Mercury Bank and Payoneer - Why Your US Bank May Ask for Form 5472 Proof
Summary
US banks and payment platforms increasingly ask foreign-owned LLC owners for evidence of Form 5472 filings during periodic reviews. This guide covers what to provide.
Mercury Bank, Brex, Payoneer, and similar US-based fintech and banking partners have begun asking foreign-owned LLC owners for evidence of Form 5472 filings during periodic compliance reviews. The request typically comes through email or a banking platform message asking for a copy of recent tax filings. For many foreign founders, this is the moment they discover Form 5472 exists.
Why your bank is asking for Form 5472
US banks and payment platforms ask for Form 5472 evidence as part of periodic compliance reviews of foreign-owned LLC accounts. The request is not optional; failure to provide evidence may result in account restrictions or closure. If you have not filed Form 5472, voluntary catch-up filing under §6664(c) before responding to the bank is the strongest position. The base penalty is $25,000 per year per LLC under IRC §6038A(d)(1).
Why banks ask now
US banks and fintech platforms have always had compliance obligations under Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and anti-money laundering (AML) rules. In recent years, several factors have pushed foreign-owned LLC accounts higher up the compliance review priority:
- Increased regulatory scrutiny on fintech compliance
- Higher visibility of international tax avoidance schemes using US LLCs
- Expanded data-matching between FinCEN, IRS, and financial institutions
- Past acquisitions and consolidations putting more banks on the same compliance frameworks
Mercury, Brex, and Payoneer service large numbers of foreign-owned US LLC accounts. Periodic compliance reviews of these accounts now commonly include verification of US tax filing status. The form most frequently asked about is Form 5472, because it is the federal information return specifically required of foreign-owned single-member LLCs.
What the request typically asks for
Bank requests for Form 5472 evidence vary in specificity. Common patterns:
| Request type | What the bank asks for | What to send |
|---|---|---|
| General tax filings request | "Copies of recent federal tax filings", without naming a form | The most recent Form 5472 and Pro Forma 1120 packet, plus the certified mail receipt |
| Specific Form 5472 request | "The most recent Form 5472", or evidence of compliance with §6038A reporting requirements | The same documentation |
| Multi-year request | Filings for the past two to three years | The same packet for each year. If any year is unfiled, deal with that before replying to the bank. |
| EIN and IRS correspondence request | The EIN assignment letter and any IRS correspondence | The EIN letter. IRS correspondence usually does not exist for a foreign-owned LLC unless a notice has been issued. |
The bank is asking for documentation, not opinions. Provide what was filed and what was received. Do not attempt to explain or justify gaps in writing to the bank.
What to do if you have filed
If your Form 5472 + Pro Forma 1120 has been filed for the year(s) the bank is asking about, the response is straightforward:
- Send the requested documentation. A scanned copy of the filed Form 5472, the Pro Forma 1120 cover sheet, and the certified mail return receipt. Most banks accept these via secure upload through their compliance portal or email to a designated address.
- Include the IRS acknowledgment if available. The IRS does not always acknowledge late filings, but for current-year filings the bank may accept the certified mail receipt as proof of submission.
- Keep a copy of your bank correspondence. The compliance review file becomes part of your bank record and may be referenced in future reviews.
The bank typically responds with a confirmation that the review is complete and the account remains in good standing.
What to do if you have not filed
If you have not filed Form 5472 for the year(s) the bank is asking about, the situation requires careful sequencing. Three steps:
1. Do not provide false or misleading information to the bank. Sending fabricated filings or claiming filings exist that do not is a serious error. Banks have multiple verification channels and discovery is highly likely. Beyond the bank consequences, providing false information in a compliance context creates separate legal exposure.
2. File the missing year(s) immediately. The IRS allows voluntary catch-up filings with reasonable cause statements under IRC §6664(c). The mailing address is:
Internal Revenue Service 1973 Rulon White Blvd, M/S 6112 Attn: PIN Unit Ogden, UT 84201
Or fax to 855-887-7737. Send by certified mail with return receipt. Document the filing date.
3. Respond to the bank with the now-filed packet. Once the late filing is in the mail, you can respond to the bank with copies of the just-filed Form 5472 + Pro Forma 1120, plus the certified mail receipt as proof of submission. Note that the filing was recent if the bank asks about timing.
The strength of this approach is that it brings you into compliance and provides honest documentation of the filing. The bank's compliance review is satisfied by the existence of the filing, not by its history.
What if the bank gives a deadline?
Mercury, Brex, and Payoneer typically allow 30-60 days for compliance review responses. If the deadline is short and you have multiple unfiled years, the priority is filing the most recent year first (which the bank is most likely to ask about) and then expanding to prior years.
If the bank deadline is approaching and you have not filed, send a brief acknowledgment to the bank stating that you are gathering the requested documentation. Do not promise specific delivery dates that you cannot meet. Most banks extend deadlines for documented good-faith effort.
For multi-year cases, the strategy in Filed 5472 Multiple Years Late applies. File all unfiled years simultaneously with a single comprehensive reasonable cause statement.
What does not work
- Telling the bank that Form 5472 does not apply to you. It almost certainly does. Foreign-owned single-member LLCs are explicitly within scope of §6038A. The bank's compliance team has likely seen this argument before and will not be persuaded.
- Claiming your formation service handled it. Most formation services (Stripe Atlas, Doola, Firstbase, Northwest) do not file Form 5472. The bank can verify with the IRS whether the form was actually filed.
- Closing the account before responding. Some founders attempt to avoid the compliance review by closing the account. This does not eliminate the §6038A obligation, and the bank's compliance file may continue to flag the account for restrictions even after closure.
- Switching to a different bank to avoid the issue. New banks run the same compliance reviews. Many fintech platforms share compliance information through industry consortia. The next bank typically asks the same question within 6-18 months.
Answering the bank without making your position worse
If a US bank or payment platform has asked for Form 5472 evidence, the right action is to provide the documentation if filings exist, or to file the missing years immediately and provide the just-filed packet if not. The cornerstone diagnostic for late filers is at Missed Form 5472. For the immediate panic action plan, see What to Do Right Now. For multi-year cases, see Filed 5472 Multiple Years Late.
For standard catch-up filings, filetax.co generates the complete Form 5472 + Pro Forma 1120 packet for $99 in under 15 minutes.
The IRS's official Form 5472 page is at IRS.gov/Form5472.
Questions about the bank's request
Mercury asked me for "Form 5472 or proof you do not need to file." What does that mean?
Mercury's compliance language sometimes phrases the request as either-or to address rare cases where the form genuinely is not required (truly inactive LLCs with zero reportable transactions). For almost all operating Mercury accounts, the form is required, and the appropriate response is to provide the filing.
Will the bank close my account if I do not respond?
Possibly. Most banks send 1-2 reminders before account restrictions or closure. Mercury, Brex, and Payoneer have all closed foreign-owned LLC accounts for compliance review non-response. Responding with the filing (or just-filed) packet generally resolves the issue.
I filed Form 5472 last year but not this year yet. What do I tell the bank?
Provide last year's filed packet and the certified mail receipt. If the bank asks about the current year, note that the current-year filing is in progress and the deadline is April 15 (October 15 with extension). Filing the current year promptly addresses the ongoing question.
My LLC is dormant. Do I need to file?
A truly dormant LLC with zero reportable transactions in a year may not need to file. However, the threshold is low: any capital contribution, distribution, payment, or loan triggers the requirement. Document the absence of transactions for any year you do not file.
Can I provide just the Pro Forma 1120 without the Form 5472?
No. The two must be filed together. The Pro Forma 1120 alone does not satisfy the §6038A obligation. Banks asking for "Form 5472" want both pages of the packet (Form 5472 + Pro Forma 1120 cover sheet).
Does the bank report me to the IRS if I have not filed?
Banks have BSA reporting obligations for certain transactions but generally do not report compliance review outcomes to the IRS directly. The risk is account restriction or closure, not direct IRS notification. However, banks do share information through industry consortia and other channels.
Can I send the bank a filing I made yesterday?
Yes, and that is usually the right answer if you were not filed. A stamped certified mail receipt plus the complete packet you sent shows the filing was made. Banks running periodic reviews are checking that the obligation is being met, not auditing the date, and a just-filed packet with proof of mailing is materially better than a non-answer.
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