Two overlapping foreign-account reporting regimes, two very different penalties. A side-by-side comparison that finally makes the rules clear.
FBAR — FinCEN Form 114
FBAR is filed with FinCEN (not the IRS) when the aggregate value of your foreign financial accounts exceeded $10,000 at any point during the year. The threshold is per person, not per account.
Filing is electronic only, through the BSA E-Filing System, and is due April 15 with an automatic extension to October 15.
FATCA — Form 8938
Form 8938 is filed with your tax return when your foreign financial assets exceed $50,000 (single, end of year) or $75,000 (single, any point in year). Thresholds are higher for joint filers and US persons living abroad.
Many filers must submit both FBAR and Form 8938 — they cover overlapping but not identical assets.
Penalties
Non-willful FBAR violations carry up to $10,000 per violation. Willful violations carry the greater of $100,000 or 50% of the account balance.
Form 8938 failures carry a $10,000 base penalty plus $10,000 per 30 days after IRS notification, up to $60,000 — and a 40% accuracy-related penalty on related under-payments.
What to do if you missed prior years
If you have unreported foreign accounts from prior years, do not just start filing forward. The Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures or Delinquent FBAR Submission Procedures are designed for exactly this situation and have meaningfully reduced penalty exposure.