BACKGROUND
There are a number of substantial changes being made by financial regulators, governments and banks to ensure the protection and long-term
safety of both the financial system and our customers? interests. One of these changes is the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which
has been introduced by the US government as part of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (together with regulations made under the
Code). The purpose of FATCA is to report financial assets owned by United States persons to the United States tax authorities.
How does FATCA affect Bank Public Company Ltd and you?
Bank Public Company Ltd has︀ made a commitment to being fully FATCA compliant. This means we have to report affected︁ customers?
income and profit details to the Cyprus Tax Authorities. In order to do so,︂ we will need to obtain additional information from our customers to identify
US Persons (USPs)︃ and Foreign Financial Institutions (FFIs). There may also be other customers who we have to︄ identify for this purpose. Every
year Banks and other Financial Organisations will be required to︅ report information on financial accounts held directly or indirectly by US Persons. In
order to︆ identify the customers where reporting under FATCA may apply, we need to match our customer︇ base against certain categories set out in
the FATCA legislation.
Does this apply to you?︈
Whilst most FATCA categories set out in the legislation are not reportable, some may be︉ applicable to our customers. In order to make sure that we
are able to match︊ our customers against the FATCA categories, we are asking our customers to provide confirmation of︋ their FATCA status, review
the conditions that apply, and confirm that they are satisfied. Bank︌ Public Company Ltd is not able to provide tax advice in respect of this
process or for FATCA classification purposes.
Who do we need to report under FATCA?
We are︍ required to report certain information on accounts held by Specified US Persons. This includes accounts︎ held by U.S. citizens and U.S.
residents, certain corporations or partnerships created or organised in️ the United States, as well as accounts held by certain passive entities (please
see the section on Passive Income and the section What is meant by a passive entity (Passive NFFE) under FATCA?) with shareholders who are
U.S. citizens or U.S. resident persons. We will also be required to report certain information on customers or financial counterparties who do not
provide us with documentation to establish a tax status under FATCA.
Hope it can be of help for some or two 😉
