also called Common Reporting Standard · automatic exchange of information
An international system where banks report account holders' details to their tax authorities, who share them with the person's country of tax residency.
CRS is the global pipework through which your bank tells its tax office who you are, and that office passes it on to the country where you say you are tax resident. FATCA is the American version aimed specifically at US citizens; CRS is the wider net most other countries use. The point that catches people is that it runs on the residency you declared, so a stale or sloppy claim can light you up.
You told a bank years ago you were resident in one country, then drifted on without updating anything. The bank keeps reporting you to that old country under CRS, its tax office notices you are no longer filing there, and a letter asking questions follows you around.
Your bank reports where you tell them you're tax resident, so an inconsistent or stale residency claim can flag you to authorities.
The difference is the whole point, so here is each one in a line.
These are the systems that report bank accounts to tax authorities, mostly aimed at Americans.
FATCA is the US law making foreign banks report American account holders, and FBAR is the separate filing Americans themselves submit on their foreign accounts once the total crosses a threshold.
CRS is the wider international version where countries swap account data automatically, and Streamlined Filing Procedures is the US amnesty for people who innocently failed to file.
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