FATCA -- KPMG's Analysis of the Proposed Regulations

On Feb. 8, 2012, the U.S. Department of Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service released lengthy and detailed proposed regulations for the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).

These regulations have been much anticipated by taxpayers that expect to be affected by the new FATCA withholding and reporting regime, particularly in light of the looming effective dates.

This article provides a summary of key provisions in the FATCA regulations, which incorporate, revise and expand the preliminary guidance described in three earlier IRS notices and provide guidance note covered in those notices, including:

• Extension of the transition period for the scope of information reporting and withholding on passthru payments
• Modification of due diligence procedures for the identification of accounts
• Transition rules for affiliates with legal prohibition on compliance
• Refinement of the definition of financial account
• Expanded scope of "grandfathered obligations"

The article also provides a section-by-section general overview of the provisions in the contained in the proposed regulations.