Do banks report deposits to the IRS​?

Core Insights - Banks are required to report deposits over $10,000 to the IRS as part of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) [3][5] - Financial institutions must file IRS Form 8300 and FinCEN Form 104 for large transactions [4][11] - The reporting threshold is designed to combat money laundering and illegal activities [5] Reporting Requirements - Banks report daily aggregate deposits exceeding $10,000, which includes multiple transactions that sum to this amount [3] - The reporting is mandatory and must be completed within 15 days of the transaction [4][11] - Financial institutions may also report suspicious activities that could indicate tax evasion or other criminal activities [5] IRS Utilization of Reports - The IRS uses Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs) to identify unreported income and potential tax evasion [7] - CTRs may lead to further audits or inquiries into a taxpayer's financial activities [7][10] - The IRS can request bank records if there are unexplained cash deposits, although it cannot access bank accounts directly [10] Transaction Specifics - Depositing a $20,000 check triggers mandatory reporting to the IRS [11] - Smaller deposits, such as $2,000, are generally not suspicious but may raise flags if there are patterns of large deposits without explanation [12] - The threshold for reporting varies based on the type of income, with specific amounts for self-employment income [13]