October 15: two different deadlines on the same day

Three weeks away. Almost everyone remembers the first one and forgets the second.

The first is your extended return

If you filed an extension in April, October 15 is the last day to file your 1040. Keep in mind that the extension gave you more time to file, not to pay. The tax was due April 15, and interest has been running since then.

The second is the FBAR

The report of foreign bank accounts. Its official due date is April 15, but everyone gets an automatic extension to October 15 without asking. That's exactly why people forget it: nobody filed anything, yet the deadline still arrives.

Who has to file an FBAR

Anyone whose foreign accounts added together exceeded $10,000 at any point during the year. Added together means all accounts combined, not each one separately. The account back home you haven't thought about in years counts too.

What happens if you miss it

For the tax return, interest and penalties tied to the tax owed. For the FBAR, penalties that are not tied to the account balance and can be far out of proportion to it.

Not sure whether the FBAR applies to you? Write to me and I'll review your situation for free.