Form 3520: Do You Need to Report a Gift or Inheritance From Abroad?
Updated · Reviewed by Deepak Middha, Chartered Accountant
The short answer
A US person must file Form 3520 if gifts or inheritances from a foreign individual or estate total more than $100,000 in the year, or gifts from foreign companies or partnerships total more than $20,573 for 2026 ($20,116 for 2025). It is usually reporting only, not tax — but missing it costs 5% of the gift a month, up to 25%.
Do you need to file Form 3520?
You must report these gifts on Form 3520. Reporting is not the same as paying tax — a genuine gift or inheritance is generally not income to you.
- Parent abroad: $120,000 is more than the $100,000 threshold for gifts from a foreign individual or estate.
What to do next: mail Form 3520 separately from your return, listing each gift over $5,000 separately. It is due April 15, 2027 — or June 15, 2027 if you are a US citizen or resident living and working outside the US and Puerto Rico, or on military duty abroad (attach a statement saying so). If you get an extension of time to file your income tax return, the latest date is October 15, 2027. The money’s new home may need an FBAR or Form 8938 if it stays in a foreign account.
Key takeaways
- Gifts or bequests from a foreign individual or estate: report once the total from that giver and related givers is over $100,000.
- Gifts from foreign corporations or partnerships: report once they total over $20,573 (2026).
- A genuine gift or inheritance is generally not income to you; Form 3520 is an information return.
- Due April 15, or June 15 for eligible filers living abroad, and no later than October 15 with a filing extension — mailed separately from your tax return.
- The penalty for not reporting is 5% of the gift per month, up to 25%.
What counts as a foreign gift or inheritance?
The IRS defines a foreign gift or bequest as money or property you receive from a foreign person — a nonresident alien individual, a foreign corporation, a foreign partnership or a foreign estate — that you treat as a gift or bequest and leave out of your income. A foreign gift does not include amounts paid for qualified tuition or medical payments made on behalf of the U.S. person.
| Who gave it | Report on Form 3520 when the year's total is | Then list |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign individual or estate (and related persons) | More than $100,000 (2025 and 2026) | Each gift over $5,000 |
| Foreign corporations or partnerships (all combined) | More than $20,573 (2026) · $20,116 (2025) | Every gift and who gave it |
| A foreign trust (distribution) | Reported in Part III, not as a gift | See the Form 3520 instructions |
Form 3520 deadline and where it is filed
Due the 15th day of the 4th month after the end of your tax year — April 15 for a calendar-year individual. If you are granted an extension of time to file your income tax return, it is due no later than October 15. U.S. citizens and residents living and working outside the U.S. and Puerto Rico, or in the military on duty outside the U.S., have until June 15. It cannot be extended beyond October 15.
| Form 3520 for gifts received in | Ordinary due date | Living and working abroad* | Latest, with a filing extension |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | April 15, 2027 | June 15, 2027 | October 15, 2027 |
| 2025 | April 15, 2026 | June 15, 2026 | October 15, 2026 |
Filed separately from your income tax return, by mail to: Internal Revenue Service Center, P.O. Box 409101, Ogden, UT 84409. If you extended your income tax return, check box 1k and name that return’s form number, or the IRS can treat Form 3520 as late.
Is a gift or inheritance from overseas taxed?
A foreign gift or bequest is an amount the recipient treats as a gift or bequest and excludes from gross income — Form 3520 reports it; it is not a tax return. Income the gift later earns is taxable as usual, and gifts or bequests from a covered expatriate can be taxed to a U.S. recipient under IRC section 2801. The country the money comes from may tax the estate or the gift under its own rules; for how US treaties work by country, see the tax treaty guide. You may also be required to file FinCEN Form 114 (FBAR) and Form 8938 for the accounts the money lands in. — see the FBAR and Form 8938 checker.
Giving rather than receiving? Gifts you make to others are reported, if at all, on the US gift tax return — see Form 709 and the gift tax calculator.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to file Form 3520 for a gift from my parents abroad?
Only if the total from your parents — the IRS adds together gifts from related foreign persons — is more than $100,000 in the tax year. Above that, you file Form 3520 Part IV and list each gift over $5,000 separately. Below it, you report nothing. Money paid directly to your school or doctor on your behalf does not count.
Do I pay US tax on an inheritance from overseas?
Usually not as the person receiving it. The IRS describes a foreign gift or bequest as an amount the recipient excludes from gross income, and Form 3520 is an information return, not a tax return. Income the inheritance earns after you receive it is taxable as usual, and gifts or bequests from a former US citizen or green card holder who is a covered expatriate can be taxed under section 2801.
What is the Form 3520 threshold for gifts from a foreign company?
It is much lower and adjusted for inflation: you report purported gifts from foreign corporations or partnerships once their total passes $20,573 for 2026 ($20,116 for 2025). Once over, you list each gift and who gave it. The IRS can recharacterize these purported gifts — for example as income — so they deserve a closer look than gifts from a relative.
When is Form 3520 due, and where do I send it?
By the 15th day of the 4th month after your tax year ends — April 15 for most people. US citizens and residents living and working outside the US and Puerto Rico, or on military duty abroad, have until June 15. With an extension of time to file your income tax return it is due by October 15, and it cannot be extended past that. It is mailed separately from your tax return to the IRS in Ogden, Utah.
What is the penalty for not filing Form 3520?
For an unreported foreign gift, the penalty is 5% of the gift's value for each month it goes unreported, up to 25%, unless you have reasonable cause. The IRS can also decide the income tax consequences of the gift itself. Foreign trust failures have separate, larger penalties set out in the Form 3520 instructions.
Does Form 3520 replace the FBAR?
No. Form 3520 reports the gift; the FBAR and Form 8938 report the foreign accounts and assets you hold. If an inheritance lands in a bank account abroad and your foreign accounts together pass $10,000 at any point in the year, you file an FBAR as well — check both with the FBAR and Form 8938 checker.