New FATCA Guidance

On April 2, the U.S. Treasury released Announcement 2014-17 under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, sections 1471 through 1474 of the Internal Revenue Code ("FATCA"), broadening the scope of when an intergovernmental agreement ("IGA") is considered to be in effect and extending the registration timeframe for foreign financial institutions ("FFIs").
 
FATCA Overview. Pursuant to FATCA, beginning on July 1, a U.S. withholding agent (e.g., a U.S. person who is an obligor on a debt instrument issued after July 1 or an issuer of stock) will be required to withhold 30 percent of certain U.S. source payments (e.g., interest or dividends) made to an FFI (e.g., a non-U.S. bank or potentially a non-U.S. investment fund), unless the FFI (i) enters into an agreement with the IRS or is located in a jurisdiction that has entered into an IGA with the U.S., (ii) registers with the IRS and (iii) obtains a global intermediary identification number ("GIIN") that it provides to