Singapore Issues Further Updates to its FATCA Regulations

The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) has released new information on its website relating to compliance with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).

The updates include the following relating to transmitting the FATCA reporting packet to the IRAS, via the International Data Exchange Services (IDES):

• The Reporting SGFI will transmit the FATCA reporting packet to IRAS via the IDES Gateway. The transmitted file will only be released to the U.S. IRS upon IRAS’ approval.
• The Reporting SGFI will be able to upload and transmit a file using web UI or SFTP (refer to Section 11 of the IDES User Guide for detailed instructions on file transmission).
• The Reporting SGFI will receive transmission-related alerts (subject to the user’s Alert Preferences settings) from the IDES after it has submitted the FATCA reporting packet.

Singapore Releases Updated e-Tax Guide on GST and Attribution of Input Tax

In addition, the IRAS also reminded taxpayers that FATCA Return submission for Reporting Year 2014 ended on July 31, 2015.

On December 9, 2014, Singapore became the first country in Southeast Asia to sign a FATCA Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) on tax information sharing with the United States. FATCA requires all financial institutions outside of the US to periodically transmit information on financial accounts held by US persons to the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS), or face a 30 percent withholding tax on payments made from the US.

Singapore has negotiated a Model 1 IGA under which Singaporean financial institutions will report information on US accounts to their local tax authority, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS).

Investors engaged in business in Southeast Asia can expect to see many of the other countries in the region agree to their own IGAs with the US. In fact, Indonesia, Thailand, and Cambodia have all reached in substance agreements on FATCA. It is certain that neighboring countries will soon follow suit.

 RELATED: Dezan Shira & Associates’ Tax and Compliance Services

To learn more about how FATCA may affect your business in Southeast Asia and throughout the wider region, please contact the tax specialists at Dezan Shira & Associates.

The full text of Singapore’s updated regulations can be found here.

The full text of Singapore’s IGA can be found here. 

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