Common Reporting Standard (CRS)

Governments around the world are sharing information amongst between each other at an ever increasing rate.  One example of an information exchange regime falls under legislation known as the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) which is seen as a critical tool in the worldwide fight against tax evasion.

To date more than 100 jurisdictions have committed to adopting the CRS. These include countries such as the UK as well as areas that are subject to their own distinct tax regulations such as Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man etc. Any reference to countries in the following FAQs relates to all jurisdictions who have committed to adopting the CRS.

To comply with the CRS, Financial Institutions must obtain certain personal information from customers, before then providing it in specific circumstances, on an annual basis, to their local tax authority. In turn, the local tax authority will then exchange this information with overseas tax authorities where the country has formally signed up to participate.

In Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, we are required to complete CRS reporting to the Tax Authorities in each respective jurisdiction by 30 June every year in respect of customers we have identified as Reportable Persons or Reportable Entities.

 

How does the Common Reporting Standard impact me?

Under the CRS, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc and its branches are required to identify customers who hold accounts in the jurisdictions in which it operates who are tax resident in another different country outside of that jurisdiction for inter-country reporting purposes. To do this we need to collect information from customers and report certain information on any Reportable Persons and Reportable Entities and their Financial Account(s) to the local tax authorities where their account is held. This information will then be reported onwards to the tax authorities of the countries in which customers are tax resident.  

Customers who are only tax resident in either Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man and hold their accounts within the same jurisdiction where they are tax resident are likely not to need to do anything as they will be identified as resident for tax purposes in the Island where they live together with their account and therefore not a Reportable Person or Reportable Entity. However, there will be some customers who based on the information we hold, we believe to be Reportable Persons or Reportable Entities.

If we feel we need further information we will write to you asking you to complete a Tax Residency Self-Certification form. In some cases we will ask you for a reasonable explanation and/or additional documentary evidence as proof of tax residency. We may also write to you asking you to contact us so we can update the information we hold on you such as your Tax Identification Number (TIN) e.g. Unique Taxpayer Reference or National Insurance Number, confirmation as to where you are tax resident or your date of birth.

A list of jurisdictions is available on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) website providing an overview of domestic rules in the jurisdictions listed governing the issuance, structure, use and validity of TINs or their functional equivalents.

 

Do I need to do anything?

If you are affected by the CRS we may write to you asking you to fill in a Tax Residency Self-Certification form or call us to advise on missing information.

 

What does the Common Reporting Standard mean for customers?

Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc and its branches are obliged to report to the local tax authority the customers with a Financial Account who are tax resident in one Reportable Country but with Financial Accounts held in another. The local tax authority will then pass this information onto the Reportable Country where it has been established, or is believed due to information held, that the customers are resident for tax purposes.

 

Where can I find out more about the CRS?

In the first instance, you may like to look at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) website where more in-depth technical information have been published by each national tax authority. There has been significant coverage on CRS and there are many information resources available, including through the tax authorities in the country or jurisdiction where you are tax resident.

Frequently asked questions

We have put these FAQs together to help you understand the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) and why Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc needs to comply as it plays its part in the world-wide fight against tax evasion.

Important Note: Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc and its branches cannot provide advice to customers on the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) or any other tax related matter. If your questions are not answered by the literature or FAQs, or, if you do not understand your tax obligations, you may need to decide if you want to seek independent tax advice from a tax or financial advisor.

  • The Common Reporting Standard (CRS) is a global standard for the automatic exchange of Financial Account information between governments around the world to help fight against tax evasion and protect the integrity of systems.

    It requires all Financial Institutions including Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc and its branches who operate in CRS Participating Countries to gather certain customer information and report it to local tax authorities.

  • Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc and its branches, together with other Financial Institutions across the world, are required to comply with the Common Reporting Standard requirements with respect to customer identification, due diligence and reporting.

    Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc and its branches is required to identify where a customer is resident for tax purposes. Where the customer holds a Financial Account in a country outside of their country of tax residence it may be necessary to report the customer to the tax authority where the Financial Account is held, who in turn may share it with the customer's country of tax residence.

  • Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc and its branches needs to comply with CRS legislation. We are obliged under CRS to identify the tax residency of our customers. Where the customer is tax resident in a Reportable Country, or is suspected to be so, this information is reported to the tax authority in which the account is held who may in turn provide it to the tax authority of the Reportable Country.

  • All banks and their branches in Participating Countries are legally obliged to comply with the Common Reporting Standard.

  • There may be a number of reasons why we have contacted you, depending on your circumstances. We have contacted those customers for whom we hold insufficient tax residency information, where a customer may have had a change in circumstances suggesting a change in tax residency or in particular where we have information that indicates they are resident for tax purposes in one Participating Country but with Financial Accounts held in another.

    For individual customers with account(s) in a Participating Country, this is usually based on:

    • tax residence in another Participating Country
    • current mailing or residence address which includes a PO Box number, “in care of” or “hold mail”, in another Participating Country
    • one or more telephone numbers in another Participating Country (and no telephone number in the jurisdiction in which the account is held)
    • current effective Power of Attorney or Signatory Authority granted to a person with an address in another Participating Country
    • For accounts that are not depository accounts – standing instructions to transfer funds to an account maintained in another Participating Country.

    For entities with account(s) in a Participating Country, this is usually based on:

    • a place of incorporation or organisation in a Participating Country
    • an address in a Participating Country
    • Where the entity is a trust, an address of one or more of the trustees in a Participating Country(ies).

  • We think that some of the information we hold on you is missing or incomplete. For this reason, we need to ask you to provide additional information or confirmation of the position so we can understand if we need to send your details to the local tax authority in order to comply with CRS regulations.

  • A customer may be reported to local tax authority if we have information on them which leads us to believe they are tax resident in one Reportable Country but with Financial Accounts held in another. There is a legal requirement for Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc and its branches to do this in order to comply with the law in the jurisdictions in which they operate.

  • For Individuals/Controlling Persons

    • Name, address, date of birth of Financial Account holders
    • Place of birth
    • Current country(ies) of tax residence
    • Tax Identification Number (or equivalent where applicable)
    • Account details
    • Reporting entity where the account with us is held e.g. Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc 
    • The total account balance or value of your accounts as of the end of the calendar year or other appropriate period
    • Gross amount of interest, gross amount of dividends, and the gross amount of other income or the proceeds from the sale or redemption of investments paid or credited to the account.

    For Entities

    • Name and address
    • Current country of tax residence
    • Tax Identification Number (or equivalent where applicable)
    • Account details
    • Reporting entity where the account with us is held e.g. Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc 
    • The account balance or value as of the end of the calendar year or other appropriate period
    • Gross amount of interest, gross amount of dividends, and the gross amount of other income or the proceeds from the sale or redemption of investments paid or credited to the account
    • For some entities the information on the controlling person (please refer to above individual section).

  • CRS applies to certain accounts with investment features such as savings, current accounts, cash value life insurance and certain other investments. However, CRS regulations allow for certain exceptions such as lending products and loans.

  • CRS reporting is carried out on a yearly basis after the end of a given calendar year. If your account(s) have been deemed to be reportable they will still be reported even if they are closed during that calendar year, but will not be included in the reporting for subsequent calendar years. For example, reportable accounts that were open for all or part of 2017 will be reported to the local tax authority in 2018.

  • We may be required to report the information we hold about your account to the local tax authority who will share it with the relevant overseas tax authorities.

  • We are legally obliged to comply with the CRS legislation, which has been introduced and embedded into law in Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man.

    If you do not believe we should be sharing your information with the local tax authority you should contact us and advise us. We will re-issue a Tax Residency Self-Certification form which you should complete and return along with a reasonable explanation and/or any documentary proof requested such as a passport/driving licence as proof of residency for tax purposes.

  • Following the United States of America (US) Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) legislation and the Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories (CDOTs) legislation, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man have committed to the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) and the Automatic Exchange of Information with other Participating Countries throughout the world. The CRS agreements are separate to the FATCA/CDOT agreements; you will need to provide additional information for the CRS as these regulations have different requirements.

  • No. We are required by law to share this data with the relevant tax authorities. Under the terms of the Data Protection Notice (DPN) contained in your product terms and conditions we are not required to obtain consent in such circumstances.

    Full details of our privacy policy can be found in your terms and conditions.

  • We may be required to contact you in future if the information we hold on record for you changes in such a way that it could affect your tax residency.

  • If your circumstances change, you will need to let us know what these changes are within 30 days from the date of the change. This could include for example, a change of tax residence or change of address that could affect your tax residence.

  • The information requested in the self-certificate must be collected by Financial Institutions such as Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets and its branches as part of opening or maintaining a Financial Account. If however you are unhappy that we have asked you to provide this information, please refer to our Complaint Process.

  • You can find some useful guidance on where you might be tax resident on the OECD website. However, if you are still unsure please seek independent tax advice.

  • A Tax Identification Number is a unique identifier assigned to individuals and entities for tax purposes. It could consist of a combination of letters, numbers or both. You can find further information on TIN formats and where to find them for your country of tax residence via the OECD website. If you are a Tax Resident in the UK, the TIN will be your National Insurance (NI) Number or Unique Tax Reference (UTR) Number.

  • We need a response from you within 90 days of the letter being issued, however, if this date has passed, we still request that you endeavour to return the Tax Residency Self-Certification form as soon as possible.

  • If you have received a request to complete a Tax Residency Self-Certification form, simply complete, date and return the form using the prepaid envelope provided. You can photocopy the form, but please return documents dated with an original signature. In the majority of cases the completed Tax Residency Self-Certification form is all that you need to send back.

    However, certain individual account holders may need to provide certified copies of additional documents and reasonable explanations. If this is required it will be clearly shown in the enclosed letter. This could include: a currently valid passport, National Identity Card, Armed Forces Identity Card, current driving licence or Certificate of Tax Residence.

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Glossary

Below are some quick definitions of some common tax compliance jargon.

 

  • Reportable Person or Reportable Entity
    A ‘Reportable Person’ is any individual identified by a reporting entity (such as Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc) in one country as being resident for tax purposes in another reportable country (e.g. a jurisdiction with which the participating party has signed an agreement under CRS), who holds a Financial Account.
    As well as personal account holders, certain entities resident in a Participating Country or those which have individual Controlling Persons who are resident for tax purposes in Participating Countries may be reportable.
  • Jurisdiction
    For tax purposes a ‘jurisdiction’ is defined as an area subject to its own distinct tax regulations such as a US state, city, county or country.
  • Participating Country
    This is a country which has made a commitment to exchange information in accordance with the OECD CRS but may not yet have an effective agreement in place with Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man such that reporting is not yet required but is expected to be in due course.
  • Reportable Country
    This is a country that has an agreement in place to exchange information.
  • Reportable for CRS purposes
    Each country has its own rules for defining tax residence and countries have provided information on how to determine whether a person or an entity is tax resident in the country. Generally, an individual or an entity is resident for tax purposes in a country, if, under the laws of the country, they should be subject to the tax laws of that country. When we determine a customer who is holding a Financial Account, is resident for tax purposes in a Participating Country and is reportable for CRS, we will pass the relevant information to the local tax authority.
  • Tax Residency Self-Certification
    If a customer opens a new account, invests in a new product, or has a change in circumstances which may make them tax resident in a Participating Country, we may write to them asking them to complete a Tax residency Self –Certification form to confirm their country of tax residence. We may also write to some pre-existing customers who have Financial Accounts with us where this information has not previously been captured. This is called ‘Tax Residency Self-Certification’.
  • Controlling person
    Controlling persons are the Natural Persons who have ultimate control over an entity. In the case of a trust, the Controlling Person(s) are the settlor(s), the trustee(s), the protector(s) (if any), the beneficiary(ies) or class(es) of beneficiaries, or any other natural person(s) exercising ultimate effective control over the trust (including through a chain of control or ownership).
  • Entity
    For the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) this is defined as a legal person or a legal arrangement such as a corporation, organisation, partnership, trust or foundation. An entity will therefore be any customer that holds a business account, product or service. Under CRS, sole traders are not treated as entities but as individuals.
  • Financial Account
    The term “Financial Account” means an account maintained by a Financial Institution, and includes a Depository Account, a Custodial Account, certain equity or debt interest in investment entities and certain Cash Value Insurance Contract and Annuity Contract issued or maintained by a Financial Institution. A Financial Account is not an excluded account as per the CRS.