Question: What happens to US citizens in Japan if they don't disclose that they have tax residency in the US when opening a bank account at a Japanese bank?
Background: I am a dual citizen (US/Japan) living in Japan, and I own a few bank accounts here which collectively hold less than 15 million JPY. When they ask the residency question when opening the account, it did not occur to me that I was a resident of the US (for tax purposes) since I was physically residing in Japan. And one of the accounts was created before 2017, which I believe is before they started asking this. For the record, I have been reporting taxes and FBAR each year since moving to Japan, where these accounts have been included. Should I contact the banks and request the forms necessary to disclose this information, or can I wait until they contact me? I am wondering what the possible penalties are, if any, for not reporting this information if I have been truthfully reporting my accounts on the FBAR and not attempting to do anything nefarious (i.e., tax evasion). I just don't want to provide more information than is absolutely necessary.
Asking for a friend.
by Queasy-Comedian6092