The IRS published a revised version of Publication 5124, the technical user guide for electronic FATCA reporting. According to the IRS, the updated user guide provides clarifications and minor updates to the original version that was issued in March 2014. Foreign Financial Institutions that report account information directly to the IRS must file Form 8966. The user guide explains how to prepare an electronic filing of Form 8966 and the information required to be included in each element of FATCA XML Schema v1.0. See: FATCA User Guide; Form 8966. See also: Cabinet FATCA Materials (for Cabinet

ISDA released a draft response to ESMA's discussion paper on position limits and reporting for MiFID commodities. Comments on the draft response must be submitted by June 23, 2014. See: Draft Response.

The U.S. House Committee on Rules published an amended version of H.R. 4413 ("Customer Protection and End User Relief Act"). The amended Act incorporates the provisions approved by the House Agriculture Committee. The amended version of the bill will be debated by the House next week.For a brief summary of the legislation, see our prior news story. See: H.R. 4413; House Agriculture Committee Report on Futures Customer Protection Act. Related news: House Agriculture Committee Approves Bipartisan Legislation to Reauthorize CFTC (with Lofchie Comment) (April 9, 2014); House Agriculture Committee

The U.S. Treasury Department ("Treasury") revised the Annex I to the Model 1 and Model 2 Intergovernmental Agreements ("IGAs") under FATCA. Annex I contains reasonably simplified due diligence procedures that Foreign Financial institutions ("FFIs") in IGA countries must follow to determine the direct and indirect U.S. owners. Generally, the due diligence procedures in Annex I differ depending on whether the account was opened prior to July 1, 2014 (a "preexisting account") or on or after that date (a "new account") and whether the account holder is an individual or an entity. In Notice 2014-33

New Zealand and South Africa each signed FATCA Intergovernmental Agreements ("IGAs") with the United States. Each IGA is based on the Model 1A (Reciprocal) form under which South African and New Zealand Foreign Financial Institutions are required to report information on accounts owned directly or indirectly by U.S. persons to their local tax authority for automatic transfer to the United States. New Zealand and the United States also signed a Memorandum of Understanding in connection with the signing of the IGA clarifying several items, including that certain New Zealand organizations