The Road to FATCA in the European Union

The author discusses the EU response to the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which allows the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to gather information concerning the accounts of US taxpayers in foreign banks. Banks and financial institutions worldwide are required to gather the information or a 30% tax on capital flows from the United States is imposed. The article looks at the due diligence burden resulting from FATCA, as well as legal concerns – notably data protection issues.