TREATIES AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL ACTS SERIES 15-729

________________________________________________________________________

TAXATION

Foreign Account Tax Compliance 

Agreement Between the 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

and BELARUS

Signed at Minsk March 18, 2015 

with

Annexes
 NOTE BY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE

 Pursuant to Public Law 89—497, approved July 8, 1966

(80 Stat. 271; 1 U.S.C. 113)—

“. . .the Treaties and Other International Acts Series issued

under the authority of the Secretary of State shall be competent

evidence . . . of the treaties, international agreements other than

treaties, and proclamations by the President of such treaties and

international agreements other than treaties, as the case may be, 

therein contained, in all the courts of law and equity and of maritime

jurisdiction, and in all the tribunals and public offices of the

United States, and of the several States, without any further proof

or authentication thereof.”
 BELARUS 

 

 Taxation: Foreign Account Tax Compliance 

 Agreement signed at Minsk March 18, 2015;

 Entered into force July 29, 2015.

 With annexes.
AGREEMENT 

BETWEEN 

THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS 

TO IMPROVE INTERNATIONAL TAX COMPLIANCE AND 

TO IMPLEMENT FATCA 

Whereas, the Government of the United States of America and the 

Government of the Republic of Belarus (each, a "Party," and together, the 

"Parties") desire to conclude an agreement to improve international tax 

compliance; 

Whereas, the United States of America enacted provisions commonly 

known as the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act ("FATCA"), which 

introduce a reporting regime for financial institutions with respect to 

certain accounts; 

Whereas, the Government of the Republic of Belarus is supportive of 

the underlying policy goal ofFATCA to improve tax compliance; 

Whereas, FATCA has raised a number of issues, including that 

Belarusian Financial Institutions may not be able to comply with certain 

aspects ofFATCA due to domestic legal impediments; 

Whereas, the · Parties are committed to working together over the 

longer term towards achieving common reporting and due diligence 

standards for financial institutions; 

Whereas, the Government of the United States of America 

acknowledges the need to coordinate the reporting obligations under 

FATCA with other U.S. tax reporting obligations of Belarusian financial 

institutions to avoid duplicative rep01iing; 

Whereas, an intergovernmental approach to F ATCA implementation 

would address legal impediments and reduce burdens for Belarusian 
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financial institutions; 

Whereas, the Parties desire to conclude an agreement to improve 

international tax compliance and provide for the implementation ofFATCA 

based on domestic reporting and automatic exchange, subject to the 

confidentiality and other protections provided for herein, including the 

provisions limiting the use of the information exchanged; 

Now, therefore, the Parties have agreed as follows: 

Article 1 

Definitions 

1. For purposes of this agreement and any annexes thereto 

("Agreement"), the following terms shall have the meanings set forth 

below: 

a) The term "United States" means the United States of America, 

including the States thereof, and, when used in a geographical sense, means 

the territory of the United States of America, including inland waters, the 

air space, the territorial sea thereof and any maritime area beyond the 

territorial sea within which the United States may exercise sovereign rights 

or jurisdiction in accordance with international law; the term, however, 

does not include the U.S. Territories. Any reference to a "State" of the 

United States includes the District of Columbia. 

b) The term "U.S. Territory" means American Samoa, the 

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, the 

Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

c) The term "IRS" means the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. 

d) The term "Republic of Belarus" means the Republic of Belarus 

and, when used in a geographical sense, means the territory within which, 

in accordance with international law and on application of its domestic 
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legislation, the Republic of Belarus may exerctse sovereign rights and 

jurisdiction. 

e) The term "Partner Jurisdiction" means a jurisdiction that has in 

effect an agreement with the United States to facilitate the implementation 

ofFATCA. The IRS shall publish a list identifying all Partner Jurisdictions. 

f) The term "Competent Authority" means: 

1) in the case of the United States, the Secretary of the Treasury or his 

delegate; and 

2) in the case of the Republic of Belarus, the Ministry of Taxes and 

Duties or its authorized representative. 

g) The term "Financial Institution" means a Custodial Institution, a 

Depository Institution, an Investment Entity, or a Specified Insurance 

Company. 

h) The term "Custodial Institution" means any Entity that holds, as a 

substantial portion of its business, financial assets for the account of others. 

An entity holds financial assets for the account of others as a substantial 

portion of its business if the entity's gross income attributable to the 

holding of financial assets and related financial services equals or exceeds 

20 percent of the entity's gross income during the shorter of: (i) the threeyear period that ends on December 31 (or the final day of a non-calendar 

year accounting period) prior to the year in which the determination is 

being made; or (ii) the period during which the entity has been in existence. 

i) The term "Depository Institution" means any Entity that accepts 

deposits in the ordinary course of a banking or similar business. 

j) The term "Investment Entity" means any Entity that conducts as a 

business (or is managed by an entity that conducts as a business) one or 

more of the following activities or operations for or on behalf of a 

customer: 

( 1) trading in money market instruments (cheques, bills, certificates of 
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deposit, derivatives, etc.); foreign exchange; exchange, interest rate and 

index instruments; transferable securities; or commodity futures trading; 

(2) individual and collective portfolio management; or 

(3) otherwise investing, administering, or managing funds or money 

on behalf of other persons. 

This subparagraph 1 G) shall be interpreted in a manner consistent with 

similar language set forth in the definition of "financial institution" in the 

Financial Action Task Force Recommendations. 

k) The term "Specified Insurance Company" means any Entity that 

1s an insurance company (or the holding company of an insurance 

company) that issues, or is obligated to make payments with respect to, a 

Cash Value Insurance Contract or an Annuity Contract. 

1) The term "Belarusian Financial Institution" means (i) any 

Financial Institution organized under the laws of the Republic of Belarus, 

but excluding any branch of such Financial Institution that is located 

outside the Republic of Belarus, and (ii) any branch of a Financial 

Institution not organized under the laws of the Republic of Belarus, if such 

branch is located in the Republic of Belarus. 

m) The term "Partner Jurisdiction Financial Institution" means (i) 

any Financial Institution established in a Partner Jurisdiction, but excluding 

any branch of such Financial Institution that is located outside the Partner 

Jurisdiction, and (ii) any branch of a Financial Institution not established in 

the Partner Jurisdiction, if such branch is located in the Partner Jurisdiction. 

n) The term "Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution" means 

any Belarusian Financial Institution that is not a Non-Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institution. 

o) The term "Non-Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution" 

means any Belarusian Financial Institution, or other Entity resident in the 

Republic of Belarus, that is described in Annex II as a Non-Reporting 
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Belarusian Financial Institution or that otherwise qualifies as a deemedcompliant FFI or an exempt beneficial owner under relevant U.S. Treasury 

Regulations in effect on the date of signature of this Agreement. 

p) The term "Nonparticipating Financial Institution" means a 

nonparticipating FFI, as that term is defined in relevant U.S. Treasury 

Regulations, but does not include a Belarusian Financial Institution or other 

Partner Jurisdiction Financial Institution other than a Financial Institution 

treated as a Nonparticipating Financial Institution pursuant to subparagraph 

3(b) of Article 5 of this Agreement or the corresponding provision in an 

agreement between the United States and a Partner Jurisdiction. 

q) The term "Financial Account" means an account maintained by a 

Financial Institution, and includes: 

( 1) in the case of an Entity that is a Financial Institution solely 

because it is an Investment Entity, any equity or debt interest (other than 

interests that are regularly traded on an established securities market) in the 

Financial Institution; 

(2) in the case of a Financial Institution not described in subparagraph 

l(q)(l) of this Article, any equity or debt interest in the Financial Institution 

(other than interests that are regularly traded on an established securities 

market), if (i) the value of the debt or equity interest is determined, directly 

or indirectly, primarily by reference to assets that give rise to U.S. Source 

Withholdable Payments, and (ii) the class of interests was established with 

a purpose of avoiding reporting in accordance with this Agreement; and 

(3) any Cash Value Insurance Contract and any Annuity Contract 

issued or maintained by a Financial Institution, other than a noninvestmentlinked, nontransferable immediate life annuity that is issued to an 

individual and monetizes a pension or disability benefit provided under an 

account that is excluded from the definition of Financial Account in 

Annex II. 
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Notwithstanding the foregoing, the term "Financial Account" does not 

include any account that is excluded from the definition of Financial 

Account in Annex II. For purposes of this Agreement, interests are 

"regularly traded" ifthere is a meaningful volume of trading with respect to 

the interests on an ongoing basis, and an "established securities market" 

means an exchange that is officially recognized and supervised by a 

governmental authority in which the market is located and that has a 

meaningful annual value of shares traded on the exchange. For purposes of 

this subparagraph 1 ( q), an interest in a Financial Institution is not 

"regularly traded" and shall be treated as a Financial Account if the holder 

of the interest (other than a Financial Institution acting as an intermediary) 

is registered on the books of such Financial Institution. The preceding 

sentence will not apply to interests first registered on the books of such 

Financial Institution prior to July 1, 2014, and with respect to interests first 

registered on the books of such Financial Institution on or after July 1, 

2014, a Financial Institution is not required to apply the preceding sentence 

prior to January 1, 2016. 

r) The term "Depository Account" includes any commercial, 

checking, savings, time, or thrift account, or an account that is evidenced 

by a certificate of deposit, thrift certificate, investment certificate, 

certificate of indebtedness, or other similar instrument maintained by a 

Financial Institution in the ordinary course of a banking or similar business. 

A Depository Account also includes an amount held by an insurance 

company pursuant to a guaranteed investment contract or similar agreement 

to pay or credit interest thereon. 

s) The term "Custodial Account" means an account (other than an 

Insurance Contract or Annuity Contract) for the benefit of another person 

that holds ·any financial instrument or contract held for investment 

(including, but not limited to, a share or stock in a corporation, a note, 
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bond, debenture, or other evidence of indebtedness, a currency or 

commodity transaction, a credit default swap, a swap based upon a 

nonfinancial index, a notional principal contract, an Insurance Contract or 

Annuity Contract, and any option or other derivative instrument). 

t) The term "Equity Interest" means, in the case of a partnership that 

IS a Financial Institution, either a capital or profits interest in the 

partnership. In the case of a trust that is a Financial Institution, an Equity 

Interest is considered to be held by any person treated as a settlor or 

beneficiary of all or a portion of the trust, or any other natural person 

exercising ultimate effective control over the trust. A Specified U.S. Person 

shall be treated as being a beneficiary of a foreign trust if such Specified 

U.S. Person has the right to receive directly or indirectly (for example, 

through a nominee) a mandatory distribution or may receive, directly or 

indirectly, a discretionary distribution from the trust. 

u) The term "Insurance Contract" means a contract (other than an 

Annuity Contract) under which the issuer agrees to pay an amount upon the 

occurrence of a specified contingency involving mortality, morbidity, 

accident, liability, or property risk. 

v) The term "Annuity Contract'' means a contract under which the 

issuer agrees to make payments for a period of time determined in whole or 

in part by reference to the life expectancy of one or more individuals. The 

term also includes a contract that is considered to be an Annuity Contract in 

accordance with the law, regulation, or practice of the jurisdiction in which 

the contract was issued, and under which the issuer agrees to make 

payments for a term of years. 

w) The term "Cash Value Insurance Contract" means an Insurance 

Contract (other than an indemnity reinsurance contract between two 

insurance companies) that has a Cash Value greater than $50,000. 

x) The term "Cash Value" means the greater of (i) the amount that 
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the policyholder is entitled to receive upon surrender or termination of the 

contract (determined without reduction for any surrender charge or policy 

loan), and (ii) the amount the policyholder can borrow under or with regard 

to the contract. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the term "Cash Value" does 

not include an amount payable under an Insurance Contract as: 

(1) a personal injury or sickness benefit or other benefit providing 

indemnification of an economic loss incurred upon the occurrence of the 

event insured against; 

(2) a refund to the policyholder of a previously paid premium under an 

Insurance Contract (other than under a life insurance contract) due to policy 

cancellation or termination, decrease in risk exposure during the effective 

period of the Insurance Contract, or arising from a redetermination of the 

premium due to correction of posting or other similar error; or 

(3) a policyholder dividend based upon the underwriting experience of 

the contract or group involved. 

y) The term "U.S. Reportable Account" means a Financial Account 

maintained by a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution and held by one 

or more Specified U.S. Persons or by a Non-U.S. Entity with one or more 

Controlling Persons that is a Specified U.S. Person. Notwithstanding the 

foregoing, an account shall not be treated as a U.S. Reportable Account if 

such account is not identified as a U.S. Repmtable Account after 

application of the due diligence procedures in Annex I. 

z) The term "Account Holder" means the person listed or identified 

as the holder of a Financial Account by the Financial Institution that 

maintains the account. A person, other than a Financial Institution, holding 

a Financial Account for the benefit or account of another person as agent, 

custodian, nominee, signatory, investment advisor, or intermediary, is not 

treated as holding the account for purposes of this Agreement, and such 

other person is treated as holding the account. For purposes of the 
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immediately preceding sentence, the term "Financial Institution" does not 

include a Financial Institution organized or incorporated in a U.S. 

Territory. In the case of a Cash Value Insurance Contract or an Annuity 

Contract, the Account Holder is any person entitled to access the Cash 

Value or change the beneficiary of the contract. If no person can access the 

Cash Value or change the beneficiary, the Account Holder is any person 

named as the owner in the contract and any person with a vested 

entitlement to payment under the terms of the contract. Upon the maturity 

of a Cash Value Insurance Contract or an Annuity Contract, each person 

entitled to receive a payment under the contract is treated as an Account 

Holder. 

aa) The term "U.S. Person" means a U.S. citizen or resident 

individual, a partnership or corporation organized in the United States or 

under the laws of the United States or any State thereof, a trust if (i) a court 

within the United States would have authority under applicable law to 

render orders or judgments concerning substantially all issues regarding 

administration of the trust, and (ii) one or more U.S. persons have the 

authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust, or an estate of a 

decedent that is a citizen or resident of the United States. This 

subparagraph l(aa) shall be interpreted in accordance with the U.S. Internal 

Revenue Code. 

bb) The term "Specified U.S. Person" means a U.S. Person, other 

than: (i) a corporation the stock of which is regularly traded on one or 

more established securities markets; (ii) any corporation that is a member 

of the same expanded affiliated group, as defined in section 147l(e)(2) of 

the U.S. Internal Revenue Code, as a corporation described in clause (i); 

(iii) the United States or any wholly owned agency or instrumentality 

thereof; (iv} any State of the United States, any U.S. Territory, any political 

subdivision of any of the foregoing, or any wholly owned agency or 
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instrumentality of any one or more of the foregoing; (v) any organization 

exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of the U.S. Internal Revenue 

Code or an individual retirement plan as defined in section 7701(a)(37) of 

the U.S. Internal Revenue Code; (vi) any bank as defined in section 581 of 

the U.S. Internal Revenue Code; (vii) any real estate investment trust as 

defined in section 856 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code; (viii) any 

regulated investment company as defined in section 851 of the U.S. 

Internal Revenue Code or any entity registered with the U.S. Securities and 

Exchange Commission under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 

U.S.C. 80a-64); (ix) any common trust fund as defined in section 584(a) of 

the U.S. Internal Revenue Code; (x) any trust that is exempt from tax under 

section 664(c) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code or that is described in 

section 4947(a)(1) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code; (xi) a dealer in 

securities, commodities, or derivative financial instruments (including 

notional principal contracts, futures, forwards, and options) that is 

registered as such under the laws of the United States or any State; (xii) a 

broker as defined in section 6045( c) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code; or 

(xiii) any tax-exempt trust under a plan that is described in section 403(b) 

or section 457(g) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. 

cc) The term "Entity" means a legal person or a legal arrangement 

such as a trust. 

dd) The term "Non-U.S. Entity" means an Entity that is not a U.S. 

Person. 

ee) The term "U.S. Source Withholdable Payment" means any 

payment of interest (including any original issue discount), dividends, 

rents, salaries, wages, premiums, annuities, compensations, remunerations, 

emoluments, and other fixed or determinable annual or periodical gains, 

profits, and ·income, if such payment is from sources within the United 

States. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a U.S. Source Withholdable 
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Payment does not include any payment that is not treated as a withholdable 

payment in relevant U.S. Treasury Regulations. 

ff) An Entity is a "Related Entity" of another Entity if either Entity 

controls the other Entity, or the two Entities are under common control. 

For this purpose control includes direct or indirect ownership of more than 

50 percent of the vote or value in an Entity. Notwithstanding the foregoing, 

the Republic of Belarus may treat an Entity as not a Related Entity of 

another Entity if the two Entities are not members of the same expanded 

affiliated group as defined in section 1471(e)(2) of the U.S. Internal 

Revenue Code. 

gg) The term "U.S. TIN" means a U.S. federal taxpayer identifying 

number. 

hh) The term "Controlling Persons" means the natural persons who 

exercise control over an Entity. In the case of a trust, such term means the 

settlor, the trustees, the protector (if any), the beneficiaries or class of 

beneficiaries, and any other natural person exercising ultimate effective 

control over the trust, and in the case of a legal arrangement other than a 

trust, such term means persons in equivalent or similar positions. The term 

"Controlling Persons" shall be interpreted in a manner consistent with the 

Financial Action Task Force Recommendations. 

2. Any term not otherwise defined in this Agreement shall, unless the 

context otherwise requires or the Competent Authorities agree to a common 

meaning (as permitted by domestic law), have the meaning that it has at 

that time under the law of the Party applying this Agreement, any meaning 

under the applicable tax laws of that Party prevailing over a meaning given 

to the term under other laws of that Party. 
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Article 2 

Obligations to Obtain and Exchange Information with Respect t

Reportable Accounts 

1. Subject to the provisions of Article 3 of this Agreemen

Republic of Belarus shall obtain the information specified in paragra

this Article with respect to all U.S. Reportable Accounts and shall an

exchange this information with the United States on an automatic bas

2. The information to be obtained and exchanged with respect t

U.S. Reportable Account of each Reporting Belarusian Financial Inst

IS: 

a) the name, address, and U.S. TIN of each Specified U.S. Pers

is an Account Holder of such account and, in the case of a Non-U.S. 

that, after application of the due diligence procedures set forth in A

is identified as having one or more Controlling Persons that is a Sp

U.S. Person, the name, address, and U.S. TIN (if any) of such enti

each such Specified U.S. Person; 

b) the account number (or functional equivalent in the absence 

account number); 

c) he name and identifying number of the Reporting Bel

Financial Institution; 

d) the account balance or value (including, in the case of a Cash 

Insurance Contract or Annuity Contract, the Cash Value or surrender 

as of the end of the relevant calendar year or other appropriate rep

period or, if the account was closed during such year, immediately 

closure; 

e) in the case of any Custodial Account: 

( 1) the · total gross amount of interest, the total gross amo

dividends, and the total gross amount of other income generate
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respect to the assets held in the account, in each case paid or credited to the 

account (or with respect to the account) during the calendar year or other 

appropriate reporting period; and 

(2) the total gross proceeds from the sale or redemption of property 

paid or credited to the account during the calendar year or other appropriate 

reporting period with respect to which the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution acted as a custodian, broker, nominee, or otherwise as an agent 

for the Account Holder; 

f) in the case of any Depository Account, the total gross amount of 

interest paid or credited to the account during the calendar year or other 

appropriate reporting period; and 

g) in the case of any account not described in subparagraph 2( e) or 

2(f) of this Article, the total gross amount paid or credited to the Account 

Holder with respect to the account during the calendar year or other 

appropriate reporting period with respect to which the Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institution is the obligor or debtor, including the aggregate 

amount of any redemption payments made to the Account Holder during 

the calendar year or other appropriate reporting period. 

Article 3 

Time and Manner of Exchange of Information 

1. For purposes of the exchange obligation in Article 2 of this 

Agreement, the amount and characterization of payments made with 

respect to a U.S. Reportable Account may be determined in accordance 

with the principles of the tax laws of the Republic of Belarus. 

2. For purposes of the exchange obligation in Article 2 of this 

Agreement, the information exchanged shall identify the currency in which 

each relevant amount is denominated. 
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3. With respect to paragraph 2 of Article 2 of this Agreement, 

information is to be obtained and exchanged with respect to 20 14 and all 

subsequent years, except that: 

a) the information to be obtained and exchanged with respect to 2014 

is only the information described in subparagraphs 2(a) through 2(d) of 

Article 2 of this Agreement; 

b) the information to be obtained and exchanged with respect to 2015 

is the information described in subparagraphs 2(a) through 2(g) of Article 2 

of this Agreement, except for gross proceeds described in subparagraph 

2(e)(2) of Article 2 of this Agreement; and 

c) the information to be obtained and exchanged with respect to 2016 

and subsequent years is the information described in subparagraphs 2(a) 

through 2(g) of Article 2 of this Agreement; 

4. Notwithstanding paragraph 3 of this Article, with respect to each 

U.S. Reportable Account maintained by a Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution as of June 30, 2014, and subject to paragraph 3 of Article 6 of 

this Agreement, the Republic of Belarus is not required to obtain and 

include in the exchanged information the U.S. TIN of any relevant person if 

such U.S. TIN is not in the records of the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution. In such a case, the Republic of Belarus shall obtain and include 

in the exchanged information the date of birth of the relevant person, if the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution has such date of birth in ·its 

records. 

5. Subject to paragraphs 3 and 4 of this Article, the information 

described in Article 2 of this Agreement shall be exchanged within nine 

months after the end of the calendar year to which the information relates. 

6. The Competent Authorities of the United States and the Republic of 

Belarus shall enter into an agreement or arrangement under the mutual 

agreement procedure provided for in Article 8 of this Agreement, which 
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shall: 

a) establish the procedures for the automatic exchange obligations 

described in Article 2 of this Agreement; 

b) prescribe rules and procedures as may be necessary to implement 

Article 5 of this Agreement; and 

c) establish as necessary procedures for the exchange of the 

information reported under subparagraph I (b) of Article 4 of this 

Agreement. 

7. All information exchanged shall be subject to the confidentiality 

and other protections provided for in Article 9 of this Agreement, including 

the provisions limiting the use of the information exchanged. 

Article 4 

Application of FATCA to Belarusian Financial Institutions 

1. Treatment of Reporting Belarusian Financial Institutions. Each 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution shall be treated as complying 

with, and not subject to withholding under, section 1471 of the U.S. 

Internal Revenue Code if the Republic of Belarus complies with its 

obligations under Articles 2 and 3 of this Agreement with respect to such 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution, and the Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institution: 

a) identifies U.S. Reportable Accounts and reports annually to the 

Competent Authority of the Republic of Belarus the information required to 

be reported in paragraph 2 of Article 2 of this Agreement in the time and 

manner described in Article 3 of this Agreement; 

b) for each of 2015 and 2016, reports annually to the Competent 

Authority of the Republic of Belarus the name of each Nonparticipating 

Financial Institution to which it has made payments and the aggregate 
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amount of such payments; 

c) complies with the applicable registration requirements on the IRS 

FATCA registration website; 

d) to the extent that a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution is (i) 

acting as a qualified intermediary (for purposes of section 1441 of the U.S. 

Internal Revenue Code) that has elected to assume primary withholding 

responsibility under chapter 3 of subtitle A of the U.S. Internal Revenue 

Code, (ii) a foreign partnership that has elected to act as a withholding 

foreign partnership (for purposes of both sections 1441 and 1471 of the 

U.S. Internal Revenue Code), or (iii) a foreign trust that has elected to act 

as a withholding foreign trust (for purposes ofboth sections 1441 and 1471 

of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code), withholds 30 percent of any U.S. 

Source Withholdable Payment to any Nonparticipating Financial 

Institution; and 

e) in the case of a Reporting Belarus ian Financial Institution that is not 

described in subparagraph 1 (d) of this Article and that makes a payment of, 

or acts as an intermediary with respect to, a U.S. Source Withholdable 

Payment to any Nonparticipating Financial Institution, the Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution provides to any immediate payor of such 

U.S. Source Withholdable Payment the information required for 

withholding and reporting to occur with respect to such payment. 

Notwithstanding the foregoing, a Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution with respect to which the conditions of this paragraph 1 are not 

satisfied shall not be subject to withholding under section 14 71 of the U.S. 

Internal Revenue Code unless such Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution is treated by the IRS as a Nonparticipating Financial Institution 

pursuant to subparagraph 3(b) of Article 5 ofthis Agreement. 

2. Suspension of Rules Relating to Recalcitrant Accounts. The 

United States shall not require a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution 
17 

to withhold tax under section 1471 or 1472 of the U.S. Internal Revenue 

Code with respect to an account held by a recalcitrant account holder (as 

defined in section 1471(d)(6) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code), or to 

close such account, if the U.S. Competent Authority receives the 

information set forth in paragraph 2 of Article 2 of this Agreement, subject 

to the provisions of Article 3 of this Agreement, with respect to such 

account. 

3. Specific Treatment of Belarusian Retirement Plans. The United 

States shall treat as deemed-compliant FFis or exempt beneficial owners, as 

appropriate, for purposes of sections 1471 and 1472 of the U.S. Internal 

Revenue Code, Belarusian retirement plahs described in Annex II. For this 

purpose, a Belarusian retirement plan includes an Entity established or 

located in, and regulated by, the Republic of Belarus, or a predetermined 

contractual or legal arrangement, operated to provide pension or retirement 

benefits or earn income for providing such benefits under the laws of the 

Republic of Belarus and regulated with respect to contributions, 

distributions, reporting, sponsorship, and taxation. 

4. Identification and Treatment of Other Deemed-Compliant FFis 

and Exempt Beneficial Owners. The United States shall treat each NonReporting Belarusian Financial Institution as a deemed-compliant FFI or as 

an exempt beneficial owner, as appropriate, for purposes of section 1471 of 

the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. 

5. Special Rules Regarding Related Entities and Branches That 

Are Nonparticipating Financial Institutions. If a Belarusian Financial 

Institution, that otherwise meets the requirements described in paragraph 1 

of this Article or is described in paragraph 3 or 4 of this Article, has a 

Related Entity or branch that operates in a jurisdiction that prevents such 

Related Entity or branch from fulfilling the requirements of a participating 

FFI or deemed-compliant FFI for purposes of section 1471 of the U.S. 
18 

Internal Revenue Code or has a Related Entity or branch that is treated as a 

Nonparticipating Financial Institution solely due to the expiration of the 

transitional rule for limited FFis and limited branches under relevant U.S. 

Treasury Regulations, such Belarusian Financial Institution shall continue 

to be in compliance with the terms of this Agreement and shall continue to 

be treated as a deemed-compliant FFI or exempt beneficial owner, as 

appropriate, for purposes of section 14 71 of the U.S. Internal Revenue 

Code, provided that: 

a) the Belarusian Financial Institution treats each such Related Entity 

or branch as a separate Nonparticipating Financial Institution for purposes 

of all the reporting and withholding requirements of this Agreement and 

each such Related Entity or branch identifies itself to withholding agents as 

a Nonparticipating Financial Institution; 

b) each such Related Entity or branch identifies its U.S. accounts and 

reports the information with respect to those accounts as required under 

section 1471 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code to the extent permitted 

under the relevant laws pertaining to the Related Entity or branch; and 

c) such Related Entity or branch does not specifically solicit U.S. 

accounts held by persons that are not resident in the jurisdiction where such 

Related Entity or branch is located or accounts held by Nonparticipating 

Financial Institutions that are not established in the jurisdiction where such 

Related Entity or branch is located, and such Related Entity or branch is 

not used by the Belarusian Financial Institution or any other Related Entity 

to circumvent the obligations under this Agreement or under section 1471 

of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code, as appropriate. 

6. Coordination of Timing. Notwithstanding paragraphs 3 and 5 of 

Article 3 of this Agreement: 

a) the Republic of Belarus shall not be obligated to obtain and 

exchange information with respect to a calendar year that is prior to the 

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19 

calendar year with respect to which similar information is required to be 

reported to the IRS by participating FFis pursuant to relevant U.S. Treasury 

Regulations; and 

b) the Republic of Belarus shall not be obligated to begin exchanging 

information prior to the date by which participating FFis are required to 

report similar information to the IRS under relevant U.S. Treasury 

Regulations. 

7. Coordination of Definitions with U.S. Treasury 

Regulations. Notwithstanding Article 1 of this Agreement and the 

definitions provided in the Annexes to this Agreement, in implementing 

this Agreement, the Republic of Belarus may use, and may permit the 

Belarusian Financial Institutions to use, a definition in relevant U.S. 

Treasury Regulations in lieu of a corresponding definition in this 

Agreement, provided that such application would not frustrate the purposes 

ofthis Agreement. 

Article 5 

Collaboration on Compliance and Enforcement 

1. General Inquiries. Subject to any further terms set forth in a 

competent authority agreement concluded pursuant to paragraph 6 of 

Article 3 of this Agreement, the U.S. Competent Authority may make 

follow-up requests to the Competent Authority of the Republic of Belarus, 

pursuant to which the Competent Authority of the Republic ofBelarus shall 

obtain and provide additional information with respect to a U.S. Reportable 

Account, including the account statements prepared in the ordinary course 

of a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution's business that summarize 

the activity (including withdrawals, transfers, and closures) of the U.S. 

Reportable Account. 
20 

2. Minor and Administrative Errors. The U.S. Competent 

Authority shall notify the Competent Authority of the Republic of Belarus 

when the U.S. Competent Authority has reason to believe that 

administrative errors or other minor errors may have led to incorrect or 

incomplete information reporting or resulted in other infringements of this 

Agreement. The Competent Authority of the Republic of Belarus shall 

apply its domestic law (including applicable penalties) to obtain corrected 

and/or complete information or to resolve other infringements of this 

Agreement. 

3. Significant Non-Compliance. 

a) The U.S. Competent Authority shall notify the Competent Authority 

of the Republic of Belarus when the U.S. Competent Authority has 

determined that there is significant non-compliance with the obligations 

under this Agreement with respect to a Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution. The Competent Authority of the Republic of Belarus shall apply 

its domestic law (including applicable penalties) to address the significant 

non-compliance described in the notice. 

b) If such enforcement actions do not resolve the non-compliance 

within a period of 18 months after notification of significant noncompliance is first provided by the U.S. Competent Authority, the United 

States shall treat the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution as a 

Nonparticipating Financial Institution pursuant to this subparagraph 3(b ). 

4. Reliance on Third Party Service Providers. The Republic of 

Belarus may allow Reporting Belarusian Financial Institutions to use third 

party service providers to fulfill the obligations imposed on such Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institutions by the Republic of Belarus, as 

contemplated in this Agreement, but these obligations shall remain the 

responsibility of the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institutions. 

5. Prevention of Avoidance. The Republic of Belarus shall implement 
21 

as necessary requirements to prevent Financial Institutions from adopting 

practices intended to circumvent the reporting required under this 

Agreement. 

Article 6 

Mutual Commitment to Continue to Enhance the Effectiveness of 

Information Exchange and Transparency 

1. Treatment of Passthru Payments and Gross Proceeds. The 

Parties are committed to work together, along with Partner Jurisdictions, to 

develop a practical and effective alternative approach to achieve the policy 

objectives of foreign passthru payment and gross proceeds withholding that 

minimizes burden. 

2. Documentation of Accounts Maintained as of June 30, 2014. 

With respect to U.S. Reportable Accounts maintained by a Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution as of June 30, 2014, the Republic of 

Belarus commits to establish, by January 1, 2017, for reporting with respect 

to 2017 and subsequent years, rules requiring Reporting Belarus ian 

Financial Institutions to obtain the U.S. TIN of each Specified U.S. Person 

as required pursuant to subparagraph 2(a) of Article 2 of this Agreement. 

Article 7 

Consistency in the Application of FATCA to Partner Jurisdictions 

1. The Republic of Belarus shall be granted the benefit of any more 

favorable terms under Article 4 or Annex I of this Agreement relating to 

the application of FA TCA to Belarusian Financial Institutions afforded to 

another Partner Jurisdiction under a signed bilateral agreement pursuant to 

which the other Partner Jurisdiction commits to undertake the same 
22 

obligations as the Republic of Belarus described in Articles 2 and 3 of this 

Agreement, and subject to the same terms and conditions as described 

therein and in Articles 5, 6, 7, 1 0 and 11 of this Agreement. 

2. The United States shall notify the Republic of Belarus of any such 

more favorable terms, and such more favorable terms shall apply 

automatically under this Agreement as if such terms were specified in this 

Agreement and effective as of the date of the signing of the agreement 

incorporating the more favorable terms, unless the Republic of Belarus 

declines in writing the application thereof. 

Article 8 

Mutual Agreement Procedure 

1. Where difficulties or doubts arise between the Parties regarding the 

implementation, application, or interpretation of this Agreement, the 

Competent Authorities shall endeavor to resolve the matter by mutual 

agreement. 

2. The Competent Authorities may adopt and implement procedures to 

facilitate the implementation of this Agreement. 

3. The Competent Authorities may communicate with each other 

directly for the purposes of reaching a mutual agreement under this Article. 

Article 9 

Confidentiality 

1. The Competent Authority of the Republic of Belarus shall treat any 

information received from the United States pursuant to Article 5 of this 

Agreement as confidential and shall only disclose such information as may 

be necessary to carry out its obligations under this Agreement. Such 
23 

information may be disclosed in connection with court proceedings related 

to the performance of the obligations of the Republic of Belarus under this 

Agreement. 

2. Information provided to the U.S. Competent Authority pursuant 

Articles 2 and 5 of this Agreement shall be treated as confidential and may 

be disclosed only to persons or authorities (including courts and 

administrative bodies) of the Government of the United States concerned 

with the assessment, collection, or administration of, the enforcement or 

prosecution in respect of, or the determination of appeals in relation to, 

U.S. federal taxes, or the oversight of such functions. Such persons or 

authorities shall use such information only for such purposes. Such 

persons may disclose the information in public court proceedings or in 

judicial decisions. The information may not be disclosed to any other 

person, entity, authority, or jurisdiction. Notwithstanding the foregoing, 

where the Republic of Belarus provides prior, written consent, the 

information may be used for purposes permitted under the provisions of a 

mutual legal assistance treaty in force between the Parties that allows for 

the exchange of tax information. 

Article 10 

Consultations and Amendments 

1. In case any difficulties in the implementation of this Agreement 

arise, either Party may, independently of the mutual agreement procedure 

described in paragraph 1 of Article 8 of this Agreement, request 

consultations to develop appropriate measures to ensure the fulfillment of 

this Agreement. 

2. This Agreement may be amended by written mutual agreement of 

the Parties. Unless otherwise agreed upon, such an amendment shall enter 
24 

into force through the same procedures as set forth m paragraph 1 of 

Article 12 ofthis Agreement. 

Article 11 

Annexes 

The Annexes form an integral part of this Agreement. 

Article 12 

Term of Agreement 

1. This Agreement shall enter into force on the date of the Republic of 

Belarus's written notification to the United States that the Republic of 

Belarus has completed its necessary internal procedures for entry into force 

of this Agreement. 

2. Either Party may terminate this Agreement by giving notice of 

termination in writing to the other Party. Such termination shall become 

effective on the first day of the month following the expiration of a period 

of 12 months after the date of the notice oftermination. 

3. The Parties shall, prior to December 31, 2016, consult in good faith 

to amend this Agreement as necessary to reflect progress on the 

commitments set forth in Article 6 of this Agreement. 

4. If this Agreement is terminated, both Parties shall remain bound by 

the provisions of Article 9 of this Agreement with respect to any 

information obtained under this Agreement. 

In witness whereof, the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto by 

their respective Governments, have signed this Agreement. 
25 

Done at Minsk, in duplicate, in the English language this l81

h day of 

March, 2015. 

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF 

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

-<f14M~ 

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF 

THE REPUBLIC OF BELA 

·f 
ANNEX I 

DUE DILIGENCE OBLIGATIONS FOR IDENTIFYING AND 

REPORTING ON U.S. REPORTABLE ACCOUNTS AND ON 

PAYMENTS TO CERTAIN NONPARTICIPATING FINANCIAL 

INSTITUTIONS 

I. General 

A The Republic of Belarus shall require that Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institutions apply the due diligence procedures contained in this 

Annex I to identify U.S. Reportable Accounts and accounts held by 

Nonparticipating Financial Institutions. 

B. For purposes of the Agreement, 

1. All dollar amounts are in U.S. dollars and shall be read to include 

the equivalent in other currencies. 

2. Except as otherwise provided herein, the balance or value of an 

account shall be determined as of the last day of the calendar year or other 

appropriate reporting period. 

3. Where a balance or value threshold is to be determined as of June 

30, 2014 under this Annex I, the relevant balance or value shall be 

determined as of that day or the last day of the reporting period ending 

immediately before June 30, 2014, and where a balance or value threshold 

is to be determined as of the last day of a calendar year under this Annex I, 

the relevant balance or value shall be determined as of the last day of the 

calendar year or other appropriate reporting period. 

4. Subject to subparagraph E(l) of section II of this Annex I, an 

account shall be treated as a U.S. Reportable Account beginning as of the 

date it is identified as such pursuant to the due diligence procedures in this 

Annex I. 

5. Unless otherwise provided, information with respect to a U.S. 
2 

Reportable Account shall be reported annually m the calendar year 

following the year to which the information relates. 

C. As an alternative to the procedures described in each section of this 

Annex I, the Republic of Belarus may permit Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institutions to rely on the procedures described in relevant U.S. 

Treasury Regulations to establish whethet an account is a U.S. Reportable 

Account or an account held by a Nonparticipating Financial Institution. The 

Republic ofBelarus may permit Reporting Belarusian Financial Institutions 

to make such election separately for each section of this Annex I either with 

respect to all relevant Financial Accounts or, separately, with respect to any 

clearly identified group of such accounts (such as by line of business or the 

location of where the account is maintained). 

II. Preexisting Individual Accounts. The following rules and 

procedures apply for purposes of identifying U.S. Reportable Accounts 

among Preexisting Accounts held by individuals ("Preexisting Individual 

Accounts"). 

A. Accounts Not Required to Be Reviewed, Identified, or 

Reported. Unless the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution elects 

otherwise, either with respect to all Preexisting Individual Accounts or, 

separately, with respect to any clearly identified group of such accounts, 

where the implementing rules in the Republic of Belarus provide for such 

an election, the following Preexisting Individual Accounts are not required 

to be reviewed, identified, or reported as U.S. Reportable Accounts: 

1. Subject to subparagraph E(2) of this section, a Preexisting 

Individual Account with a balance or value that does not exceed $50,000 as 

of June 30, 2014. 

2. Subject to subparagraph E(2) of this section, a Preexisting 

Individual Account that is a Cash Value Insurance Contract or an Annuity 

Contract with a balance or value of$250,000 or less as of June 30,2014. 
3 

3. A Preexisting Individual Account that is a Cash Value Insurance 

Contract or an Annuity Contract, provided the law or regulations of the 

United States or the Republic of Belarus effectively prevent the sale of such 

a Cash Value Insurance Contract or an Annuity Contract to U.S. residents 

(e.g., if the relevant Financial Institution does not have the required 

registration under U.S. law, and the law of the Republic of Belarus requires 

reporting or withholding with respect to insurance products held by 

residents of the Republic of Belarus). 

4. A Depository Account with a balance of $50,000 or less. 

B. Review Procedures for Preexisting Individual Accounts With a 

Balance or Value as of June 30, 2014, that Exceeds $50,000 ($250,000 

for a Cash Value Insurance Contract or Annuity Contract), But Does 

Not Exceed $1,000,000 ("Lower Value Accounts"). 

1. Electronic Record Search. The Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution must review electronically searchable data maintained by the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution for any of the following U.S. 

indicia: 

a) Identification of the Account Holder as a U.S. citizen or resident; 

b) Unambiguous indication of a U.S. place of birth; 

c) Current U.S. mailing or residence address (including a U.S. post 

office box); 

d) Current U.S. telephone number; 

e) Standing instructions to transfer funds to an account maintained in 

the United States; 

f) Currently effective power of attorney or signatory authority granted 

to a person with a U.S. address; or 

g) An "in-care-of' or "hold mail" address that is the sole address the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution has on file for the Account 

Holder. In the case of a Preexisting Individual Account that is a Lower 

I 
4 

Value Account, an "in-care-of' address outside the United States or "hold 

mail" address shall not be treated as U.S. indicia. 

2. If none of the U.S. indicia listed in subparagraph B(l) of this 

section are discovered in the electronic search, then no further action is 

required until there is a change in circumstances that results in one or more 

U.S. indicia being associated with the account, or the account becomes a 

High Value Account described in paragraph D of this section. 

3. If any ofthe U.S. indicia listed in subparagraph B(l) ofthis section 

are discovered in the electronic search, or if there is a change in 

circumstances that results in one or more U.S. indicia being associated with 

the account, then the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must treat 

the account as a U.S. Reportable Account unless it elects to apply 

subparagraph B(4) of this section and one of the exceptions in such 

subparagraph applies with respect to that account. 

4. Notwithstanding a finding of U.S. indicia under subparagraph B(l) 

of this section, a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution is not required 

to treat an account as a U.S. Reportable Account if: 

a) Where the Account Holder information unambiguously indicates a 

U.S. place of birth, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution obtains, 

or has previously reviewed and maintains a record of: 

(1) A self-certification that the Account Holder is neither a U.S. citizen 

nor a U.S. resident for tax purposes (which may be on an IRS Form W-8 or 

other similar agreed form); 

(2) A non-U.S. passport or other government-issued identification 

evidencing the Account Holder's citizenship or nationality in a country 

other than the United States; and 

(3) A copy of the Account Holder's Certificate of Loss of Nationality 

of the United States or a reasonable explanation of: 

(a) The reason the Account Holder does not have such a certificate 
5 

despite relinquishing U.S. citizenship; or 

(b) The reason the Account Holder did not obtain U.S. citizenship at 

birth. 

b) Where the Account Holder information contains a current U.S. 

mailing or residence address, or one or more U.S. telephone numbers that 

are the only telephone numbers associated with the account, the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution obtains, or has previously 

reviewed and maintains a record of: 

( 1) A self-certification that the Account Holder is neither a U.S. citizen 

nor a U.S. resident for tax purposes (which may be on an IRS Form W-8 or 

other similar agreed form); and 

(2) Documentary evidence, as defined in paragraph D of section VI of 

this Annex I, establishing the Account Holder's non-U.S. status. 

c) Where the Account Holder information contains standing 

instructions to transfer funds to an account maintained in the United 

States, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution obtains, or has 

previously reviewed and maintains a record of: 

(1) A self-certification that the Account Holder is neither a U.S. citizen 

nor a U.S. resident for tax purposes (which may be on an IRS Form W-8 or 

other similar agreed form); and 

(2) Documentary evidence, as defined in paragraph D of section VI of 

this Annex I, establishing the Account Holder's non-U.S. status. 

d) Where the Account Holder information contains a currently 

effective power of attorney or signatory authority granted to a person with 

a U.S. address, has an "in-care-of' address or "hold mail" address that is 

the sole address identified for the Account Holder, or has one or more 

U.S. telephone numbers (if a non-U.S. telephone number is also 

associated with the account), the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution obtains, or has previously reviewed and maintains a record of: 
6 

(1) A self-certification that the Account Holder is neither a U.S. 

citizen nor a U.S. resident for tax purposes (which may be on an IRS Form 

W-8 or other similar agreed form); or 

(2) Documentary evidence, as defined in paragraph D of section VI of 

this Annex I, establishing the Account Holder's non-U.S. status. 

C. Additional Procedures Applicable to Preexisting Individual 

Accounts That Are Lower Value Accounts. 

1. Review of Preexisting Individual Accounts that are Lower Value 

Accounts for U.S. indicia must be completed by June 30, 2016. 

2. If there is a change of circumstances with respect to a Preexisting 

Individual Account that is a Lower Value Account that results in one or 

more U.S. indicia described in subparagraph B(l) of this section being 

associated with the account, then the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution must treat the account as a U.S. Reportable Account unless 

subparagraph 8(4) ofthis section applies. 

3. Except for Depository Accounts described in subparagraph A(4) of 

this section, any Preexisting Individual Account that has been identified as 

a U.S. Reportable Account under this section shall be treated as a U.S. 

Reportable Account in all subsequent years, unless the Account Holder 

ceases to be a Specified U.S. Person. 

D. Enhanced · Review Procedures for Preexisting Individual 

Accounts With a Balance or Value That Exceeds $1,000,000 as of June 

30, 2014, or December 31 of 2015 or Any Subsequent Year ("High 

Value Accounts"). 

1. Electronic Record Search. The Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution must review electronically searchable data maintained by the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution for any of the U.S. indicia 

described in subparagraph 8(1) ofthis section. 

2. Paper Record Search. If the Reporting Belarusian Financial 
7 

Institution's electronically searchable databases include fields for, and 

capture all of the information described in, subparagraph D(3) of this 

section, then no further paper record search is required. If the electronic 

databases do not capture all of this information, then with respect to a High 

Value Account, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must also 

review the current customer master file and, to the extent not contained in 

the current customer master file, the following documents associated with 

the account and obtained by the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution 

within the last five years for any of the U.S. indicia described in 

subparagraph B(l) ofthis section: 

a) The most recent documentary evidence collected with respect to the 

account; 

b) The most recent account openin~ contract or documentation; 

c) The most recent documentation obtained by the Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution pursuant to AML/KYC Procedures or for 

other regulatory purposes; 

d) Any power of attorney or signature authority forms currently in 

effect; and 

e) Any standing instructions to transfer funds currently in effect. 

3. Exception Where Databases Contain Sufficient Information. A 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution is not required to perform the 

paper record search described in subparagraph D(2) of this section if the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution's electronically searchable 

information includes the following: 

a) The Account Holder's nationality or residence status; 

b) The Account Holder's residence address and mailing address 

currently on file with the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution; 

c) The Account Holder's telephone number(s) currently on file, if any, 

with the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution; 
8 

d) Whether there are standing instructions to transfer funds in the 

account to another account (including an account at another branch of the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution or another Financial Institution); 

e) Whether there is a current "in-care-of' address or "hold mail" 

address for the Account Holder; and 

f) Whether there is any power of attorney or signatory authority for 

the account. 

4. Relationship Manager Inquiry for Actual Knowledge. In 

addition to the electronic and paper record searches described above, the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must treat as a U.S. Reportable 

Account any High Value Account assigned to a relationship manager 

(including any Financial Accounts aggregated with such High Value 

Account) if the relationship manager has actual knowledge that the 

Account Holder is a Specified U.S. Person. 

5. Effect of Finding U.S. Indicia. 

a) If none of the U.S. indicia listed m subparagraph B(l) of this 

section are discovered in the enhanced review of High Value Accounts 

described above, and the account is not identified as held by a Specified 

U.S. Person in subparagraph D(4) of this section, then no further action is 

required until there is a change in circumstances that results in one or more 

U.S. indicia being associated with the account. 

b) If any ofthe U.S. indicia listed in subparagraph B(l) ofthis section 

are discovered in the enhanced review of High Value Accounts described 

above, or if there is a subsequent change in circumstances that results in 

one or more U.S. indicia being associated with the account, then the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must treat the account as a U.S. 

Reportable Account unless it elects to apply subparagraph B( 4) of this 

section and one of the exceptions in such subparagraph applies with respect 

to that account. 
9 

c) Except for Depository Accounts described in subparagraph A( 4) of 

this section, any Preexisting Individual Account that has been identified as 

a U.S. Reportable Account under this section shall be treated as a U.S. 

Reportable Account in all subsequent years, unless the Account Holder 

ceases to be a Specified U.S. Person. 

E. Additional Procedures Applicable to High Value Accounts. 

1. If a Preexisting Individual Account is a High Value Account as of 

June 30, 2014, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must 

complete the enhanced review procedures described in paragraph D of this 

section with respect to such account by June 30, 2015. If based on this 

review such account is identified as a U.S. Reportable Account on or before 

December 31, 2014, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must 

report the required information about such account with respect to 2014 in 

the first report on the account and on an annual basis thereafter. In the case 

' 

of an account identified as a U.S. Reportable Account after December 31, 

2014 and on or before June 30, 2015, the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution is not required to report information about such account with 

respect to 2014, but must report information about the account on an annual 

basis thereafter. 

2. If a Preexisting Individual Account is not a High Value Account as 

of June 30, 2014, but becomes a High Value Account as of the last day of 

2015 or any subsequent calendar year, the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution must complete the enhanced review procedures described in 

paragraph D of this section with respect to such account within six months 

after the last day of the calendar year in which the account becomes a High 

Value Account. If based on this review such account is identified as a U.S. 

Reportable Account, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must 

report the required information about such account with respect to the year 

in which it is identified as a U.S. Reportable Account and subsequent years 
10 

on an annual basis, unless the Account Holder ceases to be a Specified U.S. 

Person. 

3. Once a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution applies the 

enhanced review procedures described in paragraph D of this section to a 

High Value Account, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution is not 

required to re-apply such procedures, other than the relationship manager 

inquiry described in subparagraph D( 4) of this section, to the same High 

Value Account in any subsequent year. 

4. If there is a change of circumstances with respect to a High Value 

Account that results in one or more U.S. indicia described in subparagraph 

B( I) of this section being associated with the account, then the Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution must treat the account as a U.S. Reportable 

Account unless it elects to apply subparagraph B(4) of this section and one 

of the exceptions in such subparagraph applies with respect to that account. 

5. A Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must implement 

procedures to ensure that a relationship manager identifies any change in 

circumstances of an account. For example, if a relationship manager is 

notified that the Account Holder has a new mailing address in the United 

States, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution is required to treat the 

new address as a change in circumstances and, if it elects to apply 

subparagraph B( 4) of this section, is required to obtain the appropriate 

documentation from the Account Holder. 

F. Preexisting Individual Accounts That Have Been Documented 

for Certain Other Purposes. A Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution 

that has previously obtained documentation from an Account Holder to 

establish the Account Holder's status as neither a U.S. citizen nor a U.S. 

resident in order to meet its obligations under a qualified intermediary, 

withholding foreign partnership, or withholding foreign trust agreement 

with the IRS, or to fulfill its obligations under chapter 61 of Title 26 of the 
11 

United States Code, is not required to perform the procedures described in 

subparagraph B( 1) of this section with respect to Lower Value Accounts or 

subparagraphs D(l) through 0(3) of this section with respect to High Value 

Accounts. 

III. New Individual Accounts. The following rules and procedures 

apply for purposes of identifying U.S. Reportable Accounts among 

Financial Accounts held by individuals and opened on or after July 1, 2014 

("New Individual Accounts"). 

A. Accounts Not Required to Be Reviewed, Identified, or 

Reported. Unless the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution elects 

otherwise, either with respect to all New Individual Accounts or, separately, 

with respect to any clearly identified group of such accounts, where the 

implementing rules in the Republic of Belarus provide for such an election, 

the following New Individual Accounts are not required to be reviewed, 

identified, or reported as U.S. Reportable Accounts: 

1. A Depository Account unless the account balance exceeds $50,000 

at the end of any calendar year or other appropriate reporting period. 

2. A Cash Value Insurance Contract unless the Cash Value exceeds 

$50,000 at the end of any calendar year or other appropriate reporting 

period. 

B. Other New Individual Accounts. With respect to New Individual 

Accounts not described in paragraph A of this section, upon account 

opening (or within 90 days after the end of the calendar year in which the 

account ceases to be described in paragraph A of this section), the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must obtain a self-certification, 

which may be part of the account opening documentation, that allows the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution to determine whether the 

Account Holder is resident i_n the United States for tax purposes (for this 

purpose, a U.S. citizen is considered to be resident in the United States for 
12 

tax purposes, even if the Account Holder is also a tax resident of another 

jurisdiction) and confirm the reasonableness of such self-certification based 

on the information obtained by the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution in connection with the opening of the account, including any 

documentation collected pursuant to AML/KYC Procedures. 

1. If the self-certification establishes that the Account Holder is 

resident in the United States for tax purposes, the Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institution must treat the account as a U.S. Reportable Account 

and obtain a self-certification that includes the Account Holder's U.S. TIN 

(which may be an IRS Form W-9 or other similar agreed form). 

2. If there is a change of circumstances with respect to a New 

Individual Account that causes the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution to know, or have reason to know, that the original selfcertification is incorrect or unreliable, the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution cannot rely on the original self-certification and must obtain a 

valid self-certification that establishes whether the Account Holder is a 

U.S. citizen or resident for U.S. tax purposes. If the Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institution is unable to obtain a valid self-certification, the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must treat the account as a U.S. 

Reportable Account. 

IV. Preexisting Entity Accounts. The following rules and procedures 

apply for purposes of identifying U.S. Reportable Accounts and accounts 

held by Nonparticipating Financial Institutions among Preexisting 

Accounts held by Entities ("Preexisting Entity Accounts"). 

A. Entity Accounts Not Required to Be Reviewed, Identified or 

Reported. Unless the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution elects 

otherwise, either with respect to all Preexisting Entity Accounts or, 

separately, with respect to any clearly identified group of such accounts, 

where the implementing rules in the Republic of Belarus provide for such 

: 

I. 

! 

i . 
13 

an election, a Preexisting Entity Account with an account balance or value 

that does not exceed $250,000 as of June 30, 2014, is not required to be 

reviewed, identified, or reported as a U.S. Reportable Account until the 

account balance or value exceeds $1,000,000. 

B. Entity Accounts Subject to Review. A Preexisting Entity Account 

that has an account balance or value that exceeds $250,000 as of June 30, 

2014, and a Preexisting Entity Account that does not exceed $250,000 as of 

June 30, 2014c but the account balance or value of which exceeds 

$1,000,000 as of the last day of 2015 or any subsequent calendar year, must 

be reviewed in accordance with the procedures set forth in paragraph D of 

this section. 

C. Entity Accounts With Respect to Which Reporting Is Required. 

With respect to Preexisting Entity Accounts described in paragraph B of 

this section, only accounts that are held by one or more Entities that are 

Specified U.S. Persons, or by Passive NFFEs with one or more Controlling 

Persons who are U.S. citizens -or residents, shall be treated as U.S. 

Reportable Accounts. In addition, accounts held by Nonparticipating 

Financial Institutions shall be treated as accounts for which aggregate 

payments as described in subparagraph 1(b) of Article 4 of the Agreement 

are reported to the Competent Authority of the Republic of Belarus. 

D. Review Procedures for Identifying Entity Accounts With 

Respect to Which Reporting Is Required. For Preexisting Entity 

Accounts described in paragraph B of this section, the Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution must apply the following review 

procedures to determine whether the account is held by one or more 

Specified U.S. Persons, by Passive NFFEs with one or more Controlling 

Persons who are U.S. citizens or residents, or by Nonparticipating Financial 

Institutions:· 

1. Determine Whether the Entity Is a Specified U.S. Person. 
14 

a) Review information maintained for regulatory or customer 

relationship purposes (including information collected pursuant to 

AML/KYC Procedures) to determine whether the information indicates 

that the Account Holder is a U.S. Person. For this purpose, information 

indicating that the Account Holder is a U.S. Person includes a U.S. place of 

incorporation or organization, or a U.S. address. 

b) If the infonnation indicates that the Account Holder is a U.S. 

Person, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must treat the 

account as a U.S. Reportable Account unless it obtains a self-certification 

from the Account Holder (which may be on an IRS Form W-8 or W-9, or a 

similar agreed form), or reasonably determines based on information in its 

possession or that is publicly available, that the Account Holder is not a 

Specified U.S. Person. 

2. Determine Whether a Non-U.S. Entity Is a Financial Institution. 

a) Review information maintained for regulatory or customer 

relationship purposes (including information collected pursuant to 

AML/KYC Procedures) to determine whether the information indicates 

that the Account Holder is a Financial Institution. 

b) If the information indicates that the Account Holder is a Financial 

Institution, or the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution verifies the 

Account Holder's Global Intermediary Identification Number on the 

published IRS FFI list, then the account is not a U.S. Reportable Account. 

3. Determine Whether a Financial Institution Is a 

Nonparticipating Financial Institution Payments to Which Are Subject 

to Aggregate Reporting Under Subparagraph l(b) of Article 4 of the 

Agreement. 

a) Subject to subparagraph D(3)(b) ·of this section, a Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution may determine that the Account Holder is a 

Belarusian Financial Institution or other Partner Jurisdiction Financial 
15 

Institution if the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution reasonably 

determines that the Account Holder has such status on the basis of the 

Account Holder's Global Intermediary Identification Number on the 

published IRS FFI list or other information that is publicly available or in 

the possession of the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution, as 

applicable. In such case, no further review, identification, or reporting is 

required with respect to the account. 

b) If the Account Holder is a Belarus ian Financial Institution or other 

Partner Jurisdiction Financial Institution treated by the IRS as a 

Nonparticipating Financial Institution, then the account is not a U.S. 

Repmtable Account, but payments to the Account Holder must be reported 

as contemplated in subparagraph 1 (b) of Article 4 of the Agreement. 

c) If the Account Holder is not a Belarusian Financial Institution or 

other Partner Jurisdiction Financial Institution, then the Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution must treat the Account Holder as a 

Nonparticipating Financial Institution payments to which are reportable 

under subparagraph 1 (b) of Article 4 of the Agreement, unless the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution: 

(1) Obtains a self-certification (which may be on an IRS Form W-8 or 

similar agreed form) from the Account Holder that it is a certified deemedcompliant FFI, or an exempt beneficial owner, as those terms are defined in 

relevant U.S. Treasury Regulations; or 

(2) In the case of a participating FFI or registered deemed-compliant 

FFI, verifies the Account Holder's Global Intermediary Identification 

Number on the published IRS FFI list. 

4. Determine Whether an Account Held by an NFFE Is a U.S. 

Reportable Account. With respect to an Account Holder of a Preexisting 

Entity Account that is not identified as either a U.S. Person or a Financial 

Institution, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must identify (i) 
16 

whether the Account Holder has Controlling Persons, (ii) whether the 

Account Holder is a Passive NFFE, and (iii) whether any of the Controlling 

Persons of the Account Holder is a U.S. citizen or resident. In making these 

determinations the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must follow 

the guidance in subparagraphs D(4)(a) through D(4)(d) of this section in 

the order most appropriate under the circumstances. 

a) For purposes of determining the Controlling Persons of an Account 

Holder, a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution may rely on 

information collected and maintained pursuant to AML/KYC Procedures. 

b) For purposes of determining whether the Account Holder is a 

Passive NFFE, the Repmting Belarusian Financial Institution must obtain a 

self-certification (which may be on an IRS Form W-8 or W-9, or on a 

similar agreed form) from the Account Holder to establish its status, unless 

it has information in its possession or that is publicly available, based on 

which it can reasonably determine that the Account Holder is an Active 

NFFE. 

c) For purposes of determining whether a Controlling Person of a 

Passive NFFE is a U.S. citizen or resident for tax purposes, a Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution may rely on: 

( 1) Information collected and maintained pursuant to AML/KYC 

Procedures in the case of a Preexisting Entity Account held by one or more 

NFFEs with an account balance or value that does not exceed $1,000,000; 

or 

(2) A self-certification (which may be on an IRS Form W-8 or W-9, or 

on a similar agreed form) from the Account Holder or such Controlling 

Person in the case of a Preexisting Entity Account held by one or more 

NFFEs with an account balance or value that exceeds $1,000,000. 

d) If any Controlling Person of a Passive NFFE is a U.S. citizen or 

resident, the account shall be treated as a U.S. Reportable Account. 
17 

E. Timing of Review and Additional Procedures Applicable to 

Preexisting Entity Accounts. 

1. Review of Preexisting Entity Accounts with an account balance or 

value that exceeds $250,000 as of June 30, 2014 must be completed by 

June 30,2016. 

2. Review of Preexisting Entity Accounts with an account balance or 

value that does not exceed $250,000 as of June 30, 2014, but exceeds 

$1,000,000 as of December 31 of 2015 or any subsequent year, must be 

completed within six months after the last day of the calendar year in which 

the account balance or value exceeds $1,000,000. 

3. If there is a change of circumstances with respect to a Preexisting 

Entity Account that causes the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution to 

know, or have reason to know, that the self-certification or other 

documentation associated with an account is incorrect or unreliable, the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must redetermine the status of 

the account in accordance with the procedures set forth in paragraph D of 

this section. 

V. New Entity Accounts. The following rules and procedures apply 

for purposes of identifying U.S. Reportable Accounts and accounts held by 

Nonparticipating Financial Institutions among Financial Accounts held by 

Entities and opened on or after July 1, 2014 ("New Entity Accounts"). 

A. Entity Accounts Not Reguired to Be Reviewed, Identified or 

Reported. Unless the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution elects 

otherwise, either with respect to all New Entity Accounts or, separately, 

with respect to any clearly identified group of such accounts, where the 

implementing rules in the Republic of Belarus provide for such election, a 

credit card account or a revolving credit facility treated as a New Entity 

Account is not required to be reviewed, identified, or reported, provided 

that the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution maintaining such 
18 

account implements policies and procedures to prevent an account balance 

owed to the Account Holder that exceeds $50,000. 

B. Other New Entity Accounts. With respect to, New Entity 

Accounts not described in paragraph A of this section, the Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution must determine whether the Account 

Holder is: (i) a Specified U.S. Person; (ii) a Belarusian Financial Institution 

or other Partner Jurisdiction Financial Institution; (iii} a participating FFI, a 

deemed-compliant FFI, or an exempt beneficial owner, as those terms are 

defined in relevant U.S. Treasury Regulations; or (iv) an Active NFFE or 

Passive NFFE. 

1. Subject to subparagraph B(2) of this section, a Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institution may determine that the Account Holder is an Active 

NFFE, a Belarusian Financial Institution, or other Partner Jurisdiction 

Financial Institution if the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution 

reasonably determines that the Account Holder has such status on the basis 

of the Account Holder's Global Intermediary Identification Number or 

other information that is publicly available or in the possession of the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution, as applicable. 

2. If the Account Holder is a Belarusian Financial Institution or other 

Partner Jurisdiction Financial Institution treated by the IRS as a 

Nonparticipating Financial Institution, then the account is not a U.S. 

Reportable Account, but payments to the Account Holder must be reported 

as contemplated in subparagraph l(b) of Article 4 of the Agreement. 

3. In all other cases, a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must 

obtain a self-certification from the Account Holder to establish the Account 

Holder's status. Based on the self-certification, the following rules apply: 

a) If the Account Holder is a Specified U.S. Person, the Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution must treat the account as a U.S. Reportable 

Account. 
Financial Institution must identify the Controlling Persons as determined 

under AML/KYC Procedures, and must determine whether any such person 

is a U.S. citizen or resident on the basis of a self-certification from the 

Account Holder or such person. If any such person is a U.S. citizen or 

resident, the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must treat the 

account as a U.S. Reportable Account. 

c) If the Account Holder is: (i) a U.S. Person that is not a Specified 

U.S. Person; (ii) subject to subparagraph B(3)(d) of this section, a 

Belarusian Financial Institution or other Partner Jurisdiction Financial 

Institution; (iii) a participating FFI, a deemed-compliant FFI, or an exempt 

beneficial owner, as those terms are defined in relevant U.S. Treasury 

Regulations; (iv) an Active NFFE; or (v) a Passive NFFE none of the 

Controlling Persons of which is a U.S. citizen or resident, then the account 

is not a U.S. Reportable Account, and no reporting is required with respect 

to the account. 

d) If the Account Holder is a Nonparticipating Financial Institution 

(including a Belarusian Financial Institution or other Partner Jurisdiction 

Financial Institution treated by the IRS as a Nonparticipating Financial 

Institution), then the account is not a U.S. Reportable Account, but 

payments to the Account Holder must be reported as contemplated in 

subparagraph I (b) of Article 4 of the Agreement. 

VI. Special Rules and Definitions. The following additional rules 

and definitions apply in implementing the due diligence procedures 

described above: 

A. Reliance on Self-Certifications and Documentary Evidence. A 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution may not rely on a selfcertification or documentary evidence if the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution knows or has reason to know that the self-certification or 
20 

documentary evidence is incorrect or unreliable. 

B. Definitions. The following definitions apply for purposes of this 

Annex I. 

1. AML/KYC Procedures. "AMLIKYC Procedures" means the 

customer due diligence procedures of a Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution pursuant to the anti-money laundering or similar requirements of 

the Republic of Belarus to which such Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution is subject. 

2. NFFE. An "NFFE" means any Non-U.S. Entity that is not an FFI 

as defined in relevant U.S. Treasury Regulations or is an Entity described 

in subparagraph B(4)0) of this section, and also includes any Non-U.S. 

Entity that is established in the Republic of Belarus or another Partner 

Jurisdiction and that is not a Financial Institution. 

3. Passive NFFE. A "Passive NFFE" means any NFFE that is not (i) 

an Active NFFE, or (ii) a withholding foreign partnership or withholding 

foreign trust pursuant to relevant U.S. Treasury Regulations. 

4. Active NFFE. An "Active NFFE" means any NFFE that meets any 

of the following criteria: 

a) Less than 50 percent of the NFFE's gross income for the preceding 

calendar year or other appropriate reporting period is passive income and 

less than 50 percent of the assets held by the NFFE during the preceding 

calendar year or other appropriate reporting period are assets that produce 

or are held for the production of passive income; 

b) The stock of the NFFE is regularly traded on an established 

securities market or the NFFE is a Related Entity of an Entity the stock of 

which is regularly traded on an established securities market; 

c) The NFFE is organized in a U.S. Territory and all of the owners of 

the payee are bona fide residents of that U.S. Territory; 
21 

d) The NFFE is a government (other than the U.S. government), a 

political subdivision of such government (which, for the avoidance of 

doubt, includes a state, province, county, or municipality), or a public body 

performing a function of such government or a political subdivision 

thereof, a government of a U.S. Territory, an international organization, a 

non-U.S. central bank of issue, or an Entity wholly owned by one or more 

of the foregoing; 

e) Substantially all of the activities of the NFFE consist of holding (in 

whole or in part) the outstanding stock of, or providing financing and 

services to, one or more subsidiaries that engage in trades or businesses 

other than the business of a Financial Institution, except that an entity shall 

not qualify for NFFE status if the entity functions (or holds itself out) as an 

investment fund, such as a private equity fund, venture capital fund, 

leveraged buyout fund, or any investment vehicle whose purpose is to 

acquire or fund companies and then hold interests in those companies as 

capital assets for investment purposes; 

f) The NFFE is not yet operating a business and has no prior operating 

history, but is investing capital into assets with the intent to operate a 

business other than that of a Financial Institution, provided that the NFFE 

shall not qualify for this exception after the date that is 24 months after the 

date of the initial organization of the NFFE; 

g) The NFFE was not a Financial Institution in the past five years, and 

is in the process of liquidating its assets or is reorganizing with the intent to 

continue or recommence operations in a business other than that of a 

Financial Institution; 

h) The NFFE primarily engages in financing and hedging transactions 

with, or for, Related Entities that are not Financial Institutions, and does 

not provide financing or hedging services to any Entity that is not a Related 

i· 
22 

Entity, provided that the group of any such Related Entities is primarily 

engaged in a business other than that of a Financial Institution; 

i) The NFFE is an "excepted NFFE" as described in relevant U.S. 

Treasury Regulations; or 

j) The NFFE meets all of the following requirements: 

i. It is established and operated in its jurisdiction of residence 

exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, artistic, cultural, athletic, or 

educational purposes; or it is established and operated in its jurisdiction of 

residence and it is a professional organization, business league, chamber of 

commerce, labor organization, agricultural or horticultural organization, 

civic league or an organization operated exclusively for the promotion of 

social welfare; 

ii. It is exempt from income tax in its jurisdiction of residence; 

iii. It has no shareholders or members who have a proprietary or 

beneficial interest in its income or assets; 

iv. The applicable laws of the NFFE's jurisdiction of residence or the 

NFFE's formation documents do not permit any income or assets of the 

NFFE to be distributed to, or applied for the benefit of, a private person or 

non-charitable Entity other than pursuant to the conduct of the NFFE's 

charitable activities, or as payment of reasonable compensation for services 

rendered, or as payment representing the fair market value of property 

which the NFFE has purchased; and 

v. The applicable laws of the NFFE's jurisdiction of residence or the 

NFFE's formation documents require that, upon the NFFE's liquidation or 

dissolution, all of its assets be distributed to a governmental entity or other 

non-profit organization, or escheat to the government of the NFFE's 

jurisdiction of residence or any political subdivision thereof. 
23 

5. Preexisting Account. A "Preexisting Account" means a Financial 

Account maintained by a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution as of 

June 30, 2014. 

C. Account Balance Aggregation and Currency Translation Rules. 

1. Aggregation of Individual Accounts. For purposes of determining 

the aggregate balance or value of Financial Accounts held by an individual, 

a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution is required to aggregate all 

Financial Accounts maintained by the Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institution, or by a Related Entity, but only to the extent that the Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution's computerized systems link the Financial 

Accounts by reference to a data element such as client number or taxpayer 

identification number, and allow account balances or values to be 

aggregated. Each holder of a jointly held Financial Account shall be 

attributed the entire balance or value of the jointly held Financial Account 

for purposes of applying the aggregation requirements described in this 

paragraph 1. 

2. Aggregation of Entity Accounts. For purposes of determining the 

aggregate balance or value of Financial Accounts held by an Entity, a 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution is required to take into account 

all Financial Accounts that are maintained by the Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institution, or by a Related Entity, but only to the extent that the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution's computerized systems link the 

Financial Accounts by reference to a data element such as client number or 

taxpayer identification number, and allow account balances or values to be 

aggregated. 

3. Special Aggregation Rule Applicable to Relationship Managers. 

For purposes of determining the aggregate balance or value of Financial 

Accounts held by a person to determine whether a Financial Account is a 

High Value Account, a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution is also 
24 

required, in the case of any Financial Accounts that a relationship manager 

knows, or has reason to know, are directly or indirectly owned, controlled, 

or established (other than in a fiduciary capacity) by the same person, to 

aggregate all such accounts. 

4. Currency Translation Rule. For purposes of determining the 

balance or value of Financial Accounts denominated in a currency other 

than the U.S. dollar, a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution must 

convert the U.S. dollar threshold amounts described in this Annex I into 

such currency using a published spot rate determined as of the last day of 

the calendar year preceding the year in which the Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institution is determining the balance or value. 

D. Documentary Evidence. For purposes of this Annex I, acceptable 

documentary evidence includes any of the following: 

1. A certificate of residence issued by an authorized government body 

(for example, a government or agency thereof, or a municipality) of the 

jurisdiction in which the payee claims to be a resident. 

2. With reSpect to an individual, any valid identification issued by an 

authorized government body (for example, a government or agency thereof, 

or a municipality), that includes the individual's name and is typically used 

for identification purposes. 

3. With respect to an Entity, any official documentation issued by an 

authorized government body (for example, a government or agency thereof, 

or a municipality) that includes the name of the Entity and either the 

address of its principal office in the jurisdiction (or U.S. Territory) in which 

it claims to be a resident or the jurisdiction (or U.S. Territory) in which the 

Entity was incorporated or organized. 

4. With respect to a Financial Account maintained in a jurisdiction 

with anti-money laundering rules that have been approved by the IRS in 

connection with a QI agreement (as described in relevant U.S. Treasury 
25 

Regulations), any of the documents, other than a Form W-8 or W-9, 

referenced in the jurisdiction's attachment to the QI agreement for 

identifying individuals or Entities. 

5. Any financial statement, third-party credit report, bankruptcy filing, 

or U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission report. 

E. Alternative Procedures for Financial Accounts Held by 

Individual Beneficiaries of a Cash Value Insurance Contract. A 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution may presume that an individual 

beneficiary (other than the owner) of a Cash Value Insurance Contract 

receiving a death benefit is not a Specified U.S. Person and may treat such 

Financial Account as other than a U.S. Reportable Account unless the 

Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution has actual knowledge, or reason 

to know, that the beneficiary is a Specified U.S. Person. A Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution has reason to know that a beneficiary of a 

Cash Value Insurance Contract is a Specified U.S. Person if the 

information collected by the Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution and 

associated with the beneficiary contains U.S. indicia as described in 

subparagraph (B)(l) of section II of this Annex I. If a Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution has actual knowledge, or reason to know, 

that the beneficiary is a Specified U.S. Person, the Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institution must follow the procedures in subparagraph B(3) of 

section II of this Annex I. 

F. Reliance on Third Parties. Regardless of whether an election is 

made under paragraph C of section I of this Annex I, the Republic of 

Belarus may permit Reporting Belarusian Financial Institutions to rely on 

due diligence procedures performed by third parties, to the extent provided 

in relevant U.S. Treasury Regulations. 
ANNEX II 

The following Entities shall be treated as exempt beneficial owners or 

deemed-compliant FFis, as the case may be, and the following accounts are 

excluded from the definition of Financial Accounts. 

This Annex II may be modified by a mutual written decision entered 

into between the Competent Authorities of the United States and the 

Republic of Belarus: (1) to include additional Entities and accounts that 

present a low risk of being used by U.S. Persons to evade U.S. tax and that 

have similar characteristics to the Entities and accounts described in this 

Annex II as of the date of signature of the Agreement; or (2) to remove 

Entities and accounts that, due to changes in circumstances, no longer 

present a low risk of being used by U.S. Persons to evade U.S. tax. Any 

such addition or removal shall be effective on the date of signature of the 

mutual decision, unless otherwise provided therein. Procedures for 

reaching such a mutual decision may be included in the mutual agreement 

or arrangement described in paragraph 6 of Article 3 of the Agreement. 

I. Exempt Beneficial Owners other than Funds. The following 

Entities shall be treated as Non-Reporting Belarusian Financial Institutions 

and as exempt beneficial owners for purposes of sections 1471 and 1472 of 

the U.S. Internal Revenue Code, other than with respect to a payment that 

is derived from an obligation held in connection with a commercial 

financial activity of a type engaged in by a Specified Insurance Company, 

Custodial Institution, or Depository Institution. 

A. Governmental Entity. The government of the Republic of 

Belarus, any political subdivision of the Republic of Belarus (which, for the 

avoidance of doubt, includes a state, province, county, or municipality), or 

any wholly owned agency or instrumentality of the Republic of Belarus or 

any one or more of the foregoing (each, a "Governmental Entity" of the 
2 

Republic of Belarus). This category is comprised of the integral parts, 

controlled entities, and political subdivisions of the Republic ofBelarus. 

1. An integral part of the Republic of Belarus means any person, 

organization, agency, bureau, fund, instrumentality, or other body, however 

designated, that constitutes a governing authority of the Republic of 

Belarus. The net earnings of the governing authority must be credited to its 

own account or to other accounts of the Republic of Belarus, with no 

portion inuring to the benefit of any private person. An integral part does 

not include any individual who is a sovereign,. official, or administrator 

acting in a private or personal capacity. 

2. A controlled entity means an Entity that is separate in form from the 

Republic of Belarus or that otherwise constitutes a separate juridical entity, 

provided that: 

a) The Entity 1s wholly owned and controlled by one or more 

Governmental Entities of the Republic ofBelarils directly or through one or 

more controlled entities; 

b) The Entity's net earnings are credited to its own account or to the 

accounts of one or more Governmental Entities of the Republic of Belarus, 

with no portion of its income inuring to the benefit of any private person; 

and 

c) The Entity's assets vest in one or more Governmental Entities of 

the Republic of Belarus upon dissolution. 

3. Income does not inure to the benefit of private persons if such 

persons are the intended beneficiaries of a governmental program, and the 

program activities are performed for the general public with respect to the 

common welfare or relate to the administration of some phase of 

government. Notwithstanding the foregoing, however, income 1s 

considered to inure to the benefit of private persons if the income is derived 

from the use of a governmental entity to conduct a commercial business, 

i I. 

i 
3 

such as a commercial banking business, that provides financial services to 

private persons. 

B. International Organization. Any international organization or 

wholly owned agency or instrumentality thereof. This category includes 

any intergovernmental organization (including a supranational 

organization) (1) that is comprised primarily of non-U.S. governments; (2) 

that has in effect a headquarters agreement with the Republic of Belarus; 

and (3) the income of which does not inure to the benefit of private 

persons. 

C. Central Bank. An institution that is by law or government 

sanction the principal authority, other than the government of the Republic 

of Belarus itself, issuing instruments intended to circulate as currency. 

Such an institution may include an instrumentality that is separate from the 

government of the Republic of Belarus, whether or not owned in whole or 

in part by the Republic of Belarus. 

II. Funds that Qualify as Exempt Beneficial Owners. The 

following Entities shall be treated as Non-Reporting Belarusian Financial 

Institutions and as exempt beneficial owners for purposes of sections 1471 

and 1472 ofthe U.S. Internal Revenue Code. 

A. Broad Participation Retirement Fund. A fund established in the 

Republic of Belarus to provide retirement, disability, or death benefits, or 

any combination thereof, to beneficiaries that are current or former 

employees (or persons designated by such employees) of one or more 

employers in consideration for services rendered, provided that the fund: 

1. Does not have a single beneficiary with a right to more than five 

percent of the fund's assets; 

2. Is subject to government regulation and provides annual 

information reporting about its beneficiaries to the relevant tax authorities 

in the Republic ofBelarus; and 
4 

3. Satisfies at least one of the following requirements: 

a) The fund is generally exempt from tax in the Republic of Belarus 

on investment income under the laws of the Republic of Belarus due to its 

status as a retirement or pension plan; 

b) The fund receives at least 50 percent of its total contributions (other 

than transfers of assets from other plans described in paragraphs A through 

C of this section or from retirement and pension accounts described in 

subparagraph A( 1) of section V of this Annex II) from the sponsoring 

employers; 

c) Distributions or withdrawals from the fund are allowed only upon 

the occurrence of specified events related to retirement, disability, or death 

(except rollover distributions to other retirement funds described in 

paragraphs A through C of this section or retirement and pension accounts 

described in subparagraph A(l) of section V of this Annex II), or penalties 

apply to distributions or withdrawals made before such specified events; or 

d) Contributions (other than certain permitted make-up contributions) 

by employees to the fund are limited by reference to earned income of the 

employee or may not exceed $50,000 annually, applying the rules set forth 

in Annex I for account aggregation and currency translation. 

B. Narrow Participation Retirement Fund. A fund established in 

the Republic of Belarus to provide retirement, disability, or death benefits 

to beneficiaries that are current or former employees (or persons designated 

by such employees) of one or more employers in consideration for services 

rendered, provided that: 

1. The fund has fewer than 50 participants; 

2. The fund is sponsored by one or more employers that are not 

Investment Entities or Passive NFFEs; 

3. The employee and employer contributions to the fund (other than 

transfers of assets from retirement and pension accounts described in 
5 

subparagraph A( 1) of section V of this Annex ll) are limited by reference 

to earned income and compensation ofthe employee, respectively; 

4. Participants that are not residents of the Republic of Belarus are not 

entitled to more than 20 percent of the fund's assets; and 

5. The fund is subject to government regulation and provides annual 

information reporting about its beneficiaries to the relevant tax authorities 

in the Republic of Belarus. 

C. Pension- Fund of an Exempt Beneficial Owner. A fund 

established in the Republic of Belarus by an exempt beneficial owner to 

provide retirement, disability, or death benefits to beneficiaries or 

participants that are current or former employees of the exempt beneficial 

owner (or persons designated by such employees), or that are not current or 

former employees, if the benefits provided to such beneficiaries or 

participants are in consideration of personal services performed for the 

exempt beneficial owner. 

D. Investment Entity Wholly Owned by Exempt Beneficial 

Owners. An Entity that is a Belarusian Financial Institution solely because 

it is an Investment Entity, provided that each direct holder of an Equity 

Interest in the Entity is an exempt beneficial owner, and each direct holder 

of a debt interest in such Entity is either a Depository Institution (with 

respect to a loan made to such Entity) or an exempt beneficial owner. 

III. Small or Limited Scope Financial Institutions that Qualify as 

Deemed-Compliant · FFis. The following Financial Institutions are 

Non-Reporting Belarusian Financial Institutions that shall be treated as 

deemed-compliant FFis for purposes of section 1471 of the U.S. Internal 

Revenue Code. 

A. Financial Institution with a Local Client Base. A Financial 

Institution satisfying the following requirements: 
6 

1. The Financial Institution must be licensed and regulated as a 

financial institution under the laws of the Republic of Belarus; 

2. The Financial Institution must have no fixed place of business 

outside of the Republic of Belarus. For this purpose, a fixed place of 

business does not include a location that is not advertised to the public and 

from which the Financial Institution performs solely administrative support 

functions; 

3. The Financial Institution must not solicit customers or Account 

Holders outside the Republic of Belarus. For this purpose, a Financial 

Institution shall not be considered to have solicited customers or Account 

Holders outside the Republic of Belarus merely because the Financial 

Institution (a) operates a website, provided that the website does not 

specifically indicate that the Financial Institution provides Financial 

Accounts or services to nonresidents, and does not otherwise target or 

solicit U.S. customers or Account Holders, or (b) advertises in print media 

or on a radio or television station that is distributed or aired primarily 

within the Republic of Belarus but is also incidentally distributed or aired 

in other countries, provided that the advertisement does not specifically 

indicate that the Financial Institution provides Financial Accounts or 

services to nonresidents, and does not otherwise target or solicit U.S. 

customers or Account Holders; 

4. The Financial Institution must be required under the laws of the 

Republic of Belarus to identify resident Account Holders for purposes of 

either information reporting or withholding of tax with respect to Financial 

Accounts held by residents or for purposes of satisfying the Republic of 

Belarus's AML due diligence requirements; 

5. At least 98 percent of the Financial Accounts by value maintained 

by the Financial Institution must be held by residents (including residents 

that are Entities) of the Republic of Belarus; 
7 

6. Beginning on or before July 1, 2014, the Financial Institution must 

have policies and procedures, consistent with those set forth in Annex I, to 

prevent the Financial Institution from providing a Financial Account to any 

Nonparticipating Financial Institution and to monitor whether the Financial 

Institution opens or maintains a Financial Account for any Specified U.S. 

Person who is not a resident of the Republic of Belarus (including a U.S. 

Person that was a resident of the Republic of Belarus when the Financial 

Account was opened but subsequently ceases to be a resident of the 

Republic of Belarus) or any Passive NFFE with Controlling Persons who 

are U.S. residents or U.S. citizens who are not residents of the Republic of 

Belarus; 

7. Such policies and procedures must provide that if any Financial 

Account held by a Specified U.S. Person who is not a resident of the 

Republic of Belarus or by a Passive NFFE with Controlling Persons who 

are U.S. residents or U.S. citizens who are not residents of the Republic of 

Belarus is identified, the Financial Institution must report such Financial 

Account as would be required if the Financial Institution were a Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution (including by following the applicable 

registration requirements on the IRS FA TCA registration website) or close 

such Financial Account; 

8. With respect to a Preexisting Account held by an individual who is 

not a resident of the Republic of Belarus or by an Entity, the Financial 

Institution must review those Preexisting Accounts in accordance with the 

procedures set forth in Annex I applicable to Preexisting Accounts to 

identify any U.S. Reportable Account or Financial Account held by a 

Nonparticipating Financial Institution, and must report such Financial 

Account as would be required if the Financial Institution were a Reporting 

Belarusian Financial Institution (including by following the applicable 
8 

registration requirements on the IRS FA TCA registration website) or close 

such Financial Account; 

9. Each Related Entity of the Financial Institution that is a Financial 

Institution must be incorporated or organized in the Republic of Belarus 

and, with the exception of any Related Entity that is a retirement fund 

described in paragraphs A through D of section II of this Annex II, satisfy 

the requirements set forth in this paragraph A; and 

10. The Financial Institution must not have policies or practices that 

discriminate against opening or maintaining Financial Accounts for 

individuals who are Specified U.S. Persons and residents of the Republic of 

Belarus. 

B. Local Bank. A Financial Institution satisfying the following 

requirements: 

1. The Financial Institution operates solely as (and is licensed and 

regulated under the laws of the Republic of Belarus as) (a) a bank or (b) a 

credit union or similar cooperative credit organization that is operated 

without profit; 

2. The Financial Institution's business consists primarily of receiving 

deposits from and making loans to, with respect to a bank, unrelated retail 

customers and, with respect to a credit union or similar cooperative credit 

organization, members, provided that no member has a greater than five 

percent interest in such credit union or cooperative credit organization; 

3. The Financial Institution satisfies the requirements set forth m 

subparagraphs A(2) and A(3) of this section, provided that, in addition to 

the limitations on the website described in subparagraph A(3) of this 

section, the website does not permit the opening of a Financial Account; 

4. The Financial Institution does not have more than $175 million in 

assets on its balance sheet, and the Financial Institution and any Related 
9 

Entities, taken together, do not have more than $500 million in total assets 

on their consolidated or combined balance sheets; and 

5. Any Related Entity must be incorporated or organized in 

the Republic of Belarus, and any Related Entity that is a Financial 

Institution, with the exception of any Related Entity that is a retirement 

fund described in paragraphs A through D of section II of this Annex II or a 

Financial Institution with only low-value accounts described in paragraph 

C of this section, must satisfy the requirements set forth in this paragraph 

B. 

C. Financial Institution with Only Low-Value Accounts. 

A Belarusian Financial Institution satisfying the following requirements: 

1. The Financial Institution is not an Investment Entity; 

2. No Financial Account maintained by the Financial Institution or 

any Related Entity has a balance or value in excess of $50,000, applying 

the rules set forth in Annex I for account aggregation and currency 

translation; and 

3. The Financial Institution does not have more than $50 million in 

assets on its balance sheet, and the Financial Institution and any Related 

Entities, taken together, do not have more than $50 million in total assets 

on their consolidated or combined balance sheets. 

D. Qualified Credit Card Issuer. A Belarusian Financial Institution 

satisfying the following requirements: 

1. The Financial Institution is a Financial Institution solely because it 

is an issuer of credit cards that accepts deposits only when a customer 

makes a payment in excess of a balance due with respect to the card and the 

overpayment is not immediately returned to the customer; and 

2. Beginning on or before July 1, 2014, the Financial Institution 

implements policies and procedures to either prevent a customer deposit in 

excess of $50,000, or to ensure that any customer deposit in excess of 
10 

$50,000, in each case applying the rules set forth in Annex I for account 

aggregation and currency translation, is refunded to the customer within 60 

days. For this purpose, a customer deposit does not refer to credit balances 

to the extent of disputed charges but does include credit balances resulting 

from merchandise returns. 

IV. Investment Entities that Qualify as Deemed-Compliant FFis 

and Other Special Rules. The Financial Institutions described in 

paragraphs A through E of this section are Non-Reporting Belarusian 

Financial Institutions that shall be treated as deemed-compliant FFis for 

purposes of section 1471 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. In addition, 

paragraph F of this section provides special rules applicable to an 

Investment Entity. 

A. Trustee-Documented Trust. A trust established under the laws of 

the Republic of Belarus to the extent that the trustee of the trust is a 

Reporting U.S. Financial Institution, Reporting Model 1 FFI, or 

Participating FFI and reports all information required to be reported 

pursuant to the Agreement with respect to all U.S. Reportable Accounts of 

the trust. 

B. Sponsored Investment Entity and Controlled Foreign 

Corporation. A Financial Institution described in subparagraph B(l) or 

B(2) of this section having a sponsoring entity that complies with the 

requirements of subparagraph B(3) of this section. 

1. A Financial Institution is a sponsored investment entity if (a) it is an 

Investment Entity established in the Republic of Belarus that is not a 

qualified intermediary, withholding foreign partnership, or withholding 

foreign trust pursuant to relevant U.S. Treasury Regulations; and (b) an 

Entity has agreed with the Financial Institution to act as a sponsoring entity 

for the Financial Institution. 
11 

2. A Financial Institution is a sponsored controlled foreign corporation 

if (a) the Financial Institution is a controlled foreign corporation organized 

under the laws of the Republic of Belarus that is not a qualified 

intermediary, withholding foreign partnership, or withholding foreign trust 

pursuant to relevant U.S. Treasury Regulations; (b) the Financial Institution 

is wholly owned, directly or indirectly, by a Reporting U.S. Financial 

Institution that agrees to act, or requires an affiliate of the Financial 

Institution to act, as a sponsoring entity for the Financial Institution; and (c) 

the Financial Institution shares a common electronic account system with 

the sponsoring entity that enables the sponsoring entity to identify all 

Account Holders and payees of the Financial Institution and to access all 

account and customer information maintained by the Financial Institution 

including, but not limited to, customer identification information, customer 

documentation, account balance, and all payments made to the Account 

Holder or payee. 

3. The sponsoring entity complies with the following requirements: 

a) The sponsoring entity is authorized to act on behalf of the Financial 

Institution (such as a fund manager, trustee, corporate director, or 

managing partner) to fulfill applicable registration requirements on the 

IRS FATCA registration website; 

b) The sponsoring entity has registered as a sponsoring entity with the 

IRS on the IRS FATCA registration website; 

c) If the sponsoring entity identifies any U.S. Reportable Accounts 

with respect to the Financial Institution, the sponsoring entity registers the 

Financial Institution pursuant to applicable registration requirements on the 

IRS FATCA registration website on or before the later of December 31, 

2015 and the date that is 90 days after such a U.S. Reportable Account is 

first identified; 
12 

d) The sponsoring entity agrees to perform, on behalf of the Financial 

Institution, all due diligence, withholding, reporting, and other 

requirements that the Financial Institution would have been required to 

perform if it were a Reporting Belarus ian Financial Institution; 

e) The sponsoring entity identifies the Financial Ins~itution and 

includes the identifying number of the Financial Institution (obtained by 

following applicable registration requirements on the IRS FATCA 

registration website) m all reporting completed on the Financial 

Institution's behalf; and 

f) The sponsoring entity has not had its status as a sponsor revoked. 

C. Sponsored, Closely Held Investment Vehicle. A Belarusian 

Financial Institution satisfying the following requirements: 

1. The Financial Institution is a Financial Institution solely because it 

is an Investment Entity and is not a qualified intermediary, withholding 

foreign partnership, or withholding foreign trust pursuant to relevant U.S. 

Treasury Regulations; 

2. The sponsoring entity is a Reporting U.S. Financial Institution, 

Reporting Model 1 FFI, or Participating FFI, is authorized to act on behalf 

of the Financial Institution (such as a professional manager, trustee, or 

managing partner), a'nd agrees to perform, on behalf of the Financial 

Institution, all due diligence, withholding, reporting, and other 

requirements that the Financial Institution would have been required to 

perform if it were a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution; 

3. The Financial Institution does not hold itself out as an investment 

vehicle for unrelated parties; 

4. Twenty or fewer individuals own all of the debt interests and Equity 

Interests in the Financial Institution (disregarding debt interests owned by 

Participating FFis and deemed-compliant FFis and Equity Interests owned 

by an Entity if that Entity owns 100 percent of the Equity Interests in the 
13 

Financial Institution and is itself a sponsored Financial Institution described 

in this paragraph C); and 

5. The sponsoring entity complies with the following requirements: · 

a) The sponsoring entity has registered as a sponsoring entity with the 

IRS on the IRS FA TCA registration website; 

b) The sponsoring entity agrees to perform, on behalf of the Financial 

Institution, all due diligence, withholding, reporting, and other 

requirements that the Financial Institution would have been required to 

perform if it were a Reporting Belarusian Financial Institution and retains 

documentation collected with respect to the Financial Institution for a 

period of six years; 

c) The sponsoring entity identifies the Financial Institution m all 

reporting completed on the Financial Institution's behalf; and 

d) The sponsoring entity has not had its status as a sponsor revoked. 

D. Investment Advisors and Investment Managers. An Investment 

Entity established in the Republic of Belarus that is a Financial Institution 

solely because it ( 1) renders investment advice to, and acts on behalf of, or 

(2) manages portfolios for, and acts on behalf of, a customer for the 

purposes of investing, managing, or administering funds deposited in the 

name of the customer with a Financial Institution other than a 

Nonparticipating Financial Institution. 

E. Collective Investment Vehicle. An Investment Entity established 

in the Republic of Belarus that is regulated as a collective investment 

vehicle, provided that all of the interests in the collective investment 

vehicle (including debt interests in excess of $50,000) are held by or 

through one or more exempt beneficial owners, Active NFFEs described in 

subparagraph B(4) of section VI of Annex I, U.S. Persons that are not 

Specified U.S. Persons, or Financial Institutions that are not 

Nonparticipating Financial Institutions. 
14 

F. Special Rules. The following rules apply to an Investment Entity: 

1. With respect to interests in an Investment Entity that is a collective 

investment vehicle described in paragraph E of this section, the reporting 

obligations of any Investment Entity (other than a Financial Institution 

through which interests in the collective investment vehicle are held) shall 

be deemed fulfilled. 

2. With respect to interests in: 

a) An Investment Entity established in a Partner Jurisdiction that is 

regulated as a collective investment vehicle, all of the interests in which 

(including debt interests in excess of $50,000) are held by or through one 

or more exempt beneficial owners, Active NFFEs described in 

subparagraph B( 4) of section VI of Annex I, U.S. Persons that are not 

Specified U.S. Persons, or Financial Institutions that are not 

Nonparticipating Financial Institutions; or 

b) An Investment Entity that is a qualified collective investment 

vehicle under relevant U.S. Treasury Regulations; 

the reporting obligations of any Investment Entity that is a Belarusian 

Financial Institution (other than a Financial Institution through which 

interests in the collective investment vehicle are held) shall be deemed 

fulfilled. 

3. With respect to interests in an Investment Entity established in the 

Republic of Belarus that is not described in paragraph E or subparagraph 

F(2) of this section, consistent with paragraph 4 of Article 5 of 

the Agreement, the reporting obligations of all other Investment Entities 

with respect to such interests shall be deemed fulfilled if the information 

required to be reported by the first-mentioned Investment Entity pursuant 

to the Agreement with respect to such interests is reported by such 

Investment Entity or another person. 
15 

V. Accounts Excluded from Financial Accounts. The following 

accounts are excluded from the definition of Financial Accounts and 

therefore shall not be treated as U.S. Reportable Accounts. 

A. Certain Savings Accounts. 

1. Retirement and Pension Account. A retirement or pension account 

maintained in the Republic of Belarus that satisfies the following 

requirements under the laws of the Republic of Belarus. 

a) The account is subject to regulation as a personal retirement 

account or is part of a registered or regulated retirement or pension plan for 

the provision of retirement· or pension benefits (including disability or 

death benefits); 

b) The account is tax-favored (i.e., contributions to the account that 

would otherwise be subject to tax under the laws of the Republic ofBelarus 

are deductible or excluded from the gross income of the account holder or 

taxed at a reduced rate, or taxation of investment income from the account 

is deferred or taxed at a reduced rate); 

c) Annual informa~ion reporting is required to the tax authorities in the 

Republic of Belarus with respect to the account; 

d) Withdrawals are conditioned on reaching a specified retirement 

age, disability, or death, or penalties apply to withdrawals made before 

such specified events; and 

e) Either (i) annual contributions are limited to $50,000 or less, or (ii) 

there is a maximum lifetime contribution limit to the account of $1,000,000 

or less, in each case applying the rules set forth in Annex I for account 

aggregation and currency translation. 

2. Non-Retirement Savings Accounts. An account maintained in the 

Republic of Belarus (other than an insurance or Annuity Contract) that 

satisfies the following requirements under the laws of the Republic of 

Belarus. 

! 

! 
16 

a) The account is subject to regulation as a savings vehicle for 

purposes other than for retirement; 

b) The account is tax-favored (i.e., contributions to the account that 

would otherwise be subject to tax under the laws of the Republic ofBelarus 

are deductible or excluded from the gross income of the account holder or 

taxed at a reduced rate, or taxation of investment income from the account 

is deferred or taxed at a reduced rate); 

c) Withdrawals are conditioned on meeting specific criteria related to 

the purpose of the savings account (for example, the provision of 

educational or medical benefits), or penalties apply to withdrawals made 

before such criteria are met; and 

d) Annual contributions are limited to $50,000 or less, applying the 

\ 

rules set forth in Annex I for account aggregation and currency translation. 

B. Certain Term Life Insurance Contracts. A life insurance 

contract maintained in the Republic of Belarus with a coverage period that 

will end before the insured individual attains age 90, provided that the 

contract satisfies the following requirements: 

1. Periodic premiums, which do not decrease over time, are payable at 

least annually during the period the contract is in existence or until the 

insured attains age 90, whichever is shorter; 

2. The contract has no contract value that any person can access (by 

withdrawal, loan, or otherwise) without terminating the contract; 

3. The amount (other than a death benefit) payable upon cancellation 

or termination of the contract cannot exceed the aggregate premiums paid 

for the contract, less the sum of mortality, morbidity, and expense charges 

(whether or not actually imposed) for the period or periods of the contract's 

existence and any amounts paid prior to the cancellation or termination of 

the contract; and 

4. The contract is not held by a transferee for value. 

!· 
17 

C. Account Held By an Estate. An account maintained in the 

Republic of Belarus that is held solely by an estate if the documentation for 

such account includes a copy of the deceased's will or death certificate. 

D. Escrow Accounts. An account maintained in the Republic of 

Belarus established in connection with any of the following: 

1. A court order or judgment. 

2. A sale, exchange, or lease of real or personal property, provided 

that the account satisfies the following requirements: 

a) The account is funded solely with a down payment, earnest money, 

deposit in an amount appropriate to secure an obligation directly related to 

the transaction, or a similar payment, or is funded with a financial asset that 

is deposited in the account in connection with the sale, exchange, or lease 

of the property; 

b) The account is established and used solely to secure the obligation 

of the purchaser to pay the purchase price for the property, the seller to pay 

any contingent liability, or the lessor or lessee to pay for any damages 

relating to the leased property as agreed under the lease; 

c) The assets ofthe account, including the income earned thereon, will 

be paid or otherwise distributed for the benefit of the purchaser, seller, 

lessor, or lessee (including to satisfy such person's obligation) when the 

property is sold, exchanged, or surrendered, or the lease terminates; 

d) The account is not a margin or similar account established in 

connection with a sale or exchange of a financial asset; and 

e) The account is not associated with a credit card account. 

3. An obligation of a Financial Institution servicing a loan secured by 

real property to set aside a portion of a payment solely to facilitate the 

payment of taxes or insurance related to the real property at a later time. 

4. An obligation of a Financial Institution solely to facilitate the 

payment of taxes at a later time. 
18 

E. Partner Jurisdiction Accounts. An account maintained in the 

Republic of Belarus and excluded from the definition of Financial Account 

under an agreement between the United States and another Partner 

Jurisdiction to facilitate the implementation ofF A TCA, provided that such 

account is subject to the same requirements and oversight under the laws of 

such other Partner Jurisdiction as if such account were established in that 

Partner Jurisdiction and maintained by a Partner Jurisdiction Financial 

Institution in that Partner Jurisdiction. 

VI. Definitions. The following additional definitions shall apply to 

the descriptions above: 

A. Reporting Model 1 FFI. The term Reporting Model 1 FFI means 

a Financial Institution with respect to which a non-U.S. government or 

agency thereof agrees to obtain and exchange information pursuant to a 

Model IGA, other than a Financial Institution treated as a 

Nonpatiicipating Financial Institution under the Model 1 IGA. For 

purposes of this definition, the term Model 1 IGA means an arrangement 

between the United States or the Treasury Department and a non-U.S. 

government or one or more agencies thereof to implement FA TCA through 

reporting by Financial Institutions to such non-U.S. government or agency 

thereof, followed by automatic exchange of such reported information with 

the IRS. 

B. Participating FFI. The term Participating FFI means a Financial 

Institution that has agreed to comply with the requirements of an FFI 

Agreement, including a Financial Institution described in a Model 2 IGA 

that has agreed to comply with the requirements of an FFI Agreement. The 

term Participating FFI also includes a qualified intermediary branch of a 

Reporting U.S. Financial Institution, unless such branch is a Reporting 

Model 1 FFI. For purposes of this definition, the term FFI Agreement 

means an agreement that sets forth the requirements for a Financial 
19 

Institution to be treated as complying with the requirements of section 

1471(b) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. In addition, for purposes of 

this definition, the term Model 2 IGA means an arrangement between the 

United States or the Treasury Department and a non-U.S. government or 

one or more agencies thereof to facilitate the implementation of FA TCA 

through reporting by Financial Institutions directly to the IRS in 

accordance with the requirements of an FFI Agreement, supplemented by 

the exchange oLinformation between such non-U.S. government or agency 

thereof and the IRS.