formal catch-up routes — including the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures for non-willful cases and the Delinquent FBAR Submission Procedures — that can sharply reduce or eliminate penalties when used correctly. Which route fits depends on your facts, so this is exactly the situation to take to a qualified cross-border tax professional.