U.S. Defers Overseas Banks Reporting Rule

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service has delayed a law that requires financial groups to report their U.S. clients to tax authorities in the country.

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has delayed a law that requires financial groups to report their U.S. clients to tax authorities in the country, Financial Times reports. The law that was set to be applied at the start of 2013 will now be postponed for several years.

Various overseas banks opposed the law, saying that they were being deputized as U.S. enforcement officials under instructions to identify U.S.-linked accounts worth more than $50,000. In case of refusal, the law required banks to make 30% withholdings on non-compliant U.S. customers until Jan. 1, 2014. Other withholdings on gross proceeds and income that might be indirectly sourced to the U.S. will not begin until Jan. 1, 2015.

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