Updated 2025 BVIFARS User Guide

Summary

This is the ITA's technical user guide (Version 10.0.1) for the BVI Financial Account Reporting System (BVIFARS), the online portal used by financial institutions and other reporting entities to enrol and file US FATCA, CRS and Country-by-Country (CBCr) reports. It is purely a 'how-to' operational manual for using the system and does not itself create new policy or legal reporting requirements, though it describes procedural steps users must follow to comply with existing FATCA/CRS/CBCr obligations.

• Enrolment: Financial institutions and CBCr-relevant entities must complete the BVIFARS Enrolment Form to register, providing a BVI Registered Office Address and, now, a separate address for actual place of business/operations if different.
• Change of Reporting Obligations: Already-enrolled institutions must use the Change of Reporting Obligations form to notify the ITA of new or changed obligations (e.g. adding CRS after FATCA-only enrolment); obligation type cannot be switched between CBC and CRS/FATCA.
• Trustee Documented Trusts (TDTs): TDTs already registered must submit a change of reporting entity information filing designating Reporting Entity Type as 'Trustee Documented Trust' and answer 'Yes' to the CRS Non-Reporting Entity question.
• CRS filing structure: A separate CRS Manual Entry or XML Upload filing must be created for each reportable jurisdiction; aggregated multi-jurisdiction filings are not accepted, and dual-resident account holders or controlling persons must be reported separately to each applicable jurisdiction.
• System security: Password reset links expire 20 minutes after being requested, after which the process must be restarted.

The guide also covers user management, viewing submitted filings, IRS notifications, CRS validation error correction, BEPS Country-by-Country reporting, and fee payment (single and bulk) within BVIFARS. It references underlying legal instruments (the Mutual Legal Assistance (Tax Matters) Act, Guidance Notes, and Competent/Multilateral Authority Agreements) as the source of substantive FATCA/CRS/CBCr obligations, which this document does not itself alter.

Key obligations

• Financial institutions and CBCr-relevant entities must complete the BVIFARS Enrolment Form before filing, including a BVI Registered Office Address and (where applicable) a separate actual place of business address
• Institutions must not submit a second enrolment form if already enrolled; must use the Change of Reporting Obligations form instead
• Institutions must notify the ITA of any change in reporting obligations (e.g. addition of CRS after FATCA-only enrolment) via the Change of Reporting Obligations filing
• Reporting obligation type cannot be changed directly between CBC and CRS/FATCA
• TDTs already registered with BVIFARS must submit a change of reporting entity information filing designating Reporting Entity Type as Trustee Documented Trust and select Yes for CRS Non-Reporting Entity
• A separate CRS Manual Entry or XML Upload filing must be created and submitted for each reportable jurisdiction; aggregated filings across jurisdictions will not be accepted
• Account holders or controlling persons who are dual/multi-jurisdiction tax residents must be reported in separate filings for each applicable reportable jurisdiction
• Password reset link in the confirmation email must be used within 20 minutes of the request or the process must be restarted

Applies to

financial institutions, reporting entities for CBCr, Trustee Documented Trusts (TDTs), Sponsoring Entities

Deadlines

• within 20 minutes: The password reset link sent after selecting Forgotten Password must be used within 20 minutes or the process must be restarted