What is the penalty for accidentally forgetting to file an FBAR?

Accidental or non-willful FBAR non-filing carries a civil penalty of up to $16,536 per form, per year (inflation-adjusted from the $10,000 statutory amount). The Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures and the Delinquent FBAR Submission Procedures both waive this penalty for non-willful filers who act before the IRS contacts them.

Non-willful FBAR penalty range:

• Per form, per year: up to $16,536 (inflation-adjusted)
• Per account (Bittner v. United States): Only one per-form penalty per year, regardless of the number of accounts
• Mitigation guidelines: IRS often reduces significantly in modest cases

Willful FBAR penalty (for contrast):

• Greater of $165,353 or 50% of the account balance per year
• Up to $500,000 and/or 10 years imprisonment for criminal willful

How to fix accidental non-filing:

• Streamlined Foreign Offshore: 3 years of tax returns and 6 years of FBARs, non-willfulness certification
• Delinquent FBAR Submission Procedures: FBAR-only fix when all income was reported and no tax is owed
• Both options require you to act before the IRS contacts you

Documentation to keep:

For accidental non-filing help, see our Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures.