Frequently asked questions about FATCA

FATCA is the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act intended to counter tax evasion in the US. The Nordic countries have all agreed to implement the FATCA requirements into local law, including provisions stipulating that financial institutions must identify US Reportable Persons among their customers. Similar agreements have been entered into by a significant number of countries worldwide.

FATCA has or will be implemented into local law in all Nordic and Baltic countries.

As a result of FATCA, financial institutions are under an obligation to identify those of their customers that are US persons and subsequently report information about financial accounts held by these customers, directly or indirectly, on an annual basis. The financial institutions report to the local tax authorities in their respective countries (except in some countries where they report directly to the IRS).

Since FATCA has or will be implemented into local law in each Nordea country except Russia (where Nordea has signed an agreement of compliance directly with the IRS), Nordea must be fully compliant in each country and must therefore review all current customers, and all customers coming into the bank, to confirm their FATCA status. Where necessary, Nordea will contact customers for further information.

Nordea must also withhold on US source FDAP payments to certain financial institutions that do not comply with FATCA.

No, all financial institutions are required to comply with the requirements of FATCA, however, their approach may differ from the one taken by Nordea.

Financial institutions may have different approaches to how they collect information from customers in order to verify their FATCA status; therefore the forms may differ between banks. Nordea cannot advise you on your FATCA classification or US tax status; so if you need further support, you should consult a tax professional.

Nordea must:

• Conduct a review of existing and new customers to identify those that are US reportable under FATCA. 
• Report information to the local tax authorities (except in Russia and Switzerland where Nordea reports directly to the IRS) about all accounts held directly or indirectly by US persons. Nordea will also have to report information about accounts held by customers who do not respond to questions regarding their US status.
  
• Withhold on US source FDAP payments to certain financial institutions that do not comply with FATCA.

No, FATCA (the laws implemented locally) only regulates the customer due diligence and reporting that financial institutions must perform. It does not affect the tax laws you as a person must consider.

Nordea recommends you to consult a tax professional if you have any questions regarding tax rules.

The information to be submitted includes name, address and US taxpayer identification number as well as account numbers and balances.

Am I only affected if I’m a US citizen?
No, the law specifies a number of criteria that financial institutions must look for in respect of all customer accounts in order to determine if someone may be a US person. Customers with accounts that meet any of these criteria may be contacted in order to obtain further information.

• US citizenship or residence
  
• US place of birth
  
• Work permits (“Green Cards”)
  
• Persons who spend a significant number of days in the US each year
  
• US address on file
  
• US telephone number on file
  
• Recurring payments to an account maintained in the US
  
• Powers of attorney or signatory authority granted to a person with a US address
  
• Instances where a “care of” address is the sole address on file

Note that financial institutions are required to search their customer bases for indications of US persons and may therefore contact customers who are in fact not US persons.

I am a US person. How am I affected?
If you are a US person, Nordea may contact you in order to obtain further documentation. You may also wish to determine if you are required to submit any other information to the US authorities.
Note that Nordea cannot give you any advice on this, so please contact a professional tax advisor.
Nordea is required to report information about you and your accounts to the local tax authorities annually, except in Russia and Switzerland where Nordea reports directly to the IRS annually.

I am not a US person. How am I affected?
Most customers who are not US persons will see a minimal impact and will not be required to act. However, Nordea may contact you to confirm your status as a non-US person if there is reason to believe that you may be a US person for FATCA purposes.
Note that if you have a joint account with a US person, this account will be treated as being subject to the FATCA regulations.

Are only US companies affected?
No, FATCA has a wider impact that goes beyond just US companies. Nordea will contact many customers worldwide to determine their FATCA status in order to be able to classify each customer. This may take place using Nordea forms or US tax forms, depending on what information is needed.

I am a US person and own a large part of the shares in a company – how am I affected?
Since you own a large part of the shares in a company, you are most likely a beneficial owner/controlling person in that company. Nordea may be required to report information about you, but that depends on the business your company is conducting. 

If your company’s business is “passive”, Nordea must report information about you if you are a beneficial owner/controlling person in that company. A company may be seen as passive if for instance more than 50 percent of the income of the company consists of interest or dividends.

Nordea will contact affected customers and provide full details as to what information is needed and what forms must be completed for FATCA purposes. 

Yes, when Nordea contacts a customer, we will either include the relevant forms or provide links to a website from which they may be downloaded.

Under the FATCA regulations, financial institutions are under an obligation to treat customers who do not provide the information requested as US reportable persons. This means that Nordea will report the same information about such customers to the local tax authorities as it will about those having provided documentation confirming their status as US persons.

In some exceptional circumstances, financial institutions may be required to withhold tax on certain US source payments coming into accounts held by customers who have not provided the information requested.