AEOI Updates: May 2017

Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) legislation is constantly evolving worldwide as the standard is rolled out around the world. The Sovos Regulatory Analysis team continually monitors new regulations and updates across the globe and publishes them in our Regulatory Feed. Here are some important changes that occurred in recent weeks:

IRS Releases Draft Instructions for FATCA Registration

The IRS has published the 2017 draft of its Instructions for Form 8957, Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Registration. The purpose of this publication is to provide guidance to Financial Institutions and Direct Reporting Non-Financial Foreign Entities (NFFEs) in registering themselves and their branches (if applicable) as one of the following:

• Participating Foreign Financial Institution (PFFI) (or Reporting FI under a Model 2 IGA)
• Registered Deemed-Compliant Foreign Financial Institution (RDCFFI) (or Reporting FI under a Model 1 IGA)
• Sponsoring Entity
• Direct Reporting NFFE
• Trustee of a Trustee-Documented Trust
  

Upon registration, the entity or institution will receive a Global Intermediary Identification Number (GIIN) to be used when transmitting FATCA returns.

There are two notable revisions to the registration instructions:

• Removal of limited FFI and limited branch statuses: FIs may no longer designate themselves as limited FFIs or limited branches due to the expiration of the transitional period that provided for these FATCA classifications.
• Renewal of QI, WP, and WT agreements: This form will no longer be used for the renewal of QI, WP, and WT Agreements, beginning with 2017 renewals. Instead, renewals will be executed using the QI/WP/WT Application and Account Management System.

Thailand Publishes Seminar on Reporting Information under FATCA

The Thai Revenue Department has released a previously given presentation that provides details on the process of submitting FATCA transmittals in Thailand. The presentation offers instructions on the FATCA IGA generally, sending a report file via IDES, and preparing a report file according to the FATCA XML Schema v2.0. Since Thailand has adopted a Model 1, Option 2 approach, Thai Financial Institutions will send files directly to IDES for validation.

United Kingdom Removes Three CRS Reportable Jurisdictions

The UK HMRC has updated its list of CRS Reportable Jurisdictions in order to remove three countries from the list: Barbados, Curacao, and Niue. HMRC has decided that it will not be sharing financial account information with these three jurisdictions at this time. Financial Institutions may still send reports to HMRC containing data for account holders from these jurisdictions, however HMRC will just decline to act upon this information.

Costa Rica Releases FATCA 2.0 Guidance

On May 15, Costa Rica released additional documentation for reporting under FATCA 2.0.  The documentation include Client Configuration Guide v 2.0, a user guide for the FATCA reporting site, and example XML files according to the 2.0 standard.  These documents provide essential guidance for parties needing to file FATCA returns with Costa Rica.