Here is the definition from wikipedia: The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is a United States federal law that requires United States persons, including individuals who live outside the United States, to report their financial accounts held outside of the United States, and requires foreign financial institutions to report to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) about their U.S. clients. Congress enacted FATCA to make it more difficult for U.S. taxpayers to conceal assets held in offshore accounts and shell corporations, and thus to recoup federal tax revenues.[1] The FATCA is a portion of the 2010 Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act.[2][3] What I dont get quite is usgov taxes the income and real estate properties of individuals. I am not aware of taxing any other properties and assets like cars, furnitures, or money or stocks held in a bank. Here this act seems to tax the assets not income in foreign country. Correct me if I am wrong?
The US govt doesn't tax real estate properties; local (such as individual states) handle these taxes. The US govt doesn't tax all the income of individuals either; nearly $100K of foreign income can be excluded from US taxation if certain criteria are met. FATCA requires that individuals with more than a certain amount of financial interest in (or signature authority over), a foreign financial account (bank account, brokerage account, etc) must file an annual form reporting the account(s). This filing does not generate a tax liability; it's for reporting purposes only.