In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Internal Revenue Service has agreed to extend many deadlines.  One such extension affords foreign financial institutions more time to file Form 8966.  Form 8966 is the annual reporting form used by foreign financial institutions to disclose to the IRS the identities of their U.S. customers as required by the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).  This extension applies to Reporting Model 2 FFIs and Participating FFIs. The filing deadline for the FATCA Report (Form 8966) is extended from March 31, 2020 to July 15, 2020.  Form 8809-I, Application for Extension of Time to File FATCA Form 8966, will not be required for this extension.

The IRS announced this extension of time by adding a new Frequently Asked Question to its FATCA General FAQs page.  The new FAQ is Question 4 under the subheading “Reporting.”  The verbatim text of the new FAQ is set out below:

Q4.  Due to the COVID-19 virus, will foreign financial institutions (FFI) filing the FATCA Report (Form 8966) to the IRS pursuant to the terms of a Model 2 IGA or the FFI agreement (i.e., a Reporting Model 2 FFI or Participating FFI) be granted an extension of time to file the FATCA Report which is generally due on March 31?

Yes.  In response to the COVID-19 virus, the Internal Revenue Service will provide an extension of time for a Reporting Model 2 FFI or a Participating FFI to file the FATCA Report (Form 8966) to the IRS.  The filing deadline for the FATCA Report (Form 8966) will be extended from March 31, 2020 to July 15, 2020.  Form 8809-I, Application for Extension of Time to File FATCA Form 8966 will not be required for this extension.

Added: 03-25-2020

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