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                                                                                            Department of the Treasury
                                                                                            Internal Revenue Service
Instructions for Form 3520-A

(Rev. December 2023)
Annual Information Return of Foreign Trust With a U.S. Owner

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code              subject to the penalty for the foreign trust’s failure to file a 
unless otherwise noted.                                          Form 3520-A. See Line 22 in the Instructions for Form 
                                                                 3520. See Penalties, later.
Future Developments
                                                                 Exceptions To Filing
For the latest information about developments related to         Rev. Proc. 2014-55 exempts from foreign trust information 
Form 3520-A and its instructions, such as legislation            reporting certain Canadian retirement plans, including 
enacted after they were published, go to IRS.gov/                Canadian registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs) 
Form3520A.                                                       and Canadian registered retirement income funds 
                                                                 (RRIFs), regardless of whether you are an eligible 
What’s New                                                       individual described in section 4.01 of Rev. Proc. 2014-55. 
Continuous-use form and instructions.    Form 3520-A             For more information about whether your Canadian 
and these instructions have been converted from an               retirement plan qualifies for an exemption from foreign 
annual revision to continuous use. Both the form and             trust information reporting, see sections 3 and 5 of Rev. 
instructions will be updated as needed. For the most             Proc. 2014-55, 2014-44 I.R.B. 753, available at 
recent version, go to IRS.gov/Form3520A.                         IRS.gov/IRB/2014-44_IRB#RP-2014-55.
Tax year and statements.   You are required to enter the         Rev. Proc. 2020-17 exempts from foreign trust 
tax year at the top of the first page and all statements. For    information reporting certain eligible individuals’ 
a fiscal-year filer, enter the tax year that the fiscal tax year transactions with, and ownership of, certain tax-favored 
begins with on all statements.                                   foreign trusts that are established and operated 
                                                                 exclusively or almost exclusively to provide pension or 
Reminders                                                        retirement benefits, or to provide medical, disability, or 
                                                                 educational benefits. For more information about whether 
Exemption from information reporting under section               you are an eligible individual, and whether your foreign 
6048.  Rev. Proc. 2020-17 exempts from foreign trust             trust qualifies for an exemption from foreign trust 
information reporting certain eligible individuals’              information reporting, see section 5 of Rev. Proc. 2020-17, 
transactions and ownership. See Exceptions To Filing,            2020-12 I.R.B. 539, available at IRS.gov/IRB/
later.                                                           2020-12_IRB#REV-PROC-2020-17.
                                                                 The exemptions from foreign trust information reporting 
General Instructions                                             described in Rev. Proc. 2014-55 and Rev. Proc. 2020-17 
                                                                 do not affect any reporting obligations under section 
Purpose of Form
                                                                 6038D or under any other provision of the U.S. law, 
Form 3520-A is the annual information return of a foreign        including the requirement to file Financial Crimes 
trust with at least one U.S. owner. The form provides            Enforcement (FinCEN) Form 114, Report of Foreign Bank 
information about the foreign trust, its U.S. beneficiaries,     and Financial Accounts (FBAR), imposed by 31 U.S.C. 
and any U.S. person who is treated as an owner of any            section 5314 and the regulations thereunder. For more 
portion of the foreign trust under the grantor trust rules       information, go to IRS.gov/FBAR.
(sections 671 through 679).
                                                                 When and Where To File
Who Must File
                                                                 File a complete Form 3520-A (including the statements on 
A foreign trust with a U.S. owner must file Form 3520-A in       pages 3 through 5) with the Internal Revenue Service 
order for the U.S. owner to satisfy its annual information       Center, P.O. Box 409101, Ogden, UT 84409, by the 15th 
reporting requirements under section 6048(b). Each U.S.          day of the 3rd month after the end of the trust's tax year. 
person treated as an owner of any portion of a foreign           However, if you are filing a substitute Form 3520-A with 
trust under the grantor trust rules (sections 671 through        your Form 3520, then your substitute Form 3520-A is due 
679) is responsible for ensuring that the foreign trust files    by the due date of Form 3520. See the Instructions for 
Form 3520-A and furnishes the required annual                    Form 3520 for the due date of the Form 3520. Give copies 
statements to its U.S. owners and U.S. beneficiaries. If a       of the Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement (pages 
foreign trust fails to file Form 3520-A, the U.S. owner must     3 and 4 of Form 3520-A) and the Foreign Grantor Trust 
complete and attach a substitute Form 3520-A for the             Beneficiary Statement (page 5 of Form 3520-A) to the 
foreign trust to the U.S. owner’s Form 3520, Annual Return       U.S. owners and U.S. beneficiaries by the 15th day of the 
To Report Transactions With Foreign Trusts and Receipt of        3rd month after the end of the trust's tax year, or later if an 
Certain Foreign Gifts, by the due date of the U.S. owner’s       extension of time to file is granted or if filing a substitute 
Form 3520 (and not the due date for the Form 3520-A,             Form 3520-A.
which is otherwise due by the 15th day of the 3rd month 
after the end of the trust’s tax year) in order to avoid being 

Oct 10, 2023                                          Cat. No. 25096U



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  An automatic 6-month extension of time to file Form          3520-A to the U.S. owner’s Form 3520 by the due date of 
3520-A (including the statements on pages 3 through 5)         the U.S. owner’s Form 3520 (and not the due date for 
will be granted by filing a properly completed Form 7004,      Form 3520-A) in order to avoid being subject to a penalty 
Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File            for the foreign trust’s failure to file a Form 3520-A. For 
Certain Business Income Tax, Information, and Other            example, a substitute Form 3520-A that, to the best of the 
Returns, with the foreign trust’s employer identification      U.S. owner’s ability, is completed and attached to the U.S. 
number (EIN) by the 15th day of the 3rd month after the        owner’s Form 3520 by the due date for the Form 3520 
end of the trust’s tax year. For details, see Form 7004.       (such as April 15 for the U.S. owners who are individuals) 
                                                               is considered timely filed.
Note.  An extension of time to file an income tax return will 
not provide an extension of time to file Form 3520-A. Form         Additional penalties will be imposed if the 
7004 with the foreign trust’s EIN must be filed in order to    noncompliance continues for more than 90 days after the 
request an extension of time to file Form 3520-A.              IRS mails a notice of failure to comply with the required 
                                                               reporting. If the IRS can determine the gross value 
  Form 3520-A must have all required attachments to be         (defined later) of the portion of the trust’s assets treated as 
considered complete.                                           owned by the U.S. person at the close of the tax year, then 
Who Must Sign                                                  the penalties will be reduced as necessary to assure that 
                                                               the aggregate amount of such penalties does not exceed 
If the return is filed by:                                     the gross value of the trust. For more information, see 
• An individual or fiduciary, it must be signed and dated      section 6677.
by that individual or fiduciary;
• A partnership, it must be signed and dated by a general          Criminal penalties may be imposed under sections 
partner or limited liability company member; or                7203, 7206, and 7207 for failure to file on time and for 
• A corporation, it must be signed and dated by the            filing a false or fraudulent return.
president, vice president, treasurer, assistant treasurer, 
chief accounting officer, or any other corporate officer       Note. If a U.S. owner of a foreign trust is subject to a 
(such as a tax officer) authorized to sign.                    penalty imposed under section 6662 for an underpayment 
                                                               of tax required to be shown on a return, then such penalty 
Note.  If the return is a substitute Form 3520-A that is       may be increased under section 6662(j) for any portion of 
being completed by a U.S. owner and attached to the U.S.       an underpayment that is attributable to any transaction 
owner’s Form 3520, then the U.S. owner must sign and           involving any asset with respect to which information was 
date the return and provide the U.S. owner’s name and          required to be provided on Form 3520-A. For more 
taxpayer identification number (TIN) on the “Title” line of    information about undisclosed foreign financial asset 
the signature box. For more information about the              understatements, see section 6662(j).
requirements to file a substitute Form 3520-A, see Line 22 
                                                               Reasonable cause. No penalties will be imposed if the 
in the Instructions for Form 3520.
                                                               taxpayer can demonstrate that the failure to comply with 
  The paid preparer must complete the required preparer        the reporting requirements was due to reasonable cause 
information and:                                               and not willful neglect.
• Sign the return in the space provided for the preparer's 
signature, and                                                 Note. The fact that a foreign country would impose 
• Give a copy of the return to the filer.                      penalties for disclosing the required information is not 
                                                               reasonable cause. Similarly, reluctance on the part of a 
Inconsistent Treatment of Items                                foreign fiduciary or provisions in the trust instrument that 
The U.S. beneficiary’s and U.S. owner’s tax returns must       prevent the disclosure of required information is not 
be consistent with the Form 3520-A filed by the foreign        reasonable cause. See section 6677(d).
trust unless you report the inconsistency to the IRS. If the 
U.S. beneficiaries or U.S. owners are treating items on        Definitions
their tax returns differently from the way the foreign trust 
treated them on its return, they must file Form 8082,          Distribution
Notice of Inconsistent Treatment or Administrative             A distribution received directly or indirectly from a foreign 
Adjustment Request (AAR). See Form 8082 for more               trust for section 6048(c) reporting purposes is any 
details.                                                       gratuitous transfer of money or other property from a 
                                                               foreign trust, whether or not a portion of such trust is 
Penalties                                                      treated as a grantor trust under the grantor trust rules of 
The U.S. owner is subject to an initial penalty equal to the   sections 671 through 679, and without regard to whether 
greater of $10,000 or 5% of the gross value (defined later)    the recipient is designated as a beneficiary by the terms of 
of the portion of the trust's assets treated as owned by the   the trust. A distribution includes the receipt of trust corpus 
U.S. person at the close of that tax year if the foreign trust and the receipt of a gift or bequest described in section 
(a) fails to file a timely Form 3520-A, or (b) does not        663(a).
furnish all of the information required by section 6048(b) or 
                                                                   A distribution also includes constructive transfers from 
includes incorrect information. See section 6677(a) 
                                                               a foreign trust. For example, if charges you make on a 
through (c).
                                                               credit card are paid by a foreign trust or guaranteed or 
  If a foreign trust fails to file a Form 3520-A, the U.S.     secured by the assets of a foreign trust, the amount 
owner must complete and attach a substitute Form               charged will be treated as a distribution to you by the 

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foreign trust. Similarly, if you write checks on a foreign        having a U.S. beneficiary and is therefore treated as a 
trust's bank account, the amount will be treated as a             grantor trust under the grantor trust rules.
distribution. Also, if you receive a payment from a foreign 
trust in exchange for property transferred to the trust or        Gross Value
services rendered to the trust, and the fair market value         Gross value is the value of property as determined under 
(FMV) of the payment you received exceeds the FMV of              section 2512 and its regulations, without regard to any 
the property transferred or services rendered, the excess         prohibitions or restrictions on a person's interest in the 
will be treated as a distribution to you. See section V of        property. See section VII of Notice 97-34. Although formal 
Notice 97-34, 1997-25 I.R.B. 22, available at IRS.gov/pub/        appraisals are generally not required, you should keep 
irs-irbs/irb97-25.pdf.                                            contemporaneous records of how you arrived at your 
Example 1.        If you sell stock with an FMV of $100 to a      good faith estimate.
foreign trust and receive $150 in exchange, you have 
                                                                  Nongrantor Trust
received a distribution of $50.
                                                                  A nongrantor trust is any trust to the extent that the assets 
Example 2.        If you receive $100 from the trust for          of the trust are not treated as owned by a person other 
services performed by you for the trust, and the services         than the trust under the grantor trust rules in sections 671 
have an FMV of $20, you have received a distribution of           through 679. Thus, a nongrantor trust is treated as a 
$80.                                                              taxable entity. A trust may be treated as a nongrantor trust 
Foreign Trust and Domestic Trust                                  with respect to only a portion of the trust assets. See 
                                                                  Grantor Trust, earlier.
A foreign trust is any trust other than a domestic trust. A 
domestic trust is any trust if:                                   Owner
1. A court within the United States is able to exercise           An owner of a foreign trust is the person that is treated as 
primary supervision over the administration of the trust,         owning any of the assets of a foreign trust under the 
and                                                               grantor trust rules.
2. One or more U.S. persons have the authority to 
control all substantial decisions of the trust.                   Property
                                                                  Property means any property, whether tangible or 
Grantor                                                           intangible, including cash.
A grantor includes any person who creates a trust or 
directly or indirectly makes a gratuitous transfer of cash or     U.S. Agent
other property to a trust. A grantor includes any person          A U.S. agent is a U.S. person (defined later) that has a 
treated as the owner of any part of a foreign trust's assets      binding contract with a foreign trust that allows the U.S. 
under sections 671 through 679, excluding section 678.            person to act as the trust's authorized U.S. agent (see the 
                                                                  instructions for Lines 3a through 3g under Part I, later) in 
Note. If a partnership or corporation makes a gratuitous          applying sections 7602, 7603, and 7604 with respect to:
transfer to a trust, the partners or shareholders are             • Any request by the IRS to examine records or produce 
generally treated as the grantors of the trust, unless the        testimony related to the proper U.S. tax treatment of 
partnership or corporation made the transfer for a                amounts distributed, or required to be taken into account 
business purpose of the partnership or corporation.               under the grantor trust rules, with respect to a foreign 
If a trust makes a gratuitous transfer to another trust,          trust; or
the grantor of the transferor trust is treated as the grantor     • Any summons by the IRS for such records or testimony.
of the transferee trust, except that if a person with a             A U.S. grantor, a U.S. beneficiary, or a domestic 
general power of appointment over the transferor trust            corporation controlled by the grantor or beneficiary may 
exercises that power in favor of another trust, such person       act as a U.S. agent. However, you may not treat the 
is treated as the grantor of the transferee trust, even if the    foreign trust as having a U.S. agent unless you enter the 
grantor of the transferor trust is treated as the owner of the    name, address, and TIN of the U.S. agent on lines 3a 
transferor trust.                                                 through 3g of Part I of the form. See Taxpayer 
                                                                  identification numbers (TINs), later.
Grantor Trust
A grantor trust is any trust to the extent that the assets of       If a foreign trust with a U.S. owner does not have a U.S. 
the trust are treated as owned by a person other than the         agent, the IRS may redetermine the amounts required to 
trust. See the grantor trust rules in sections 671 through        be taken into account with respect to the foreign trust by 
679. A part of the trust may be treated as a grantor trust to     the U.S. owner. See section 6048(b)(2). The agency 
the extent that only a portion of the trust assets are owned      relationship must be established by the time the U.S. 
by a person other than the trust.                                 person files Form 3520-A for the relevant tax year and 
                                                                  must continue as long as the statute of limitations remains 
Note. Under the HIRE Act, effective after March 18, 2010,         open for the relevant tax year. If the agent’s responsibility 
if a foreign trust directly or indirectly loans cash or           as an agent of the trust is terminated for any reason (for 
marketable securities to a U.S. person who does not repay         example, agent’s resignation, agent’s liquidation, or 
the loan at a market rate of interest, or allows a U.S.           agent’s death), see section IV.B of Notice 97-34.
person to use trust property without paying FMV within a 
reasonable period of time, the trust will be treated as 

Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023)                    -3-



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U.S. Beneficiary                                                 foreign trust (other than a deferred compensation or 
A U.S. beneficiary generally includes any U.S. person that       charitable trust described in section 6048(a)(3)(B)(ii)), the 
could possibly benefit (directly or indirectly) from the trust   IRS may treat such trust as having a U.S. beneficiary for 
(including an amended trust) at any time, whether or not         purposes of applying section 679(d) to such transfer if the 
the person is designated in the trust instrument as a            IRS requests information with respect to the transfer and 
beneficiary and whether or not the person can receive a          the U.S. person fails to demonstrate to the satisfaction of 
distribution from the trust in the current year. In addition, a  the IRS that no portion of the income or corpus of the trust 
U.S. beneficiary includes:                                       may ever be paid to or accumulated for the benefit of a 
• A foreign corporation that is a controlled foreign             U.S. person.
corporation (as defined in section 957(a)),
                                                                 U.S. Person
• A foreign partnership if a U.S. person is a partner of the 
partnership, and                                                 A U.S. person is:
• A foreign estate or trust if the estate or trust has a U.S.        • A citizen or resident of the United States, including dual 
beneficiary. See section II of Notice 97-34 and the              residents who claim the benefits under an income tax 
regulations under section 679 for additional information.        treaty (see Pub. 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens, for 
                                                                 guidance on determining resident alien status);
Foreign trust treated as having a U.S. beneficiary.       In         • A domestic partnership;
general, if a U.S. person, directly or indirectly, transfers         • A domestic corporation;
property to a foreign trust (other than a deferred                   • Any estate (other than a foreign estate, within the 
compensation or charitable trust described in section            meaning of section 7701(a)(31)(A)); and
6048(a)(3)(B)(ii)), the foreign trust will be treated as             • Any domestic trust (defined earlier).
having a U.S. beneficiary unless the terms of the trust 
instrument specifically prohibit any distribution of income 
or corpus to a U.S. person at any time, even after the           Specific Instructions
death of the U.S. transferor or any event terminating the 
trust, and the trust cannot be amended or revised to allow       Period Covered
such a distribution. For these purposes, an amount will be       For calendar-year filers, fill in the "calendar year" space at 
treated as accumulated for the benefit of a U.S. person          the top of the form. For fiscal-year filers, fill in the "tax year 
even if the U.S. person's interest in the trust is contingent    beginning" and "ending" spaces at the top of the form.
on a future event and regardless of whether anything is 
actually distributed to a U.S. person during that tax year.      Initial Return, Final Return, Amended 
  Special rule in case of discretion to identify                 Return, Extension Filed, Substitute 
beneficiaries. For purposes of the general rule above, if 
any person has the discretion of making a distribution           Form 3520-A
from the trust to, or for the benefit of, any person, the trust  Initial return. If this is the foreign trust's first return, check 
will be treated as having a beneficiary who is a U.S.            the “Initial return” box.
person, unless the terms of the trust specifically identify 
the class of persons to whom such distributions may be           Final return. If the foreign trust ceases to exist, check the 
made, and none of those persons are U.S. persons during          “Final return” box.
the tax year.                                                    Amended return.    If this Form 3520-A is filed to amend a 
  Certain agreements and understandings treated as               Form 3520-A that you previously filed, check the 
terms of the trust. For purposes of the general rule             “Amended return” box.
above, if any U.S. person who directly or indirectly 
                                                                 Extension filed.   If the Form 7004 was timely filed to 
transfers property to the trust is directly or indirectly 
                                                                 request an extension for the Form 3520-A, check the 
involved in any agreement or understanding (whether 
                                                                 “Extension filed” box.
written, oral, or otherwise) that may result in the income or 
corpus of the trust being paid or accumulated to, or for the     Substitute Form 3520-A.      If you are a U.S. owner of the 
benefit of, a U.S. person, such agreement or                     foreign trust filing a substitute Form 3520-A and attaching 
understanding will be treated as a term of the trust.            it to your Form 3520, check the “Substitute Form 3520-A” 
  Certain loans or uncompensated use of trust                    box.
property. If a foreign trust is not already treated as having 
a U.S. beneficiary under the rules described above, the          Excepted Specified Foreign Financial 
trust will be treated as having a U.S. beneficiary if, after     Assets Reported
March 18, 2010, either:                                          Check the box only if a U.S. person treated as the owner 
• The foreign trust loans cash or marketable securities,         of any portion of the trust under the grantor trust rules also 
directly or indirectly, to a U.S. person and the U.S. person     files Form 8938, Statement of Specified Foreign Financial 
does not repay the loan at a market rate of interest within a    Assets, for the tax year and includes this form in the total 
reasonable period of time; or                                    number of Forms 3520-A reported on line 16 of Part IV, 
• A U.S. person, directly or indirectly, uses property that is   Excepted Specified Foreign Financial Assets, of Form 
owned by the foreign trust and does not pay FMV of the           8938. For more information, see the Instructions for Form 
use of such property within a reasonable period of time.         8938, generally, and in particular, Duplicative reporting 
Presumption that foreign trust has U.S. beneficiary.          If and the specific instructions for Part IV.
a U.S. person, directly or indirectly, transfers property to a 

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Part I—General Information                                       In order to authorize a U.S. person to act as an agent 
                                                                 under section 6048(b), the trust and the agent must enter 
Taxpayer identification numbers (TINs).     Use social           into a binding agreement substantially in the format that 
security numbers (SSNs) or individual taxpayer                   follows. Attach a copy of the Authorization of Agent form to 
identification numbers (ITINs) to identify individuals. Use      Form 3520-A. This form should be attached to Form 
EINs to identify estates, trusts, partnerships, and              3520-A every 3 years unless there has been a change, 
corporations. Don’t use an SSN in place of an EIN.               and if so, it should be attached in the year with respect to 
Applying for an EIN.    If you don’t have an EIN, you may        which the change relates.
apply for one online at IRS.gov/EIN. If the principal                       AUTHORIZATION OF AGENT
business was created or organized outside of the United          [ Name  of  foreign  trust ] hereby  expressly  authorizes  [ name  of
States or U.S. territories, you may also apply for an EIN by     U.S.  agent ]  to  act  as  its  agent  solely  for  purposes  of  sections
                                                                 7602, 7603, and 7604 of the Internal Revenue Code with respect to
calling 267-941-1099 (toll call).                                any request to examine records or produce testimony related to the
                                                                 proper  treatment  of  amounts  required  to  be  taken  into  account
        Do not enter a preparer tax identification number        under the rules of section 6048(b)(2)(A) or to any summons for such
  !     (PTIN) in any entry space on Form 3520-A other           records  or  testimony.  I  certify  that  I  have  the  authority  to  execute
CAUTION than the entry space for “PTIN” at the bottom of         this  authorization  of  agent  to  act  on  behalf  of [ name  of  foreign
                                                                 trust ].
page 1 of the form.

Address. Include the room, suite, or other unit number           Signature of trustee                  (title) (date)
after the street address. If the post office does not deliver    (or other authorized person)
mail to the street address and the U.S. person has a P.O. 
box, show the box number instead.
                                                                 Your Name (type or print)
Foreign address.  Do not abbreviate the country name.
Line 1b. Enter the EIN of the foreign trust. Do not enter        Taxpayer Identication Number (if any)
an SSN or ITIN. Only EINs should be used to identify the 
                                                                 Address
foreign trust.
Line 2. If the trust appointed a U.S. agent, enter the year      [ Name  of  agent ] accepts  this  appointment  to  act  as  agent
                                                                 for [ name of foreign trust ] for the above purpose. I certify that I
the Authorization of Agent form was last attached.               have  the  authority  to  execute  this  authorization  of  agent  to  act  on
                                                                 behalf of [ name of foreign trust ] and agree to accept service of
Note. The Authorization of Agent form should be                  process for the above purposes.
attached every 3 years unless there has been a change, 
and if so, it should be attached in the year with respect to     Signature of agent                    (title) (date)
which the change relates.
  If the trust did not appoint a U.S. agent, attach the 
following documents to Form 3520-A.                              Your Name (type or print)
• A summary of the terms of the trust that includes a 
summary of any oral agreements or understandings you             Taxpayer Identication Number (if any)
have with the trustee, whether or not legally enforceable.
• A copy of all trust documents (and any revisions),             Address
including the trust instrument, any memoranda of wishes 
prepared by the trustees summarizing the settlor's wishes,               Do not enter a PTIN on the Authorization of Agent 
any letter of wishes prepared by the settlor summarizing         !       form.
                                                                 CAUTION
his or her wishes, and any similar documents.
• A copy of the trust’s organizational chart, including          Line 5.  Enter the number of Foreign Grantor Trust Owner 
ownership structure and percentage of ownership.                 Statements (pages 3 and 4) included with this Form 
                                                                 3520-A.
Note. If these documents have been attached to a Form 
3520-A filed within the previous 3 years, attach only            Line 6. Enter the number of Foreign Grantor Trust 
relevant updates.                                                Beneficiary Statements (page 5) included with this Form 
                                                                 3520-A.
Lines 3a through 3g.    If a foreign trust with a U.S. owner 
does not have a U.S. agent, the IRS may determine the            Sign here. In general, the trustee of the foreign trust must 
amounts required to be taken into account with respect to        sign the Form 3520-A. However, if the U.S. owner of the 
the foreign trust by the U.S. owner. See section 6048(b)         foreign trust is filing a substitute Form 3520-A, the U.S. 
(2). In order to avoid this, a U.S. owner of a foreign trust     owner must sign. See Who Must Sign, earlier.
should ensure that the foreign trust appoints a U.S. person 
to act as the foreign trust's limited agent for purposes of      Part II—Foreign Trust Income 
applying sections 7602, 7603, and 7604 with respect to a         Statement
request by the IRS to examine records or produce                 Include all income from U.S. and non-U.S. sources. This 
testimony, or a summons by the IRS for such records or           financial statement must reasonably reflect the trust's 
testimony. Any U.S. citizen, resident, or domestic               income under U.S. income tax principles.
corporation (including a U.S. grantor or U.S. beneficiary of 
a foreign trust) may act as the U.S. agent of the trust.

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Income                                                        fiduciary must make an interest allocation according to the 
                                                              rules in Temporary Regulations section 1.163-8T.
Line 1. Interest. Report all taxable interest income that 
was received during the tax year. Examples of taxable               Do not include interest paid on indebtedness incurred 
interest include, but are not limited to, interest from the   or continued to purchase or carry obligations on which the 
following.                                                    interest is wholly exempt from income tax.
• Accounts (including certificates of deposit and money       Line 10a. Foreign taxes.   A foreign tax includes only a 
market accounts) with banks, credit unions, and thrift        tax imposed by the authority of a foreign country.
institutions.
                                                              Line 10b. State and local taxes.      Enter any deductible 
• Notes, loans, and mortgages.
                                                              state and local income or real property taxes paid or 
• U.S. Treasury bills, notes, and bonds.
                                                              incurred during the tax year that are not reported 
• U.S. savings bonds.
                                                              elsewhere in Part II.
• Original issue discount.
• Income received as a regular interest holder of a real            Do not deduct on line 10b or on any other line of Part II:
estate mortgage investment conduit (REMIC).                       • Federal income taxes;
  For taxable bonds acquired after 1987, amortizable              • Estate, inheritance, legacy, succession, and gift taxes; 
                                                              or
bond premium is treated as an offset to the interest 
income instead of as a separate interest deduction. See           • Federal duties and excise taxes.
Pub. 550, Investment Income and Expenses.                     Line 11. Amortization and depreciation (depletion).         A 
                                                              reasonable amount is allowed as a depreciation deduction 
Line 2. Dividends. Report all ordinary dividends 
                                                              for the exhaustion, wear, and tear of:
received during the tax year.
                                                                  • Property used in a trade or business, or
Note. Report capital gain distributions on Line 5. Capital        • Property held for the production of income.
gains (losses) of this section.                               Line 12. Trustee and advisor fees.    Enter the deductible 
Line 4. Income (loss) from partnerships, fiduciaries,         fees paid or incurred to the fiduciary for administering the 
etc. Enter the trust's share of income or (losses) from       trust during the tax year.
partnerships, S corporations, estates, other trusts, and      Line 13. Charitable contributions.    Generally, any part 
REMICs.                                                       of the income reported on line 8 that is paid (or treated as 
  If the trust received a Schedule K-1 from a partnership,    paid) during the tax year for a charitable purpose specified 
S corporation, or other flow-through entity, use the          in section 170(c) is allowed as a deduction. It is not 
corresponding lines on Form 3520-A to report the interest,    necessary that the charitable organization be created or 
dividends, capital gains, etc., from the flow-through entity. organized in the United States.
Line 5. Capital gains (losses). For capital gains or          Line 14. Other expenses.   Enter other items of expense 
(losses) attributable to a U.S. owner, use Schedule D         not listed on lines 9 through 13. List the type and amount 
(corporate or individual, whichever applies) and Form         on an attached statement if the trust has more than one 
8949, Sales and Other Dispositions of Capital Assets, if      item.
applicable.                                                   Line 17a. FMV of total distributions. Attach a 
Line 6. Ordinary gains (losses). Enter the ordinary gain      statement that provides the following information 
or (loss) from the sale or exchange of property other than    concerning the transfer.
capital assets and also from involuntary conversions                1. Name, U.S. TIN (if any), and country of organization 
(other than casualty or theft).                               or residence of the person to whom the property was 
Line 7. Other income. Enter other items of income not         transferred.
included on lines 1 through 6. List the types and amounts           2. A general description of the transfer, and any 
on an attached statement if the trust has more than one       broader transaction of which it forms a part, including a 
item.                                                         chronology of the transfers involved and an identification 
  Items to be reported on line 7 include any part of a total  of the other parties to the transaction to the extent known.
distribution shown on Form 1099-R, Distributions From               3. A description of the property transferred, including 
Pensions, Annuities, Retirement or Profit-Sharing Plans,      the estimated FMV and the adjusted basis of the property.
IRAs, Insurance Contracts, etc., that is treated as ordinary        4. A description of the consideration received by the 
income. For more information, see the instructions for        trust, including its estimated FMV, and for stock or 
Form 4972, Tax on Lump-Sum Distributions.                     securities, the class or type, amount, and characteristics 
                                                              of the interest received. If no consideration was received 
Expenses
                                                              by the trust, indicate whether the trust or a U.S. owner 
Line 9. Interest expense. Enter the amount of interest        exercises any powers over the entity to which the property 
(subject to limitations) paid or incurred by the trust on     was transferred (including a description of such powers), 
amounts borrowed by the trust, or on debt acquired by the     and identify the name, U.S. TIN (if any), and country of 
trust, that is not reported elsewhere in Part II.             organization or residence of all beneficial owners of such 
  If the proceeds of a loan were used for more than one       entity.
purpose (for example, to purchase a portfolio investment            5. To the extent known, a description of any 
and to acquire an interest in a passive activity), the        subsequent transfer of the property, including the name, 

                                                              -6-         Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023)



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U.S. TIN (if any), and country of organization or residence       within the last 3 years. Specify the years the documents 
of the person to whom the property was subsequently               were attached. See Line 2 under Part I, earlier, for a list of 
transferred.                                                      documents the trust is required to attach to Form 3520-A.

The statement must also contain a description of the              Statement of Foreign Trust Income Attributable 
trust ownership structure setting forth the name, U.S. TIN 
                                                                  to U.S. Owner
(if any), and country of organization of all entities in which 
the trust has an ownership interest, including an                         On the top of each statement, fill in the tax year. 
ownership chart showing the trust's position in the chain of      !       For fiscal-year filers, use the year in which your 
ownership and the percentages of ownership.                       CAUTION fiscal tax year begins.
Note. The term “person” includes an individual or an              The amounts on the statement must include the portion 
entity, whether U.S. or foreign. See the definition of U.S.       of income reported by the foreign trust deemed 
person, earlier. A foreign person is an individual or entity      attributable to the U.S. owner.

that is not a U.S. person.                                        The foreign trust may need to furnish to the U.S. owner 
Lines 17b and 17c. Distributions to U.S. owners and               additional information, including applicable statements, to 
U.S. beneficiaries. Separately list the total amount of           ensure that the owner accurately reports income and 
distributions (including the uncompensated use of trust           expenses on the owner's U.S. income tax return.
property) to each U.S. owner and U.S. beneficiary. List the 
full name, TIN, date of distribution, and FMV on the date         Foreign Grantor Trust Beneficiary 
of distribution (dollar amount) for each U.S. owner and           Statement
U.S. beneficiary who receives a distribution. If more space 
is needed, attach a statement.                                            On the top of each statement, fill in the tax year. 
                                                                          For fiscal-year filers, use the year in which your 
Prepare a separate Foreign Grantor Trust Owner                    CAUTION!
                                                                          fiscal tax year begins.
Statement (see below) or Foreign Grantor Trust 
Beneficiary Statement (see below) for each U.S. owner             A copy of this statement (page 5 of Form 3520-A) must 
or for each U.S. beneficiary who receives a distribution          be (a) furnished to each U.S. beneficiary who receives a 
from the trust.                                                   distribution, directly or indirectly, from the foreign trust 
                                                                  during the tax year; and (b) included with this Form 
Part III—Foreign Trust Balance Sheet                              3520-A. See the definitions for U.S. beneficiary and 
List all assets and liabilities of the trust, including those     distribution provided earlier in these instructions.
assets and liabilities attributable to the portion(s) of the 
                                                                  Exception.  Do not complete this statement for a U.S. 
trust (if any) not treated as owned by a U.S. person.
                                                                  person for any portion of the trust of which that U.S. 
The balance sheet should reflect FMV. Include                     person is treated as the owner; instead, complete the 
certificates of deposit as cash on line 1.                        Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement for that U.S. 
                                                                  person (as described earlier).
For purposes of completing Part III, it is not necessary 
or required to reconcile any differences between the book         The statement must be furnished to the U.S. 
and tax basis of assets and liabilities.                          beneficiary no later than the 15th day of the 3rd month 
Line 18. Accumulated trust income.       Include the total        following the end of the trust's tax year, or later if an 
amount of trust income accumulated and not distributed.           extension of time to file is granted, or if filing a substitute 
                                                                  Form 3520-A. See When and Where To File, earlier.
Foreign Grantor Trust Owner                                       TINs and addresses. See the instructions for Part I, 
Statement                                                         earlier, for information on entering TINs and addresses.

        On the top of each statement, fill in the tax year.       Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the 
!       For fiscal-year filers, use the year in which your        information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue 
CAUTION fiscal tax year begins.
                                                                  laws of the United States. You are required to give us the 
A copy of this statement (pages 3 and 4 of Form                   information. We need it to ensure that you are complying 
3520-A) must be (a) furnished to each U.S. person who is          with these laws and to allow us to figure and collect the 
treated as an owner of the foreign trust under the grantor        right amount of tax.
trust rules, and (b) included with this Form 3520-A. The 
                                                                  You are not required to provide the information 
statement must be furnished to each U.S. owner no later 
                                                                  requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork 
than the 15th day of the 3rd month following the end of the 
                                                                  Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid OMB 
trust's tax year, or later if an extension of time to file is 
                                                                  control number. Books or records relating to a form or its 
granted, or if filing a substitute Form 3520-A. See When 
                                                                  instructions must be retained for as long as their contents 
and Where To File, earlier.
                                                                  may become material in the administration of any Internal 
TINs and addresses. See the instructions for Part I,              Revenue law.
earlier, for information on entering TINs and addresses.
                                                                  The time needed to complete and file the form will vary 
Line 8. Trust documents.   If the trust did not appoint a 
                                                                  depending on individual circumstances. The estimated 
U.S. agent, list the documents attached to the current year 
                                                                  average time is:
Form 3520-A and those attached to a Form 3520-A filed 

Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023)                    -7-



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Recordkeeping. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .        37 hr., 18 min. simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. You can 
                                                                      send us comments from IRS.gov/FormComments. Or you 
Learning about the law or the                                         can send your comments to Internal Revenue Service, Tax 
form. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 hr., 40 min.  Forms and Publications Division, 1111 Constitution Ave. 
Preparing and sending the form to                                     NW, IR-6526, Washington, DC 20224. Do not send the 
the IRS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3 hr., 24 min.  form to this office. Instead, see When and Where To File, 
                                                                      earlier.

If you have comments concerning the accuracy of 
these time estimates or suggestions for making this form 

                                                                      -8-     Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023)






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