U. S. Business Income Tax return

Instructions for
Form 8938

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

(Rev. December 2013)

Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets
Section references are to the Internal
Revenue Code unless otherwise noted.

General Instructions
Future developments. The IRS has
created a page on IRS.gov for
information about Form 8938 and its
instructions, at www.irs.gov/form8938.
Information about any future
developments affecting Form 8938
(such as legislation enacted after we
release it) will be posted on that page.

What's New
Part I. Foreign Deposit and Custo­
dial Accounts Summary. Part I is
new. It is used to summarize the
foreign deposit and custodial
accounts information reported in all
Parts V filed with this form.
Part II. Other Foreign Assets Sum­
mary. Part II is new. It is used to
summarize the “other foreign assets”
information reported in all Parts VI
filed with this form.

Purpose of Form

Use Form 8938 to report your
specified foreign financial assets if the
total value of all the specified foreign
financial assets in which you have an
interest is more than the appropriate
reporting threshold. See Reporting
Thresholds Applying to Specified
Individuals, later.
Filing Form 8938 does not
relieve you of the requirement
CAUTION
to file FinCEN Form 114,
Report of Foreign Bank and Financial
Accounts (FBAR), formerly TD F
90-22.1, if you are otherwise required
to file the FBAR. See FinCEN Form
114 and its instructions for FBAR filing
requirements. See Comparison of
Form 8938 and FBAR Requirements,
available at www.irs.gov/Businesses/
Comparison-of-Form-8938-andFBAR-Requirements, for a chart
comparing Form 8938 and FBAR
filing requirements.

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Aug 26, 2013

When and How To File

Attach Form 8938 to your annual
return and file by the due date
(including extensions) for that return.
An annual return includes the
following returns.
Form 1040.
Form 1040NR.

A reference to an “annual return” or
“income tax return” in the instructions
includes a reference to any return
listed here, whether it is an income tax
return or an information return.
Do not send a Form 8938 to
the IRS unless it is attached
CAUTION
to an annual return or an
amended return.

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Who Must File

Unless an exception applies, you
must file Form 8938 if you are a
specified individual that has an
interest in specified foreign financial
assets and the value of those assets
is more than the applicable reporting
threshold.
If you are a domestic corporation,
partnership, or trust, see the caution
under Specified Domestic Entity later.
If you are required to file Form
8938, you must report the specified
foreign financial assets in which you
have an interest even if none of the
assets affects your tax liability for the
year. See Specified Individual and
Reporting Thresholds Applying to
Specified Individuals, later.
Exception if no income tax
return required.
If you do not have to file an
income tax return for the tax year, you
do not have to file Form 8938, even if
the value of your specified foreign
financial assets is more than the
appropriate reporting threshold.

TIP

Specified Individual
You are a specified individual if you
are one of the following.
A U.S. citizen.
Cat. No. 55389W

A resident alien of the United
States for any part of the tax year (but
see Reporting Period, later).
A nonresident alien who makes an
election to be treated as a resident
alien for purposes of filing a joint
income tax return.
A nonresident alien who is a bona
fide resident of American Samoa or
Puerto Rico. See Pub. 570, Tax Guide
for Individuals With Income From U.S.
Possessions, for a definition of bona
fide resident.
Special rules for resident aliens.
You are a resident alien if you are
treated as a resident alien for U.S. tax
purposes under the green card test or
the substantial presence test. For
more information, see Pub. 519, U.S.
Tax Guide for Aliens. If you qualify as
a resident alien under either rule, you
are a specified individual even if you
elect to be taxed as a resident of a
foreign country under the provisions
of a U.S. income tax treaty. If you
have to file Form 8938, attach it to
your Form 1040NR.
Specified Domestic Entity
The IRS anticipates issuing
regulations that will require a
CAUTION
domestic entity to file Form
8938 if the entity is formed or availed
of to hold specified foreign financial
assets and the value of those assets
exceeds the appropriate reporting
threshold. Until the IRS issues such
regulations, only individuals must file
Form 8938.

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Reporting Thresholds Applying to
Specified Individuals
Taxpayers living in the United
States. If you do not live outside the
United States, you satisfy the
reporting threshold discussed next
that applies to you and no exception
applies, file Form 8938 with your
income tax return.
Unmarried taxpayers. If you are
not married, you satisfy the reporting

threshold only if the total value of your
specified foreign financial assets is
more than $50,000 on the last day of
the tax year or more than $75,000 at
any time during the tax year.
Married taxpayers filing a joint
income tax return. If you are
married and you and your spouse file
a joint income tax return, you satisfy
the reporting threshold only if the total
value of your specified foreign
financial assets is more than
$100,000 on the last day of the tax
year or more than $150,000 at any
time during the tax year.
Married taxpayers filing
separate income tax returns. If you
are married and file a separate
income tax return from your spouse,
you satisfy the reporting threshold
only if the total value of your specified
foreign financial assets is more than
$50,000 on the last day of the tax year
or more than $75,000 at any time
during the tax year.
Taxpayers living outside the Uni­
ted States. If your tax home is in a
foreign country, you meet one of the
presence abroad tests described
next, and no exception applies, file
Form 8938 with your income tax
return if you satisfy the reporting
threshold discussed next that applies
to you.
Unmarried taxpayers. If you are
not married, you satisfy the reporting
threshold only if the total value of your
specified foreign financial assets is
more than $200,000 on the last day of
the tax year or more than $300,000 at
any time during the tax year.
Married taxpayers filing a joint
income tax return. If you are
married and you and your spouse file
a joint income tax return, you satisfy
the reporting threshold only if the total
value of your specified foreign
financial assets is more than
$400,000 on the last day of the tax
year or more than $600,000 at any
time during the tax year.
Married taxpayers filing
separate income tax returns. If you
are married and file a separate
income tax return from your spouse,
you satisfy the reporting threshold
only if the total value of your specified
foreign financial assets is more than
$200,000 on the last day of the tax

year or more than $300,000 at any
time during the tax year.
Presence abroad. You satisfy the
presence abroad test if you are one of
the following.
A U.S. citizen who has been a bona
fide resident of a foreign country or
countries for an uninterrupted period
that includes an entire tax year.
A U.S. citizen or resident who is
present in a foreign country or
countries at least 330 full days during
any period of 12 consecutive months
that ends in the tax year being
reported.
Determining the Total Value of
Your Specified Foreign Financial
Assets
You must figure the total value of the
specified foreign financial assets in
which you have an interest to
determine if you satisfy the reporting
threshold that applies to you. To
determine if you have an interest in a
specified foreign financial asset, see
Interests in Specified Foreign
Financial Assets, later.
Valuing specified foreign financial
assets. The value of a specified
foreign financial asset for purposes of
determining the total value of
specified foreign financial assets in
which you have an interest during the
tax year or on the last day of the tax
year is the asset's fair market value.
For purposes of figuring the total value
of specified foreign financial assets,
the value of a specified foreign
financial asset denominated in a
foreign currency must be first
determined in the foreign currency
and then converted to U.S. dollars.
See Foreign currency conversion in
Reporting Maximum Value, later, for
rules on determining and applying the
appropriate foreign currency
exchange rate.
Value of an interest in a foreign
trust during the tax year. If you do
not know or have reason to know
based on readily accessible
information the fair market value of
your interest in a foreign trust during
the tax year, the value to be included
in determining the total value of your
specified foreign financial assets
during the tax year is the maximum
value of your interest in the foreign
trust. See Valuing interests in foreign
trusts in Reporting Maximum Value,
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later, for rules on determining the
maximum value of an interest in a
foreign trust.
Value of an interest in a foreign es­
tate, foreign pension plan, and for­
eign deferred compensation plan.
If you do not know or have reason to
know based on readily accessible
information the fair market value of
your interest in a foreign estate,
foreign pension plan, or foreign
deferred compensation plan during
the tax year, the value to be included
in determining the total value of your
specified foreign financial assets
during the tax year is the fair market
value, determined as of the last day of
the tax year, of the currency and other
property distributed during the tax
year to you. If you received no
distributions during the tax year and
do not know or have reason to know
based on readily accessible
information the fair market value of
your interest, use a value of zero for
the interest.
Asset with no positive value. If the
maximum value of a specified foreign
financial asset is less than zero, use a
value of zero for the asset.
Assets reported on another form.
If you are a specified individual,
include the value of all specified
foreign financial assets, even if they
are reported on another form listed in
Part IV, to determine if you satisfy the
reporting threshold that applies to
you. See Part IV, Excepted Specified
Foreign Financial Assets, later.
Joint interests. If you jointly own an
asset with someone else, the value
that you use to determine the total
value of all of your specified foreign
financial assets depends on whether
the other owner is your spouse and, if
so, whether your spouse is a specified
individual and whether you file a joint
or separate return.
Joint ownership with spouse
filing joint income tax return. If you
and your spouse file a joint income tax
return and, therefore, would file one
combined Form 8938 for the tax year,
include the value of the asset jointly
owned with your spouse only once to
determine the total value of all of the
specified foreign financial assets you
and your spouse own.
Joint ownership with spouse
filing separate income tax return.
Instructions for Form 8938 (2013)

If you and your spouse are specified
individuals and you each file a
separate annual return, include
one-half of the value of the asset
jointly owned with your spouse to
determine the total value of all of your
specified foreign financial assets.
Joint ownership with a spouse
who is not a specified individual or
someone other than a spouse.
Each joint owner includes the entire
value of the jointly owned asset to
determine the total value of all of that
joint owner's specified foreign
financial assets.
Examples. These examples may
help you decide if you have to file
Form 8938.
I am not married and do not live
abroad. The total value of my
specified foreign financial assets
does not exceed $49,000 during
the tax year. You do not have to file
Form 8938. You do not satisfy the
reporting threshold of more than
$50,000 on the last day of the tax year
or more than $75,000 at any time
during the tax year.
I am not married and do not live
abroad. I sold my only specified
foreign financial asset on October
15, when its value was $125,000.
You have to file Form 8938. You
satisfy the reporting threshold even
though you do not hold any specified
foreign financial assets on the last day
of the tax year because you did own
specified foreign financial assets of
more than $75,000 at any time during
the tax year.
I am not married and do not live
abroad. An unrelated U.S. resident
and I jointly own a specified
foreign financial asset valued at
$60,000. You each have to file Form
8938. You each satisfy the reporting
threshold of more than $50,000 on the
last day of the tax year.
I am not married and do not live
abroad. I own an entity
disregarded for tax purposes,
which owns one specified foreign
financial asset valued at $30,000.
In addition, I own a specified
foreign financial asset valued at
$25,000. You have to file Form 8938.
You own both the specified foreign
financial asset owned by the
disregarded entity and the specified
foreign financial asset you own
directly, for a total value of $55,000.
Instructions for Form 8938 (2013)

You satisfy the reporting threshold of
more than $50,000 on the last day of
the tax year.
My spouse and I do not live
abroad and file a joint income tax
return. We jointly own a single
specified foreign financial asset
valued at $60,000. You and your
spouse do not have to file Form 8938.
You do not satisfy the reporting
threshold of more than $100,000 on
the last day of the tax year or more
than $150,000 at any time during the
tax year.
My spouse and I do not live
abroad, file a joint income tax
return, and jointly and individually
own specified foreign financial
assets. On the last day of the tax
year, my spouse and I jointly own
a specified foreign financial asset
with a value of $90,000. My spouse
has a separate interest in a
specified foreign financial asset
with a value of $10,000. I have a
separate interest in a specified
foreign financial asset with a value
of $1,000. You and your spouse
have to file a combined Form 8938.
You and your spouse have an interest
in specified foreign financial assets in
the amount of $101,000 on the last
day of the tax year. This is the entire
value of the specified foreign financial
asset that you jointly own, $90,000,
plus the value of the asset that your
spouse separately owns, $10,000,
plus the value of the asset that you
separately own, $1,000. You and your
spouse satisfy the reporting threshold
of more than $100,000 on the last day
of the tax year.
My spouse and I do not live
abroad, file separate income tax
returns, and jointly own a
specified foreign financial asset
valued at $60,000 for the entire
year. Neither you nor your spouse
has to file Form 8938. You each use
one-half of the value of the asset,
$30,000, to determine the total value
of specified foreign financial assets
that you each own. Neither of you
satisfies the reporting threshold of
more than $50,000 on the last day of
the tax year or more than $75,000 at
any time during the tax year.
My spouse and I file separate
income tax returns, jointly and
individually own specified foreign
financial assets, and do not live
abroad. On the last day of the tax
­3­

year, my spouse and I jointly own
a specified foreign financial asset
with a value of $90,000. My spouse
has a separate interest in a
specified foreign financial asset
with a value of $10,000. I have a
separate interest in a specified
foreign financial asset with a value
of $1,000. You do not have to file
Form 8938 but your spouse does.
Your spouse has an interest in
specified foreign financial assets in
the amount of $55,000 on the last day
of the tax year. This is one-half of the
value of the asset that you jointly own,
$45,000, plus the entire value of the
asset that your spouse separately
owns, $10,000. You have an interest
in specified foreign financial assets in
the amount of $46,000 on the last day
of the tax year. This is one-half of the
value of the asset that you jointly own,
$45,000, plus the entire value of the
asset that you separately own,
$1,000. Your spouse satisfies the
reporting threshold of more than
$50,000 on the last day of the tax
year. You do not satisfy the reporting
threshold of more than $50,000 on the
last day of the tax year or more than
$75,000 at any time during the tax
year.
My spouse and I are U.S.
citizens but live abroad for the
entire tax year and file a joint
income tax return. The total value
of our combined specified foreign
financial assets on any day of the
tax year is $150,000. You and your
spouse do not have to file Form 8938.
You do not satisfy the reporting
threshold of more than $400,000 on
the last day of the tax year or more
than $600,000 at any time during the
tax year for married individuals who
live abroad and file a joint income tax
return.
My spouse and I live abroad and
file separate income tax returns.
My spouse is not a specified
individual. On the last day of the
tax year, my spouse and I jointly
own a specified foreign financial
asset with a value of $150,000. My
spouse has a separate interest in a
specified foreign financial asset
with a value of $10,000. I have a
separate interest in a specified
foreign financial asset with a value
of $60,000. You have to file Form
8938 but your spouse, who is not a
specified individual, does not. You
have an interest in specified foreign

financial assets in the amount of
$210,000 on the last day of the tax
year. This is the entire value of the
asset that you jointly own, $150,000,
plus the entire value of the asset that
you separately own, $60,000. You
satisfy the reporting threshold for a
married individual living abroad and
filing a separate return of more than
$200,000 on the last day of the tax
year.
Specified Foreign Financial Assets
Specified foreign financial assets
include the following assets.
1. Financial accounts maintained
by a foreign financial institution.
2. The following foreign financial
assets if they are held for investment
and not held in an account maintained
by a financial institution:
a. Stock or securities issued by
someone that is not a U.S. person,
b. Any interest in a foreign entity,
and
c. Any financial instrument or
contract that has an issuer or
counterparty that is not a U.S. person.
For foreign financial assets
excepted from reporting, see Assets
Not Required to be Reported, later.
Foreign social security. An interest
in a social security, social insurance,
or other similar program of a foreign
government is not a specified foreign
financial asset.
Financial account. A financial
account is any depository or custodial
account maintained by a foreign
financial institution as well as any
equity or debt interest in a foreign
financial institution (other than
interests that are regularly traded on
an established securities market). A
specified foreign financial asset
includes a financial account
maintained by a financial institution
that is organized under the laws of a
U.S. possession (American Samoa,
Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands,
Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin
Islands).
Foreign financial institution. In
most cases, a foreign financial
institution is any financial institution
that is not a U.S. entity and satisfies
one or more of the following.

It accepts deposits in the ordinary
course of a banking or similar
business.
It holds financial assets for the
account of others as a substantial part
of its business.
It is engaged (or holds itself out as
being engaged) primarily in the
business of investing, reinvesting, or
trading in securities, partnership
interests, commodities, or any interest
(including a futures or forward
contract or option) in such securities,
partnership interests, or commodities.
A foreign financial institution
includes investment vehicles such as
foreign mutual funds, foreign hedge
funds, and foreign private equity
funds.

holding or disposing of the asset are
or would be required to be reported,
included, or otherwise reflected on
your income tax return.

Other specified foreign financial
assets. Examples of other specified
foreign financial assets include the
following, if they are held for
investment and not held in a financial
account.
Stock issued by a foreign
corporation.
A capital or profits interest in a
foreign partnership.
A note, bond, debenture, or other
form of indebtedness issued by a
foreign person.
An interest in a foreign trust or
foreign estate.
An interest rate swap, currency
swap, basis swap, interest rate cap,
interest rate floor, commodity swap,
equity swap, equity index swap, credit
default swap, or similar agreement
with a foreign counterparty.
An option or other derivative
instrument with respect to any of
these examples or with respect to any
currency or commodity that is entered
into with a foreign counterparty or
issuer.

Interests in jointly owned assets.
A joint owner of an asset has an
interest in the entire asset. For special
rules for interests in assets jointly
owned by spouses, see Joint interests
in Determining the Total Value of Your
Specified Foreign Financial Assets,
earlier, and Reporting the value of
jointly owned assets, in Reporting
Maximum Value, later.

Assets held for investment. You
hold an asset, including a partnership
interest, for investment if you do not
use it in, or hold it for use in, the
conduct of any trade or business.
Stock is not considered used or
held for use in the conduct of a trade
or business.
Interests in Specified Foreign
Financial Assets
You have an interest in a specified
foreign financial asset if any income,
gains, losses, deductions, credits,
gross proceeds, or distributions from
­4­

You have an interest in a specified
foreign financial asset even if there
are no income, gains, losses,
deductions, credits, gross proceeds,
or distributions from holding or
disposing of the asset included or
reflected on your income tax return for
this tax year.
Interests in assets held by disre­
garded entities. If you are the owner
of a disregarded entity, you have an
interest in any specified foreign
financial assets owned by the
disregarded entity.

Interests in assets held in financial
accounts. If you have an interest in a
financial account that holds specified
foreign financial assets, you do not
have to report the assets held in the
account.
Interests in assets generating cer­
tain unearned income of children.
If you file Form 8814, Parents'
Election To Report Child's Interest
and Dividends, with your income tax
return to elect to include in your gross
income certain unearned income of
your child (the “kiddie tax” election),
you have an interest in any specified
foreign financial asset held by the
child.
Interests in assets held by entities
that are not disregarded entities.
In most cases, you do not own an
interest in any specified foreign
financial asset held by a partnership,
corporation, trust, or estate solely as a
result of your status as a partner,
shareholder, or beneficiary.
Interests in assets held by grantor
trust. If you are considered the
owner under the grantor trust rules of
any part of a trust, you have an
interest in any specified foreign
financial asset held by that part of the
trust you are considered to own. For
Instructions for Form 8938 (2013)

exceptions from reporting for owners
of certain domestic investment or
bankruptcy trusts, see Domestic
investment trusts and Domestic
bankruptcy trusts in Assets Not
Required to be Reported, later.
Interests in foreign estates and
foreign trusts. An interest in a
foreign trust or a foreign estate is not a
specified foreign financial asset
unless you know or have reason to
know based on readily accessible
information of the interest. If you
receive a distribution from the foreign
trust or foreign estate, you are
considered to know of the interest.
Interests in foreign pension plans
and foreign deferred compensa­
tion plans. Report in Part II your
interest in the foreign pension plan or
foreign deferred compensation plan.
Do not separately report the assets
held by the plan. See Valuing
interests in foreign estates, foreign
pension plans, and foreign deferred
compensation plans in Reporting
Maximum Value, later.
Reporting Period
Unless an exception applies, the
reporting period for Form 8938 is your
tax year.
Exception for partial tax years of
specified individuals. If you are a
specified individual for less than the
entire tax year, the reporting period is
the part of the year that you are a
specified individual.
Example 1. John is a calendar
year taxpayer. The Form 8938
reporting period begins on January 1
and ends on December 31.
Example 2. Agnes was a single,
calendar year taxpayer who died on
March 6. The Form 8938 reporting
period begins on January 1 and ends
on March 6.
Example 3. George, a calendar
year taxpayer, is not a U.S. citizen or
married. George arrived in the United
States on February 1 and satisfied the
substantial presence test for the tax
year. The Form 8938 reporting period
begins on George's U.S. residency
starting date, February 1, and ends on
December 31.
Reporting Maximum Value
You must report the maximum value
during the tax year of each specified
Instructions for Form 8938 (2013)

foreign financial asset reported on
Form 8938. In most cases, the value
of a specified foreign financial asset is
its fair market value. An appraisal by a
third party is not necessary to
estimate the maximum fair market
value during the year. See Valuing
financial accounts and Valuing other
specified foreign financial assets,
later.
Assets with no positive value. If
the maximum value of a specified
foreign financial asset is less than
zero, use a value of zero as the
maximum value of the asset.
Foreign currency conversion. If
your specified foreign financial asset
is denominated in a foreign currency
during the tax year, the maximum
value of the asset must be determined
in the foreign currency and then
converted to U.S. dollars.
In most cases, you must use
the U.S. Treasury Department's
Financial Management Service
foreign currency exchange rate
for purchasing U.S. dollars.
You can find this rate on
www.fms.treas.gov/intn.html. If no
Financial Management Service
exchange rate is available, you must
use another publicly available foreign
currency exchange rate for
purchasing U.S. dollars and disclose
the rate on Form 8938.
Currency determination date.
Use the currency exchange rate on
the last day of the tax year to figure
the maximum value of a specified
foreign financial asset or the value of
a specified foreign financial asset for
the purpose of determining the total
value of your specified foreign
financial assets to see whether you
have met the reporting threshold. Use
this rate even if you sold or otherwise
disposed of the specified foreign
financial asset before the last day of
the tax year.
Reporting the value of jointly
owned assets. If you own an asset
jointly with one or more persons, you
must report the asset's maximum
value as follows.
Married specified individuals
filing a joint income tax return. If
you are married and you and your
spouse file a joint income tax return,
report any specified foreign financial
asset that you jointly own only once
and include the maximum value of the
­5­

entire asset (and not just the
maximum value of your interest in the
asset). Also, you must report any
specified foreign financial asset that
you or your spouse separately own
and include the maximum value of the
entire asset. If you and your spouse
file a joint income tax return that
includes Form 8814, you must report
any specified foreign financial asset
your child owns only once and include
the maximum value of the entire
asset.
Married specified individuals
filing separate income tax returns.
If you are married and you and your
spouse are specified individuals who
file separate income tax returns, both
you and your spouse report any
specified foreign financial asset that
you jointly own on your separate
Forms 8938, and both you and your
spouse must include the maximum
value of the entire asset on your
separate Forms 8938. You also must
report any specified foreign financial
asset that you own individually on
your separate Form 8938 and include
the maximum value of the entire
asset. If you file Form 8814, you must
report any specified foreign financial
asset your child owns and include the
maximum value of the entire asset.
Other joint ownership. If you are
a joint owner of a specified foreign
financial asset and you cannot use
one of the special rules for married
individuals who file a joint tax return,
you must report the specified foreign
financial asset and include the
maximum value of the entire asset.
Valuing financial accounts. You
may rely on periodic account
statements for the tax year to report a
financial account's maximum value
unless you know or have reason to
know based on readily accessible
information that the statements do not
reflect a reasonable estimate of the
maximum account value during the
tax year.
Valuing other specified foreign fi­
nancial assets. In most cases, you
may use the value of a specified
foreign financial asset, other than a
financial account, as of the last day of
the tax year, unless you know or have
reason to know based on readily
accessible information that the value
does not reflect a reasonable estimate

of the maximum value of the asset
during the tax year.
Example. I have publicly-traded
foreign stock not held in a
financial account that has a fair
market value as of the last day of
the tax year of $100,000, although,
based on daily price information
that is readily available, the
52-week high trading price for the
stock results in a maximum value
of the stock during the tax year of
$150,000. If you are required to file
Form 8938, the maximum value of the
foreign stock to be reported is
$150,000, based on readily available
information of the stock’s maximum
value during the tax year.
Valuing interests in foreign trusts.
If you are a beneficiary of a foreign
trust, the maximum value of your
interest in the trust is the sum of the
following amounts.
The value of all of the cash or other
property distributed during the tax
year from the trust to you as a
beneficiary, and
The value using the valuation tables
under section 7520 of your right as a
beneficiary to receive mandatory
distributions as of the last day of the
tax year.
Valuing interests in foreign es­
tates, foreign pension plans, and
foreign deferred compensation
plans. If you have an interest in a
foreign estate, foreign pension plan,
or foreign deferred compensation
plan, the maximum value of your
interest is the fair market value of your
beneficial interest in the assets of the
estate, pension plan, or deferred
compensation plan as of the last day
of the tax year. If you do not know or
have reason know based on readily
accessible information the fair market
value as of the last day of the tax year,
the maximum value is the fair market
value, determined as of the last day of
the tax year, of the cash and other
property distributed during the tax
year to you as a beneficiary or
participant. If you received no
distributions during the tax year and
do not know or have reason to know
based on readily accessible
information the fair market value of
your interest as of the last day of the
tax year, use a value of zero as the
maximum value of the asset.

Assets Not Required to be
Reported
You are not required to report the
following assets.
Certain financial accounts. The
following financial accounts and the
assets held in such accounts are not
specified foreign financial assets and
do not have to be reported on Form
8938.
1. A financial account that is
maintained by a U.S. payer, such as a
domestic financial institution. In
general, a U.S. payer also includes a
domestic branch of a foreign bank or
foreign insurance company and a
foreign branch or foreign subsidiary of
a U.S. financial institution.
Examples of financial accounts
maintained by U.S. financial
institutions include:
U.S. mutual funds accounts;
IRAs (traditional or Roth);
Section 401(k) retirement accounts;
Qualified U.S. retirement plans;
Brokerage accounts maintained by
U.S. financial institutions.
2. A financial account that is
maintained by a dealer or trader in
securities or commodities if all of the
holdings in the account are subject to
the mark-to-market accounting rules
for dealers in securities or an election
under section 475(e) or (f) is made for
all of the holdings in the account.
Certain financial assets. You do not
have to report any asset that is not
held in a financial account if the asset
is subject to the mark-to-market
accounting rules for dealers in
securities or commodities or an
election under section 475(e) or (f) is
made for the asset.
Exceptions to Reporting
Duplicative reporting. You do not
have to report any asset on Form
8938 if you report it on one or more of
the following forms that you timely file
with the IRS for the same tax year.
Form 3520, Annual Return To
Report Transactions With Foreign
Trusts and Receipt of Certain Foreign
Gifts.
Form 5471, Information Return of
U.S. Persons With Respect To
Certain Foreign Corporations.
Form 8621, Information Return by a
Shareholder of a Passive Foreign
­6­

Investment Company or Qualified
Electing Fund.
Form 8865, Return of U.S. Persons
With Respect to Certain Foreign
Partnerships.
Form 8891, U.S. Information Return
for Beneficiaries of Certain Canadian
Registered Retirement Plans.
Instead, you must identify on Form
8938 the form(s) on which you report
the specified foreign financial asset
and how many of these forms you file.
See Part IV. Excepted Specified
Foreign Financial Assets, later.
Foreign grantor trusts. If you are
considered the owner under the
grantor trust rules of any part of a
foreign trust, you do not have to report
any of the specified foreign financial
assets held by the part of the trust you
are considered to own if you satisfy
the following conditions.
You report the trust on a Form 3520
that you timely file with the IRS for the
same tax year.
The trust timely files Form 3520-A,
Annual Information Return of Foreign
Trust With a U.S. Owner, with the IRS
for the same tax year.
Instead, you must identify on Form
8938 how many of these forms you
file. See Part IV. Excepted Specified
Foreign Financial Assets, later.
If you are a specified
individual, you must include
CAUTION
the value of the assets
reported on Forms 3520, 3520-A,
5471, 8621, 8865, and 8891 in
determining whether you satisfy the
reporting threshold that applies to
you. See Reporting Thresholds
Applying to Specified Individuals,
earlier.

!

Domestic investment trusts. If you
are considered the owner under the
grantor trust rules of any part of a
domestic widely-held fixed investment
trust under Regulations section
1.671-5, you do not have to report any
specified foreign financial asset held
by the part of the trust you are
considered to own.
Domestic bankruptcy trusts. If you
are considered the owner under the
grantor trust rules of any part of a
domestic liquidating trust under
Regulations section 301.7701-4(d)
that is created under chapter 7 or
chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code,
you do not have to report any
Instructions for Form 8938 (2013)

specified foreign financial asset held
by the part of the trust you are
considered to own.
Bona fide resident of a U.S. pos­
session. If you are a bona fide
resident of a U.S. possession
(American Samoa, Guam, the
Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto
Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands) who is
required to file Form 8938, you do not
have to report the following specified
foreign financial assets on Form 8938.
A financial account maintained by
a financial institution organized under
the laws of the U.S. possession of
which you are a bona fide resident.
A financial account maintained by a
branch of a financial institution not
organized under the laws of the U.S.
possession of which you are a bona
fide resident, if the branch is subject
to the same tax and information
reporting requirements that apply to a
financial institution organized under
the laws of the U.S. possession of
which you are a bona fide resident.
Stock or securities issued by an
entity organized under the laws of the
U.S. possession of which you are a
bona fide resident.
An interest in an entity organized
under the laws of the U.S. possession
of which you are a bona fide resident.
A financial instrument or contract
held for investment, provided each
issuer or counterparty that is not a
U.S. person is either an entity
organized under the laws of the U.S.
possession of which you are a bona
fide resident or a bona fide resident of
the U.S. possession of which you are
a bona fide resident.

Penalties

You may be subject to penalties if you
fail to timely file a correct Form 8938
or if you have an understatement of
tax relating to an undisclosed
specified foreign financial asset.

Failure­to­File Penalty
If you are required to file Form 8938
but do not file a complete and correct
Form 8938 by the due date (including
extensions), you may be subject to a
penalty of $10,000.
Continuing failure to file. If you do
not file a correct and complete Form
8938 within 90 days after the IRS
mails you a notice of the failure to file,
you may be subject to an additional
penalty of $10,000 for each 30-day
Instructions for Form 8938 (2013)

period (or part of a period) during
which you continue to fail to file Form
8938 after the 90-day period has
expired. The maximum additional
penalty for a continuing failure to file
Form 8938 is $50,000.
Married taxpayers filing a joint in­
come tax return. If you are married
and you and your spouse file a joint
income tax return, the failure to file
penalties apply as if you and your
spouse were a single person. You and
your spouse’s liability for all penalties
is joint and several.
Presumption of maximum value. If
the IRS determines that you have an
interest in one or more specified
foreign financial assets and asks you
for information about the value of any
asset, but you do not provide enough
information for the IRS to determine
the value of the asset, you are
presumed to own specified foreign
financial assets with a value of more
than the reporting threshold that
applies to you. See Determining the
Reporting Threshold That Applies to
You, earlier. In such case you are
subject to the failure-to-file penalties if
you do not file Form 8938.
Reasonable cause exception. No
penalty will be imposed if you fail to
file Form 8938 or to disclose one or
more specified foreign financial assets
on Form 8938 and the failure is due to
reasonable cause and not to willful
neglect. You must affirmatively show
the facts that support a reasonable
cause claim.
The determination of whether a
failure to disclose a specified foreign
financial asset on Form 8938 was due
to reasonable cause and not due to
willful neglect will be determined on a
case-by-base basis, taking into
account all pertinent facts and
circumstances.
Effect of foreign jurisdiction
laws. The fact that a foreign
jurisdiction would impose a civil or
criminal penalty on you if you disclose
the required information is not
reasonable cause.
Accuracy­Related Penalty
If you underpay your tax as a result of
a transaction involving an undisclosed
specified foreign financial asset, you
may have to pay a penalty equal to 40
percent of that underpayment.
­7­

Examples. Examples of
underpayments due to transactions
involving an undisclosed specified
foreign financial asset include the
following.
You do not report ownership of
shares in a foreign corporation on
Form 8938 and you received tax
distributions from the company that
you did not report on your income tax
return.
You do not report ownership of
shares in a foreign company on Form
8938 and you sold the shares in the
company for a gain and did not report
the gain on your income tax return.
You do not report a foreign pension
on Form 8938 and you received a
taxable distribution from the pension
plan that you did not report on your
income tax return.
Fraud
If you underpay your tax due to fraud,
you must pay a penalty of 75 percent
of the underpayment due to fraud.
Criminal Penalties
In addition to the penalties already
discussed, if you fail to file Form 8938,
fail to report an asset, or have an
underpayment of tax, you may be
subject to criminal penalties.

Statute of Limitations

If you fail to file Form 8938 or fail to
report a specified foreign financial
asset that you are required to report,
the statute of limitations for the tax
year may remain open for all or a part
of your income tax return until 3 years
after the date on which you file Form
8938.
Extended statute of limitations for
failure to include income. If you do
not include in your gross income an
amount relating to one or more
specified foreign financial assets, and
the amount you omit is more than
$5,000, any tax you owe for the tax
year can be assessed at any time
within 6 years after you filed your
return.
For this purpose, specified foreign
financial assets include any specified
foreign financial assets in which you
have an interest without regard to the
reporting threshold that applies to you
and regardless of any exception from
reporting a specified foreign financial
asset on Form 8938.

Specific Instructions
Before you begin. If you are a
specified individual and report all of
your specified foreign financial assets
on timely-filed Forms 3520, 3520-A,
5471, 8621, 8865, or 8891, you do not
have to report them on Form 8938.
Instead, enter your name(s) and
identification number at the top of the
form and complete Part IV only. If you
report only a part of your specified
foreign financial assets on one or
more of these forms, report the
remaining assets on Form 8938 and
complete Part IV.
Additional sheets. If you have more
than one account or asset to report in
Part V or VI, or more than one issuer
or counterparty to report in Part VI,
use the continuation statement
provided after page 2. Copy as many
continuation statements as you need,
and attach the completed statements
to Form 8938 following page 2. Check
the box at the top of page 1 of the
form to indicate that you are attaching
continuation statements, and enter
the number of continuation
statements in the space provided.

Identifying Information

Enter your name(s) and identifying
number as shown on the annual
return you are filing with Form 8938.

Line 2. Report the total of all
maximum values for each of the
deposit accounts.
Line 3. Report the number of
custodial accounts reported on Form
8938.
Line 4. Report the maximum value
of all custodial accounts reported on
Form 8938.
Line 5. Indicate whether any
foreign deposit or custodial accounts
were closed during the tax year.
Part II. Other Foreign Assets
Summary
Use Part II to summarize information
regarding other foreign assets
reported on all Parts VI.
Line 1. Report the number of
foreign assets reported on Form
8938.
Line 2. Report the maximum value
of all other foreign assets.
Line 3. Indicate whether any
foreign assets were acquired or
disposed of during the tax year.
Part III. Summary of Tax Items
Attributable to Specified Foreign
Financial Assets

If you are a specified
individual (see Specified
individual, earlier) for less
than the entire tax year, you only have
to report the information for the part of
the year that you are a specified
individual.

Enter the following items for your total
assets reported in Part V or Part VI
and the schedule, form, or return on
which you reported the items.
Interest.
Dividends.
Royalties.
Gains or (losses).
Deductions.
Credits.

Identifying number. Enter the first
social security number (SSN) or
individual taxpayer identification
number (ITIN) on your income tax
return.

If you did not report any tax item for
a specified foreign financial asset on
any form or schedule for the tax year,
check the box on line 3d of Part V or
Part VI for the account or asset.

Part I. Foreign Deposit and
Custodial Accounts Summary

Part IV. Excepted Specified
Foreign Financial Assets

TIP

Use Part I to summarize information
regarding foreign deposit and
custodial accounts reported on all
Parts V.
Line 1. Report the number of
deposit accounts reported on Form
8938.

If you reported a specified foreign
financial asset on certain other forms
listed below for the same tax year, you
may not have to report it on Form
8938. However, you must identify the
form where you reported the asset by
indicating how many forms you filed.

­8­

For more information, see
Duplicative reporting, earlier. If you
reported a specified foreign financial
asset on one or more of the following
forms, enter the number of forms filed.
Form 3520.
Form 3520-A.
Form 5471.
Form 8621.
Form 8865.
Form 8891.
Foreign grantor trusts. If you are
treated as an owner of any part of a
foreign grantor trust, you may have to
file Form 8938 to report specified
foreign financial assets held by the
trust. If you are a beneficiary of the
foreign trust, you may have to file
Form 8938 to report your interest in
the trust. You do not have to report on
Form 8938 any specified foreign
financial asset held by the trust or
your interest in the trust if you report
the trust on a Form 3520 you timely
file for the tax year and the trust timely
files Form 3520-A for the tax year.
Part V. Detailed Information for
each Foreign Deposit and
Custodial Account Included in the
Part I Summary
Use Part V to report information for
foreign deposit and custodial
accounts. If you have more than one
account, attach a continuation sheet
with the required information for each
additional account and check the box
at the top of page 1 of the form.
Lines 1 through 9. Enter the
following information for each foreign
deposit or custodial account.
Line 1. Check the box to indicate
if this is a depository or a custodial
account.
Line 2. Enter the account number
of the account or other specific
identifying information for the account
if there is no account number.
Line 3. Check one or more boxes
to indicate if any of the following
applies.
The account was opened during
the tax year.
The account was closed during the
tax year.
The account was jointly owned with
your spouse.
You did not report any tax item in
Part III for this asset.
Instructions for Form 8938 (2013)

Line 4. Enter the maximum value
of the account during the tax year.
See Reporting Maximum
Value, earlier, for information
on determining the maximum
value of the account.

TIP

Joint interests. Use the following
rules to determine the maximum value
to report.
Spouses filing a joint return. You
and your spouse report the maximum
value of an account held jointly by you
and your spouse only once on the
single Form 8938 filed with your joint
income tax return.
Spouses filing separate returns.
You and your spouse each report the
maximum value of an account held
jointly by you and your spouse on your
separate Forms 8938 filed with your
separate income tax returns.
Other joint owners. Report the
maximum value of the entire jointly
held account on your Form 8938 filed
with your income tax return,
regardless of the value of your
separate interest in the account.
Lines 5 and 6. If you used a
foreign currency exchange rate to
convert the value of the account into
U.S. dollars, check the “Yes,” box on
line 5 and go to line 6. Otherwise,
check the “No,” box and go to line 7.
Line 6. If you answered “Yes,” on
line 5, enter the following information.
1. The foreign currency in which
the account is denominated.
2. The foreign currency exchange
rate used to convert the value of the
account into U.S. dollars.
3. If the U.S. Treasury Financial
Management Service did not provide
an exchange rate, the source of the
foreign currency exchange rate that
you used.
You must use the foreign
currency exchange rate on
CAUTION
the last day of the tax year,
even if you closed or disposed of the
account before the last day of the tax
year.

!

Lines 7 through 9. Enter the
name and mailing address of the
financial institution in which you
maintain this account.

Instructions for Form 8938 (2013)

Part VI. Detailed Information for
each "Other Foreign Asset"
Included in Part II Summary
Use Part VI to report information for
specified foreign financial assets not
held in a financial account. If you have
more than one asset, attach a
continuation sheet with the required
information for each additional asset
and check the box at the top of page 1
of the form.
Lines 1 through 8. Enter the
following information for each
specified foreign financial asset not
held in a financial account. For
examples of these foreign assets, see
Other specified foreign financial
assets, earlier.
Line 1. Enter a description of the
asset. If the asset is stock or
securities, include the class or issue
of the stock or securities.
Example 1. You own 100 shares
of XYZ Company, an Italian S.A. A
sufficient description is “100 Class A
shares of XYZ Company, S.A.”
Example 2. You own a bond
issued by AB GmbH, a German
GmbH. A sufficient description is
“Bond of AB GmbH, maturing on
December 31, 2015.”
Line 2. Enter the identifying
number or other information
identifying the asset.
Line 3. Enter the following
information about the asset, if
required.
1. If the asset was acquired or
disposed of during the year, enter the
date of acquisition and/or disposition.
If the assets were acquired or
disposed during different dates in the
year, enter “Various.”
2. If you own the asset jointly with
your spouse, check the box on line 3c.
3. If you did not report any income,
gain, loss, deduction, or credit for this
asset on your tax return or any
schedule or form attached to your
income tax return filed for the tax year,
check the box on line 3d.
Line 4. Check the box for the
value range that represents the
maximum value of the asset during
the tax year. If the maximum value is
more than $200,000, enter the
maximum value on line 4e.

­9­

See Reporting Maximum
Value, earlier, for information
on determining the maximum
value of the asset.

TIP

Joint interests. Use the following
rules to figure the maximum value to
report.
Spouses filing a joint return. You
and your spouse report the maximum
value of an asset held jointly by you
and your spouse only once on the
single Form 8938 filed with your joint
income tax return.
Spouses filing separate returns.
You and your spouse each report the
maximum value of an asset held
jointly by you and your spouse on your
separate Forms 8938 filed with your
separate income tax returns.
Other joint owners. Report the
maximum value of the entire jointly
held asset on your Form 8938 filed
with your income tax return,
regardless of the value of your
separate interest in the asset.
Lines 5 and 6. If you used a
foreign currency exchange rate to
convert the value of the asset into
U.S. dollars, check the “Yes,” box on
line 5 and go to line 6. Otherwise,
check the “No,” box and go to line 7.
Line 6. If you answered “Yes,” to
line 5, enter the following information.
1. The foreign currency in which
the asset is denominated.
2. The foreign currency exchange
rate used to convert the value of the
asset into U.S. dollars.
3. If the U.S. Treasury Financial
Management Service did not provide
an exchange rate, the source of the
foreign currency exchange rate that
you used.
You must use the foreign
currency exchange rate on
CAUTION
the last day of the tax year,
even if you sold or disposed of the
asset before the last day of the tax
year.

!

Lines 7a through 7d. If the asset
you reported on line 1 is stock of a
foreign entity or an interest in a foreign
entity, complete lines 7a through 7d.
Line 7a. Enter the name of the
foreign entity.
Line 7b. Check the box on line 7b
to indicate the type of foreign entity.

Lines 7c and 7d. Enter the
mailing address of the foreign entity.
Lines 8a through 8e. If the asset
you reported on line 1 is not stock of a
foreign entity or an interest in a foreign
entity, complete lines 8a through 8e.
Note. If this asset has more than one
issuer or counterparty, copy the
continuation statement provided after
page 2 as many times as needed and
complete a separate line 8 for each
issuer or counterparty. Check the box
at the top of page 1 of the form.
Line 8a. Enter the name of the
issuer or counterparty and check the
appropriate box to indicate if you are
reporting for an issuer or a
counterparty.
Line 8b. Check the appropriate
box to indicate the type of issuer or
counterparty.
Line 8c. Check the box to indicate
if the issuer or counterparty is a U.S.
person or a foreign person.
Lines 8d and 8e. Enter the
mailing address of the issuer or

counterparty. If the issuer or
counterparty has a mailing address in
the United States, you can enter the
U.S. mailing address.
Paperwork Reduction Act Notice
We ask for the information on this
form to carry out the Internal Revenue
laws of the United States. Section
6038D requires specified individuals
and, upon issuance of regulations,
specified domestic entities to report
specified foreign financial assets in
which they have an interest. Form
8938 is used to comply with this
reporting requirement.
You are not required to provide the
information requested on a form that
is subject to the Paperwork Reduction
Act unless the form displays a valid
OMB control number. Books or
records relating to a form or its
instructions must be retained as long
as their contents may become
material in the administration of any
Internal Revenue law. Generally, tax
returns and return information are
confidential, as required by section
6103.

­10­

The time needed to complete and
file the form will vary depending on
individual circumstances. The
estimated average times are:
Learning about
the law or the
form . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing the
form . . . . . . . . . .
Copying,
assembling,
and sending the
form to the IRS . .

57 min.
2 hrs., 52 min.

48 min.

If you have comments concerning
the accuracy of this time estimate or
suggestions for making this form
simpler, we would be happy to hear
from you. See the instructions for the
tax return with which this form is filed.

Instructions for Form 8938 (2013)

Index

To help us develop a more useful index, please let us know if you have ideas for index entries.
See “Comments and Suggestions” in the “Introduction” for the ways you can reach us.

A
Accuracy-Related Penalty:
Examples 7
Assets Not Required to be
Reported:
Bona fide resident of a
U.S. possession 6
Domestic bankruptcy
trusts 6
Domestic investment
trusts 6
Duplicative reporting 6
Excepted financial
accounts 6
Foreign grantor trusts 6
Other excepted specified
foreign financial
assets 6
C
Criminal Penalties 7
D
Determining the Total Value
of Your Specified
Foreign Financial
Assets:
Assets reported on
another form 2
Asset with no positive
value 2
Joint interests 2
Value of an interest in a
foreign estate, foreign
pension plan, and
foreign deferred
compensation plan. 2
Value of an interest in a
foreign trust during the
tax year. 2
Valuing specified foreign
financial assets 2
E
Exception if no income tax
return required. 1
F
Failure-to-File Penalty 7
Continuing failure to
file. 7
Foreign currency
conversion:
Currency determination
date 5
Fraud Penalty 7
G
General Instructions:
Future developments 1
Items of Interest 1
Purpose of Form 1

Specified Foreign
Financial Assets 1
What's New 1
When and How To File 1
I
Identifying Information.:
Form 8938 for previously
filed annual return 8
Identifying number 8
Type of filer 8
Interests in Specified
Foreign Financial
Assets:
Assets generating
certain unearned
income of children
(Kiddie tax election) 4
Assets held by
disregarded
entities. 4
Assets held by entities
that are not
disregarded entities 4
Assets held by grantor
trust 4
Assets held in financial
accounts 4
Foreign estates and
foreign trusts 4
Foreign pension plans
and foreign deferred
compensation
plans. 4
Jointly owned assets 4
J
Joint interests 2, 3
Examples 3
Joint ownership with
spouse filing joint
income tax return. 2
Joint ownership with a
spouse who is not a
specified individual or
someone other than a
spouse. 3
Joint ownership with
spouse filing separate
income tax return. 2
M
Married taxpayers filing a
joint income tax return
living outside the United
States 2
Married taxpayers filing
separate income tax
returns living outside the
United States 2
P
Paperwork Reduction Act
Notice 10

Part I, Foreign Deposit and
Custodial Accounts
Summary:
Line 1 8
Line 2 8
Line 3 8
Line 4 8
Line 5 8
Part II, Other Foreign
Assets Summary:
Line 1 8
Line 2 8
Line 3 8
Part III. Summary of Tax
Items Attributable to
Specified Foreign
Financial Assets 8
Part IV. Excepted Specified
Foreign Financial
Assets:
Foreign grantor trusts 8
Part V. Detailed Information
for each Foreign Deposit
and Custodial Account
Included in the Part I
Summary:
Line 1 8
Line 2 8
Line 3 8
Line 4 8
Line 5 8
Line 6 8
Line 7 8
Line 8 8
Line 9 8
Part VI. Detailed
Information for each
"Other Foreign Asset"
Included in Part II
Summary:
Joint interests 9
Line 1 9
Line 2 9
Line 3 9
Line 4 9
Lines 5 and 6 9
Lines 7a through 7d 9
Lines 8a through 8e 9
Penalties:
Penalties, Criminal 7
Continuing failure to
file. 7
Failure-to-File Penalty 7
Married taxpayers filing a
joint income tax
return 7
Presumption of
maximum value 7
Reasonable cause
exception:
Effect of foreign
jurisdiction laws 7
Penalty,
Accuracy-Related 7
Presence abroad. 2
Purpose of Form 1

­11­

R
Regulations, future 1
Reporting Maximum Value:
Assets with no positive
value 5
Foreign currency
conversion 5
Reporting the value of
jointly owned
assets 5
Valuing financial
accounts 5
Valuing interests in
foreign estates,
foreign pension plans,
and foreign deferred
compensation
plans. 5
Valuing interests in
foreign trusts 5
Valuing other specified
foreign financial
assets 5
Reporting Period:
Examples 5
Exception for partial tax
years of specified
individuals. 5
Reporting the value of
jointly owned assets:
Married specified
individuals filing a joint
income tax return 5
Married specified
individuals filing
separate income tax
returns 5
Other joint ownership 5
Reporting Threshold
Applying to Specified
Individuals:
Married taxpayers filing a
joint income tax return
and living in the
United States 1
Married taxpayers filing
separate returns and
living in the United
States 1
Presence abroad 1
Taxpayers living
abroad 1
Unmarried taxpayer
living in the United
States 1
S
Specific Instructions:
Additional sheets 8
Specified Domestic
Entity 1
Specified Foreign Financial
Assets:
Assets held for
investment 4
Financial account 4

Specified Foreign Financial Assets (Cont.)

Foreign financial
institution 4
Foreign social security 4
Other specified foreign
financial assets 4
Specified Individual 1
Special rules for resident
aliens 1
Statute of Limitations:
Extended statute of
limitations 7

T
Taxpayers living outside the
United States 2

U
Unmarried taxpayers living
outside the United
States 2
V
Valuing other specified
foreign financial assets.:
Example 5

W
What's New:
Part I, Foreign Deposit
and Custodial
Accounts Summary 1
Part II, Other Foreign
Assets Summary 1
When and How To File:
Individual taxpayers
transitional rule. 1
Who Must File:
Exception if no income
tax return required 1
Specified individual 1

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