Instructions for Form 3520-A

(Rev. December 2023)

Annual Information Return of Foreign Trust With a U.S. Owner

Department of the Treasury

Internal Revenue Service

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code 

unless otherwise noted.

Future Developments

For the latest information about developments related to 

Form 3520-A and its instructions, such as legislation 

enacted after they were published, go to IRS.gov/

Form3520A.

What’s New

Continuous-use form and instructions. Form 3520-A 

and these instructions have been converted from an 

annual revision to continuous use. Both the form and 

instructions will be updated as needed. For the most 

recent version, go to IRS.gov/Form3520A.

Tax year and statements. You are required to enter the 

tax year at the top of the first page and all statements. For 

a fiscal-year filer, enter the tax year that the fiscal tax year 

begins with on all statements.

Reminders

Exemption from information reporting under section 

6048. Rev. Proc. 2020-17 exempts from foreign trust 

information reporting certain eligible individuals’ 

transactions and ownership. See Exceptions To Filing, 

later.

General Instructions

Purpose of Form

Form 3520-A is the annual information return of a foreign 

trust with at least one U.S. owner. The form provides 

information about the foreign trust, its U.S. beneficiaries, 

and any U.S. person who is treated as an owner of any 

portion of the foreign trust under the grantor trust rules 

(sections 671 through 679).

Who Must File

A foreign trust with a U.S. owner must file Form 3520-A in 

order for the U.S. owner to satisfy its annual information 

reporting requirements under section 6048(b). Each U.S. 

person treated as an owner of any portion of a foreign 

trust under the grantor trust rules (sections 671 through 

679) is responsible for ensuring that the foreign trust files 

Form 3520-A and furnishes the required annual 

statements to its U.S. owners and U.S. beneficiaries. If a 

foreign trust fails to file Form 3520-A, the U.S. owner must 

complete and attach a substitute Form 3520-A for the 

foreign trust to the U.S. owner’s Form 3520, Annual Return 

To Report Transactions With Foreign Trusts and Receipt of 

Certain Foreign Gifts, by the due date of the U.S. owner’s 

Form 3520 (and not the due date for the Form 3520-A, 

which is otherwise due by the 15th day of the 3rd month 

after the end of the trust’s tax year) in order to avoid being 

subject to the penalty for the foreign trust’s failure to file a 

Form 3520-A. See Line 22 in the Instructions for Form 

3520. See Penalties, later.

Exceptions To Filing

Rev. Proc. 2014-55 exempts from foreign trust information 

reporting certain Canadian retirement plans, including 

Canadian registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs) 

and Canadian registered retirement income funds 

(RRIFs), regardless of whether you are an eligible 

individual described in section 4.01 of Rev. Proc. 2014-55. 

For more information about whether your Canadian 

retirement plan qualifies for an exemption from foreign 

trust information reporting, see sections 3 and 5 of Rev. 

Proc. 2014-55, 2014-44 I.R.B. 753, available at 

IRS.gov/IRB/2014-44_IRB#RP-2014-55.

Rev. Proc. 2020-17 exempts from foreign trust 

information reporting certain eligible individuals’ 

transactions with, and ownership of, certain tax-favored 

foreign trusts that are established and operated 

exclusively or almost exclusively to provide pension or 

retirement benefits, or to provide medical, disability, or 

educational benefits. For more information about whether 

you are an eligible individual, and whether your foreign 

trust qualifies for an exemption from foreign trust 

information reporting, see section 5 of Rev. Proc. 2020-17, 

2020-12 I.R.B. 539, available at IRS.gov/IRB/

2020-12_IRB#REV-PROC-2020-17.

The exemptions from foreign trust information reporting 

described in Rev. Proc. 2014-55 and Rev. Proc. 2020-17 

do not affect any reporting obligations under section 

6038D or under any other provision of the U.S. law, 

including the requirement to file Financial Crimes 

Enforcement (FinCEN) Form 114, Report of Foreign Bank 

and Financial Accounts (FBAR), imposed by 31 U.S.C. 

section 5314 and the regulations thereunder. For more 

information, go to IRS.gov/FBAR.

When and Where To File

File a complete Form 3520-A (including the statements on 

pages 3 through 5) with the Internal Revenue Service 

Center, P.O. Box 409101, Ogden, UT 84409, by the 15th 

day of the 3rd month after the end of the trust's tax year. 

However, if you are filing a substitute Form 3520-A with 

your Form 3520, then your substitute Form 3520-A is due 

by the due date of Form 3520. See the Instructions for 

Form 3520 for the due date of the Form 3520. Give copies 

of the Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement (pages 

3 and 4 of Form 3520-A) and the Foreign Grantor Trust 

Beneficiary Statement (page 5 of Form 3520-A) to the 

U.S. owners and U.S. beneficiaries by the 15th day of the 

3rd month after the end of the trust's tax year, or later if an 

extension of time to file is granted or if filing a substitute 

Form 3520-A.

Oct 10, 2023 Cat. No. 25096U
An automatic 6-month extension of time to file Form 

3520-A (including the statements on pages 3 through 5) 

will be granted by filing a properly completed Form 7004, 

Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File 

Certain Business Income Tax, Information, and Other 

Returns, with the foreign trust’s employer identification 

number (EIN) by the 15th day of the 3rd month after the 

end of the trust’s tax year. For details, see Form 7004.

Note. An extension of time to file an income tax return will 

not provide an extension of time to file Form 3520-A. Form 

7004 with the foreign trust’s EIN must be filed in order to 

request an extension of time to file Form 3520-A.

Form 3520-A must have all required attachments to be 

considered complete.

Who Must Sign

If the return is filed by:

• An individual or fiduciary, it must be signed and dated 

by that individual or fiduciary;

• A partnership, it must be signed and dated by a general 

partner or limited liability company member; or

• A corporation, it must be signed and dated by the 

president, vice president, treasurer, assistant treasurer, 

chief accounting officer, or any other corporate officer 

(such as a tax officer) authorized to sign.

Note. If the return is a substitute Form 3520-A that is 

being completed by a U.S. owner and attached to the U.S. 

owner’s Form 3520, then the U.S. owner must sign and 

date the return and provide the U.S. owner’s name and 

taxpayer identification number (TIN) on the “Title” line of 

the signature box. For more information about the 

requirements to file a substitute Form 3520-A, see Line 22 

in the Instructions for Form 3520.

The paid preparer must complete the required preparer 

information and:

• Sign the return in the space provided for the preparer's 

signature, and

• Give a copy of the return to the filer.

Inconsistent Treatment of Items

The U.S. beneficiary’s and U.S. owner’s tax returns must 

be consistent with the Form 3520-A filed by the foreign 

trust unless you report the inconsistency to the IRS. If the 

U.S. beneficiaries or U.S. owners are treating items on 

their tax returns differently from the way the foreign trust 

treated them on its return, they must file Form 8082, 

Notice of Inconsistent Treatment or Administrative 

Adjustment Request (AAR). See Form 8082 for more 

details.

Penalties

The U.S. owner is subject to an initial penalty equal to the 

greater of $10,000 or 5% of the gross value (defined later) 

of the portion of the trust's assets treated as owned by the 

U.S. person at the close of that tax year if the foreign trust 

(a) fails to file a timely Form 3520-A, or (b) does not 

furnish all of the information required by section 6048(b) or 

includes incorrect information. See section 6677(a) 

through (c).

If a foreign trust fails to file a Form 3520-A, the U.S. 

owner must complete and attach a substitute Form 

3520-A to the U.S. owner’s Form 3520 by the due date of 

the U.S. owner’s Form 3520 (and not the due date for 

Form 3520-A) in order to avoid being subject to a penalty 

for the foreign trust’s failure to file a Form 3520-A. For 

example, a substitute Form 3520-A that, to the best of the 

U.S. owner’s ability, is completed and attached to the U.S. 

owner’s Form 3520 by the due date for the Form 3520 

(such as April 15 for the U.S. owners who are individuals) 

is considered timely filed.

Additional penalties will be imposed if the 

noncompliance continues for more than 90 days after the 

IRS mails a notice of failure to comply with the required 

reporting. If the IRS can determine the gross value 

(defined later) of the portion of the trust’s assets treated as 

owned by the U.S. person at the close of the tax year, then 

the penalties will be reduced as necessary to assure that 

the aggregate amount of such penalties does not exceed 

the gross value of the trust. For more information, see 

section 6677.

Criminal penalties may be imposed under sections 

7203, 7206, and 7207 for failure to file on time and for 

filing a false or fraudulent return.

Note. If a U.S. owner of a foreign trust is subject to a 

penalty imposed under section 6662 for an underpayment 

of tax required to be shown on a return, then such penalty 

may be increased under section 6662(j) for any portion of 

an underpayment that is attributable to any transaction 

involving any asset with respect to which information was 

required to be provided on Form 3520-A. For more 

information about undisclosed foreign financial asset 

understatements, see section 6662(j).

Reasonable cause. No penalties will be imposed if the 

taxpayer can demonstrate that the failure to comply with 

the reporting requirements was due to reasonable cause 

and not willful neglect.

Note. The fact that a foreign country would impose 

penalties for disclosing the required information is not 

reasonable cause. Similarly, reluctance on the part of a 

foreign fiduciary or provisions in the trust instrument that 

prevent the disclosure of required information is not 

reasonable cause. See section 6677(d).

Definitions

Distribution

A distribution received directly or indirectly from a foreign 

trust for section 6048(c) reporting purposes is any 

gratuitous transfer of money or other property from a 

foreign trust, whether or not a portion of such trust is 

treated as a grantor trust under the grantor trust rules of 

sections 671 through 679, and without regard to whether 

the recipient is designated as a beneficiary by the terms of 

the trust. A distribution includes the receipt of trust corpus 

and the receipt of a gift or bequest described in section 

663(a).

A distribution also includes constructive transfers from 

a foreign trust. For example, if charges you make on a 

credit card are paid by a foreign trust or guaranteed or 

secured by the assets of a foreign trust, the amount 

charged will be treated as a distribution to you by the 

-2- Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023)
foreign trust. Similarly, if you write checks on a foreign 

trust's bank account, the amount will be treated as a 

distribution. Also, if you receive a payment from a foreign 

trust in exchange for property transferred to the trust or 

services rendered to the trust, and the fair market value 

(FMV) of the payment you received exceeds the FMV of 

the property transferred or services rendered, the excess 

will be treated as a distribution to you. See section V of 

Notice 97-34, 1997-25 I.R.B. 22, available at IRS.gov/pub/

irs-irbs/irb97-25.pdf.

Example 1. If you sell stock with an FMV of $100 to a 

foreign trust and receive $150 in exchange, you have 

received a distribution of $50.

Example 2. If you receive $100 from the trust for 

services performed by you for the trust, and the services 

have an FMV of $20, you have received a distribution of 

$80.

Foreign Trust and Domestic Trust

A foreign trust is any trust other than a domestic trust. A 

domestic trust is any trust if:

1. A court within the United States is able to exercise 

primary supervision over the administration of the trust, 

and

2. One or more U.S. persons have the authority to 

control all substantial decisions of the trust.

Grantor

A grantor includes any person who creates a trust or 

directly or indirectly makes a gratuitous transfer of cash or 

other property to a trust. A grantor includes any person 

treated as the owner of any part of a foreign trust's assets 

under sections 671 through 679, excluding section 678.

Note. If a partnership or corporation makes a gratuitous 

transfer to a trust, the partners or shareholders are 

generally treated as the grantors of the trust, unless the 

partnership or corporation made the transfer for a 

business purpose of the partnership or corporation.

If a trust makes a gratuitous transfer to another trust, 

the grantor of the transferor trust is treated as the grantor 

of the transferee trust, except that if a person with a 

general power of appointment over the transferor trust 

exercises that power in favor of another trust, such person 

is treated as the grantor of the transferee trust, even if the 

grantor of the transferor trust is treated as the owner of the 

transferor trust.

Grantor Trust

A grantor trust is any trust to the extent that the assets of 

the trust are treated as owned by a person other than the 

trust. See the grantor trust rules in sections 671 through 

679. A part of the trust may be treated as a grantor trust to 

the extent that only a portion of the trust assets are owned 

by a person other than the trust.

Note. Under the HIRE Act, effective after March 18, 2010, 

if a foreign trust directly or indirectly loans cash or 

marketable securities to a U.S. person who does not repay 

the loan at a market rate of interest, or allows a U.S. 

person to use trust property without paying FMV within a 

reasonable period of time, the trust will be treated as 

having a U.S. beneficiary and is therefore treated as a 

grantor trust under the grantor trust rules.

Gross Value

Gross value is the value of property as determined under 

section 2512 and its regulations, without regard to any 

prohibitions or restrictions on a person's interest in the 

property. See section VII of Notice 97-34. Although formal 

appraisals are generally not required, you should keep 

contemporaneous records of how you arrived at your 

good faith estimate.

Nongrantor Trust

A nongrantor trust is any trust to the extent that the assets 

of the trust are not treated as owned by a person other 

than the trust under the grantor trust rules in sections 671 

through 679. Thus, a nongrantor trust is treated as a 

taxable entity. A trust may be treated as a nongrantor trust 

with respect to only a portion of the trust assets. See 

Grantor Trust, earlier.

Owner

An owner of a foreign trust is the person that is treated as 

owning any of the assets of a foreign trust under the 

grantor trust rules.

Property

Property means any property, whether tangible or 

intangible, including cash.

U.S. Agent

A U.S. agent is a U.S. person (defined later) that has a 

binding contract with a foreign trust that allows the U.S. 

person to act as the trust's authorized U.S. agent (see the 

instructions for Lines 3a through 3g under Part I, later) in 

applying sections 7602, 7603, and 7604 with respect to:

• Any request by the IRS to examine records or produce 

testimony related to the proper U.S. tax treatment of 

amounts distributed, or required to be taken into account 

under the grantor trust rules, with respect to a foreign 

trust; or

• Any summons by the IRS for such records or testimony.

A U.S. grantor, a U.S. beneficiary, or a domestic 

corporation controlled by the grantor or beneficiary may 

act as a U.S. agent. However, you may not treat the 

foreign trust as having a U.S. agent unless you enter the 

name, address, and TIN of the U.S. agent on lines 3a 

through 3g of Part I of the form. See Taxpayer 

identification numbers (TINs), later.

If a foreign trust with a U.S. owner does not have a U.S. 

agent, the IRS may redetermine the amounts required to 

be taken into account with respect to the foreign trust by 

the U.S. owner. See section 6048(b)(2). The agency 

relationship must be established by the time the U.S. 

person files Form 3520-A for the relevant tax year and 

must continue as long as the statute of limitations remains 

open for the relevant tax year. If the agent’s responsibility 

as an agent of the trust is terminated for any reason (for 

example, agent’s resignation, agent’s liquidation, or 

agent’s death), see section IV.B of Notice 97-34.

Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023) -3-
U.S. Beneficiary

A U.S. beneficiary generally includes any U.S. person that 

could possibly benefit (directly or indirectly) from the trust 

(including an amended trust) at any time, whether or not 

the person is designated in the trust instrument as a 

beneficiary and whether or not the person can receive a 

distribution from the trust in the current year. In addition, a 

U.S. beneficiary includes:

• A foreign corporation that is a controlled foreign 

corporation (as defined in section 957(a)),

• A foreign partnership if a U.S. person is a partner of the 

partnership, and

• A foreign estate or trust if the estate or trust has a U.S. 

beneficiary. See section II of Notice 97-34 and the 

regulations under section 679 for additional information.

Foreign trust treated as having a U.S. beneficiary. In 

general, if a U.S. person, directly or indirectly, transfers 

property to a foreign trust (other than a deferred 

compensation or charitable trust described in section 

6048(a)(3)(B)(ii)), the foreign trust will be treated as 

having a U.S. beneficiary unless the terms of the trust 

instrument specifically prohibit any distribution of income 

or corpus to a U.S. person at any time, even after the 

death of the U.S. transferor or any event terminating the 

trust, and the trust cannot be amended or revised to allow 

such a distribution. For these purposes, an amount will be 

treated as accumulated for the benefit of a U.S. person 

even if the U.S. person's interest in the trust is contingent 

on a future event and regardless of whether anything is 

actually distributed to a U.S. person during that tax year.

Special rule in case of discretion to identify 

beneficiaries. For purposes of the general rule above, if 

any person has the discretion of making a distribution 

from the trust to, or for the benefit of, any person, the trust 

will be treated as having a beneficiary who is a U.S. 

person, unless the terms of the trust specifically identify 

the class of persons to whom such distributions may be 

made, and none of those persons are U.S. persons during 

the tax year.

Certain agreements and understandings treated as 

terms of the trust. For purposes of the general rule 

above, if any U.S. person who directly or indirectly 

transfers property to the trust is directly or indirectly 

involved in any agreement or understanding (whether 

written, oral, or otherwise) that may result in the income or 

corpus of the trust being paid or accumulated to, or for the 

benefit of, a U.S. person, such agreement or 

understanding will be treated as a term of the trust.

Certain loans or uncompensated use of trust 

property. If a foreign trust is not already treated as having 

a U.S. beneficiary under the rules described above, the 

trust will be treated as having a U.S. beneficiary if, after 

March 18, 2010, either:

• The foreign trust loans cash or marketable securities, 

directly or indirectly, to a U.S. person and the U.S. person 

does not repay the loan at a market rate of interest within a 

reasonable period of time; or

• A U.S. person, directly or indirectly, uses property that is 

owned by the foreign trust and does not pay FMV of the 

use of such property within a reasonable period of time.

Presumption that foreign trust has U.S. beneficiary. If 

a U.S. person, directly or indirectly, transfers property to a 

foreign trust (other than a deferred compensation or 

charitable trust described in section 6048(a)(3)(B)(ii)), the 

IRS may treat such trust as having a U.S. beneficiary for 

purposes of applying section 679(d) to such transfer if the 

IRS requests information with respect to the transfer and 

the U.S. person fails to demonstrate to the satisfaction of 

the IRS that no portion of the income or corpus of the trust 

may ever be paid to or accumulated for the benefit of a 

U.S. person.

U.S. Person

A U.S. person is:

• A citizen or resident of the United States, including dual 

residents who claim the benefits under an income tax 

treaty (see Pub. 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens, for 

guidance on determining resident alien status);

• A domestic partnership;

• A domestic corporation;

• Any estate (other than a foreign estate, within the 

meaning of section 7701(a)(31)(A)); and

• Any domestic trust (defined earlier).

Specific Instructions

Period Covered

For calendar-year filers, fill in the "calendar year" space at 

the top of the form. For fiscal-year filers, fill in the "tax year 

beginning" and "ending" spaces at the top of the form.

Initial Return, Final Return, Amended 

Return, Extension Filed, Substitute 

Form 3520-A

Initial return. If this is the foreign trust's first return, check 

the “Initial return” box.

Final return. If the foreign trust ceases to exist, check the 

“Final return” box.

Amended return. If this Form 3520-A is filed to amend a 

Form 3520-A that you previously filed, check the 

“Amended return” box.

Extension filed. If the Form 7004 was timely filed to 

request an extension for the Form 3520-A, check the 

“Extension filed” box.

Substitute Form 3520-A. If you are a U.S. owner of the 

foreign trust filing a substitute Form 3520-A and attaching 

it to your Form 3520, check the “Substitute Form 3520-A” 

box.

Excepted Specified Foreign Financial 

Assets Reported

Check the box only if a U.S. person treated as the owner 

of any portion of the trust under the grantor trust rules also 

files Form 8938, Statement of Specified Foreign Financial 

Assets, for the tax year and includes this form in the total 

number of Forms 3520-A reported on line 16 of Part IV, 

Excepted Specified Foreign Financial Assets, of Form 

8938. For more information, see the Instructions for Form 

8938, generally, and in particular, Duplicative reporting 

and the specific instructions for Part IV.

-4- Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023)
Part I—General Information

Taxpayer identification numbers (TINs). Use social 

security numbers (SSNs) or individual taxpayer 

identification numbers (ITINs) to identify individuals. Use 

EINs to identify estates, trusts, partnerships, and 

corporations. Don’t use an SSN in place of an EIN.

Applying for an EIN. If you don’t have an EIN, you may 

apply for one online at IRS.gov/EIN. If the principal 

business was created or organized outside of the United 

States or U.S. territories, you may also apply for an EIN by 

calling 267-941-1099 (toll call).

Do not enter a preparer tax identification number 

(PTIN) in any entry space on Form 3520-A other 

than the entry space for “PTIN” at the bottom of 

page 1 of the form.

Address. Include the room, suite, or other unit number 

after the street address. If the post office does not deliver 

mail to the street address and the U.S. person has a P.O. 

box, show the box number instead.

Foreign address. Do not abbreviate the country name.

Line 1b. Enter the EIN of the foreign trust. Do not enter 

an SSN or ITIN. Only EINs should be used to identify the 

foreign trust.

Line 2. If the trust appointed a U.S. agent, enter the year 

the Authorization of Agent form was last attached.

Note. The Authorization of Agent form should be 

attached every 3 years unless there has been a change, 

and if so, it should be attached in the year with respect to 

which the change relates.

If the trust did not appoint a U.S. agent, attach the 

following documents to Form 3520-A.

• A summary of the terms of the trust that includes a 

summary of any oral agreements or understandings you 

have with the trustee, whether or not legally enforceable.

• A copy of all trust documents (and any revisions), 

including the trust instrument, any memoranda of wishes 

prepared by the trustees summarizing the settlor's wishes, 

any letter of wishes prepared by the settlor summarizing 

his or her wishes, and any similar documents.

• A copy of the trust’s organizational chart, including 

ownership structure and percentage of ownership.

Note. If these documents have been attached to a Form 

3520-A filed within the previous 3 years, attach only 

relevant updates.

Lines 3a through 3g. If a foreign trust with a U.S. owner 

does not have a U.S. agent, the IRS may determine the 

amounts required to be taken into account with respect to 

the foreign trust by the U.S. owner. See section 6048(b)

(2). In order to avoid this, a U.S. owner of a foreign trust 

should ensure that the foreign trust appoints a U.S. person 

to act as the foreign trust's limited agent for purposes of 

applying sections 7602, 7603, and 7604 with respect to a 

request by the IRS to examine records or produce 

testimony, or a summons by the IRS for such records or 

testimony. Any U.S. citizen, resident, or domestic 

corporation (including a U.S. grantor or U.S. beneficiary of 

a foreign trust) may act as the U.S. agent of the trust.

CAUTION

!

In order to authorize a U.S. person to act as an agent 

under section 6048(b), the trust and the agent must enter 

into a binding agreement substantially in the format that 

follows. Attach a copy of the Authorization of Agent form to 

Form 3520-A. This form should be attached to Form 

3520-A every 3 years unless there has been a change, 

and if so, it should be attached in the year with respect to 

which the change relates.

AUTHORIZATION OF AGENT

[ Name of foreign trust ] hereby expressly authorizes [ name of

U.S. agent ] to act as its agent solely for purposes of sections

7602, 7603, and 7604 of the Internal Revenue Code with respect to

any request to examine records or produce testimony related to the

proper treatment of amounts required to be taken into account

under the rules of section 6048(b)(2)(A) or to any summons for such

records or testimony. I certify that I have the authority to execute

this authorization of agent to act on behalf of [ name of foreign

trust ].

Signature of trustee

(or other authorized person)

(title) (date)

Taxpayer Identication Number (if any)

Address

[ Name of agent ] accepts this appointment to act as agent

for [ name of foreign trust ] for the above purpose. I certify that I

have the authority to execute this authorization of agent to act on

behalf of [ name of foreign trust ] and agree to accept service of

process for the above purposes.

Signature of agent (title) (date)

Taxpayer Identication Number (if any)

Address

Your Name (type or print)

Your Name (type or print)

Do not enter a PTIN on the Authorization of Agent 

form.

Line 5. Enter the number of Foreign Grantor Trust Owner 

Statements (pages 3 and 4) included with this Form 

3520-A.

Line 6. Enter the number of Foreign Grantor Trust 

Beneficiary Statements (page 5) included with this Form 

3520-A.

Sign here. In general, the trustee of the foreign trust must 

sign the Form 3520-A. However, if the U.S. owner of the 

foreign trust is filing a substitute Form 3520-A, the U.S. 

owner must sign. See Who Must Sign, earlier.

Part II—Foreign Trust Income 

Statement

Include all income from U.S. and non-U.S. sources. This 

financial statement must reasonably reflect the trust's 

income under U.S. income tax principles.

CAUTION

!

Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023) -5-
Income

Line 1. Interest. Report all taxable interest income that 

was received during the tax year. Examples of taxable 

interest include, but are not limited to, interest from the 

following.

• Accounts (including certificates of deposit and money 

market accounts) with banks, credit unions, and thrift 

institutions.

• Notes, loans, and mortgages.

• U.S. Treasury bills, notes, and bonds.

• U.S. savings bonds.

• Original issue discount.

• Income received as a regular interest holder of a real 

estate mortgage investment conduit (REMIC).

For taxable bonds acquired after 1987, amortizable 

bond premium is treated as an offset to the interest 

income instead of as a separate interest deduction. See 

Pub. 550, Investment Income and Expenses.

Line 2. Dividends. Report all ordinary dividends 

received during the tax year.

Note. Report capital gain distributions on Line 5. Capital 

gains (losses) of this section.

Line 4. Income (loss) from partnerships, fiduciaries, 

etc. Enter the trust's share of income or (losses) from 

partnerships, S corporations, estates, other trusts, and 

REMICs.

If the trust received a Schedule K-1 from a partnership, 

S corporation, or other flow-through entity, use the 

corresponding lines on Form 3520-A to report the interest, 

dividends, capital gains, etc., from the flow-through entity.

Line 5. Capital gains (losses). For capital gains or 

(losses) attributable to a U.S. owner, use Schedule D 

(corporate or individual, whichever applies) and Form 

8949, Sales and Other Dispositions of Capital Assets, if 

applicable.

Line 6. Ordinary gains (losses). Enter the ordinary gain 

or (loss) from the sale or exchange of property other than 

capital assets and also from involuntary conversions 

(other than casualty or theft).

Line 7. Other income. Enter other items of income not 

included on lines 1 through 6. List the types and amounts 

on an attached statement if the trust has more than one 

item.

Items to be reported on line 7 include any part of a total 

distribution shown on Form 1099-R, Distributions From 

Pensions, Annuities, Retirement or Profit-Sharing Plans, 

IRAs, Insurance Contracts, etc., that is treated as ordinary 

income. For more information, see the instructions for 

Form 4972, Tax on Lump-Sum Distributions.

Expenses

Line 9. Interest expense. Enter the amount of interest 

(subject to limitations) paid or incurred by the trust on 

amounts borrowed by the trust, or on debt acquired by the 

trust, that is not reported elsewhere in Part II.

If the proceeds of a loan were used for more than one 

purpose (for example, to purchase a portfolio investment 

and to acquire an interest in a passive activity), the 

fiduciary must make an interest allocation according to the 

rules in Temporary Regulations section 1.163-8T.

Do not include interest paid on indebtedness incurred 

or continued to purchase or carry obligations on which the 

interest is wholly exempt from income tax.

Line 10a. Foreign taxes. A foreign tax includes only a 

tax imposed by the authority of a foreign country.

Line 10b. State and local taxes. Enter any deductible 

state and local income or real property taxes paid or 

incurred during the tax year that are not reported 

elsewhere in Part II.

Do not deduct on line 10b or on any other line of Part II:

• Federal income taxes;

• Estate, inheritance, legacy, succession, and gift taxes; 

or

• Federal duties and excise taxes.

Line 11. Amortization and depreciation (depletion). A 

reasonable amount is allowed as a depreciation deduction 

for the exhaustion, wear, and tear of:

• Property used in a trade or business, or

• Property held for the production of income.

Line 12. Trustee and advisor fees. Enter the deductible 

fees paid or incurred to the fiduciary for administering the 

trust during the tax year.

Line 13. Charitable contributions. Generally, any part 

of the income reported on line 8 that is paid (or treated as 

paid) during the tax year for a charitable purpose specified 

in section 170(c) is allowed as a deduction. It is not 

necessary that the charitable organization be created or 

organized in the United States.

Line 14. Other expenses. Enter other items of expense 

not listed on lines 9 through 13. List the type and amount 

on an attached statement if the trust has more than one 

item.

Line 17a. FMV of total distributions. Attach a 

statement that provides the following information 

concerning the transfer.

1. Name, U.S. TIN (if any), and country of organization 

or residence of the person to whom the property was 

transferred.

2. A general description of the transfer, and any 

broader transaction of which it forms a part, including a 

chronology of the transfers involved and an identification 

of the other parties to the transaction to the extent known.

3. A description of the property transferred, including 

the estimated FMV and the adjusted basis of the property.

4. A description of the consideration received by the 

trust, including its estimated FMV, and for stock or 

securities, the class or type, amount, and characteristics 

of the interest received. If no consideration was received 

by the trust, indicate whether the trust or a U.S. owner 

exercises any powers over the entity to which the property 

was transferred (including a description of such powers), 

and identify the name, U.S. TIN (if any), and country of 

organization or residence of all beneficial owners of such 

entity.

5. To the extent known, a description of any 

subsequent transfer of the property, including the name, 

-6- Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023)
U.S. TIN (if any), and country of organization or residence 

of the person to whom the property was subsequently 

transferred.

The statement must also contain a description of the 

trust ownership structure setting forth the name, U.S. TIN 

(if any), and country of organization of all entities in which 

the trust has an ownership interest, including an 

ownership chart showing the trust's position in the chain of 

ownership and the percentages of ownership.

Note. The term “person” includes an individual or an 

entity, whether U.S. or foreign. See the definition of U.S. 

person, earlier. A foreign person is an individual or entity 

that is not a U.S. person.

Lines 17b and 17c. Distributions to U.S. owners and 

U.S. beneficiaries. Separately list the total amount of 

distributions (including the uncompensated use of trust 

property) to each U.S. owner and U.S. beneficiary. List the 

full name, TIN, date of distribution, and FMV on the date 

of distribution (dollar amount) for each U.S. owner and 

U.S. beneficiary who receives a distribution. If more space 

is needed, attach a statement.

Prepare a separate Foreign Grantor Trust Owner 

Statement (see below) or Foreign Grantor Trust 

Beneficiary Statement (see below) for each U.S. owner 

or for each U.S. beneficiary who receives a distribution 

from the trust.

Part III—Foreign Trust Balance Sheet

List all assets and liabilities of the trust, including those 

assets and liabilities attributable to the portion(s) of the 

trust (if any) not treated as owned by a U.S. person.

The balance sheet should reflect FMV. Include 

certificates of deposit as cash on line 1.

For purposes of completing Part III, it is not necessary 

or required to reconcile any differences between the book 

and tax basis of assets and liabilities.

Line 18. Accumulated trust income. Include the total 

amount of trust income accumulated and not distributed.

Foreign Grantor Trust Owner 

Statement

On the top of each statement, fill in the tax year. 

For fiscal-year filers, use the year in which your 

fiscal tax year begins.

A copy of this statement (pages 3 and 4 of Form 

3520-A) must be (a) furnished to each U.S. person who is 

treated as an owner of the foreign trust under the grantor 

trust rules, and (b) included with this Form 3520-A. The 

statement must be furnished to each U.S. owner no later 

than the 15th day of the 3rd month following the end of the 

trust's tax year, or later if an extension of time to file is 

granted, or if filing a substitute Form 3520-A. See When 

and Where To File, earlier.

TINs and addresses. See the instructions for Part I, 

earlier, for information on entering TINs and addresses.

Line 8. Trust documents. If the trust did not appoint a 

U.S. agent, list the documents attached to the current year 

Form 3520-A and those attached to a Form 3520-A filed 

CAUTION

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within the last 3 years. Specify the years the documents 

were attached. See Line 2 under Part I, earlier, for a list of 

documents the trust is required to attach to Form 3520-A.

Statement of Foreign Trust Income Attributable 

to U.S. Owner

On the top of each statement, fill in the tax year. 

For fiscal-year filers, use the year in which your 

fiscal tax year begins.

The amounts on the statement must include the portion 

of income reported by the foreign trust deemed 

attributable to the U.S. owner.

The foreign trust may need to furnish to the U.S. owner 

additional information, including applicable statements, to 

ensure that the owner accurately reports income and 

expenses on the owner's U.S. income tax return.

Foreign Grantor Trust Beneficiary 

Statement

On the top of each statement, fill in the tax year. 

For fiscal-year filers, use the year in which your 

fiscal tax year begins.

A copy of this statement (page 5 of Form 3520-A) must 

be (a) furnished to each U.S. beneficiary who receives a 

distribution, directly or indirectly, from the foreign trust 

during the tax year; and (b) included with this Form 

3520-A. See the definitions for U.S. beneficiary and 

distribution provided earlier in these instructions.

Exception. Do not complete this statement for a U.S. 

person for any portion of the trust of which that U.S. 

person is treated as the owner; instead, complete the 

Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement for that U.S. 

person (as described earlier).

The statement must be furnished to the U.S. 

beneficiary no later than the 15th day of the 3rd month 

following the end of the trust's tax year, or later if an 

extension of time to file is granted, or if filing a substitute 

Form 3520-A. See When and Where To File, earlier.

TINs and addresses. See the instructions for Part I, 

earlier, for information on entering TINs and addresses.

Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the 

information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue 

laws of the United States. You are required to give us the 

information. We need it to ensure that you are complying 

with these laws and to allow us to figure and collect the 

right amount of tax.

You are not required to provide the information 

requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid OMB 

control number. Books or records relating to a form or its 

instructions must be retained for as long as their contents 

may become material in the administration of any Internal 

Revenue law.

The time needed to complete and file the form will vary 

depending on individual circumstances. The estimated 

average time is:

CAUTION

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CAUTION

!

Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023) -7-
Recordkeeping................. 37 hr., 18 min.

Learning about the law or the 

form ......................... 2 hr., 40 min.

Preparing and sending the form to 

the IRS ....................... 3 hr., 24 min.

If you have comments concerning the accuracy of 

these time estimates or suggestions for making this form 

simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. You can 

send us comments from IRS.gov/FormComments. Or you 

can send your comments to Internal Revenue Service, Tax 

Forms and Publications Division, 1111 Constitution Ave. 

NW, IR-6526, Washington, DC 20224. Do not send the 

form to this office. Instead, see When and Where To File, 

earlier.

-8- Instructions for Form 3520-A (Rev. 12-2023)