Earlier in the week the IRS published a news release reminding taxpayers to report certain foreign bank and financial accounts by June 30, 2008. According to the release, thousands of taxpayers in the U.S. have foreign financial accounts, and there is nothing wrong with setting up or maintaining a foreign account. However, the IRS is concerned that U.S. taxpayers may overlook the fact that their accounts are large enough require them to report it to the IRS.
“There are responsibilities that go along with owning such foreign bank and financial accounts,” notes IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. “Foreign account owners must remember that they may have to report their accounts to the government, even if the accounts do not generate any taxable income.”