TITLE: IRS–HMRC Tax Evasion Enforcement: FBAR and Form 5472 Checks for US Entities
The IRS has highlighted its partnership with HMRC on cross-border tax evasion. If you operate through a US entity, the immediate priority is to check whether its overseas accounts trigger an FBAR filing by 15 October 2026.
The announcement is about enforcement, not a new filing rule
In its 7 October 2026 announcement, the IRS described its collaboration with HMRC’s Strengthened Reward Scheme, launched in November 2025. The agencies say they are working together to identify serious tax evasion and improve cross-border compliance.
The IRS listed examples of reportable concerns, including undeclared foreign accounts and missed FBARs, assets hidden through foreign trusts or anonymous entities, money laundering, and transfer pricing manipulation or illicit profit shifting. People do not need to be US or UK citizens or residents to qualify for an award, but an award is not guaranteed. The IRS says information may qualify when it leads to the collection of taxes or other proceeds. HMRC’s scheme guidance sets out its own eligibility conditions.
This announcement does not create a new FBAR obligation or mean ordinary international sellers are being accused of wrongdoing. It is a reminder to keep reporting complete and records in order, especially when your business uses accounts across multiple countries.
Check your foreign accounts before 15 October
A US person (including a US LLC, corporation, partnership, trust or estate) generally must file an FBAR if it has a financial interest in, or signature authority over, foreign financial accounts whose combined maximum value exceeded USD 10,000 at any time during 2025.
An account’s country and legal structure matter. Do not assume an account is foreign or domestic solely because it uses a familiar payment-service brand. Check which financial institution holds the account and where that account is maintained. Wise, Payoneer, Revolut or local bank accounts may warrant review, but the provider name alone does not determine the FBAR answer.
According to the IRS FBAR guidance, the report is filed electronically through FinCEN’s BSA E-Filing System, not with your federal income tax return. The ordinary due date is 15 April, with an automatic extension to 15 October and no extension request required. Keep the required account records for five years.
For 2026, the inflation adjustment to FBAR civil penalties was cancelled, so the 2025 levels remain in effect. The maximum for a non-willful violation is USD 16,536 per annual report, rather than per account, following Bittner v. United States. For a willful violation, the maximum is generally the greater of USD 165,353 or 50% of the relevant account balance, subject to the applicable rules. These are maximums, not automatic assessments; consequences depend on the facts.
Use this filing checklist
Before the deadline, work through these steps:
- List every account held outside the US. Include bank and brokerage accounts and review accounts used to receive or hold business funds. Confirm the account holder and financial institution.
- Check signature authority. You may have a filing obligation even if you do not own the money, for example if you can control transactions on a company account abroad.
- Calculate the combined maximum value. Convert account values to US dollars and check whether the aggregate exceeded USD 10,000 at any point during 2025.
- File the FBAR separately. Submit FinCEN Report 114 electronically by 15 October 2026. It is not an attachment to your federal tax return.
- Retain the records. Keep account names, numbers, institution details, account types and maximum values, along with supporting statements, for five years.
- Check related-party reporting separately. A foreign-owned US disregarded entity may also need Form 5472 attached to a pro forma Form 1120. Its deadline depends on its tax year and any valid extension; the FBAR deadline does not replace it.
Don’t assume a missed filing has no route to correction
The IRS currently directs taxpayers filing late FBARs to FinCEN’s late-filing instructions, including an explanation for the delay. If you are correcting earlier non-compliance, do not select a route based on a headline or an assumption that a procedure has disappeared. The IRS continues to list Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures and other options for undisclosed foreign assets. The right route depends on your circumstances and may require specialist legal or tax support.
Understand Form 5472 and its separate penalty risk
A foreign-owned US single-member LLC treated as a disregarded entity may have a Form 5472 filing obligation when it has reportable transactions with its foreign owner or other related parties. The form is attached to a pro forma Form 1120. Reportable activity can include contributions to or distributions from the entity. Check the current Form 5472 instructions against your entity’s actual transactions.
For foreign-owned US disregarded entities, the IRS instructions say the filing cannot be e-filed: it must be faxed or mailed to the specified IRS destination. The general penalty for failing to file a required Form 5472 or maintain required records is USD 25,000 per form, per year. If the failure continues for more than 90 days after IRS notification, further USD 25,000 penalties may apply for each 30-day period, or part of a period, until corrected. This is why form 5472 penalties deserve attention even where an entity has little activity.
IRS Chief Counsel Advice 202617012 discusses reasonable-cause relief for qualifying small corporations with USD 20 million or less in worldwide gross receipts. It is not a blanket waiver or binding precedent. Do not rely on it as a substitute for filing on time and keeping records.
Two examples for international sellers
A UK-run US LLC with a UK business bank account: If the LLC has a financial interest in a UK account and the total value of its foreign accounts exceeded USD 10,000 at any point in 2025, it may need an FBAR by 15 October 2026. A UK owner’s involvement does not automatically remove the US entity’s filing requirement. Separately check whether transactions between the foreign owner and the LLC trigger Form 5472 reporting.
An Amazon FBA seller using a US LLC: A US marketplace account alone does not establish an FBAR obligation. Review the actual bank, payment and financial accounts held by the LLC, where each is maintained, and whether the LLC or a person with signature authority can control them. As one of the US importers of record, you may also have other tax and recordkeeping responsibilities; keep marketplace settlements and account records reconciled so each filing obligation can be identified and supported.
