3520-A Instructions for Form 3520-A Annual Return of Foreign Tr

2020

Instructions for Form 3520-A

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

Annual Information Return of Foreign Trust With a U.S. Owner
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code
unless otherwise noted.

Future Developments
For the latest information about developments related to
Form 3520-A and its instructions, such as legislation
enacted after they were published, go to IRS.gov/
Form3520A.

What’s New
Exemption from information reporting under section
6048. Rev. Proc. 2020-17 exempts from foreign trust
information reporting certain eligible individuals’
transactions. See Exceptions To Filing, later.

General Instructions
Purpose of Form

Form 3520-A is the annual information return of a foreign
trust with at least one U.S. owner. The form provides
information about the foreign trust, its U.S. beneficiaries,
and any U.S. person who is treated as an owner of any
portion of the foreign trust under the grantor trust rules
(sections 671 through 679).

Who Must File

A foreign trust with a U.S. owner must file Form 3520-A in
order for the U.S. owner to satisfy its annual information
reporting requirements under section 6048(b). Each U.S.
person treated as an owner of any portion of a foreign
trust under the grantor trust rules (sections 671 through
679) is responsible for ensuring that the foreign trust files
Form 3520-A and furnishes the required annual
statements to its U.S. owners and U.S. beneficiaries. If a
foreign trust fails to file Form 3520-A, the U.S. owner must
complete and attach a substitute Form 3520-A for the
foreign trust to the U.S. owner’s Form 3520, Annual
Return To Report Transactions With Foreign Trusts and
Receipt of Certain Foreign Gifts, by the due date of the
U.S. owner’s Form 3520 (and not the due date for the
Form 3520-A, which is otherwise due by the 15th day of
the 3rd month after the end of the trust’s tax year) in order
to avoid being subject to the additional separate penalty
for the foreign trust’s failure to file a Form 3520-A. See
Line 22 in the Instructions for Form 3520. See Penalties,
later.

Exceptions To Filing

Rev. Proc. 2014-55, exempts from foreign trust
information reporting certain Canadian retirement plans,
including Canadian registered retirement savings plans
(RRSPs) and Canadian registered retirement income
funds (RRIFs), regardless of whether you are an eligible
individual described in section 4.01 of Rev. Proc.
Dec 04, 2020

2014-55. For more information about whether your
Canadian retirement plan qualifies for an exemption from
foreign trust information reporting, see sections 3 and 5 of
Rev. Proc. 2014-55, 2014-44 I.R.B. 753, available at
IRS.gov/irb/2014-44_IRB/ar10.html.
Rev. Proc. 2020-17 exempts from foreign trust
information reporting certain eligible individuals’
transactions with, and ownership of, certain tax-favored
foreign trusts that are established and operated
exclusively or almost exclusively to provide pension or
retirement benefits, or to provide medical, disability, or
educational benefits. For more information about whether
you are an eligible individual, and whether your foreign
trust qualifies for an exemption from foreign trust
information reporting, see section 5 of Rev. Proc.
2020-17, 2020-12 I.R.B. 539, available at IRS.gov/irb/
2020-12_IRB#REV-PROC-2020-17.
The exemptions from foreign trust information reporting
described in Rev. Proc. 2014-55 and Rev. Proc. 2020-17
do not affect any reporting obligations under section
6038D or under any other provision of the U.S. law,
including the requirement to file Financial Crimes
Enforcement (FinCEN) Form 114, Report of Foreign Bank
and Financial Accounts (FBAR), imposed by 31 U.S.C.
section 5314 and the regulations thereunder. For more
information, go to IRS.gov/FBAR.

When and Where To File

File a complete Form 3520-A (including the statements on
pages 3 through 5) with the Internal Revenue Service
Center, P.O. Box 409101, Ogden, UT 84409, by the 15th
day of the 3rd month after the end of the trust's tax year.
However, if you are filing a substitute Form 3520-A with
your Form 3520, then your substitute Form 3520-A is due
by the due date of Form 3520. See the Instructions for
Form 3520 for the due date of the Form 3520. Give copies
of the Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement (pages
3 and 4 of Form 3520-A) and the Foreign Grantor Trust
Beneficiary Statement (page 5 of Form 3520-A) to the
U.S. owners and U.S. beneficiaries by the 15th day of the
3rd month after the end of the trust's tax year, or later if an
extension of time to file is granted or if filing a substitute
Form 3520-A.
An automatic 6-month extension of time to file Form
3520-A (including the statements on pages 3 through 5)
may be granted by filing Form 7004, Application for
Automatic Extension of Time To File Certain Business
Income Tax, Information, and Other Returns, with the
foreign trust’s employer identification number (EIN) by the
15th day of the 3rd month after the end of the trust’s tax
year. For details, see Form 7004.
Note. An extension of time to file an income tax return will
not provide an extension of time to file Form 3520-A. Form

Cat. No. 25096U

Additional penalties will be imposed if the
noncompliance continues for more than 90 days after the
IRS mails a notice of failure to comply with the required
reporting. If the IRS can determine the gross value
(defined later) of the portion of the trust’s assets treated
as owned by the U.S. person at the close of the tax year,
then the penalties will be reduced as necessary to assure
that the aggregate amount of such penalties does not
exceed the gross value of the trust. For more information,
see section 6677.

7004 with the foreign trust’s EIN must be filed in order to
request an extension of time to file Form 3520-A.
Form 3520-A must have all required attachments to be
considered complete.

Who Must Sign

If the return is filed by:
• An individual or fiduciary, it must be signed and dated
by that individual or fiduciary;
• A partnership, it must be signed and dated by a general
partner or limited liability company member; or
• A corporation, it must be signed and dated by the
president, vice president, treasurer, assistant treasurer,
chief accounting officer, or any other corporate officer
(such as a tax officer) authorized to sign.

Criminal penalties may be imposed under sections
7203, 7206, and 7207 for failure to file on time and for
filing a false or fraudulent return.
Note. If a U.S. owner of a foreign trust is subject to a
penalty imposed under section 6662 for an underpayment
of tax required to be shown on a return, then such penalty
may be increased under section 6662(j) for any portion of
an underpayment which is attributable to any transaction
involving any asset with respect to which information was
required to be provided on Form 3520-A. For more
information about undisclosed foreign financial asset
understatements, see section 6662(j).

Note. If the return is a substitute Form 3520-A that is
being completed by a U.S. owner and attached to the U.S.
owner’s Form 3520, then the U.S. owner must sign and
date the return and provide the U.S. owner’s name and
taxpayer identification number (TIN) on the “Title” line of
the signature box. For more information about the
requirements to file a substitute Form 3520-A, see Line 22
in the Instructions for Form 3520.

Reasonable cause. No penalties will be imposed if the
taxpayer can demonstrate that the failure to comply with
the reporting requirements was due to reasonable cause
and not willful neglect.

The paid preparer must complete the required preparer
information and:
• Sign the return in the space provided for the preparer's
signature, and
• Give a copy of the return to the filer.

Note. The fact that a foreign country would impose
penalties for disclosing the required information is not
reasonable cause. Similarly, reluctance on the part of a
foreign fiduciary or provisions in the trust instrument that
prevent the disclosure of required information is not
reasonable cause. See section 6677(d) for more
information.

Inconsistent Treatment of Items

The U.S. beneficiary’s and U.S. owner’s tax returns must
be consistent with the Form 3520-A, Annual Information
Return of Foreign Trust With a U.S. Owner, filed by the
foreign trust unless you report the inconsistency to the
Internal Revenue Service (IRS). If the U.S. beneficiaries or
U.S. owners are treating items on their tax returns
differently from the way the foreign trust treated them on
its return, they must file Form 8082, Notice of Inconsistent
Treatment or Administrative Adjustment Request (AAR).
See Form 8082 for more details.

Definitions
Distribution

A distribution received directly or indirectly from a foreign
trust for section 6048(c) reporting purposes is any
gratuitous transfer of money or other property from a
foreign trust, whether or not a portion of such trust is
treated as a grantor trust under the grantor trust rules of
sections 671 through 679, and without regard to whether
the recipient is designated as a beneficiary by the terms of
the trust. A distribution includes the receipt of trust corpus
and the receipt of a gift or bequest described in section
663(a).

Penalties

The U.S. owner is subject to an initial penalty equal to the
greater of $10,000 or 5% of the gross value (defined later)
of the portion of the trust's assets treated as owned by the
U.S. person at the close of that tax year if the foreign trust
(a) fails to file a timely Form 3520-A, or (b) does not
furnish all of the information required by section 6048(b)
or includes incorrect information. See section 6677(a)
through (c).

A distribution also includes constructive transfers from
a foreign trust. For example, if charges you make on a
credit card are paid by a foreign trust or guaranteed or
secured by the assets of a foreign trust, the amount
charged will be treated as a distribution to you by the
foreign trust. Similarly, if you write checks on a foreign
trust's bank account, the amount will be treated as a
distribution. Also, if you receive a payment from a foreign
trust in exchange for property transferred to the trust or
services rendered to the trust, and the fair market value
(FMV) of the payment you received exceeds the FMV of
the property transferred or services rendered, the excess
will be treated as a distribution to you. See section V of

If a foreign trust fails to file a Form 3520-A, the U.S.
owner must complete and attach a substitute Form
3520-A to the U.S. owner’s Form 3520 by the due date of
the U.S. owner’s Form 3520 (and not the due date for
Form 3520-A) in order to avoid being subject to a penalty
for the foreign trust’s failure to file a Form 3520-A. For
example, a substitute Form 3520-A that, to the best of the
U.S. owner’s ability, is completed and attached to the U.S.
owner’s Form 3520 by the due date for the Form 3520
(such as April 15 for the U.S. owners who are individuals)
is considered timely filed.
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Instructions for Form 3520-A (2020)

appraisals are generally not required, you should keep
contemporaneous records of how you arrived at your
good faith estimate.

Notice 97-34, 1997-25 I.R.B. 22, available at IRS.gov/pub/
irs-irbs/irb97-25.pdf.
Examples:
1. If you sell stock with an FMV of $100 to a foreign
trust and receive $150 in exchange, you have received a
distribution of $50.
2. If you receive $100 from the trust for services
performed by you for the trust, and the services have an
FMV of $20, you have received a distribution of $80.

Nongrantor Trust

A nongrantor trust is any trust to the extent that the assets
of the trust are not treated as owned by a person other
than the trust under the grantor trust rules in sections 671
through 679. Thus, a nongrantor trust is treated as a
taxable entity. A trust may be treated as a nongrantor trust
with respect to only a portion of the trust assets. See
Grantor Trust, earlier.

Foreign Trust and Domestic Trust

A foreign trust is any trust other than a domestic trust. A
domestic trust is any trust if:
1. A court within the United States is able to exercise
primary supervision over the administration of the trust,
and
2. One or more U.S. persons have the authority to
control all substantial decisions of the trust.

Owner

An owner of a foreign trust is the person that is treated as
owning any of the assets of a foreign trust under the
grantor trust rules.

Property

Property means any property, whether tangible or
intangible, including cash.

Grantor

A grantor includes any person who creates a trust or
directly or indirectly makes a gratuitous transfer of cash or
other property to a trust. A grantor includes any person
treated as the owner of any part of a foreign trust's assets
under sections 671 through 679, excluding section 678.

U.S. Agent

A U.S. agent is a U.S. person (defined later) that has a
binding contract with a foreign trust that allows the U.S.
person to act as the trust's authorized U.S. agent (see the
instructions for Lines 3a through 3g under Part I, later) in
applying sections 7602, 7603, and 7604 with respect to:
• Any request by the IRS to examine records or produce
testimony related to the proper U.S. tax treatment of
amounts distributed, or required to be taken into account
under the grantor trust rules, with respect to a foreign
trust; or
• Any summons by the IRS for such records or testimony.
A U.S. grantor, a U.S. beneficiary, or a domestic
corporation controlled by the grantor or beneficiary may
act as a U.S. agent. However, you may not treat the
foreign trust as having a U.S. agent unless you enter the
name, address, and TIN of the U.S. agent on lines 3a
through 3g of Part I of the form. See Taxpayer
identification numbers (TINs), later.
If a foreign trust with a U.S. owner does not have a U.S.
agent, the IRS may redetermine the amounts required to
be taken into account with respect to the foreign trust by
the U.S. owner. See section 6048(b)(2). The agency
relationship must be established by the time the U.S.
person files Form 3520-A for the relevant tax year and
must continue as long as the statute of limitations remains
open for the relevant tax year. If the agent’s responsibility
as an agent of the trust is terminated for any reason (for
example, agent’s resignation, agent’s liquidation, or
agent’s death), see section IV.B of Notice 97-34.

Note. If a partnership or corporation makes a gratuitous
transfer to a trust, the partners or shareholders are
generally treated as the grantors of the trust, unless the
partnership or corporation made the transfer for a
business purpose of the partnership or corporation.
If a trust makes a gratuitous transfer to another trust,
the grantor of the transferor trust is treated as the grantor
of the transferee trust, except that if a person with a
general power of appointment over the transferor trust
exercises that power in favor of another trust, such person
is treated as the grantor of the transferee trust, even if the
grantor of the transferor trust is treated as the owner of the
transferor trust.

Grantor Trust

A grantor trust is any trust to the extent that the assets of
the trust are treated as owned by a person other than the
trust. See the grantor trust rules in sections 671 through
679. A part of the trust may be treated as a grantor trust to
the extent that only a portion of the trust assets are owned
by a person other than the trust.
Note. Under the HIRE Act, effective after March 18,
2010, if a foreign trust directly or indirectly loans cash or
marketable securities to a U.S. person who does not
repay the loan at a market rate of interest, or allows a U.S.
person to use trust property without paying FMV within a
reasonable period of time, the trust will be treated as
having a U.S. beneficiary and is therefore treated as a
grantor trust under the grantor trust rules.

U.S. Beneficiary

A U.S. beneficiary generally includes any U.S. person that
could possibly benefit (directly or indirectly) from the trust
(including an amended trust) at any time, whether or not
the person is designated in the trust instrument as a
beneficiary and whether or not the person can receive a
distribution from the trust in the current year. In addition, a
U.S. beneficiary includes:
• A foreign corporation that is a controlled foreign
corporation (as defined in section 957(a)),

Gross Value

Gross value is the value of property as determined under
section 2512 and its regulations, without regard to any
prohibitions or restrictions on a person's interest in the
property. See section VII of Notice 97-34. Although formal
Instructions for Form 3520-A (2020)

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• A foreign partnership if a U.S. person is a partner of the
partnership, and
• A foreign estate or trust if the estate or trust has a U.S.
beneficiary. See section II of Notice 97-34 and the
regulations under section 679 for additional information.

U.S. Person

A U.S. person is:
• A citizen or resident alien of the United States, including
dual residents who claim the benefits under an income tax
treaty (see Pub. 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens, for
guidance on determining resident alien status);
• A domestic partnership;
• A domestic corporation;
• Any estate (other than a foreign estate, within the
meaning of section 7701(a)(31)(A)); and
• Any domestic trust (defined earlier).

Foreign trust treated as having a U.S. beneficiary. In
general, if a U.S. person, directly or indirectly, transfers
property to a foreign trust (other than a deferred
compensation or charitable trust described in section
6048(a)(3)(B)(ii)), the foreign trust will be treated as
having a U.S. beneficiary unless the terms of the trust
instrument specifically prohibit any distribution of income
or corpus to a U.S. person at any time, even after the
death of the U.S. transferor or any event terminating the
trust, and the trust cannot be amended or revised to allow
such a distribution. For these purposes, an amount will be
treated as accumulated for the benefit of a U.S. person
even if the U.S. person's interest in the trust is contingent
on a future event and regardless of whether anything is
actually distributed to a U.S. person during that tax year.
Special rule in case of discretion to identify
beneficiaries. For purposes of the general rule above, if
any person has the discretion of making a distribution
from the trust to, or for the benefit of, any person, the trust
will be treated as having a beneficiary who is a U.S.
person, unless the terms of the trust specifically identify
the class of persons to whom such distributions may be
made, and none of those persons are U.S. persons during
the tax year.
Certain agreements and understandings treated as
terms of the trust. For purposes of the general rule
above, if any U.S. person who directly or indirectly
transfers property to the trust is directly or indirectly
involved in any agreement or understanding (whether
written, oral, or otherwise) that may result in the income or
corpus of the trust being paid or accumulated to, or for the
benefit of, a U.S. person, such agreement or
understanding will be treated as a term of the trust.
Certain loans or uncompensated use of trust
property. If a foreign trust is not already treated as
having a U.S. beneficiary under the rules described
above, the trust will be treated as having a U.S.
beneficiary if, after March 18, 2010, either:
• The foreign trust loans cash or marketable securities,
directly or indirectly, to a U.S. person and the U.S. person
does not repay the loan at a market rate of interest within
a reasonable period of time; or
• A U.S. person, directly or indirectly, uses property that
is owned by the foreign trust and does not pay FMV of the
use of such property within a reasonable period of time.

Specific Instructions
Period Covered

File the 2020 return for calendar year 2020 and fiscal
years that begin in 2020 and end in 2021. For a fiscal
year, fill in the tax year in the space at the top of the form.

Initial Return, Final Return, Amended
Return, Extension Filed, Substitute
Form 3520-A
Initial return. If this is the foreign trust's first return,
check the “Initial return” box.
Final return. If the foreign trust ceases to exist, check
the “Final return” box.
Amended return. If this Form 3520-A is filed to amend a
Form 3520-A that you previously filed, check the
“Amended return” box.
Extension filed. If the Form 7004 was timely filed to
request an extension for the Form 3520-A, check the
“Extension filed” box.
Substitute Form 3520-A. If you are a U.S. owner of the
foreign trust filing a substitute Form 3520-A and attaching
it to your Form 3520, check the “Substitute Form 3520-A”
box.

Excepted Specified Foreign Financial
Assets Reported

Check the box only if a U.S. person treated as the owner
of any portion of the trust under the grantor trust rules also
files Form 8938, Statement of Specified Foreign Financial
Assets, for the tax year and includes this form in the total
number of Forms 3520-A reported on line 2 of Part IV,
Excepted Specified Foreign Financial Assets, of Form
8938. For more information, see the Instructions for Form
8938, generally, and in particular, Duplicative reporting
and the specific instructions for Part IV.

Presumption that foreign trust has U.S. beneficiary.
For transfers of property after March 18, 2010, if a U.S.
person, directly or indirectly, transfers property to a
foreign trust (other than a deferred compensation or
charitable trust described in section 6048(a)(3)(B)(ii)), the
IRS may treat such trust as having a U.S. beneficiary for
purposes of applying section 679(d) to such transfer if the
IRS requests information with respect to the transfer and
the U.S. person fails to demonstrate to the satisfaction of
the IRS that no portion of the income or corpus of the trust
may ever be paid to or accumulated for the benefit of a
U.S. person.

Part I—General Information
Taxpayer identification numbers (TINs). Use social
security numbers (SSNs) or individual taxpayer
identification numbers (ITINs) to identify individuals. Use
EINs to identify estates, trusts, partnerships, and
corporations. Don’t use an SSN in place of an EIN.
Applying for an EIN. If you don’t have an EIN, you may
apply for one online at IRS.gov/EIN. If the principal
business was created or organized outside of the United
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Instructions for Form 3520-A (2020)

States or U.S. territories, you may also apply for an EIN by
calling 267-941-1099 (toll call).

AUTHORIZATION OF AGENT
[ Name of foreign trust ] hereby expressly authorizes [ name of
U.S. agent ] to act as its agent solely for purposes of sections
7602, 7603, and 7604 of the Internal Revenue Code with respect to
any request to examine records or produce testimony related to the
proper treatment of amounts required to be taken into account
under the rules of section 6048(b)(2)(A) or to any summons for such
records or testimony. I certify that I have the authority to execute
this authorization of agent to act on behalf of [ name of foreign
trust ].

Do not enter a preparer tax identification number
(PTIN) in any entry space on Form 3520-A other
CAUTION than the entry space for “PTIN” at the bottom of
page 1 of the form.

!

Address. Include the room, suite, or other unit number
after the street address. If the post office does not deliver
mail to the street address and the U.S. person has a P.O.
box, show the box number instead.

Signature of trustee
(or other authorized person)

Foreign address. Do not abbreviate the country name.
Line 1b. Enter the EIN of the foreign trust. Do not enter
an SSN or ITIN. Only EINs should be used to identify the
foreign trust.

(title)

(date)

Your Name (type or print)
Identification Number (if any)

Line 2. If the trust did not appoint a U.S. agent, attach the
following documents to Form 3520-A.
• A summary of the terms of the trust that includes a
summary of any oral agreements or understandings you
have with the trustee, whether or not legally enforceable.
• A copy of all trust documents (and any revisions),
including the trust instrument, any memoranda of wishes
prepared by the trustees summarizing the settlor's wishes,
any letter of wishes prepared by the settlor summarizing
his or her wishes, and any similar documents.
• A copy of the trust’s organizational chart, including
ownership structure and percentage of ownership.

Address

[ Name of agent ] accepts this appointment to act as agent
for [ name of foreign trust ] for the above purpose. I certify that I
have the authority to execute this authorization of agent to act on
behalf of [ name of foreign trust ] and agree to accept service of
process for the above purposes.

Signature of agent

(title)

(date)

Your Name (type or print)

Note. If these documents have been attached to a Form
3520-A filed within the previous 3 years, attach only
relevant updates.

Identification Number (if any)
Address

Lines 3a through 3g. If a foreign trust with a U.S. owner
does not have a U.S. agent, the IRS may determine the
amounts required to be taken into account with respect to
the foreign trust by the U.S. owner. See section 6048(b)
(2). In order to avoid this, a U.S. owner of a foreign trust
should ensure that the foreign trust appoints a U.S.
person to act as the foreign trust's limited agent for
purposes of applying sections 7602, 7603, and 7604 with
respect to a request by the IRS to examine records or
produce testimony, or a summons by the IRS for such
records or testimony. Any U.S. citizen, resident alien, or
domestic corporation (including a U.S. grantor or U.S.
beneficiary of a foreign trust) may act as the U.S. agent of
the trust.
In order to authorize a U.S. person to act as an agent
under section 6048(b), the trust and the agent must enter
into a binding agreement substantially in the format that
follows. Attach a copy of the authorization to Form
3520-A.

!

Do not enter a PTIN on the authorization form.

CAUTION

Line 5. Enter the number of Foreign Grantor Trust
Owner Statements (pages 3 and 4) included with this
Form 3520-A.
Line 6. Enter the number of Foreign Grantor Trust
Beneficiary Statements (page 5) included with this Form
3520-A.
Sign here. In general, the trustee of the foreign trust must
sign the Form 3520-A. However, if the U.S. owner of the
foreign trust is filing a substitute Form 3520-A, the U.S.
owner must sign. See Who Must Sign, earlier.

Part II—Foreign Trust Income
Statement

Include all income from U.S. and non-U.S. sources. This
financial statement must reasonably reflect the trust's
income under U.S. income tax principles.

Income
Line 1. Interest. Report all taxable interest income that
was received during the tax year. Examples of taxable
interest include, but are not limited to, interest from the
following.
• Accounts (including certificates of deposit and money
market accounts) with banks, credit unions, and thrift
institutions.
Instructions for Form 3520-A (2020)

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•
•
•
•
•

Notes, loans, and mortgages.
U.S. Treasury bills, notes, and bonds.
U.S. savings bonds.
Original issue discount.
Income received as a regular interest holder of a real
estate mortgage investment conduit (REMIC).
For taxable bonds acquired after 1987, amortizable
bond premium is treated as an offset to the interest
income instead of as a separate interest deduction. See
Pub. 550, Investment Income and Expenses.

Line 10b. State and local taxes. Enter any deductible
state and local income or real property taxes paid or
incurred during the tax year that are not reported
elsewhere in Part II.
Do not deduct on line 10b or on any other line of Part II:
• Federal income taxes;
• Estate, inheritance, legacy, succession, and gift taxes;
or
• Federal duties and excise taxes.
Line 11. Amortization and depreciation (depletion). A
reasonable amount is allowed as a depreciation deduction
for the exhaustion, wear, and tear of:
• Property used in a trade or business, or
• Property held for the production of income.

Line 2. Dividends. Report all ordinary dividends
received during the tax year.
Note. Report capital gain distributions on Line 5. Capital
gains (losses) of this section.

Line 12. Trustee and advisor fees. Enter the
deductible fees paid or incurred to the fiduciary for
administering the trust during the tax year.

Line 4. Income (loss) from partnerships, fiduciaries,
etc. Enter the trust's share of income or (losses) from
partnerships, S corporations, estates, other trusts, and
REMICs.
If the trust received a Schedule K-1 from a partnership,
S corporation, or other flow-through entity, use the
corresponding lines on Form 3520-A to report the interest,
dividends, capital gains, etc., from the flow-through entity.

Line 13. Charitable contributions. Generally, any part
of the income reported on line 8 that is paid (or treated as
paid) during the tax year for a charitable purpose specified
in section 170(c) is allowed as a deduction. It is not
necessary that the charitable organization be created or
organized in the United States.

Line 5. Capital gains (losses). For capital gains or
(losses) attributable to a U.S. owner, use Schedule D
(corporate or individual, whichever applies) and Form
8949, Sales and Other Dispositions of Capital Assets, if
applicable.

Line 14. Other expenses. Enter other items of expense
not listed on lines 9 through 13. List the type and amount
on an attached statement if the trust has more than one
item.
Line 17a. FMV of total distributions. Attach a
statement that provides the following information
concerning the transfer.
1. Name, U.S. TIN (if any), and country of organization
or residence of the person to whom the property was
transferred.
2. A general description of the transfer, and any
broader transaction of which it forms a part, including a
chronology of the transfers involved and an identification
of the other parties to the transaction to the extent known.
3. A description of the property transferred, including
the estimated FMV and the adjusted basis of the property.
4. A description of the consideration received by the
trust, including its estimated FMV, and for stock or
securities, the class or type, amount, and characteristics
of the interest received. If no consideration was received
by the trust, indicate whether the trust or a U.S. owner
exercises any powers over the entity to which the property
was transferred (including a description of such powers),
and identify the name, U.S. TIN (if any), and country of
organization or residence of all beneficial owners of such
entity.
5. To the extent known, a description of any
subsequent transfer of the property, including the name,
U.S. TIN (if any), and country of organization or residence
of the person to whom the property was subsequently
transferred.

Line 6. Ordinary gains (losses). Enter the ordinary gain
or (loss) from the sale or exchange of property other than
capital assets and also from involuntary conversions
(other than casualty or theft).
Line 7. Other income. Enter other items of income not
included on lines 1 through 6. List the types and amounts
on an attached statement if the trust has more than one
item.
Items to be reported on line 7 include any part of a total
distribution shown on Form 1099-R, Distributions From
Pensions, Annuities, Retirement or Profit-Sharing Plans,
IRAs, Insurance Contracts, etc., that is treated as ordinary
income. For more information, see the instructions for
Form 4972, Tax on Lump-Sum Distributions.

Expenses
Line 9. Interest expense. Enter the amount of interest
(subject to limitations) paid or incurred by the trust on
amounts borrowed by the trust, or on debt acquired by the
trust, that is not reported elsewhere in Part II.
If the proceeds of a loan were used for more than one
purpose (for example, to purchase a portfolio investment
and to acquire an interest in a passive activity), the
fiduciary must make an interest allocation according to the
rules in Temporary Regulations section 1.163-8T.
Do not include interest paid on indebtedness incurred
or continued to purchase or carry obligations on which the
interest is wholly exempt from income tax.

The statement must also contain a description of the
trust ownership structure setting forth the name, U.S. TIN
(if any), and country of organization of all entities in which
the trust has an ownership interest, including an

Line 10a. Foreign taxes. A foreign tax includes only a
tax imposed by the authority of a foreign country.

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Instructions for Form 3520-A (2020)

Foreign Grantor Trust Beneficiary
Statement

ownership chart showing the trust's position in the chain of
ownership and the percentages of ownership.
Note. The term “person” includes an individual or an
entity, whether U.S. or foreign. See the definition of U.S.
person, earlier. A foreign person is an individual or entity
that is not a U.S. person.

A copy of this statement (page 5 of Form 3520-A) must be
(a) furnished to each U.S. beneficiary who receives a
distribution, directly or indirectly, from the foreign trust
during the tax year; and (b) included with this Form
3520-A. See the definitions for U.S. beneficiary and
distribution provided earlier in these instructions.

Lines 17b and 17c. Distributions to U.S. owners and
U.S. beneficiaries. Separately list the total amount of
distributions (including the uncompensated use of trust
property) to each U.S. owner and U.S. beneficiary. List the
full name, TIN, date of distribution, and FMV on the date
of distribution (dollar amount) for each U.S. owner and
U.S. beneficiary who receives a distribution. If more space
is needed, attach a statement.
Prepare a separate Foreign Grantor Trust Owner
Statement (see below) or Foreign Grantor Trust
Beneficiary Statement (see below) for each U.S. owner
or for each U.S. beneficiary who receives a distribution
from the trust.

Exception. Do not complete this statement for a U.S.
person for any portion of the trust of which that U.S.
person is treated as the owner; instead, complete the
Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement for that U.S.
person (as described earlier).
The statement must be furnished to the U.S.
beneficiary no later than the 15th day of the 3rd month
following the end of the trust's tax year, or later if an
extension of time to file is granted or if filing a substitute
Form 3520-A. See When and Where To File, earlier.
TINs and addresses. See the instructions for Part I,
earlier, for information on entering TINs and addresses.

Part III—Foreign Trust Balance Sheet
List all assets and liabilities of the trust, including those
assets and liabilities attributable to the portion(s) of the
trust (if any) not treated as owned by a U.S. person.
The balance sheet should reflect FMV. Include
certificates of deposit as cash on line 1.

Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the
information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue
laws of the United States. You are required to give us the
information. We need it to ensure that you are complying
with these laws and to allow us to figure and collect the
right amount of tax.

Line 18. Accumulated trust income. Include the total
amount of trust income accumulated and not distributed.

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 for as long as their contents
may become material in the administration of any Internal
Revenue law.

Foreign Grantor Trust Owner
Statement

A copy of this statement (pages 3 and 4 of Form 3520-A)
must be (a) furnished to each U.S. person who is treated
as an owner of the foreign trust under the grantor trust
rules, and (b) included with this Form 3520-A. The
statement must be furnished to each U.S. owner no later
than the 15th day of the 3rd month following the end of the
trust's tax year, or later if an extension of time to file is
granted or if filing a substitute Form 3520-A. See When
and Where To File, earlier.

The time needed to complete and file the form will vary
depending on individual circumstances. The estimated
average time is:
Recordkeeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

37 hr., 18 min.

TINs and addresses. See the instructions for Part I,
earlier, for information on entering TINs and addresses.

Learning about the law or the
form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2 hr., 40 min.

Line 8. Trust documents. If the trust did not appoint a
U.S. agent, list the documents attached to the current year
Form 3520-A and those attached to a Form 3520-A filed
within the last 3 years. Specify the years the documents
were attached. See Line 2 under Part I, earlier, for a list of
documents the trust is required to attach to Form 3520-A.

Preparing and sending the form to
the IRS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

3 hr., 24 min.

If you have comments concerning the accuracy of
these time estimates or suggestions for making this form
simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. You can
send us comments from IRS.gov/FormComments. Or you
can send your comments to: Internal Revenue Service,
Tax Forms and Publications Division, 1111 Constitution
Ave. NW, IR-6526, Washington, DC 20224. Do not send
the form to this office. Instead, see When and Where To
File, earlier.

Statement of Foreign Trust Income Attributable
to U.S. Owner

The amounts on the statement must include the portion of
income reported by the foreign trust deemed attributable
to the U.S. owner.
The foreign trust may need to furnish to the U.S. owner
additional information, including applicable statements, to
ensure that the owner accurately reports income and
expenses on the owner's U.S. income tax return.

Instructions for Form 3520-A (2020)

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