Missed FBARs & foreign income
You have unreported foreign accounts or income and the failure was non-willful — an honest mistake, not deliberate hiding.
Offshore Disclosure
Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures
If you have unreported foreign accounts or income and the oversight was non-willful, the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures are usually the cleanest way to get fully compliant — often with a reduced penalty, and for qualifying Americans abroad, no penalty at all.
The program is precise: three years of amended returns, six years of FBARs, and a non-willful certification that has to be right. As an international tax specialist, I prepare the entire submission.
Who This Applies To
U.S. residents (SDOP)
The Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures cover taxpayers who live in the U.S. and filed returns but missed foreign disclosures.
Americans abroad (SFOP)
The Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures cover qualifying non-residents — often with no penalty at all.
Recently learned you had to file
Many people first hear about FBARs, Form 5471, or 3520 years in. Streamlined is built for exactly that situation.
What I Do
Streamlined is a package, not a single form. I assemble the whole submission and the certification that holds it together.
- Confirm you are eligible and non-willful before anything is filed
- Prepare three years of amended returns and six years of FBARs
- Calculate the Title 26 miscellaneous offshore penalty base (SDOP)
- Draft the non-willful certification — the heart of the submission
- Assemble and submit the complete package the way the IRS expects it
Full Return, Handled End-to-End: The certification is where most Streamlined cases succeed or fail. I write it with the whole return in front of me so the story and the numbers match.
Streamlined at a Glance
SDOP (U.S. Residents)
5%
A one-time Title 26 miscellaneous offshore penalty on the highest year-end value of your foreign financial assets across the covered years.
SFOP (Non-Residents)
0%
Qualifying Americans abroad pay no offshore penalty — just tax and interest on the income that was not reported.
What You File
3 + 6
Three years of amended returns and six years of FBARs, plus a signed non-willful certification.
If You Wait
Full Exposure
Once the IRS opens an exam or contacts you, Streamlined is off the table and standard FBAR, 5471, and 3520 penalties apply.
Streamlined only works while you are the one coming forward. Eligibility turns on non-willfulness and timing — a short review confirms both before anything is filed.
Streamlined Questions
Streamlined Filing FAQ
What are the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures?
An IRS program that lets taxpayers whose failure to report foreign accounts and income was non-willful get compliant by filing three years of amended returns, six years of FBARs, and a certification of non-willful conduct. U.S. residents use the Domestic version (SDOP); qualifying non-residents use the Foreign version (SFOP).
What is the difference between SDOP and SFOP?
SDOP (Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures) is for U.S. residents and carries a 5% miscellaneous offshore penalty on the highest year-end value of foreign financial assets. SFOP (Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures) is for taxpayers who meet a non-residency test and carries no offshore penalty at all.
What does non-willful mean?
Non-willful conduct is negligence, inadvertence, mistake, or a good-faith misunderstanding of the law — not a deliberate attempt to hide accounts. You certify non-willfulness under penalties of perjury, so the facts and the narrative have to genuinely support it. This is the part of the submission I spend the most care on.
How much does the penalty come to?
For SDOP it is 5% of the highest aggregate year-end balance of your foreign financial assets over the covered period — a one-time penalty, not per account or per year. For SFOP it is 0%. Either way you also pay the tax and interest on any income that was not previously reported.
Can I still use Streamlined if the IRS already contacted me?
Generally no. Streamlined requires that you come forward on your own. If the IRS has opened a civil examination or criminal investigation of any of your returns, you are no longer eligible, which is why acting before that happens matters so much.
What if only my FBARs were missing but my income was reported?
Then you may not need Streamlined at all — the Delinquent FBAR Submission Procedures often let you file the late FBARs with no penalty. I confirm which path fits before recommending the more involved Streamlined route.
About Your Preparer
Prepared Personally by Tajma Qorri
Tajma Qorri is the founder of Qorri Tax Service LLC and an international tax specialist with more than 10 years in public accounting at Plante Moran, Grant Thornton, and Dean Dorton. Her focus is cross-border compliance — Forms 5471, 5472, 3520, and 8938; FBAR reporting; streamlined filing procedures; and tax-treaty analysis — for individuals and small businesses.
Every engagement is handled directly by Tajma, never passed to junior staff, and she has filed returns for clients in all 50 states. You get a firm, flat-fee quote before any work begins.
Streamlined Filing Help in Chicago and Nationwide
Qorri Tax works from an office at 222 S Prospect Ave in Park Ridge, IL, serving Chicago-area clients in person and clients in all 50 states remotely. Whether you are around the corner or across the country, Streamlined Filing preparation is handled the same way — directly by Tajma, start to finish.
Streamlined Domestic (SDOP) engagements start at $3,500 (three years of returns, six years of FBARs, and the penalty calculation), quoted as a flat fee up front. See full pricing →
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