It said the latest amnesty would be open for an indefinite period "until otherwise announced".
At the same time, the tax collection agency revealed that it has collected more than $4.4bn to date from its two previous amnesty schemes aimed at bringing in from the cold the undeclared offshore assets of US citizens.
The new disclosure scheme is similar to its predecessor, the so-called Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative, of 2011, except that it increases the maximum penalty for unreported foreign bank account holdings (FBARs) to 27.5%, from 25%, of the highest account value at any time between 2003 and 2010.
Also different, there is no set deadline for individuals to apply to participate, but "the terms of the programme could change at any time going forward," the IRS said.
"For example, the IRS may increase penalties in the programme for all or some taxpayers or defined classes of taxpayers — or decide to end [it] at any point."
In a statement, the IRS said its third tax amnesty followed "continued strong interest from taxpayers and tax practitioners after the closure of the 2011 and 2009 programs".
It noted that the reopening of the OVDP came as the agency continued to work on "a wide range of international tax issues" aimed at cracking down on the use by Americans of offshore accounts to evade their US tax obligations.
IRS commissioner Doug Shulman said the IRS’s focus on offshore tax evasion was continuing to produce "strong, substantial results".
Reaction
Tax industry experts said the latest US tax amnesty scheme only looks really good when it is compared to the alternative, which is having to face the increasingly aggressive IRS without such a deal.
"While a penalty calculated at a rate of 27.5% might be a little expensive for some, entering into this amnesty will provide a clear option for those uncomfortable with simply doing nothing and being found by the IRS," said David Treitel, tax director at US Tax and Financial Services, a London-based firm which specialises in looking after Americans.
"Some individuals may still be able to get a better deal by using traditional voluntary disclosure [and] hopefully managing to get IRS agreement to reduce penalties.
"However, because of the size of all possible IRS penalties, and indeed that there are several other options outside of this amnesty, including arguing ‘reasonable cause’ under an IRS policy announced on 13 Dec, it is always worth seeking professional advice before getting in contact with the IRS."
Yann Rousset, executive director of Maseco Private Wealth SA, which specialises in managing US assets in Switzerland, said the new disclosure may be good for those who might otherwise face major penalties. However, he said, like the previous Amiercan disclosures, it fails to make a distinction between people who have intentionally been avoiding paying US tax for years by making use of offshore accounts, “and those who may have been born in the US 39-years-and-nine-months ago, but have lived abroad ever since, and now, at age 40, are discovering that they are considered Americans and as such, have tax and reporting obligations to the IRS".
“This disclosure still doesn’t addreess that issue,” he noted.
Rousset added that it would have been more sensible for all concerned if the IRS had said, back when it launched its first amnesty scheme, that it was planning to run a continuous disclosure scheme indefinitely, with gradually increasing penalties — rather than continually bringing out new schemes and then closing them.
Criticism
The new OVDP comes in the wake of some strong criticism of the US from various sources, including groups representing expatriate Americans as well as, in September, Canada’s finance minister, about the way it has been targeting expats in particular for their tax irregularities.
