Who this is for
- US owners of foreign grantor trusts
- Beneficiaries of foreign non-grantor trusts
Foreign Trusts & Gifts
Foreign trust annual information (Form 3520A)
Annual information return for foreign trusts with US owners under the grantor trust rules.
Overview
Why this filing matters
Annual information return for foreign trusts with US owners under the grantor trust rules.
Note — Annual trust information return.
What you get
- Form 3520A preparation
- Coordination with Form 3520 filings
Our approach
Built for the cross-border edge cases.
Most US-UK filings fail the same way: a treaty position that wasn’t disclosed, a foreign account that slipped under FBAR thresholds, a PFIC election filed in the wrong year, a carry-forward not tracked from one preparer to the next. The cost of any single one of those is rarely catastrophic on its own — it’s the compounding over multiple filing seasons that quietly turns a clean tax life into a six-figure remediation project.
We start every engagement by looking at the edge cases first — the elections, the disclosures, the carry-forwards, the side-effects on next year’s return — and only then turn to the routine line items. The result is a filing that reads cleanly to anyone who picks it up next: another preparer, the IRS, or a successor in your own business.
- Position memo on every meaningful election, with the reasoning written down for the next return
- Carry-forwards (FTC, capital losses, PFIC basis) tracked year-on-year so nothing expires unused
- Plain-English commentary on every position taken — the kind that makes a future audit a non-event
Our process
How we handle your foreign trust annual information (form 3520a)
Four steps from first call to filed return. Fixed fee confirmed before any work begins.
- 01
Intake
30-minute scoping call. We confirm your situation, required filings, and send a tailored document list.
- 02
Review
We analyse your position, flag any cross-border risks, and confirm the scope and fee before any work starts.
- 03
Prepare
Draft returns and schedules are prepared with plain-English commentary on key positions for your review.
- 04
File
E-file with the IRS / FinCEN, send confirmations, and handle any follow-up notices or questions.
Pricing
Fixed fees — no surprises
Form 3520A preparation starts from £550 + VAT. Usually paired with Form 3520 for comprehensive trust reporting; bundled pricing on request.
FAQs
Common questions about Foreign trust annual information (Form 3520A)
Who is the 'US owner' of a foreign trust?
A US person treated as the grantor under the grantor-trust rules — typically because they funded the trust and retain certain powers. In some cases US beneficiaries of foreign-grantor trusts also become deemed owners.
Is my UK pension a 'foreign trust'?
Technically some UK pensions may be, but IRS guidance and the treaty generally exempt most employer-sponsored and state pensions. Certain SIPP structures in specific circumstances may still need 3520/3520A — we confirm per plan.
What's the annual filing deadline?
15 March for calendar-year trusts, or the 15th day of the 3rd month after the trust's tax year end. Extensions via Form 7004 available.
Can I rely on the trustee for the information?
The US-owner filing obligation is yours, not the trustee's. UK trustees rarely produce information in the format the IRS expects, so we typically reverse-engineer Form 3520A from the trust's UK accounts and correspondence.
Ready to get this filed?
Tell us your situation and we'll confirm scope, a fixed fee, and the documents we need — usually within one business day.