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Financial account (CRS)

The OECD's Common Reporting Standard defines which accounts count as financial accounts for its reporting and due diligence rules.

Definition and scope

The OECD's Common Reporting Standard defines a financial account as an account maintained by a financial institution, including specified deposit and custody accounts, certain ownership or debt interests, and certain insurance contracts.[1]

The term appears in the CRS rules for identifying accounts subject to due diligence and reporting. The CRS covers custodial institutions, depository institutions, investment entities, and specified insurance companies, subject to exclusions for certain institutions.[1]

A financial account is not automatically a reportable account. The CRS treats reportability as a separate question, based on the account holder's tax residence or, for certain entity account holders, the residence of controlling persons.[1]

Account types and limits

The definition includes bank-like accounts, custody arrangements, specified interests in financial institutions, and certain insurance or annuity contracts.[1]

  • A depository account includes commercial, checking, savings, time, and thrift accounts, along with similar instruments held in the ordinary course of banking or a similar business.[1]
  • A custodial account holds one or more financial assets for another person's benefit, except that an insurance contract or annuity contract is not a custodial account under this definition.[1]
  • For an investment entity, an equity or debt interest in that institution is included, with an exception for entities whose role is limited to advice or portfolio management for customer assets deposited elsewhere.[1]
  • The definition also includes cash value insurance and annuity contracts issued or maintained by a financial institution. A noninvestment-linked, non-transferable immediate life annuity can fall outside this category when issued to an individual to monetize a pension or disability benefit held in an excluded account.[1]
  • An account designated as an excluded account is outside the financial account definition, even if it resembles another listed account type.[1]

How reporting relates to the term

CRS reporting institutions review maintained financial accounts under due diligence procedures to determine which are reportable accounts. Singapore's tax authority similarly describes reviewing maintained accounts for reportability and submitting information on reportable accounts.[3]

The CRS framework provides for reporting information such as account balance or value and income generated in relation to account assets or payments. St. Kitts and Nevis describes reporting financial account details, balance or value, and income to its tax authority for exchange with partner jurisdictions.[1]

The CRS also distinguishes financial accounts from reportable accounts, which can include an account held by a person resident in a reportable jurisdiction or by a passive entity with controlling persons resident there.[4]

Questions and answers

Does every financial account count as a reportable account under CRS?

No. The CRS uses due diligence procedures to identify reportable accounts among financial accounts maintained by reporting institutions. Reportability depends on the applicable account holder and tax residence rules.[3]

Which account types can fall within the CRS definition?

The definition includes depository accounts and custodial accounts, along with specified interests in financial institutions. It also includes certain cash value insurance and annuity contracts.[1]

Can an excluded account be a CRS financial account?

No. The OECD definition expressly omits any account that qualifies as an excluded account. The excluded account category has its own listed criteria in the CRS.[1]

What makes a custody account different from a deposit account?

A custodial account holds financial assets for another person's benefit. A depository account is a banking type of account, including checking or savings accounts and similar instruments.[1]

How does the CRS treat an account held by an entity?

Reportable accounts can be held by entities, and the CRS can treat trusts and foundations as entity account holders. The CRS also calls for looking through passive entities to report relevant controlling persons when its rules apply.[1]

  • Reporting financial institution: The Common Reporting Standard classifies a financial institution as reporting when it falls within the relevant jurisdiction's rules and is not non-reporting.
  • Common Reporting Standard: The Common Reporting Standard sets rules for exchanging financial account information, covering reporting institutions, covered accounts and due diligence.
  • Reportable account: The OECD standard defines a reportable account as held by a reportable person or certain passive entities, and identified through due diligence procedures.
Sources and data notes
  1. OECD, Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information in Tax Matters, Second Edition (Common Reporting Standard and Commentaries). https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/publications/reports/2017/03/standard-for-automatic-exchange-of-financial-account-information-in-tax-matters-second-edition_g1g73eb6/9789264267992-en.pdf. Retrieved .
  2. Revenue Jersey, Government of Jersey, Automatic exchange of tax information: the Common Reporting Standard (CRS). https://www.gov.je/taxesmoney/internationaltaxagreements/igas/pages/commonreportingstandard.aspx. Retrieved .
  3. Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore, CRS Registration and Deregistration. https://www.iras.gov.sg/taxes/international-tax/common-reporting-standard-%28crs%29/crs-registration-and-deregistration. Retrieved .
  4. St. Kitts and Nevis Inland Revenue Department, CRS. https://www.sknird.com/crs/. Retrieved .

Dates in this block record when each source was read for this page.