A BE-10, Benchmark Survey of U.S. Direct Investment Abroad will be conducted covering 2014. All legal authorities, provisions, definitions, and requirements contained in §§ 801.1 and 801.2 and §§ 801.4 through 801.6 are applicable to this survey. Specific additional requirements for the BE-10 survey are given in paragraphs (a) through (d) of this section. More detailed instructions are given on the report forms and instructions.

Response required. A response is required from persons subject to the reporting requirements of the BE-10, Benchmark Survey of U.S. Direct Investment Abroad—2014, contained herein, whether or not they are contacted by BEA. Also, a person, or their agent, that is contacted by BEA about reporting in this survey, either by sending them a report form or by written inquiry, must respond in writing pursuant this section. This may be accomplished by:

Certifying in writing, by the due date of the survey, to the fact that the person had no direct investment within the purview of the reporting requirements of the BE-10 survey;

Completing and returning the “BE-10 Claim for Not Filing” by the due date of the survey; or

Filing the properly completed BE-10 report (comprising Form BE-10A and Form(s) BE-10B, BE-10C, and/or BE-10D) by May 29, 2015, or June 30, 2015, as required.

Who must report. (1) A BE-10 report is required of any U.S. person that had a foreign affiliate—that is, that had direct or indirect ownership or control of at least 10 percent of the voting stock of an incorporated foreign business enterprise, or an equivalent interest in an unincorporated foreign business enterprise, including a branch—at any time during the U.S. person's 2014 fiscal year.

If the U.S. person had no foreign affiliates during its 2014 fiscal year, a “BE-10 Claim for Not Filing” must be filed by the due date of the survey; no other forms in the survey are required. If the U.S. person had any foreign affiliates during its 2014 fiscal year, a BE-10 report is required and the U.S. person is a U.S. Reporter in this survey.

Reports are required even if the foreign business enterprise was established, acquired, seized, liquidated, sold, expropriated, or inactivated during the U.S. person's 2014 fiscal year.

The amount and type of data required to be reported vary according to the size of the U.S. Reporters or foreign affiliates, and, for foreign affiliates, whether they are majority-owned or minority-owned by U.S. direct investors. For purposes of the BE-10 survey, a “majority-owned” foreign affiliate is one in which the combined direct and indirect ownership interest of all U.S. parents of the foreign affiliate exceeds 50 percent; all other affiliates are referred to as “minority-owned” affiliates.

Forms to be filed. (1) Form BE-10A must be completed by a U.S. Reporter. If the U.S. Reporter is a corporation, Form BE-10A is required to cover the fully consolidated U.S. domestic business enterprise. It must also file Form(s) BE-10B, C, and/or D for its foreign affiliates, whether held directly or indirectly.

Form BE-10B must be filed for each majority-owned foreign affiliate for which any of the following three items—total assets, sales or gross operating revenues excluding sales taxes, or net income after provision for foreign income taxes—was greater than $80 million (positive or negative) at any time during the affiliate's 2014 fiscal year.

Form BE-10C must be filed:

For each majority-owned foreign affiliate for which any one of the three items listed in paragraph (c)(2) of this section was greater than $25 million but for which none of these items was greater than $80 million (positive or negative), at any time during the affiliate's 2014 fiscal year, and

For each minority-owned foreign affiliate for which any one of the three items listed in (c)(2) of this section was greater than $25 million (positive or negative), at any time during the affiliate's 2014 fiscal year.

Form BE-10D must be filed for majority- or minority-owned foreign affiliates for which none of the three items listed in paragraph (c)(2) of this section was greater than $25 million (positive or negative) at any time during the affiliate's 2014 fiscal year. Form BE-10D is a schedule; a U.S. Reporter would submit one or more pages of the form depending on the number of affiliates that are required to be filed on this form.

Due date. A fully completed and certified BE-10 report comprising Form BE-10A and Form(s) BE-10B, C, and/or D (as required) is due to be filed with BEA not later than May 29, 2015, for those U.S. Reporters filing fewer than 50, and June 30, 2015, for those U.S. Reporters filing 50 or more, foreign affiliate Forms BE-10B, C, and/or D. If the U.S. person had no foreign affiliates during its 2014 fiscal year, it must file a BE-10 Claim for Not Filing by May 29, 2015.