FATCA Registration Form to Be Issued "in the Near Future" According to IRS Official

John Sweeney, Branch 8 Chief, IRS Office of Associate Chief Counsel (International), said at a recent ABA Tax Section conference that a draft of the long-awaited FATCA registration form would be published "in the near future."The registration form will be used by foreign financial institutions (FFIs) to register as such with the IRS under the recently finalized FATCA regulations. Registration itself will be done using an online portal, but the registration form will detail the information required for determining the specific status of an entity as an FFI.

Sweeney also said that a revised IRS Form 1042 "Annual Withholding Tax Return for U.S. Source Income of Foreign Persons," which will be used by withholding agents to report payments of U.S. source income to FFIs, should be released in mid-April. Sweeney noted that foreign retirement plans which are exempt from FATCA reporting under the Final Regulations as "exempt beneficial owners" would not be required to register with the IRS or get Global Intermediary Identification numbers (GIINs), and should simply "self-certify" their exempt status to withholding agents. He also added that, while not totally clear, foreign grantor trusts would probably not be considered investment entities that are FFIs.

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