Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA)
FATCA law was implemented by USA congress on March 18, 2010, and has been effective since January 1, 2013. The objective of FATCA is to prevent the cases of tax-avoidance of US citizens by financial operations via foreign financial institutions.It obliges all non-USA financial institutions (including all RA banks) to identify their customers and provide information about their accounts to the US Internal Revenue Service. In the case of non-compliance of the Bank or the Bank customers to the FATCA requirements sanctions will be implemented.
“Unibank” CJSC (from hereafter – the Bank) has signed the agreement with the US Internal Revenue Service and has received the following Global intermediary identification number (GIIN number) - 7E4JN9.99999.SL.051. According to the agreement between the Bank and IRS, the Bank must comply with the FATCA demands, and up to March, 2015, present reports on the individual and juridical persons (entities) that are USA taxpayers (tax residents).
To find out the fact of individual (including S/E) or juridical person (entities) being a USA taxpayer, the Bank implements additional information collection from the customers.
Determining the US tax resident
1. USA taxpayer- individual person (including S/E) is considered a US citizen or US tax resident.
The customer may be regarded as a US tax resident if he/she complies with one of the following criteria (indicia):
- Birth place is USA
- is a USA citizen or a holder of a “Green” Card
- has been physically present in the USA for at least 31 days in the current year, and 183 days within three years (including the current year and immediately preceding two years, including all days of being present in the USA during the current year, 1/3 of the days being present in the USA in the first preceding year, and 1/6 of the days of being present in the USA in the second preceding year).
- Other (as per FATCA law requirements)
- is registered in the USA (has been founded according to the US legislation)
- the founder/founders hold 10 and more percents of the company’s shares, and comply with one of the criteria of point 1.
- Other (as per FATCA law requirements)