u/MeiXiluo

Suppose I invest $100,000 in the fund. The fund distributes income as dividends on a daily basis, and all dividends are automatically reinvested to purchase additional shares.

For example, if the fund earns $10 and distributes it as a dividend, that $10 is automatically reinvested to buy additional shares. At the same time, the reinvested dividend increases my tax basis by $10.

So, if I receive a total of $2,000 in dividends over the year and reinvest all of them:

• My investment value increases from $100,000 to approximately $102,000.
• My tax basis also increases from $100,000 to approximately $102,000.
• If the NAV remains essentially unchanged, I would eventually redeem the fund for approximately $102,000.

In that case, would the $2,000 increase in value essentially be entirely dividend income, with no additional capital gain when I redeem the fund, because the reinvested dividends have also increased my tax basis by the same amount?

After reading the helpful responses from several people here, I’d like to go over my current understanding and make sure I’m interpreting the Form 8938 rules correctly.

Suppose I have one foreign bank account, and I use that account to purchase one foreign mutual fund (PFIC). The bank automatically creates a separate fund account for the PFIC.

My current understanding is:

1. I report the bank account in Part V of Form 8938.
2. I also report the separate PFIC/fund account in Part V, if it is considered a separate financial account.
3. In Part IV, I report that I filed one Form 8621, because the PFIC is subject to the duplicative reporting exception.
4. I do not report the PFIC’s dividend or other income in Part III because the PFIC itself is already reported on Form 8621 and therefore does not need to be separately reported in Part V/VI.

Is this correct?

In other words, am I understanding this correctly that:

• If the reported fund account only contains a PFIC, and the PFIC generates a dividend, the PFIC dividend does not need to be separately reported in Part III because of the duplicative reporting exception; but
• If the fund account generates other income that is not attributable to the PFIC (for example, interest or some other separately reportable income), then that other income would need to be reported in Part III?

Am I misunderstanding the relationship between the financial account, the assets held in the account, and the duplicative reporting rules for PFICs?

I have a foreign bank account that I use to purchase and redeem PFICs (mutual funds). The bank automatically creates a separate account/sub-account for each PFIC I purchase.

The confusing part is that I did not actively open these PFIC accounts myself. I would not even know these accounts existed unless I looked carefully through the bank’s online system. I do not have separate passwords or independent login access for these accounts, and I cannot independently deposit or withdraw money from them.

My main bank account is essentially the only entry and exit point for the PFICs. I use the bank account to purchase the PFICs, and when I redeem them, the proceeds go back to the same bank account.

My questions are:

1. Do these automatically created PFIC sub-accounts need to be separately reported on FBAR and/or Form 8938?
2. Or is reporting the main bank account sufficient, with the PFICs themselves reported separately on Form 8621?
3. Does the fact that I did not actively open these accounts and have no separate login, password, or independent control over them affect whether they are considered separate financial accounts for FBAR/Form 8938 purposes?

I would really appreciate input from anyone who has dealt with a similar account structure.

Hey everyone,

I’m currently browsing eBay for a used laptop, and I’ve noticed a frustrating trend with quite a few listings.

Some sellers don't upload any close-up or detail photos of the actual laptop at all (just 2 or 3 generic, far-away shots). Worse, some of them upload screenshots of the system specs (like Windows Task Manager or About PC) that are so incredibly blurry and out of focus that it’s almost impossible to read the actual hardware configuration.

It honestly feels like they are deliberately trying to hide something—whether it's cosmetic damage, a scratched screen, or the fact that the actual specs are lower than what's written in the title.

Am I being paranoid, or are these types of listings an instant "hard pass"? Have any of you bought from sellers like this and ended up with a brick or a heavily damaged device?

I’d love to hear your experiences and any red flags I should look out for when buying used tech on eBay. Thanks!