FBAR Penalty Calculator

How FBAR penalties are calculated

The FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) is due when the combined value of your foreign financial accounts exceeded $10,000 at any point in the year. Miss it, and 31 U.S.C. 5321(a)(5) lets the Treasury assess a civil penalty. The dollar figures are indexed for inflation in 31 CFR 1010.821. As of 2026, the table shows $16,536 for a non-willful violation and $165,353 for the willful minimum. The 2026 round of inflation adjustments was cancelled by OMB, so the amounts effective January 17, 2025 remain current (source: eCFR, 31 CFR 1010.821, checked October 2026).

Per report, not per account

For years the IRS argued the non-willful cap applied to each unreported account. In Bittner v. United States (2023), the Supreme Court rejected that: the cap applies to each report, so a taxpayer with twelve accounts and one missed year faces one maximum. Over six missed years the non-willful ceiling is six times $16,536.

Willful penalties are a different animal

A willful violation can cost the greater of $165,353 or 50% of the account balance at the time of the violation, each year. This calculator applies 50% to the combined balance you enter, which is the ceiling, not a forecast. Willful conduct can also be criminal. If that might describe you, talk to a tax attorney before you do anything else.

What actually gets assessed

Statutory maximums are rarely what people pay. IRS mitigation guidelines in IRM 4.26.16 generally cap non-willful penalties far below the statutory figure, and the IRS can issue a warning letter instead of a penalty when there is reasonable cause. Still, the downside is large enough that a quiet fix is the wrong move.

The programs that reduce it

Americans living abroad who missed filings through honest oversight usually qualify for Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures: three years of returns, six years of FBARs, and a non-willful certification on Form 14653, with no FBAR penalty. People who already reported all their income and paid the tax can use the Delinquent FBAR Submission Procedures. The 5% miscellaneous offshore penalty belongs only to Streamlined Domestic. Read how the FBAR filing service works, review the FinCEN 114 form guide, or browse our expat tax guides. To budget the fix, use the Streamlined filing cost calculator.

Reviewed by Harsh Agarwal, EA (Enrolled Agent, EA #00158482). Estimate only; not legal advice.