FATCA and the EU
April 2019
July 2018
06: EU Lawmakers Vote to Kick-Start FATCA Talks With United States
05: Independence Day attempt in European Parliament–the Empire lives well
July 2017
11: Refreshing: @SophieintVeld calls EU answer to plight of #AccidentalAmericans “bullshit”
September 2016
30: #FATCA Came Last to EU, but Mandatory Fingerprinting was First
August 2015
31: Parliamentary Question: Legality of intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) on FATCA
January 2015
10: EU Residents/Citizens: This is For You
September 2014
13: US seeks additional Customs Pre-Clearance locations in the EU
August 2013
24: European Parliament opposes exchanging bank data with the US
June 2013
May 2013
31: Public Hearing on FATCA at the European Parliament in Brussels
23: EU Parliament Hearing on FATCA May 28th
April 2013
04: MEP Sophia In’t Veld discusses FATCA in EU Parliament
March 2013
25: Question and Answer on FATCA in the European Parliament
February 2013
26: EU Tax Chief Urges U.S. Support for Transactions Levy @BloombergNews
April 2012
19: US bullies the EU into sharing passenger data
March 2012
10: Two prominent members of European Parliament raise concern over FATCA five agreement
February 2012
16: Are China, Russia, the EU and Switzerland poised to give in to FATCA?
January 2012
Thanks for posting the links, Duality.
Extraordinary and welcome to hear the anger, but a little surprising that the ones who spoke so indignantly should claim to be only just realising that the Commission doesn’t want to act, only the Commission can act, and the EU Parliament has no power.
However, the Parliament accomplished an excellent thing by publishing the study; and the ECJ is far from powerless, if the issue gets that far.
@plaxy
Good thing the petition remains open. However, let’s hope that J.R. does not need to revisit the PETI Committee thrice. I wonder when this so-called “FATCA Helpdesk” will be set up (and how useful it will be) …?
Scratching my head to understand what help a helpdesk could offer.
@plaxy
“Scratching my head to understand what help a helpdesk could offer.”
To offer affected banking consumers a copy of the relevant IGA?
It might help some of the USCs having bank problems, if an official helpdesk could at least explain that US citizens have a right to renounce, and it’s not conditional on filing five years’ US tax returns.
I don’t suppose that will happen though.
It could direct US persons to banks that will serve them, or take complaints against those that won’t.
Unfortunately, the banks have the right to refuse to open an account, as long as basic bank accounts are available. Most people need more than a basic bank account.
@plaxy
“Unfortunately, the banks have the right to refuse to open an account”
Correct… which leads us back to the question concerning the helpdesk’s purpose.
@Nononymus
“It could … take complaints against those that won’t.”
Sophie in ‘t Veld’s email inbox has been handling them. I could not even imagine how many there are in there…
It seems impossible to guess how many may have complained to MEPs or MPs across the EU or in any given country. Perhaps many, perhaps not that many.
@plaxy
“Perhaps many, perhaps not that many.”
When I phoned her office some years ago, her assistant told me that they had been receiving numerous complaints.
Duality – it would be interesting to know the breakdown of current complaints (say, within the past year), and also, whether the complaints are all from Ms in’t Veld’s constituents, and how many are complaining about difficulties opening new accounts.
Maybe that’s the purpose of the helpdesk – to try to find out how many are having problems, and which banks are involved.
If so, that could be quite helpful.
@plaxy
“it would be interesting to know the breakdown of current complaints (say, within the past year),”
I reckon there will be an increase of complaints once the SSN/TIN requirement is imposed on US-born EU citizens from 2020 onwards. Fun stuff ahead…
“If so, that could be quite helpful.”
In what way?…
Duality:
“I reckon there will be an increase of complaints once the SSN/TIN requirement is imposed on US-born EU citizens from 2020 onwards.”
How?
In the UK, as I understand it, FIs can be punished (by losing FATCA-compliant status) for not succeeding in obtaining a customer’s correct SSN/TIN; however the customer can’t be forced to provide it. Is it different in other Member States?
I suppose in theory they could use CRS to force the customer to give the SSN/TIN, threatening fines if the customer refuses.
@plaxy
“How?”
This is what I am hearing. Then again, I hear so much nonsense about FATCA, CRS, FBAR, TIGTA, etc that it has all become one surreal joke.
“Is it different in other Member States?”
It is difficult for me to say. I lied about my place of birth when asked years ago so have survived America’s farcical tax drama (so far) …
It just sounds like more of the scary-scary from the tax industry. The Model 1 IGA is aimed entirely at the banks – not at the accountholders or would-be accountholders – and the implementing legislation reflects that purpose, at any rate here in the UK and I would assume in all Member States.
CRS is different because it’s enforced EU-wide by EU directive, and does indeed require the TIN for each country of tax-residence. CRS+FATCA is a really evil mix. FATCA fingers the US-born; once fingered, they’re forced by CRS to hand over the TIN.
In theory. In practice, it seems extremely doubtful (to me) that any EU tax agency is going to risk taking a US-born EU citizen to court to try to wring a small fine out of them for refusing to surrender a TIN.
I really wish they would. It would serve as a test as to whether or not a bank and/or tax agency can legally treat a citizen as tax-resident in a foreign country solely on the basis of national origin.
My limited understanding is that in 2020 the grace period ends in terms of banks only being required by the IRS to ask for the SSN/TIN, after that they will need to close accounts or be considered not in compliance, or something like that. More of an issue for existing accounts since presumably they decline to open new ones for anyone failing to provide the number.
Or, more likely, the IRS extends the grace period for a few more years.
Nononymous:
“My limited understanding is that in 2020 the grace period ends in terms of banks only being required by the IRS to ask for the SSN/TIN, after that they will need to close accounts or be considered not in compliance, or something like that.”
They can’t close existing accounts, they can only treat them as “refractory.”
“more likely, the IRS extends the grace period for a few more years.”
Yes, very likely
I’m not sure “refractory” makes sense here. Banks would already be reporting these accounts today, but without SSN/TIN if the customer does not have or refuses to provide it. That would not change. (Refractory accounts are typically those where there is US indicia that the customer refuses to explain, or the customer refuses to answer US person questions, so the account is reported as suspect.)
What might theoretically happen post-2020 is that if a bank reported too many SSN-less account it would be deemed not in FATCA compliance. (Not sure what if anything that means in an IGA-1 world, actually.) In that case the bank has two options. The first is to close accounts, which presumably it can do with anything beyond the basic banking services that EU law requires them to provide. The second option is to stop reporting those accounts completely, on the grounds that it’s better to send the IRS nothing than to send it account data without SSNs – what it doesn’t know won’t hurt it. I doubt that banks would have the cojones to choose the second option.
Nononymous:
“I’m not sure “refractory” makes sense here.”
It probably won’t help them but it’s all they can do.
“The first is to close accounts, which presumably it can do with anything beyond the basic banking services that EU law requires them to provide.”
Absolutely not.
Of course, if the bank discovers that an accountholder has supplied false information (in any context, not just FATCA), it’s likely their t&c’s state that they can close the account. That’s not a provision of the IGA, just normal practice.
@Nononymous
“… in 2020 the grace period ends in terms of banks only being required by the IRS to ask for the SSN/TIN, after that they will need to close accounts or be considered not in compliance, or something like that.”
This is my understanding as well.
“The first is to close accounts, which presumably it can do with anything beyond the basic banking services that EU law requires them to provide.”
But even a basic bank account held by a US-born EU citizen would still be subject to FATCA. Therefore, a SSN will be required. If a US-born German national walked into a German bank in Germany requesting a basic bank account, a TIN would not be required under CRS but will be required under FATCA. From 2020 onwards, with the SSN requirement in mind, would the bank deny basic banking services to the German national, breaching EU law?
Good thing the European elections are coming up. With so many indignant Europeans across the Union, I know exactly how I will vote.