Question 1

What is the mandatory FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) filing threshold under US law?

Accepted Answer

Under 31 U.S.C. 5314 and 31 CFR 1010.350, any US person (citizen, Green Card holder, or resident alien) who holds a financial interest in or signature authority over foreign financial accounts must file FinCEN Form 114 (FBAR) if the aggregate peak value of all foreign accounts exceeds $10,000 USD at any time during the calendar year.

Question 2

Which foreign accounts must be included in the FBAR $10,000 threshold?

Accepted Answer

Included accounts are foreign bank savings, NRE/NRO accounts, fixed deposits (FDs), PPF accounts, foreign mutual funds, foreign pension plans, and foreign life insurance policies with cash surrender value.

Question 3

What are the penalties for non-willful failure to file FBAR?

Accepted Answer

Under the US Supreme Court ruling in Bittner v. United States, non-willful FBAR penalties are capped per annual Form 114 report (inflation-adjusted around $15,000 USD per un-filed year) rather than per individual foreign account.

Statutory Citation	Legal Subject	Operational Penalty / Mandate
31 U.S.C. § 5314	Foreign Financial Account Reporting	Mandates annual reporting of foreign bank & financial accounts.
31 CFR § 1010.350	FinCEN Form 114 Definition	Defines US Person, financial interest, and $10k aggregate peak calculation.
Bittner v. United States	Supreme Court Non-Willful Cap	Limits non-willful FBAR penalty to per-form violation rather than per-account.

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