It isn’t just April 15th that is an important date for taxes. There are deadlines for various forms and tax documents throughout the entire year that individuals and businesses need to be aware of. For this upcoming summer in particular, you will need to be aware of two important forms and due dates. These are the Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) forms that are due on June 30, 2015, and the Form 5500 series returns for employee benefit plans for calendar year employers that are due on July 31, 2015. Let’s take a closer look at what these forms are and what they involve. Most of all, be sure to keep the important filing deadlines in mind.
Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR)
If you, as a United States person, had interest in a foreign financial account or signature authority over a foreign financial account (including bank or brokerage accounts, mutual funds, trusts, and other foreign financial accounts) at any time during the last calendar year, you likely are required to file the FBAR. A United States person includes U.S. citizens, U.S. residents, entities, and trusts/estates formed under United States laws. According to regulations, if the aggregate value of all foreign financial accounts exceeds $10,000 at any time during the calendar year, you must file an FBAR. For FBAR filing purposes, even an LLC is required to file an FBAR report with interest in or signature authority over a foreign financial account. Please note that you may be required to report even if your foreign account did not generate any income.
The FBAR must be filed electronically with FinCEN. This form is not filed with income tax returns and must be RECEIVED by the Department of the Treasury on or before June 30th. No extensions are granted for the FBAR, and postmarks are not considered evidence of timely filing.
Form 5500 Series Returns for Employee Benefit Plans
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Department of Labor (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation jointly require nearly all employee benefit plans to file some version (Form 5500, Form 5500-SF, Form 5500-EZ, etc.) of the Form 5500 report each year for employee benefit plans. This satisfies annual reporting requirements. This form reports profit sharing or money purchase pension plans, individual 401(k), and ERISA 403(b) plans. The version of the form that must be completed depends on the number of plan participants and the type of plan. These forms are the annual returns/reports of employee or small employee benefit plan forms. The return must be filed with the EBSA by the last day of the seventh month after the end of the plan year that began in 2014. For calendar year plans, this year’s filing due date is July 31, 2015.
Beck and Company Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisors know that tax documents and forms such as the FBAR and the Form 5500 are certainly complicated and can be confusing. It can even be tricky to know if they are required to be filed and which version needs to be filed, if required. The good news is that you don’t have to figure this all out alone. Beck and Company CPAs offer a large variety of tax services including tax planning and preparation to meet your needs. For more information about our tax consulting services, visit here.
Contact us here at Beck and Company CPAs if we can be of assistance to you or help you as you fill out these summer tax forms. We are happy to answer questions you may have about the forms and filing as well.