The US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) has lifted the veil surrounding one of the world’s most secretive tax-havens.
The sunny tropical Caribbean paradise of The Cayman Islands has 80,000 financial institutions registered under FATCA – more than double that of the UK in second place on 35,232.
In recent months, the Caymans has seen the total number of FATCA registrations rise by more than 700 a month, according to US Internal Revenue Service data.
The list increased by 3,260 from last July, with 741 coming from The Caymans.
The Caymans is considered an ideal destination for multinational companies to locate subsidiaries to defray corporate tax.
Residents – including companies – pay no direct taxes on income, property or gains.
The next FATCA list is due in September.
Top 10 countries with FATCA registrations
| Country | FATCA registrations |
| CAYMAN ISLANDS | 80001 |
| UNITED KINGDOM | 35232 |
| BRAZIL | 34994 |
| JAPAN | 25300 |
| LUXEMBOURG | 18411 |
| VIRGIN ISLANDS (BRITISH) | 14529 |
| CANADA | 14002 |
| GUERNSEY | 9039 |
| JERSEY | 8941 |
| HONG KONG | 8406 |
| Grand Total | 248855 |
Source: IRS
Global FATCA Registrations
| Country | FATCA registrations |
| AFGHANISTAN | 15 |
| ALBANIA | 26 |
| ALGERIA | 48 |
| AMERICAN SAMOA | 1 |
| ANDORRA | 200 |
| ANGOLA | 87 |
| ANGUILLA | 263 |
| ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA | 57 |
| ARGENTINA | 1486 |
| ARMENIA | 53 |
| ARUBA | 23 |
| AUSTRALIA | 7763 |
| AUSTRIA | 2601 |
| AZERBAIJAN | 75 |
| BAHAMAS | 1953 |
| BAHRAIN | 283 |
| BANGLADESH | 84 |
| BARBADOS | 237 |
| BELARUS | 78 |
| BELGIUM | 433 |
| BELIZE | 408 |
| BENIN | 27 |
| BERMUDA | 4198 |
| BHUTAN | 3 |
| BOLIVIA, PLURINATIONAL STATE OF | 80 |
| BONAIRE, SINT EUSTATIUS AND SABA | 12 |
| BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA | 80 |
| BOTSWANA | 34 |
| BOUVET ISLAND | 4 |
| BRAZIL | 34994 |
| BRITISH INDIAN OCEAN TERRITORY | 22 |
| BRUNEI DARUSSALAM | 24 |
| BULGARIA | 314 |
| Burkina Faso | 22 |
| BURUNDI | 9 |
| CAMBODIA | 156 |
| CAMEROON | 36 |
| CANADA | 14002 |
| CAPE VERDE | 14 |
| CAYMAN ISLANDS | 80001 |
| CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC | 7 |
| CHAD | 11 |
| CHILE | 1711 |
| CHINA | 2850 |
| COLOMBIA | 738 |
| COMOROS | 17 |
| CONGO | 18 |
| CONGO, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE | 19 |
| COOK ISLANDS | 316 |
| COSTA RICA | 145 |
| COTE D’IVOIRE | 84 |
| CROATIA | 189 |
| CURACAO | 415 |
| CYPRUS | 1550 |
| CZECH REPUBLIC | 563 |
| DENMARK | 989 |
| DJIBOUTI | 13 |
| DOMINICA | 45 |
| DOMINICAN REPUBLIC | 183 |
| ECUADOR | 173 |
| EGYPT | 293 |
| EL SALVADOR | 156 |
| EQUATORIAL GUINEA | 7 |
| ERITREA | 1 |
| ESTONIA | 124 |
| ETHIOPIA | 21 |
| FALKLAND ISLANDS (MALVINAS) | 1 |
| FAROE ISLANDS | 2 |
| FIJI | 15 |
| FINLAND | 1822 |
| FRANCE | 6961 |
| FRENCH POLYNESIA | 4 |
| GABON | 16 |
| GAMBIA | 13 |
| GEORGIA | 77 |
| GERMANY | 5311 |
| GHANA | 65 |
| GIBRALTAR | 893 |
| GREECE | 416 |
| GREENLAND | 5 |
| GRENADA | 44 |
| GUAM | 5 |
| GUATEMALA | 88 |
| GUERNSEY | 9039 |
| GUINEA | 23 |
| GUINEA-BISSAU | 7 |
| GUYANA | 21 |
| HAITI | 79 |
| HOLY SEE (VATICAN CITY STATE) | 2 |
| HONDURAS | 52 |
| HONG KONG | 8406 |
| HUNGARY | 567 |
| ICELAND | 54 |
| INDIA | 3195 |
| INDONESIA | 1266 |
| IRAQ | 88 |
| IRELAND | 8403 |
| ISLE OF MAN | 1415 |
| ISRAEL | 2604 |
| ITALY | 3982 |
| JAMAICA | 85 |
| JAPAN | 25300 |
| JERSEY | 8941 |
| JORDAN | 90 |
| KAZAKHSTAN | 152 |
| KENYA | 118 |
| KIRIBATI | 1 |
| KOREA, REPUBLIC OF | 1440 |
| KOSOVO | 15 |
| KUWAIT | 257 |
| KYRGYZSTAN | 30 |
| LAO PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC | 40 |
| LATVIA | 70 |
| LEBANON | 189 |
| LESOTHO | 7 |
| LIBERIA | 50 |
| LIBYA | 23 |
| LIECHTENSTEIN | 1369 |
| LITHUANIA | 199 |
| LUXEMBOURG | 18411 |
| MACAO | 113 |
| MACEDONIA, THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF | 55 |
| MADAGASCAR | 13 |
| MALAWI | 12 |
| MALAYSIA | 1964 |
| MALDIVES | 8 |
| MALI | 20 |
| MALTA | 1673 |
| MARSHALL ISLANDS | 305 |
| MAURITANIA | 17 |
| MAURITIUS | 5325 |
| MAYOTTE | 1 |
| MEXICO | 2663 |
| MICRONESIA, FEDERATED STATES OF | 3 |
| MOLDOVA, REPUBLIC OF | 24 |
| MONACO | 192 |
| MONGOLIA | 20 |
| MONTENEGRO | 28 |
| MONTSERRAT | 13 |
| MOROCCO | 642 |
| MOZAMBIQUE | 22 |
| MYANMAR | 51 |
| NAMIBIA | 99 |
| NEPAL | 32 |
| NETHERLANDS | 6301 |
| NEW CALEDONIA | 7 |
| NEW ZEALAND | 6445 |
| NICARAGUA | 25 |
| NIGER | 17 |
| NIGERIA | 106 |
| NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS | 1 |
| NORWAY | 1346 |
| OMAN | 56 |
| OTHER | 653 |
| PAKISTAN | 425 |
| PALAU | 1 |
| PANAMA | 2022 |
| PAPUA NEW GUINEA | 17 |
| PARAGUAY | 49 |
| PERU | 1292 |
| PHILIPPINES | 326 |
| POLAND | 1639 |
| PORTUGAL | 454 |
| PUERTO RICO | 2 |
| QATAR | 86 |
| REUNION | 1 |
| ROMANIA | 264 |
| RUSSIAN FEDERATION | 1597 |
| RWANDA | 24 |
| SAINT BARTHELEMY | 1 |
| SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS | 568 |
| SAINT LUCIA | 116 |
| SAINT MARTIN (FRENCH PART) | 1 |
| SAINT PIERRE AND MIQUELON | 3 |
| SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES | 435 |
| SAMOA | 98 |
| SAN MARINO | 31 |
| SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE | 8 |
| SAUDI ARABIA | 420 |
| SENEGAL | 50 |
| SERBIA | 76 |
| SEYCHELLES | 345 |
| SIERRA LEONE | 9 |
| SINGAPORE | 5458 |
| SINT MAARTEN (DUTCH PART) | 19 |
| SLOVAKIA | 201 |
| SLOVENIA | 191 |
| SOLOMON ISLANDS | 11 |
| SOMALIA | 9 |
| SOUTH AFRICA | 2468 |
| SOUTH SUDAN | 11 |
| SPAIN | 4184 |
| SRI LANKA | 58 |
| SUDAN | 38 |
| SURINAME | 12 |
| SVALBARD AND JAN MAYEN | 2 |
| SWAZILAND | 14 |
| SWEDEN | 1945 |
| SWITZERLAND | 6773 |
| SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC | 9 |
| TAIWAN | 2093 |
| TAJIKISTAN | 34 |
| TANZANIA, UNITED REPUBLIC OF | 40 |
| THAILAND | 5062 |
| TIMOR-LESTE | 5 |
| TOGO | 28 |
| TONGA | 6 |
| TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO | 106 |
| TUNISIA | 348 |
| TURKEY | 967 |
| TURKMENISTAN | 13 |
| TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS | 116 |
| UGANDA | 42 |
| UKRAINE | 821 |
| UNITED ARAB EMIRATES | 1022 |
| UNITED KINGDOM | 35232 |
| UNITED STATES | 1613 |
| UNITED STATES MINOR OUTLYING ISLANDS | 11 |
| URUGUAY | 247 |
| UZBEKISTAN | 35 |
| VANUATU | 103 |
| VENEZUELA, BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF | 58 |
| VIET NAM | 232 |
| VIRGIN ISLANDS (BRITISH) | 14529 |
| VIRGIN ISLANDS (U.S.) | 6 |
| WALLIS AND FUTUNA | 1 |
| WEST BANK AND GAZA | 22 |
| WESTERN SAHARA | 2 |
| YEMEN | 21 |
| ZAMBIA | 37 |
| ZIMBABWE | 44 |
| Grand Total | 395483 |
Source: IRS
FATCA FAQ
FATCA is designed to stop US taxpayers from hiding their money offshore to avoid tax.
Many US taxpayers, especially expats, are unaware of FATCA and what it means to their finances.
Here are some answers to the most asked questions about FATCA.
FATCA is short for the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.
The FATCA list is a database of financial institutions outside the States registered as compliant with FATCA reporting standards.
Foreign financial institutions must supply the US Internal Revenue Service with a list of accounts controlled by US taxpayers each year. However, depending on if the taxpayer lives in the US or overseas, the reporting rules differ.
Any US taxpayer with offshore accounts or investments
No, FATCA applies to the financial institution, not taxpayers. However, the reports made under FATCA are compared with IRS tax filings to make sure taxpayers are paying the right amount of tax and not failing to declare their liability.
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