Foreigners must report agricultural land holdings
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[February 11, 2013]
SPRINGFIELD -- The U.S.
Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency state executive
director, Scherrie Giamanco, reminds foreign individuals with an
interest in agricultural lands in the United States that they are
required to report their holdings and any transactions to the U.S.
secretary of agriculture.
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"Any foreign person who
acquires, transfers or holds any interest, other than a security
interest, including leaseholds of 10 years or more, in agricultural
land in the United States is required by law to report the
transaction no later than 90 days after the date of the
transaction," said Giamanco. Foreign investors must file
Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act, or AFIDA, reports
with the FSA county office that maintains reports for the county
where the land is located.
"Failure to file a report, filing a late report or filing an
inaccurate report can result in a penalty with fines up to 25
percent of the fair market value of the agricultural land," Giamanco
said.
For the purposes of the report, agricultural land is defined as any land
used for farming, ranching or timber production, if the tracts total
10 acres or more.
Disclosure reports are also required when there are changes in
land use. For example, reports are required when land use changes
from nonagricultural to agricultural or from agricultural to
nonagricultural. Foreign investors must also file a report when
there is a change in the status of ownership, such as if the owner
changes from foreign to non-foreign, from non-foreign to foreign or
from foreign to foreign.
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Data gained from these disclosures is used to prepare an annual
report to the president and Congress concerning the effect of such
holdings upon family farms and rural communities in the United
States.
For more information regarding AFIDA and FSA programs, contact
your local county FSA office or visit
http://www.usda.gov/.
[Text from file received from
Illinois Farm Service Agency]
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