Tax form w-9

I’ve received a letter from my bank in the UK (joint account with British husband) asking me to fill out and return in branch the w-9 form or W-8BEN. From what I gather, none of these apply to me (?). I held a part job in the uk from October 2019- December 2020. The letter from my bank says that if I don’t fill this in, they can’t verify that I’m a US citizen (they have my up to date passport, license, BRP on file), can close my account, and prevent me from opening another account through them.

My father in law passed away last October and left my husband a big chunk of money (which we are using to buy a house) that went into our account before being transferred to his savings account so we didn’t touch it. I’m wondering if the IRS is trying to get ‘their cut’ from that money? Is this form something I need to fill out? I don’t really understand why I’m being asked for this information, as from what I’ve read, it’s very different to a 1099(?)

Please advise

I doubt very much that it is RBS trying to get their cut!

It's more likely that RBS are covering their own exposure and it is in line with cross border reporting between international banks and tax authorities (HMRC & IRS included).

I and my 3 daughters are all dual UK/USC and have all been required to confirm identities (NI Number & SSN) to the bank (HSBC & Natwest in our case) - nothing too onerous and nothing to worry about - if there's any confusion, I'm sure they have a help line which you can call.

It’s just got me confused because I’ve been here since 2017 and have been with the same bank since then, but I’ve never received this nor have I ever had to send off proof of my identity.

All part of the global tightening of financial reporting - especially with the banks having been so stung with financial penalties following money laundering etc especially in light of the Panama Papers.

All part of the global tightening of financial reporting - especially with the banks having been so stung with financial penalties following money laundering etc especially in light of the Panama Papers.

Exactly.

My wife and I, both dual UK/US citizens also had to complete W9 forms for our bank, HSBC.  Easy enough to do, no tax implications if you have been declaring any interest to the IRS and any balances as per the FBAR rules.

Your bank is following UK guidelines which require it to report the accounts of any US citizen. This is informational reporting only, and only has negative tax implications if you were not to report the account on schedule B, Part III of your US tax return. You are doing that? The interest from the account should have been reported in Part I of Sch. B. If the amounts were substantial, an 8938 filed with your return may be required. Currently, very little comes from the information being transferred from your bank, to HMRC, and then to the IRS. As smitch has said, it's due to US law (FATCA) being imposed on UK banks. If you opened the account in 2017, the bank should have requested the information (your SSN) at that point. It sounds as if they are only now catching up.

Complete the W-9. The bank will retain it for their records. Do not complete a W8-BEN. As a US citizen, you are not allowed to file a W8-BEN.

If the aggregate of all your accounts, at any time, had more than $10,000, you'll need to additionally file an FBAR, using the "joint accounts" section for this account.

Xpost with durham_lad

 

 

So I went to look at the W-9 and the first section is about what type of business I own? I don’t own a business,  nor does my British husband. The account was opened by my husband’s mother in 1999 as a child’s account which was then transferred to him upon turning 16 years old. He added me to this account in 2017. The money that came into the account from his father is *his* money, not mine, as per the statement on the pension letter, not taxable in the UK. Am I going to be taxed on this money because my name is on the account? That doesn’t make any sense to me. I earned around £6,500 during my whole employment, and did not file a tax return because to be quite frank, it was in the back of my mind due to everything going on with covid and I’m clearly very naive because I was under the impression I wouldn’t need to due to the very little amount of money I brought home    Our interest on our bank account is minuscule, less than £1/ year interest.

So I went to look at the W-9 and the first section is about what type of business I own? I don’t own a business,  nor does my British husband.

I understand your annoyance with this situation. No one is pleased about the reporting requirements resulting from FATCA, or the US tax system in its treatment of US citizens resident abroad. Unfortunately, we do have to follow the rules if we wish to avoid complications, such as having our bank accounts frozen due to FATCA.

For W-9:
Line 1 asks for your name.
Line 2 asks for a business name IF the account is different than an individual named on line 1, so leave it blank.
Line 3 asks if you are an individual (box 1). You are, so check that box.
Line 4 doesn't apply to individuals.
Lines 5, 6, are standard info.
Line 7 is optional.
Fill in your SS number, and sign and date the form.

The money that came into the account from his father is *his* money, not mine,....

Incorrect. You are a signatory to the account, therefore you have access to all the money in the account. Your husband may not be best pleased if you were to withdraw all the money in the account for yourself, but the IRS view it as you have that access to all the funds in a foreign bank account.

Am I going to be taxed on this money because my name is on the account?

Since you have access to the funds in the account, you are therefore liable to tax on the interest received on the account. Whether or not you actually pay tax to the US depends on your situation, but, it is unlikely.

I earned around £6,500 during my whole employment, and did not file a tax return because to be quite frank,....... I wouldn’t need to due to the very little amount of money I brought home

£6,500 is above the threshold of $5 for someone filing married separate. It is below the threshold for someone filing married jointly, but to claim that category, a signed declaration must be made, and most people try to avoid filing jointly in order to shield their spouse from having to report all their income to the IRS.

Our interest on our bank account is minuscule, less than £1/ year interest.

Yes, I have accounts like that, but I do report them on Schedule B,  8938, and FBAR.

Thank you for clarifying all of that information for me. I’ll better inform myself in future as to avoid issues down the line. I feel very silly for not looking into all of this before. I did go to the bank and ask about it, and the teller had told me that it’s something they send out every year. I told them that I’ve been here since 2017 and have never received one before (even made changes to the account in that time). She asked if there have been any recent changes and the only thing I can think about is how we are currently in the process of buying a house (with said money).

When I opened a Stateside CD last year I had to file a W-9 on paper. When I opened TD in the U.K about the same time they simply asked for SSN as part of the online application.

I was never asked for my SSN when I was added to the account, I even asked the lady if she needed it for the account and she said no. One thing that I’m worried about is that I now have to fill out an FBAR on my husbands money, JUST BECAUSE my name is on the account. I earn £/$0.00 and his pay is going to be scrutinised. I wasn’t aware that because we have a joint account, any large sums of money he brought in or was given would need to be reported to the IRS. Looks like there goes the house we are in the process of buying, because I didn’t fill in an FBAR last year when his dad gave him a large amount of money before he passed away.

I was never asked for my SSN when I was added to the account, I even asked the lady if she needed it for the account and she said no. One thing that I’m worried about is that I now have to fill out an FBAR on my husbands money, JUST BECAUSE my name is on the account. I earn £/$0.00 and his pay is going to be scrutinised. I wasn’t aware that because we have a joint account, any large sums of money he brought in or was given would need to be reported to the IRS. Looks like there goes the house we are in the process of buying, because I didn’t fill in an FBAR last year when his dad gave him a large amount of money before he passed away.

If you have the ability to withdraw money from an account then it belongs to you as well as your husband in the eyes of the US treasury and UK law, that’s how joint accounts work.

Don’t worry about this, it is just a reporting issue and filling in an FBAR is pretty easy and done on line. You can complete FBARs for previous years and there is a place to explain why it is late, and saying that you didn’t realize you had to is a very common and accepted reason. 

Don’t forget to file 3520, (you say big chunk of money & if this money came from outside the U.S.). This is a manual form and needs to be sent to Utah. Breathtaking penalties for failure to file.

Don’t forget to file 3520, (you say big chunk of money & if this money came from outside the U.S.). This is a manual form and needs to be sent to Utah. Breathtaking penalties for failure to file.

It was the husband who received money from his father's estate, he just happened to temporarily place the proceeds into a joint account with his wife before moving it to his savings account, so I don't think it can be said that she received money from a foreign trust or at any time was named or had any dealings with the trust.

Full details on who must file are here.

https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i3520

Any inheritance over $100,000 needs to be declared on a 3520.