The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), a division of the U.S. Department of Commerce, is again requesting certain businesses to complete its benchmarking survey of U.S. Direct Investment Abroad. The BEA requires U.S. persons with investments abroad to complete this survey every five years. This filing requirement is due as early as May 29 (or June 20, depending on the number of forms that are required to be filed, as discussed below). If you haven’t already filed the BEA Benchmarking Survey (Form BE-10), you may still apply for an extension; however, an extension until Aug. 31 may only be obtained by filing the request by the original applicable due date.
- The BEA Benchmarking Survey covers fiscal years ending during 2019.
- All entities subject to the reporting requirements must file, even if they are not contacted by BEA.
- Those who would normally file a BEA Form BE-11 annual survey must file the BEA Benchmarking Survey instead for 2019.
- Refer to the FAQs below for more about who is required to file.
Who Must File?
A Form BE-10 report is required of any U.S. person that had a foreign affiliate – that is, that had ownership or control of at least 10 percent of the voting stock of an incorporated foreign business enterprise, or an equivalent interest in an unincorporated foreign business enterprise – at the end of the U.S. person’s 2019 fiscal year. If the U.S. person had no foreign affiliates during its 2019 fiscal year, but was contacted by the BEA requesting it file a Form BE-10, it must file a “BE-10 Claim for Not Filing”; no other forms in the survey are required. If the U.S. person had any foreign affiliates during its 2019 fiscal year, a BE-10 report is required and the U.S. person is considered to be a U.S. Reporter for purposes of this survey.
Forms for U.S. Reporter and Foreign Affiliates
There are actually several different BE-10 forms, and the correct one depends on the facts and circumstances. Each U.S. Reporter who had a foreign affiliate at the end of the 2019 fiscal year must complete Form BE-10A. In addition, each U.S. Reporter must complete a separate Form BE-10B, Form BE-10C or Form BE-10D for each foreign affiliate, depending on the size of the operations of the foreign affiliate and its ownership.
Form BE-10A – Report for U.S. Reporter – Basic Requirements
- If the U.S. Reporter is a corporation, Form BE-10A must cover the fully consolidated U.S. domestic business enterprise (banking and nonbanking). The U.S. Reporter must file a complete Form BE-10A if any one of the following three items of the fully consolidated U.S. domestic business enterprise was greater than $300 million (positive or negative) at the end of, or for, the Reporter’s 2019 fiscal year:
- total assets,
- sales or gross operating revenues excluding sales taxes, or
- net income after provision for U.S. income taxes.
- A U.S. Reporter that is an individual, estate, trust, or religious, charitable, or other nonprofit organization, and that owns a foreign affiliate directly, rather than through a U.S. business enterprise, should also complete Form BE-10A and attach an explanatory note attesting to its status. Required Forms BE-10B, BE-10C, and BE-10D must be filed as appropriate. Special rules apply where a U.S. individual, estate, trust, or nonprofit organization owns more than 50 percent of a U.S. business enterprise that, in turn, owns a foreign affiliate.
- A U.S. Reporter that is a U.S. affiliate of a foreign person and that is filing a 2019 BE-15A, Annual Survey of Foreign Direct Investment in the United States, will have a limited filing requirement. If the U.S. Reporter is filing a BE-15B, or BE-15C, in lieu of the BE-15A, it should complete the entire Form BE-10A.
- If two or more U.S. Reporters jointly own, directly or indirectly, a foreign affiliate, each U.S. Reporter must file a Form BE-10A.
Form BE-10B
A BE-10B must be filed for each foreign affiliate of a U.S. Reporter, whether held directly or indirectly, for which any one of the following three items was greater than $80 million (positive or negative) at the end of, or for, the affiliate’s 2019 fiscal year:
- Total assets,
- Sales or gross operating revenues excluding sales taxes, or
- Net income after provision for foreign income taxes
Form BE-10C
A BE-10C must be filed for:
- Each majority-owned foreign affiliate of a U.S. Reporter, whether held directly or indirectly, for which any one of the following three items was greater than $25 million (positive or negative), but for which no one of these items was greater than $80 million (positive or negative) at the end of, or for, the affiliate’s 2019 fiscal year:
- total assets
- sales or gross operating revenues excluding sales taxes, or
- net income after provision for foreign income taxes
- Each minority-owned foreign affiliate of a U.S. Reporter for which any one of
- total assets,
- sales or gross operating revenues excluding sales taxes, or
- net income after provision for foreign income taxes was greater than $25 million (positive or negative) at the end of, or for, the affiliate’s 2019 fiscal year; and
- Each foreign affiliate of a U.S. Reporter for which no one of
- total assets,
- sales or gross operating revenues excluding sales taxes, or
- net income after provision for foreign income taxes was greater than $25 million (positive or negative) at the end of, or for, the affiliate’s 2019 fiscal year that is a foreign affiliate parent of another foreign affiliate being filed on Form BE-10B or BE-10C.
Form BE-10D
A BE-10D must be filed for the foreign affiliate(s) of a U.S. Reporter for which no one of (1) total assets, (2) sales or gross operating revenues excluding sales taxes, or (3) net income after provision for foreign income taxes was greater than $25 million (positive or negative) at the end of, or for, the affiliate’s 2019 fiscal year, and such foreign affiliate is not a foreign affiliate parent of another foreign affiliate being filed on Form BE-10B or BE-10C.
If a foreign affiliate meeting the reporting requirements for Form BE-10D owns another foreign affiliate being filed on Form BE-10B or BE-10C, the foreign affiliate parent must be filed on Form BE-10C.
Where to File
The BE-10 forms may be filed electronically through the BEA website at www.bea.gov/efile or by mail. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the BEA’s limited ability to receive physical copies of the survey, the BEA is encouraging filers to complete the survey through the BEA website.
Questions?
If you have any questions, please contact us.