FATCA letter from Barclays. Should I bother and is a UTR a TIN?

RobNNN

I don't know whether to bother filling in this FATCA letter which requires me to supply tax info for American authorities. It is asking me for a "TIN". According to the European Commission, the UK does not issue TINs. Perhaps they mean my UTR.
I have never been resident in the US or even visited. None of my family have any legal connection with the US.
Any advice?

bowlhead99

It seems strange that they would be asking exclusively for FATCA purposes. On the one hand there is FATCA which is about reporting US account holders who have accounts or investments at non US financial institutions (and vice versa) and in the other there is the OECD's Common Reporting Standard, which is the equivalent for automatically reporting non residents between financial institutions and tax authorities of 100+ other countries. Banks, brokers and other financial institutions have to document their account holders to help determine who to report or to determine that they don't have anyone to report.

FATCA regulation came along first but CRS followed a couple of years later. Usually banks try to cover both bits of regulation with just one form as they are both covered by a similar set of UK regulations - HMRC has to be supplied with the info for both FATCA and CRS with the same annual deadline date so they can pass the info on to their international counterparts.

It doesn't hurt to fill out the form and will save them chasing you incessantly for it or accidentally mis-reporting you if you don't respond.

The tax identification number equivalent for a UK resident is a national insurance number or UTR. Either would be fine (some people only have one or the other). 

https://www.oecd.org/tax/automatic-exchange/crs-implementation-and-assistance/tax-identification-numbers/UK-TIN.pdf

RobNNN

Thanks for the reply.

dunstonh

Certain investment products retailed in the UK have to comply with FATCA. Offshore investment bonds in particular.