The deadline is October 15, 2026 for 2025 accounts. If you haven’t filed yet, you still have time.

File your FBAR on FinCEN’s BSA E-Filing System →

What is FBAR?

FBAR (Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts Report, FinCEN Form 114) is a report that tells the U.S. Treasury about your accounts outside the U.S.

  • It is not a tax form, and filing it doesn’t create a tax bill.
  • It goes to FinCEN, not the IRS.
  • It is separate from your tax return. Extending your 1040 does not extend your FBAR.

Do NRIs need to file FBAR?

You do if both of these are true:

  1. You’re a U.S. person: a citizen, a Green Card holder, or someone who meets the substantial presence test (most H-1B and L-1 holders do).
  2. Your foreign accounts totaled more than $10,000 at any point in the year.

The test uses each account’s peak balance, not the December 31 balance. Add the peaks together. For example, an NRE account that peaked at $5,200, an NRO FD at $3,900 and a demat account at $2,100 add up to $11,200. You file, even if you ended the year with almost nothing.

What to report

Report: NRE and NRO accounts, FDs, demat and brokerage accounts, mutual funds held directly with an AMC, ULIPs with cash value, and joint accounts. If you’re a joint holder on your parents’ account, you report its full value, even if none of the money is yours.

Don’t report: real estate, gold, and accounts at U.S. institutions.

Check with your CPA: PPF, EPF and NPS. These are gray areas.

How to file FBAR: 6 steps

  1. Gather details. For each account, you need the bank name and address, account number and type.
  2. Find each account’s peak balance for the year from your statements.
  3. Convert to USD using the U.S. Treasury’s exchange rate for December 31 of the reporting year.
  4. Go to FinCEN’s BSA E-Filing System and choose to file an individual FBAR. No account is needed, and it’s free. Don’t search for “IRS FBAR,” because the IRS doesn’t take this filing.
  5. Fill in the form. Enter your details, then each account and its max value.
  6. Submit and save your BSA confirmation number. It’s your proof of filing. Keep your records for 5 years.

FBAR deadline and penalties

  • April 15, with an automatic extension to October 15. No request is needed, and there is no further extension.
  • Honest mistakes can cost up to roughly $16,500 per year. Willful non-filing can cost the greater of roughly $165,000 or 50% of the account balance. Both figures are adjusted for inflation.
  • Indian banks already report U.S.-person accounts to the IRS under FATCA, so assume the government can see them.

Missed earlier years?

Don’t quietly start filing and hope no one notices. The IRS has relief programs for people who didn’t know, including the Delinquent FBAR Submission Procedures and the Streamlined Procedures. Talk to a CPA who handles NRI cases before choosing one.

FBAR vs. Form 8938

They’re different filings. FBAR goes to FinCEN with a $10,000 threshold. Form 8938 goes with your tax return and has higher thresholds. You may need both.

Need help?

Cross-border compliance is easy to get wrong and expensive to fix. Xpat Wealth helps NRI families manage money across the U.S. and India.

Talk to an NRI tax expert →

This post is general information, not tax or legal advice. Confirm your filing with a qualified CPA.

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