FATCA: Is
a United States federal law enacted in 2010 and went into force on 1st
July, 2014. The Act combats tax evasion of US expatriates who own financial
accounts and assets outside the US by requiring Foreign Financial Institutions
(FFIs) to submit reports of US customers and their wealth.
U.S account: a
U.S account is an account maintained by a U.S person (whether individual or
entity) or by a foreign entity with U.S ownership of more than 10% of the
capital, whether directly or indirectly.
FATCA impact on HBTF customers:
HBTF
will ask you to complete certain documentation such as (W-9, W-8, and
W-8BEN-E); if your account information indicates that you are a U.S person, U.S
indications are listed below:
For individuals:
- U.S citizen or
resident.
- U.S place of birth.
- Current U.S address
(including a U.S post Office Box).
- U.S telephone
number.
- Standing
instructions to pay amounts to an account maintained in the U.S.
- Current power of
attorney or signatory authority granted to a person with a U.S address.
For entities:
- U.S entity.
- U.S residence.
- Current U.S address
(including a U.S post Office Box).
- Standing
instructions to pay amounts to an account maintained in the U.S.
- U.S telephone
number.
- Current power of
attorney or signatory authority granted to a person with a U.S address.
Documents required:
Form W-9:
Is
a form issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) used to obtain the
information of the US citizen and disclose tax information to the IRS
Department. The form includes other information such as the name, address
and tax identification number of US citizens.
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw9.pdf
Form W-8:
Is
a form issued by the Internal Revenue Services department used by non-US
citizens who have US indicia in order to confirm that they are non-US.
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw8ben.pdf
Form W-8BEN-E:
Is
a form issued by the Internal Revenue Services department used by foreign
institutions to confirm their status under FATCA.
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw8bene.pdf
It
should be noted, according to articles of the Agreement between HBTF and the
Government of the United States that the customer hold the full responsibility
of providing correct information and the customer should notify the bank in the
event of any change in such information in accordance to the applicable
principle of self-certification.
Based
on that, in case you are a US Person Taxpayer (or representative) you are
kindly requested to contact your nearest HBTF branch, customer service officer
or relationship manager to provide the necessary information and documentation
for the same purposes.
For
more information on FATCA, see the section on FATCA act in the website of
Internal Revenue Service (IRS),
http://www.irs.gov.
You
may be contacted to provide further information or documentation in order to
verify your tax status under FATCA.
Should
you have any further queries regarding FATCA/ Local legislation and your tax
position, please consult your tax advisor, as HBTF does not provide any tax
advice.